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Showing posts from June, 2023

UAE's veteran cricketer Freddy Sidhwa, at 81, plays at Lord's under Kevin Pietersen's captaincy

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By K.R. Nayar UAE's veteran cricketer and octogenarian Freddy Sidhwa is a phenomenon. Writing about this cricketer, who remains young at the age of 81, itself is inspiring. Defying the expectations of age, he continues to amaze me with his exceptional determination to keep playing the game. That makes me wonder whether it is Freddy who has kept cricket young or vice versa. Whatever the case may be, one cannot deny that Freddy has repeatedly proven that age is no barrier to play this game. Freddy Sidhwa with Kevin Pietersen and Dwayne Bravo at Lord's  Recently, Freddy accomplished something that most budding cricketers dream to achieve in their career. Imagine playing under the captaincy of a legendary cricketer, especially at Lord's Cricket Ground. Freddy achieved this at the age of 81! He proved that dreams have no expiry date if one loves the game sincerely. Freddy is also an embodiment of the saying "never let go of your dreams." His philosophy is that drea

G Force Cricket Academy records double triumph in Maxtalent Emirates Cup, winning Under-16 and Under-13 titles

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By K.R. Nayar  G Force Cricket Academy emerged as champions of the Maxtalent Emirates Cup in the Under-16 and Under-13 categories. It was an excellent display from a bunch of youngsters who literally eat, drink, and sleep cricket, working hard to sharpen their skills. Most of the star performers are those who have participated in G Force cricket tours, practicing and playing cricket for days on end while also undergoing rigorous training. G Force Cricket Academy - champions of the Maxtalent Emirates Cup Under-16 title with Siddhartha Lahiri, Rajasthan Royals assistant coach & Royals Global Academy head This observation is not based on hearsay but on actually witnessing the way these boys train hard during tours. I accompanied this academy to Mumbai, Rajkot, Dehradun, and England. The double triumph is the reward for the boys' determination and devotion towards the game. Each of the star performers consistently delivered outstanding performances in tour matches as well. Inte

Zim Cyber City Zim Afro T10 launches nationwide talent hunt for emerging players

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By K.R. Nayar The upcoming  Zim Cyber City Zim Afro T10 has reached out to schools in Zimbabwe as part of a talent hunt mission. Mr. Nawab Shaji Ul Mulk, T Ten Global Sports Founder and Chairman, spoke to  krbuzz.blogspot.com  and said, "We have launched a nationwide talent hunt for emerging players. We are focusing on schools cricket and will be awarding scholarships."   Zimbabwe Cricket's Managing Director, Mr. Givemore Makoni with    Mr. Nawab Shaji Ul Mulk, T Ten Global Sports Founder and Chairman  Schools that have produced talented cricketers from Zimbabwe, such as Grant Flower and Andy Flower, and England cricketers Sam Curran and Tom Curran, are participating in this T10 inter-school cricket tournament to identify talent. The school teams competing in the T10 inter-school competition are: Peterhouse, Wise Owl, St Johns, Hellenic, Churchill, Prince Edward, Falcon, St Georges, Manicaland Select, Midlands Select, Bulawayo Select, and Harare Select.   The

Top ten performers from the UAE will be selected for Zim Afro T10 to be held in Harare from July 20

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By K.R. Nayar As the days draw near for the player draft ahead of the Zim Afro T10, organized by Zimbabwe Cricket in association with T Ten Global Sports, there is happy news for UAE-based cricketers. Speaking to  krbuzz.blogspot.com , Mr. Nawab Shaji Ul Mulk, T Ten Global Sports Founder and Chairman, said, "We will be selecting the top T10 performers from the UAE itself. I am waiting for the data from the councils and the ECB. We intend to select three or four players directly from here into the squad. Our aim is to also support UAE cricket." Nawab Shaji Ul Mulk Zim Afro T10 has announced pre-draft player picks before the Player Draft scheduled to be held on July 2, 2023. This tournament, expected to be one of the most captivating tournaments of the year, will be held in Harare. The five franchises competing for the title have announced their pre-draft marquee players. The teams are Harare Hurricanes, Joburg Buffaloes, Durban Qalandars, Bulawayo Braves, and Cape Town Sam

Future Mattress emerges supreme in 29th Bukhatir T20 League, stopping Seven Districts in the final for their third title triumph from seven Sharjah Cricket tournaments this season

