The Kingsmen XI’s campaign on two fronts in the 2025 cricket season has been nothing short of impressive. In the Saturday Morning Division, led by Moien Khan, the team has built on last year’s success with an even better win-loss record—eight wins and just one loss from nine games. In their latest fixture this past Saturday, they firmly stamped their claim as division champions for the second consecutive year with a dominant win over Kashmir Kings.
Batting first, Kingsmen XI posted a mammoth 268/4 in the allotted 25 overs. The opening pair of Antanio Rooplal and 17-year-old Kalash Sing laid a solid foundation with a 148-run partnership. Kalash played a mature knock of 58 off 47 balls, hitting five fours and a six, while Rooplal remained unbeaten on 103 off 77 balls, including nine fours and a six. Kashmir Kings’ bowlers struggled to contain the onslaught, with Atif Farooq (2 overs, 19 runs, 1 wicket) and Sajid Farid (5 overs, 54 runs, 1 wicket) the only ones to make breakthroughs.
Speaking after the game, captain Moien Khan expressed his gratitude for the opportunity to lead and emphasized his commitment to developing young talent. “Cricket isn’t a one-man band. Yes, you’ll always have standout performances, but it takes a full team to win a game—and I stand true to that.”
Meanwhile, in the highly competitive Saturday 30-Over Premier Division, Kingsmen XI managed to sneak into the playoffs in their debut season, though they went down to NY XI in a hard-fought match this weekend.
NY XI won the toss and posted 184 before being bowled out in the 29th over. Marvan Prashad top-scored with 37 off 41 balls (2 fours, 1 six), supported by Deveshwari Prashad (30) and Ronaldo Alimohamed (24). Kingsmen’s bowling attack was led by Ansaar Yasim (6 overs, 22 runs, 2 wickets), Mehendra Parsaram (6 overs, 34 runs, 2 wickets), and Antanio Rooplal (2 overs, 13 runs, 2 wickets).
Kingsmen XI’s batting struggles continued, however, with only Arnil Ragdnath (24 off 21 balls, 4 fours) and Rooplal (23 off 42 balls) offering resistance. Ronaldo Alimohamed dismantled the middle order with three wickets in 4.4 overs, conceding just 21 runs, while Avo Yogeshwar bowled a tight spell—5 overs, 2 maidens, 9 runs, and 2 wickets.
The Premier squad is led by Daryl Heerasingh, who captained the Morning Division team to a championship in 2024. Reflecting on the Premier Division, Heerasingh stated, “It’s not for the weak at heart. We have a young squad with a few seasoned players, but many teams in this division have first-class or international experience. It’s a mental game—we’ll take the positives from this and see what happens in the playoffs.”