Yasir Kaleem proves to be the backbone of InterGlobe Marine again through a century to outplay Ajman Heroes in the 47th Bukhatir League

By K.R. Nayar

Yasir Kaleem is known by many sobriquets such as Mr. Dependable, Mr. Elegant and Mr. Consistent, and time and again proved he has proved he is the backbone of the InterGlobe Marine team. In fact, he is literally the backbone in many ways given that he is their wicketkeeper and also their strong middle-order batsman.  In the 47th Bukhatir League match at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Wednesday, Yasir Kaleem through a knock of 113 off 136 balls with 15 boundaries,  helped InterGlobe Maine outplay Ajman Heroes by 110 runs.

InterGlobe Marine won the toss and refused to follow the usual path of bowling first. Batting first, they went about their plan to post a strong total. It was not a smooth take off though as they lost their aggressive opener Sandeep Singh to Usman Mani for 9.  Usman Mani also removed the other opener Shahnawaz Khan for 6. Although Kuwar Pathak did not reach the double figure mark, he provided good support to Yasir Kaleem and took the score to 54 in 9.1 overs before Pathak got out to Jeevan Gangadharan for 9.  Three runs later, Vishnu Sukumaran too fell, caught behind my wicketkeeper Khalid Shah off Mohammad Ajmal for 3.

From 57 for 4 in 10.4 overs, Yasir Kaleem and Shivam Shama began the rescue act. They put on a 130 runs partnership for the fifth wicket which turned the course of the match. Shivam Sharma cracked 63 off 61 balls with four boundaries and three sixes before falling to Harshit Khushik. Next man Waqas Ali fell to Ankur Sangwan for 10.  Ankur Sangwan also trapped skipper Asif Mumtaz leg before for 5, At the score of  235 in 43.1 overs, Yasir Kaleem, who carried the innings on his shoulder, fell to Harshit Khushik for 113.  Attah Ullah hit 10 before falling to Jeevan Gangadharan. InterGlobe’s innings ended at 253 in 47.3 overs when Jeevan Gangadharan clean bowled Mohammad Taimoor for 1 and got his third wicket.

In the earlier matches, Ajman Heroes had proved that they have heroes to win matches. Unfortunately for them, no heroes emerged for them in this match.  Opener Ansar Khan, who began with a six and a boundary, got out bowled by Atta Ullah for 11 in the second over. Sagar Kalyan, fresh from some good knocks, got caught behind by wicketkeeper Sandeep Singh off Mohammad Taimoor for 6.

One-drop Khalid Shah and Rahul Chopra took the score to 50 when Shah got out to Asif Mumtaz for 21.  Ahmed Shafiq quickly trapped Ajman Heroes skipper Adnan Ul Mulk leg before for 8. Asif Mumtaz also trapped Jeevan Gangaharan leg before a duck. With half the side back in the dug-out for 76, InterGlobe Marine began to take a firm grip on the match. When Ajman were six runs short of the 100 run mark, Ahmad Shafiq got Rahul Chopra out for 32. Mohammad Ajman held on to score 20 runs before getting caught behind by wicketkeeper off Ahmad Shafiq.

Nazir Aziz extend the score to 143 through an unbeaten 15 runs. Asif Sangwan  fell leg before to  Ahmad Shafiq for 3 while Asif Mumtaz clean bowled Usman Mani for 3 and win the match by 110 runs . Shafiq returned with figures of 5 for 16.

This tournament is being held with the sponsorship support of Twenty First Century Media Pvt Ltd (TCM) as the commercial partner. The co-sponsors are Star Biryani (food partner), Dole Juice (Beverage Partner) and Leap Sports (Merchandise partner).

Brief scores:
InterGlobe Marine bt Ajman Heroes by 110 runs. InterGlobe Marine 253 in 47.3 overs (Yasir Kaleem 113, Shivam Sharma 63, Usman Mani 2 for 56, Jeevan Gangadharan 3 for 25, Ankur Sangwan 2 for 46, Harshit Khushik 2 for 41) Ajman Heroes 143 in 33.4 overs (Khalid Shah 21, Rahul Chopra 32, Mohamaad Ajmal 20, Ahmad Shafiq 5 for  16, Asif Mumtaz 3 for 48).
Player of the Match: Yasir Kaleem