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By K.R. Nayar Future Mattress once again displayed their supremacy in Sharjah's tournaments, emerging as the champions of the 29th Bukhatir T20 League at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Sunday night. This win marked Future Mattress's third title triumph out of the seven Sharjah Cricket tournaments held this season. In a final that lasted from 9.40 pm to 1.15 am, Future Mattress secured a seven-wicket victory over Seven Districts. Future Mattress - champions of the 29th Bukhatir T20 League  Restricting Seven Districts to 156 for 7 in 20 overs, Future Mattress swiftly chased down the target in 16.1 overs, primarily thanks to opener Sandeep Singh's explosive knock of 68 runs off just 30 balls, which included six boundaries and six sixes.  Twelve teams clashed for the title in this tournament, with 38 matches resulting in 10,500 runs, 800 boundaries, and 400 sixes. Seven Districts - runners up of the 29th Bukhatir T20 League  In the battle for third place, Collaze Bake Hou

Yasir Kaleem of Future Mattress and Abdul Ghaffar of Seven Districts carry their teams to the final of the 29th Bukhatir T20 League

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By K.R. Nayar Yasir Kaleem's timely unbeaten 43 for Future Mattress and Abdul Ghaffar's unbeaten half-century for Seven Districts propelled their teams to the final of the 29th Bukhatir T20 League. In the semifinal clashes held on Saturday at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium, Future Mattress secured a four-wicket victory, thanks to Yasir Kaleem's last-over heroics. He hit a six and a boundary and took a single off the last three deliveries, shattering Collaze Bake House's hopes of a victory. In the second semifinal, Abdul Ghaffar of Seven Districts smashed an unbeaten 51 and also claimed a wicket, leading his team to a resounding 91-run victory over CSS Group. Yasir Kaleem's match-winning knock in Future Mattress' win Future Mattress won the toss and elected to field. Collaze Bake House started by losing their valuable skipper Renjith Mani for six runs, clean bowled by Mati Khan. The opening partnership with Qamar Awan was 32 runs. One-drop Mazhar Hussain joine

Jeevan Gangadharan and Vimalnadh bowl CSS Group into the semifinals, stopping Thambapanni Lions with a six-wicket victory

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By K.R. Nayar Jeevan Gangadharan and Vimalnadh from CSS Group bagged three wickets each, to restrict Thambapanni Lions to 140 for 7 in 20 overs. This ensured a six-wicket victory for their team in the fourth quarterfinal match of the 29th Bukhatir League at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Friday night. CSS Group won the match with five balls to spare, thanks to Abhiram Hrithwik's unbeaten 46 runs and Danish Sarhadi's 50 runs. Fine bowling from Jeevan Gangadharan and Vimalnadh CSS Group won the toss and elected to field. Thambapanni Lions' openers, Samal Udawaththa and Daryl, put on 29 runs in 5.2 overs before Jeevan Gangadharan clean bowled Samal Udawaththa for 10. Jeevan also removed opener Daryl, who was clean bowled for 10. This was followed by a 40-run partnership between Janaka Chaturanga and Charith Nirmal for the third wicket. Vimalnadh dismissed Charith Nirmal for 26 and clean bowled Janaka Chaturanga for 13. When Thambapanni Lions were seven runs short of reac

Nabeel Arshad and Haider Ali of Seven Districts wreck The Vision Shipping for a seven wicket win in the third quarterfinal clash

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By K.R. Nayar Nabeel Arshad (4 for 12) and Haider Ali (3 for 9) bowled out The Vision Shipping for a paltry 61 runs in 14.5 overs and recorded an emphatic seven-wicket win in 8.1 overs in the third quarterfinal match of the 29th Bukhatir League at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Thursday night. Nabeel Arshad and Haider Ali’s spell Seven Districts won the toss and elected to field. The Vision Shipping opener and captain, Saqib Mehmood, fell at the score of 6 to the second ball of the second over from Abdul Ghaffar for 3. One-drop Kamran Atta got out at the score of 15, caught behind by wicketkeeper Muhammad Kashif off Zeeshan Naseer for 4. Zeeshan Naseer also dismissed Mayank Choudhary for 4 at the score of 23. Fayaz Frank and opener Muhammad Sheraz pushed the score to 43 when Fayaz was clean bowled by Nabeel Arshad for 8. When Shahnawaz Khan was clean bowled by Haider Ali for 3, The Vision Shipping's hopes of crossing the 100-run mark began to fade. Four runs later, Umar Ars