Week 4
Match 1: Vesturbær Volcanos (140/9, Avik Ghosh 38, Senthil Mahalingam 19, Dushan Bandara 2-17, Sulaman Nawaz 2-19) beat Hafnarfjordur Hammers (90/10, Chamley Fernando 18, Javed Miakhial 16, Kathir Narayanan 4-27, Saravanan Shanmugam 2-11) by 50 runs.
SportZchain Man of the Match: Kathir Narayanan
Volcanos won the toss in the Sunday morning match and decided to bat against the table toper Hafnarfjordur Hammers. They had a disastrous start as Sebastiaan Dreyer hit the second ball of the match straight to Dushan Bandara. However, Avik Ghosh and Lee Nelson survived the first two hostile overs and then started scoring freely. Although Dushan Bandara removed Nelson for 15 with a beautiful outswinger, Ghosh continued the hitting spree with Kathir Narayanan to take the score to 74 at the drinks break. Once Ghosh and Narayanan got out just before and after the break, Volcanos´ batsmen tried to keep up the run rate despite losing wickets at regular interval. Senthil Mahalingam held the innings together, while Mohit Kotian played a little cameo of 15 from 9 deliveries and Volcanos were able to score 140/9 in 20 overs. Chamley Fernando started the Hammers´ reply by hitting Kathir Narayanan for 18 in the first over, including a first ball six. However, Narayanan made a strong come-back by getting Yonas and Fernando out in the 3rd and 5th over. In between, Kuldeep Jha removed dangerous Dushan Bandara for 5 and Volcanos were at the top. Narayanan, Sampath Nagarajan, Vaibhab Anandgaonkar and Saravanan Shanmugam ran through the Hammers middle and lower order, reducing them to 69 for 8 after the first 10 overs and completed the formality of taking the last two wickets in the next 2 overs after the break. With this win Volcanos secured their place at the top of the table, although they have played one match more than the second placed Hammers.
Kathir Narayanan was awarded the SportZchain Man of the Match for his superlative bowling effort.
Match 2: Kopavogur Puffins (148/6, M Kareem 50, Hari Singh 30, Ramesh Eddum 3-19, W Mahagoda 3-28,) beat Reykjavik Vikings (67 all out, P Weerasooriya 15, Lakmal A 14, B Rayner 4-20, Jackob Robertson 4-15) by 81 runs
SportZchain Man of the Match: M Kareem
Puffins started their innings slowly but steadily by negotiating the first two overs carefully and then accelerated by taking 13 runs apiece from the next two. Once Bala got out at the score of 44 in seventh over, Kareem first put on 17 runs with Robertson and then added 50 runs with Hari Singh to take the score to 122 in 14 overs. Both Kareem and Singh were able to hit the bad balls to the boundaries with ease and put on the half-century partnership in little over than 6 overs. However, things slowed down significantly once Kareem got out for 50 and Eddum took 3 Puffin wickets in 16th over, including Singh. Despite valiant efforts from Botha and Rayner, Puffins could add only 26 in the last six overs, posting 148/6 in 20 overs. Ravi Rawat and Lakshita Bimsara started the chase well for Vikings by scoring 12 runs in the first 2 overs. Although Botha dismissed Rawat in the 3rd over, Lakmal Amaratunga took the score to 30 in 5 overs. However, as the bright sunny summer day suddenly changed to a dark misty one, the Vikings lost their plot suddenly in 6th over. They lost 5 wickets for 5 runs in 3 overs, including the one of Derick Deonarain for a 2-ball duck. This damage was irreversible and although Weerasooriya and Jack delayed the inevitable, Vikings finally got dismissed for 67 in 13th over.
M Kareem was adjudged the SportZchain Man of the Match for his superb half-century.
Match 3: Hafnarfjordur Hammers (204, Chamley Fernando 62, Tajder Khan 41, Ramesh Eddum 3-40, P Weerasooriya 2-45) beat Reykjavik Vikings (100/10, M Sandaru 33, Derick Deonarain 13, S Saeed 2-8, Tajder Khan 2-9) by 104 runs
SportZchain Man of the Match: Chamley Fernando
Hammers reclaimed the table topper position by handling Vikings another big defeat, this time by 104 runs. Return of their captain Lakmal Bandara was not enough for a change of fortune for Vikings as Chamley Fernando amassed 80 runs in first 8 overs with help from Javed Miakhial. Chamley scored 62 runs from 32 balls in this partnership with 9 fours and two huge sixes. While all the teams were able to slow down the Hammers progress post Chamley dismissal, Vikings were unable to do it in this match. Although they were able to get wickets in regular intervals, it was not enough to stop Hammers, as the likes of Dushan Bandara and Samuel Gill continued to score freely to keep the run rate over 8. The last nail in the coffin was the 20 ball 41 from Tajder Khan. Although Lakmal Bandara sent down a maiden over in the 17th over, Khan and co. scored 49 runs in last 3 overs, pushing the score beyond 200. Vikings were never in contention as they continued to lose wickets at regular intervals and reduced to 34-4 in 5 overs. And it was all over for them once Tajder Khan got Derick Deonarain out caught at covers for 13 in 8th over. Vikings batted for 18 overs as M Sandaru batted well for a 41 ball 33, but they could score only 100 with the help from 35 extras conceded by Hammers bowlers.
