HALVERSTOWN 2: 130-5 (20 Overs)
Batting: Junaid 43*, Chaitanya 24, Ahsan 12, Sean 11
Bowling: Anvesh 2/18, Deepansh 2/21
TYRRELSTOWN 5: 125-8 (20 Overs)
Batting: Vishal 31, Debdutta 22, Obul 17
Bowling: Arun 4/12, Ahsan 2/26, Matthew 1/12, Chaitanya 1/21
Halverstown 2 returned to the T20 arena after a year-long hiatus, facing off against Tyrrelstown 5 in their first T20 match of the season. Despite a sunny day earlier, the weather quickly turned cold and dark as we arrived at the ground for the 4 pm match, a typical turn of events for cricket in Ireland.
Opting to bat first after winning the toss proved to be a wise decision as Sean Conroy and Chaitanya forged an impressive opening partnership of 57 runs. Sean contributed 11 runs, while Chaitanya marked his debut with a solid 24. At that stage, the rain interrupted play and slowed down our run rate but Junaid's unbeaten 43, supported by Ahsan's 12, pushed our total to 129 for 5 wickets. The partnership between Junaid and Ahsan was for 64 runs.
Confident in our bowling lineup, we felt optimistic about defending our total. Ahsan struck early in the innings, dismissing their opener in his first over. Arun and Junaid maintained pressure with tight overs, but it was Matthew who stood out, delivering an exceptional spell of 4 overs, conceding just 12 runs and claiming 1 wicket.
By the 13th over, Tyrrelstown were 66/2 when rain halted play once again. After the break, their batters accelerated the scoring rate. However, a crucial breakthrough came in the 15th over when Pushn took a fantastic catch off Ahsan's delivery, breaking a vital partnership of 65 runs. At that stage the match was equally poised and could have gone to any side. In the last over with just 8 runs needed and 6 wickets in hand, Arun, making his Halverstown debut, delivered a spectacular hat-trick to seal victory.
Throughout the match, our catching was sharp, with Pushn taking 2 catches, and Chaitanya, Arun and Sean each securing 1. However, it's worth noting the poor umpiring standards of the opposition, with several lbw appeals denied and delays caused by their batters taking excessive time to arrive at the crease, some even without pads.
I extend my gratitude to the experienced Cecil for his guidance during the game. Our next T20 encounter is away against Merrion 7 on June 16th, 2024.
Ahsan Syed 29/4/2024
