Liberty Sports Club finished the preliminary round of the EACA Balram Singh T20 Competition on top of the points table after completing two wins on Sunday. Terrence Madramootoo turned in another brilliant all-round performance in Game one against Victory CC. Trinson Carmichael was magical with the ball in game two, picking up the club’s first ever hat-trick against Camelot CC.
Game 1 – LSC vs Victory CC
Skipper Danesh Deonarain elected to bat first after winning the toss at the 10:00 AM encounter against Victory CC. Early and steady set backs kept the LSC batting line up at bay as VCC stuck to their task at the Baisley Cage. Trevor Henry 24, Dilly Khilawan 13 and Andre Kirton 10 were the only other batsmen in double figures other than Madramootoo. The hard hitting right hander saw 4 of his batting mates come and go before he got to his half-century.
Patiently negotiating the disciplined bowling of VCC, Madramootoo hit 1 four and 3 sixes before he also fell in the club’s 1st inning. When the last wicket fell LSC had scraped up 134 runs, a total below the typical 170 par score at the Cage.
VCC’s chase got off to healthy start after 12 runs were taken off the 1st over. Madramootoo, however, had to have his say. In his first over sharing the new ball he bowled Harleem Singh (10) to give LSC their first wicket. The prolific Rohit Kwatra and Swapnil Sheth held together a partnership but another piece of brilliance, this time in the field, by Madramootoo resulted in Kwatra being run out for 24.
Sheth (27) was accounted for by Andre Kirton and that broke the match open for LSC. With the pressure of the required run rate ever rising the bottom half of the VCC inning folded. Jasdeep Singh (17), Sumit Rajpal (11) and Nipun Manglik (10) were the only other VCC batsmen to make it to double figures when the chase was wrapped up 22 runs short of the winning total.
Bowling for the Royal Empress Banquet Hall & GMA Enterprise sponsored LSC; Madramootoo finished with 3 for 15, Kirton 2 for 14 and Trevor Henry 1 for 22. Leon Mohabir and Hamendra Ramdihal had economical spells while there were 3 run-outs.
Game 2 – LSC vs Camelot CC
Taking over as captain for the 2nd match, Terrence Madramootoo’s men were asked to bowl first after Camelot CC won the toss in the 2:00 PM encounter at the Cage. Trinson Carmichael and Francis Mendonca took up the new ball duties and could do no wrong.
Carmichael struck in the last ball of his 2nd over to remove one of the openers. Mendonca took care of the opening partner the following over. Carmichael returned to remove the number 3 and 4 batsmen off the first two balls of his 3rd over, completing the hat-trick.
The incredible feat is the first in the club’s 6-year history in any form of cricket. Carmichael who has previously picked up two 5-wicket hauls in 40-over games will now go down as the first man in blue to covet the three scalps in three balls hat-trick.
Besides a well played 48, against the course of proceedings, by Henry Sackichand, only three out of the other ten Camelot CC batsmen got off the mark and none of them made it past 5 runs when they were bundled out for 70.
Bowling for #TheBlueNation Carmichael finished with 3 for 8, Romeno Deane 3 for 9, Leon Mohabir 2 for 4 and Mendonca 2 for 24.
LSC overhauled the 71 needed for victory in just 7 overs with Deane finishing unbeaten on 33 and Carmichael unbeaten on 1. Trevor Henry the only batsman to get out for 25. The lone wicket taker for CCC being Sackichand.
The double victory on Sunday ensured that LSC finished on top of their Zone 1 and on top of the league. #TheBlueNation will take on number 8th ranked Gladiators CC at the same venue at 2:00 PM this Sunday in the tournament’s Quarter-Final.
The 2015 Liberty Sports Club is sponsored by GMA Enterprise Real Estate & Tax Services, located on 122nd St & Liberty Ave and Royal Empress Catering Hall, located on 122nd St & Rockaway Blvd. Please visit their website www.gmaenterprise.com