2013 PSAL Cricket Final
Long Island City High School defeated number one seed William Bryant in the first semi-final match to advance to the 2013 PSAL Cricket Final.
Long Island City Bulldog.
LIC restricted William Bryant to a par total of 118 runs on a wonderful outfield at Baisley South. The LIC bowlers stuck to their game plan by removing informed batsman Aown Iqbal for less than 20 runs. A tight spell of bowling from Sajib Salam and 3 wickets for Attaur Khan prevented the remaining Bryant’s batsmen from scoring.
Needed less than six runs per over with prolific all-rounder Sajib Salam, and aggressive opening batsman Ahmed Wyne walking to the crease, the LIC camp felt very confident about defending their title. Salam and Wyne were quickly sent back to the pavilion, but an excellent partnership between senior Jawwad Khan (43) and MD Hossain (27) would then put a dent in the Owl’s chances of moving on to the final.
Match Summary:
William Bryant – 118/5 after 20 overs
Taranjit Singh – 33, and Attaur Khan – 3 wickets
Long Island City – 119/6
Jawwad Khan – 43 and MD Hossain – 27
Haroon Ali – 2 wickets
In the second semi-final match played at Baisley Pond Park (Cage), number two seed Hillcrest Hawks held favorite Abraham Lincoln to a total of 105 runs. The Hawks bowled with great control and accuracy restricting Lincoln’s batsmen to less than six runs per over. The Hillcrest Hawks found themselves struggling after losing four quick wickets for less than 30 runs, but a late rally from Vijendra Mohabir, Thohidhuzz Rana, and Jason Rooney resulted in Hillcrest earning a spot in the 2013 PSAL Cricket Championship match.
Championship Match: Long Island City HS vs. Hillcrest HS
The Hillcrest Hawks won the toss and sent LIC to take first knock on a solid Baisley pitch. Prolific all-rounder Sajib Salam and aggressive opening batsman Ahmad Wyne were off to a good starting until Wyne was bowled by Syed Farkruzzaman in the fourth over for 13. Salam continued to bat aggressively, until he was caught by Jason Ronney for a well played 22. At 48 for 2 in the sixth over and with both openers back in the pavilion, it looked very optimistic for the Hawks, but Redwanur Khan (47*) and Attaur Khan (18) would pair up for a vital thirty-nine runs partnership. Attaur Khan would take 12 runs off Nicholas Harripersaud third over, and Redwanur blasted Farkruzzaman for three consecutive fours in the final over of the inning. Long Island City would go on to post a challenging total of 135 runs.
After spinning the toss Hillcrest captain Jason Ronney made it clear that they wanted to come from behind in chasing down the target, because they were successful in doing so throughout the playoffs, but the top three batsmen of Hillcrest were all gone in less than four overs with the scoreboard reading 11/3. Sajib Salam accounted for all three wickets via caught, stumped, and run out. At 11/3, Vijendra Mohabir and Sharif Rahman would start to repair the inning until Rahman was caught off the bowling of Attaur Khan. Mohabir stuck around rotating the strike, and picking up the odd boundaries, but found himself losing partners until Syed Farkruzzaman came to the crease.
Struggling at 53/6 in the eighth over, the Hillcrest camp was tense and quit, but Mohabir and Farkruzzaman would take the total to seventy-five runs in the 12th. over giving the Hawks some breathing room again, until Jawwad Khan took the catch of the day to dismiss Mohabir for a well played 45. At 75/7, it seems like it was all over for the Hawks, but Mohammed and Farkruzzaman added an eighth wicket partnership of twenty-four runs to take the score to 99/8 in the 14th. over. Hashib joined Farkruzzaman, but soon found himself short of the crease without contributing to the total.
With thirty-five more runs needed from five overs and the final pair at the crease, the large crowd predicted a tense finish in the final over. The two batsmen made it very interested as seven runs were needed from six deliveries, but Islam tried to steal two runs off the first delivery, and found himself well short of the crease resulting in a second PSAL cricket title for the LIC Bulldog.
MVP: Sajib Salam (Long Island City Bulldog)
Best Batsman: Vijendra Mohabir (Hillcrest Hawks)
Best Bowler: Attaur Khan (Long Island City Bulldog)