GHK Properties etch their name in the Bukhatir League history as the new champions
By K.R. Nayar
Sharjah. GHK Properties emerged supreme, riding on Rohan Mustafa and Yasir Kaleem’s spectacular show after their skipper Humaj Gondal paved the way to glory. They helped add their team’s name to the glorious list of champions in the 49th edition of the Bukhatir League through a well-fought six-wicket win over Seven Districts Cricket Academy in the final at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium, which ended well past midnight.
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| GHK Properties, the new champions of the Bukhatir League celebrate on winning the trophy. Click cricketlovers.com for indepth coverage of the 49th Bukhatir league |
Mustafa displayed the skill that has often won him laurels from renowned international stars by scoring an unbeaten 55, bagging two crucial wickets, and taking two catches. Yasir lived up to the tag of Mr Dependable once again by following up his century in the semi-final with a classy 90 runs. Before these two put on a crucial 76-run partnership for the fourth wicket, Gondal played a captain’s knock of 57 and added 94 runs for the third wicket with Yasir to carve out the path to victory and reach the target of 276 in 41.4 overs.
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| GHK Properties skipper Humaj Gondal receives the winners trophy from Abdul Rehman Salah Bukhatir, grandson of Abdul Rehman Bukhatir, and Mazhar Khan, General Manger Sharjah Cricket. |
Talking to Gondal, who also owns this team, about what helped his team snap Seven Districts’ unbeaten run and win the final, he said: “We played as a unit. I had a team made up of professionals who are committed to their job. After we had lost a match in the league stage, we gathered and decided to give 100 per cent, not focusing on the outcome. This win is their victory as they played to their potential, trusting their skill. They knew that they had the skill which, if displayed, could outplay any opponent.”
Put into bat, Seven Districts—who are also the sponsors of this tournament—were restricted to 275 runs in 49 overs despite another fine knock of 74 runs from the consistent batter Syed Haider Shah, who bagged the Best Batter of the League with 368 runs. The destroyer of Seven Districts’ dream of posting a total over 300 was the accurate pacer Umair Ali with a spell of four wickets for 43 runs from his ten overs. He was well backed by Mustafa with two wickets for 48 from his ten overs, and Wasim Akram, the Best Bowler of the Tournament, with 2 for 43 from his eight overs.
Seven Districts's Aftab Javed receives the Player of the tournament award
The biggest blow for Seven Districts was inflicted by Mustafa
by dismissing Aftab Javed for 10. The 23-year-old Javed had scored four
centuries to bag the Player of the Tournament award and pile up 488 runs in
this tournament. Talking to Javed about his historic performance, he said: “In
earlier tournaments, I had batted down the order but still got three
half-centuries. In this tournament, my guide and owner Muhammad Haider bhai and
the whole team trusted me and asked me to bat up the order. I am happy that I
lived up to their expectations.” This Bukhatir League show from the youngster,
who hails from a small village in Pakistan, may clinch him a place in the UAE
team and transform him into an international player.
Rohan Mustafa receives the Player of the final award from match referee Tehseen Javed
Talking about this edition of the tournament, Abdul Rehman
Salah, the grandson of Abdul Rehman Bukhatir, who gave away the prizes, said:
“It is a proud moment for everyone that this tournament has been providing the
platform for domestic cricketers to display their skill and reach greater
heights. I enjoyed every bit of this edition and thank everyone who joined
hands for the successful conduct of this league.”
Syed Haider Shah receives the best batter award from Seven Districts's Sajjad Abbasi
Mazhar Khan, the General Manager of Sharjah Cricket, said: “It
was wonderful to witness another Bukhatir League filled with exciting moments
and top-class cricket. The fact that 19 centuries were hit from the 23 matches
itself is a reflection of the calibre of the players that played in this
edition, and I thank every player that has contributed to holding high the
glory of this tournament envisaged by Bukhatir nearly half a century ago.”
The tale of the final
GHK Properties won the toss and elected to field. Seven Districts opener Zainullah hit the first boundary of the final off Muhammad Irfan in the third over. Opener Ahmed Tariq fell in the fourth over, hitting a full toss from Wasim Akram into the hands of Harshit Kaushik at extra cover for 6. The seventh over was a battle between Muhammad Irfan and Seven Districts’ Muhammad Irfan, where the batter Irfan hit three consecutive boundaries.
GHK Properties' Wasim Akram receives the best bowler award
Umair Ali struck in the eighth over to clean bowl Zainullah
for 19. In walked the century machine Aftab Javed, who had hit four centuries
in his last five matches. He began by hitting Umair Ali for two boundaries.
Muhammad Irfan hit Rohan Mustafa for a six, but Mustafa struck in the 11th over
to take the prize wicket of Javed, clean bowled for 10.
Seven Districts skipper Farman Ali receives the runners up trophy
Syed Haider Shah and Irfan took the score past the 100-run
mark in the 15th over, with Irfan hitting Mustafa for two consecutive
boundaries. Mustafa struck again in the 17th over to trap Irfan leg-before for
46. His knock off 39 balls included seven boundaries and one six. Haider Shah
took charge and hit Keshav Sharma for a six in the 21st over. At the halfway
mark, Seven Districts went past the 150-run mark. Skipper Farman Ali too began
to stroke smoothly.
