Sharjah: Ibsons Cricket Club have joined the long list of leading clubs that have closed down their cricket activities recently in the UAE. Playing their last tournament, they wanted to end up on the winning side but a century from Multiplex Cricket Club’s Abdul Shukur guided their opponents to victory in the final of the 8th Al Dhaid Gold Cup 40-over cricket tournament.
Ibsons have featured in the UAE’s domestic tournaments for the last 27 years and have won many major tournaments like the Bukhatir League 50-over tournament and the UBL Twenty20 Cup besides almost all other tournaments except Abu Dhabi’s 50-over tournament, though they were finalists twice in that competition.
Batting first, Ibsons raised hopes of a victory, posting an impressive 273 for 8 in 40 overs. Multiplex, riding on Shukur’s unbeaten 129 off 113 deliveries with 11 boundaries and four sixes, reached the target in 37.1 overs.
Speaking to Gulf News, Baber Malek of Ibsons, who won the best batsman of the tournament for scoring 149 runs, said: “We lost the toss and to win it was crucial in Al Dhaid wicket conditions. The wicket improved as the match progressed and the fact that our last man Ifran Sajid hit a half-century revealed that the wicket had turned ideal for batting.”
They had got off to a bad start with their two top order batsmen back in the pavilion with no score. Malek lifted the team out of trouble scoring 34 runs from 37 deliveries with five boundaries and a six. Ibsons’ score swelled through Faisan Asif’s 68 runs and last man Sajid’s unbeaten 64. In fact, Ibsons would have posted a bigger total but for Qadeer Ahmad who took four wickets for 34 runs.
Chasing the score, Multiplex took control through a 124 partnership between Shukur and Mohammad Yasir, who hit 57 runs off 50 balls with six boundaries and a six.
Ibsons ended up as the runner up but all the top three individual awards were won by their team’s players. Malek and Fayyaz Ahmad won the best batsman and best bowler awards respectively while Omair Shaukat was adjudged the player of the tournament.
“It was nice to win the top award but the fact we lost our last match, my emotions took over the individual achievement,” said Malek, who is one of the most experienced player of the team too.