Chamley Fernando was adjudged the SportZchain Man of the Match for his attacking half-century.
Week 5
Match 1: Vesturbær Volcanos (61/0, Lee Nelson 26, Nikhil Nekram 23) beat Reykjavik Vikings (60/10, Lakmal Bandara 23, Derick Deonarain 14, Vaibhab Anandgaonkar 5-8, Saravanan Shanmugam 3-19) by 10 wickets
SportZchain Man of the Match: Vaibhab Anandgaonkar
Volcanos started the match with a bang as Kathir Narayanan claimed 2 wickets in the first over, conceding just 1 run. However, the two most experienced Vikings, Lakmal Bandara and Derick Deonarain batted aggressively during the powerplay and raced to 39 in 5.2 overs. However, two good outfield catches from Senthil Mahalingam changed the scenario. First, he caught Deonarain for 14 at the fine leg and then Lakmal at the long on in the next over, and there was no looking back for Volcanos. Vaibhab Anandgaonkar ran through the Vikings, claiming his first 5 wickets haul in Iceland, conceding only 8 runs, while another excellent outfield catch from Mohit Kotian dismissed potentially dangerous Ravi Rawat, of the bowling of Saravanan Shanmugam. Viking innings ended in the 13th over, scoring only 60, the lowest score in this season. Volcanos did not have any trouble in chasing this small score down. In absence of Sebastiaan Dreyer and Avik Ghosh, the responsibility was on Lee Nelson and he delivered another unbeaten match-winning innings. Nikhil Nekram, playing his first match outdoor in Iceland, showed good composure and matched Nelson shot by shot. The duo completed the chase in 8th over as Nelson finished the game with a huge six over square leg. Vaibhab Anandgaonkar was adjudged the SportZchain Man of the Match for his five wickets haul. With this win Volcanos went to the top of the table and Hammers must beat Kopavogur Puffins in the last match to reclaim the top position.
Match 2: Hafnarfjordur Hammers (74/4 in 9.3 overs, Chamley Fernando 28, Dushan Bandara 20*, Keenan Botha 2-19, S Maduri 2-19) beat Kopavogur Puffins (66/4 in 9.3 overs, Keenan Botha 33, Bala K 11, Tajder Khan 3-13, S Saeed 1-6) by 8 runs
SportZchain Man of the Match: Tajder Khan
Hammers claimed the Islensk Premier League trophy second time in a row, defeating Puffins in a rain- affected match. The match was played while it was raining, stopped in between due to heavy rain and then the overs were reduced to make sure that the match can be completed. Hammers started their innings aggressively and scored 33 runs in the first two overs, thanks to another blast from Chamley Fernando. Although Botha removed Chamley in the third over, Puffins bowlers were finding it difficult to control the wet ball and Dushan Bandara and M Younas took the score to 74 in 9.3 overs and then the game was stopped by heavy rain. Once the rain slowed down, it was decided by the ICA, umpires, and the playing captains to reduce the match to 9.3 overs a side game and the Puffins innings was started immediately. They were in contention for the first 3 overs as Bala and Keenan Botha scored 21 and looked to be in good touch. However, Hammers took the advantage of the revised playing conditions and made sure that their best bowlers, Tajder Khan and Dushan Bandara can bowl next 6 overs between them. Both, especially Khan, bowled magnificently under the wet conditions and strangled the Puffins batters. Despite a valiant effort from Botha towards the end of the innings, Puffins could score only 66 in the allotted 9.3 overs, falling 9 runs short of the target. Tajder Khan was adjudged the SportZchain Man of the Match for his match winning spell of 3-13.
With this win, Hafnarfjordur Hammers tied with Vesturbær Volcanos at the top of the Islensk Premier League table with 10 points and wins the Islensk Premier League based on superior net run rate. Volcanos are the runners-up and Puffins and Vikings end their campaigns with 4 and 0 points, respectively.
Final Standings
Fixtures list : https://www.krikket.is/matches
Live Telecast : https://www.youtube.com/c/IcelandCricket
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