From 103 for 4 in 16.1 overs, with every over, the Farman-Haider Shah partnership strengthened. Haider Shah reached his 50 in 78 balls, and Seven Districts went past the 200-run mark in the 34th over. He also hit Akram for a six to celebrate their 100-run partnership. At the score of 215, the 112-run partnership came to an end when Umair Ali had Farman Ali pull into the hands of Mohit Kalyan for 38. His knock off 46 balls had two boundaries and played the role of second fiddle to Haider Shah with perfection.
Mustafa bowled a brilliant 37th over, giving away only one run. Tharindu Perera joined Haider Shah, who was batting on 64, but he lasted only six balls to score two runs before falling to a brilliant flying catch by Mayank Choudhary at short mid-wicket off Umair Ali. Former Sri Lankan player Lahiru Sandaruwan walked in with ten overs to go. Umair and Mustafa tightened the run flow, and Seven Districts’ hopes of posting over 300 runs began to fade.
Umair struck again to pick his fourth wicket and end Haider Shah’s fine knock of 74 off 114 balls, with four boundaries and three sixes. He forced Haider Shah to loft into the hands of Mustafa at the long-on boundary. Soon Shahbaz Ali got Lahiru to pull into the hands of Yasir for 26, while Akram got Wahab Hassan out with Mustafa taking a running catch for 10. Shahbaz Ali also ran out last man Nabeel Aziz for 2 to bowl out Seven Districts for 275 in 49 overs.
GHK’s journey to the target
GHK began their chase by losing the wicket of opener Mayank Choudhary to the fourth ball of the first over from Muhammad Irfan, caught by Lahiru for a duck. Sagar Kalyan hit the first ball he faced from Irfan for a boundary and the next for a six. He again hit Irfan for two boundaries in the fifth over. Lahiru struck a big blow in the sixth over by having Sagar caught behind by wicketkeeper Farman Ali for 26.
Two down for 40, Yasir Kaleem, the crisis hero of their team, joined his skipper Humaj Gondal. In the eighth over, Gondal hit Lahiru for two boundaries and also Irfan for a six. Gondal was severe on Lahiru in the 10th over, hitting him for two boundaries and a six to take 14 runs off that over. He reached his half-century in 40 balls. The total went past the 100-run mark in the 13th over.
Mr Dependable Yasir Kaleem cracks timely 90 runs for GHK Properties
Yasir took two consecutive boundaries off Wahab Hassan, but
Gondal got run out to a throw from Hassan for 57. This ended the 94-run
partnership for the third wicket. Gondal’s knock off 60 balls included nine
boundaries and two sixes. Rohan Mustafa, former UAE captain and a veteran of
many battles, joined Yasir. The score went past the 150-run mark in the 25th
over.
Yasir reached his half-century in 55 balls through a boundary off Tharindu Perera. He accelerated the run flow with two successive boundaries off Irfan Yousafzai and also by hitting Muhammad Irfan for two sixes and a boundary in the 32nd over. Yasir fell to Yousafzai, caught by substitute Nabeel Arshad at mid-off for 90. His knock off 82 balls included 11 boundaries and four sixes. It ended the 76-run partnership for the fourth wicket.
Thanks from Sharjah Cricket to Cricketlovers.com
With 66 more runs needed from 17 overs, Mustafa took up the
responsibility. He got a good partner in the consistent Mohit Kalyan. They
pushed the team towards the target without playing any careless shots. When the
run flow reduced, Mohit hit Ibraheem Masood for a six in the 38th over.
Mustafa was at his aggressive best in the 41st over, hitting Yousafzai for a six off the second delivery, a boundary off the third, a six again off the fourth, and one more boundary off the fifth to take 21 runs off that over. Mohit hit the winning boundary off Haider Shah and remained unbeaten on 27 off 24 balls with two boundaries and two sixes. Mustafa remained unconquered on 55 off 60 balls with five boundaries and two sixes. They put on an unbeaten 67-run partnership for the fifth wicket and announced that they are the new champions of the 49th Bukhatir League.
Brief scores:
GHK Properties bt Seven
Districts Cricket Academy by 6 wkts. Seven Districts Cricket Academy 275 in 49
overs (Muhammad Irfan 46, Syed Haider Shah 74, Farman Ali 38, Lahiru Sandaruwan
26, Wasim Akram 2 for 43, Umair Ali 4 for 43, Rohan Mustafa 2 for 48) GHK
Properties 277 for 4 in 41.4 overs (Humaj Gondal 57, Sagar Kalyan 26, Yasir
Kaleem 90, Rohan Mustafa 55n.o, Mohit Kalyan 27n.o).
Player of the final: Rohan Mustafa
Player of the tournament:
Aftab Javed 488
runs (AED 1,000)
Best batter: Syed Haider Shah 368 Runs (AED
500)
Best bowler: Wasim Akram 12 wkts (AED 500)
Runners up: The Seven District Cricket Academy (AED 5000)
Winners: GHK Properties (AED 10,000)
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