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GRAMMARIANS AND GCC KEEP UP THE PRESSURE AT THE TOP.

Grammarians and GCC kept up the pressure at the top of the Caleta Hotel league with comfortable victories against Málaga CC and PGCC respectively over the week-end.

Seven wicket win for GCC.

On Saturday at the Victoria Stadium PGCC won the toss, opted to bat first and lost a wicket in the second ball of the innings.  Srikanth Krishnaswamy and Hetal Shah then featured in a second wicket stand of 54 before Gary De’Ath bowled the latter for 21.   A further 34 runs had been added when PGCC lost two wickets in rapid succession, including that of Krishnaswamy for 26.    Gautam Prabhu, coming in at number five, looks a good batsman as he contributed 35 off 44 balls, but the PGCC tail failed miserably and the whole side was dismissed for 144 runs in 35.2 overs.   For GCC, there were two wickets apiece for De’Ath, Ross Eatwell and Kieron Ferrary.

GCC opened with Ferrary and Andrew Chipolina and these two put on 83 runs in the opening sixteen overs before the latter was trapped leg before by Manish Grover for 36, and Ferrary followed him to the stands shortly afterwards when six runs short of his half century.    However, by then the game was safely in GCC’s grasp and it was left to Mark Garratt (29 not out) and Scott Chipolina (19) to see them home with 18.1 overs to spare.   GCC thus took 18 points from the game to PGCC’s solitary bowling point.

Grammarians run spree.

Grammarians won the toss at Europa on Sunday, opted to bat first and lost the wicket of Marl Bacarese with 20 runs on the board.   Kabir Mirpuri and Mohammed Usman then proceeded to put on 64 runs for the second wicket before Usman was well caught by Mark Ward in the gully for 31.   Mirpuri seemed destined for his half century when he edged Ward into wicket keeper Phil Flaxman’s gloves when nine runs short of that target.  Vikram Khatwani and Dheeraj Punjabi kept the scoreboard ticking over healthily and when Punjabi departed, bowled by Tony Crooks, George Shacaluga kept Khatwani company as the total moved past the 200 mark.    Khatwani eventually went for 67 and Shacaluga for 34, and it was then left to Kane Peliza, who just managed to reach his half century in the fiftieth over, as Grammarians were dismissed for 325.   For the visitors from Málaga, Ward returned figures of 4/48 and Jagi Motwani 3/62.

Although Ward and Flaxman gave their side a solid start with an opening partnership of 42, the departure of the latter, brilliantly caught by Mirpuri at short leg, opened the flood gates, two further wickets falling for the addition of only 13 runs and although Ward went on to make 40 and Motwani (29) and Mike Rowlands (28 not out) made useful middle order contributions, Málaga were never in the hunt and were eventually dismissed for 151 in 35.1 overs.    Grammarians took 20 points from the game to Málaga’s six.

Next Week.

The Caleta Hotel League takes a back seat next week as the preliminary round of the Murto Cup is staged.   On Saturday at the Victoria Stadium UKCCC take on PGCC whilst on Sunday at Europa Málaga CC will face GCC.    Both matches are of forty overs each and will commence at 11.30am.