MALAGA GAIN REVENGE OVER CORDOBA

Southern Spanish Cricket League

Cordoba CC v Malaga CC  09 May 2010.                                   Won by Malaga CC by 34 Runs.

Malaga CC won the toss and elected to Bat.

Cordoba CC 118 All Out , 6 points.                    Malaga CC 152 all out, 17 points.

For the first time this season Shoaib Hussain lost the toss and Malaga chose to bat.  Opening bowler Ghulam Fakhruddin then proceeded to bowl the longest over of the season so far.  It ended eighteen minutes later following a fifteen minute break for rain after just two balls.  And so the scene was set for a match subject to showers and interruptions for heavier rain then eventually shortened to 28 overs per side.  Malaga skipper Asif Tarer arranged his batting order carefully, alternating big hitters with steady eddies and by this means kept a momentum going throughout the innings.  Scoring was never easy with a damp heavy ball and in these conditions a fairly consistent rate of 5 or so an over resulted.  Cordoba found it difficult to get wickets, with the first four falling in the 9^th, 13^th, 16^th and 21^st overs.  During this time the score proceeded to 105 with significant contributions of 45 from Waqas Ali and 39 from Asif Tarer.  Afzal Shah with 11 was the only other Malaga batsman to reach double figures.  The Malaga tail resisted well to end on 152 all out with just two balls remaining.

As Cordoba came out to bat the feeling was that Malaga would need to bowl well and give nothing away in the field if they were to win.  A good start was made with the score on 2 for 1 wicket after the first over.  In came skipper Shoaib Hussain with a mind to build his usual big innings.  A trap was set for him with fielders on the long on and long off boundaries.  It wasn’t long before the trap was sprung and long off found himself stretching to his left and not quite making the catch.  The good start was forgotten as the score moved on to 48 for 1 off 8 over, with Cordoba well on track for victory.  Then the match turned in the 9^th over by Asif Tarer.  Second ball, 48 for2.  Third ball, 48 for 3.  Last ball, 48 for 4.  With the Malaga bowlers cleverly using the rising wind to their advantage Cordoba never recovered.  Shoaib reached 29 before springing the trap for a second time and falling to a catch at long off.  Farook Jamil with 21 was the only other Cordoba player to reach double figures and the match ended in only the 19^th over.

Man of the Match just has to be Asif Tarer who scored 39, took 5 for 24 in his 6 overs, marshalled his forces to great effect and even managed a stumping after taking over behind the stumps.

                            P    W    T   NR    L   BP  Pts
Combined Colleges           2    2    0    0    0   17   37
Cordoba                     3    1    0    0    2   20   30
Malaga                      3    1    0    0    2   20   30