FFCC faces Peace CC in Cup final

[gallery td_select_gallery_slide="slide" ids="8615,8616"] Mohammed Shakeel Sarfaraz RIYADH — FFCC and Peace Cricket Club (CC) emerged as winners from the Independence Day Cup 2015 semifinals organized by Mumtaz Sports Academy in Riyadh. Both the teams have advanced to the final unbeaten. They have played some great cricket throughout the tournament and are deserving finalists for the first edition of Independence Day Cup. Winning the toss, Newstar CC decided to bat to make the most of its fabled batting lineup. FFCC on the other hand has dominated the opposition with its bowling skills. FFCC struck in the second over taking out Imran Shahzad, caught at deep midwicket off the bowling of Danish. Akbar was sent back in the very next over putting Newstar on the back foot. The bowling was so precise that big-hitting Babar could also do little to keep the scorecard moving. When Babar fell for 26 off 19, the going got tough. Ehsan (27) and Amer (25) tried to steer the innings, but with wickets falling at regular intervals, the Newstar campaign seemed to be falling apart. Newstar was eventually bundled out for 106, its lowest total in the tournament. FFCC started off its innings on a very cautious note, but after losing the wickets of Dawood Ali (4), Aleemuddin (0) and Asghar (1) the match looked wide open. Newstar showed some great energy on the field. Newstar made further inroads when Khurram (14) was cleaned up by Imran. Danish (28 not out) and Younus (37) ensured no further damage and took the team home in the 13th over. In the second semifinal, Peace CC elected to take the strike against Nawabs-XI. Peace had some great momentum coming into this match as it defended 128 in its quarterfinal against Super-XI. Nawabs-XI on the other hand was coming with a huge win over United in the quarterfinal when it posted 238 in 16 overs. Nawabs struck the first blow in the first over by sending Ghouse back to pavilion. Kaleem, the captain, was also sent packing in the 4th over but the Pakistani duo of Amer Saleem (114 not out) and Saleem Rafique (102 not out) toyed with the bowling. The last 2 overs of the match yielded 52 runs. Peace CC managed to post 250-2 in 16 overs. With the bowling skills it was a daunting task for the Nawabs-XI to make it to the final. Chasing the huge total Nawabs-XI did not get the kind of start it needed. With the exception of Asad, none of the batsmen looked in control. Nawabs managed only 192. All the tournament highlights and statistics can be found at www.myCricLife.com.