New competition lifts standards

The new Blenheim Champions Trophy tournament being conducted by the Dubai Cricket Council (DCC) has created waves, with keen contests taking place between the top teams in the UAE's domestic cricket. The ‘A' division competition, which started last week, has placed importance on every council staging such tournaments instead of resorting to quick 20 or 25-over events for just the ‘B' division teams. After the UAE national team's recent defeat to Scotland in a four-day International Cricket Council (ICC) Intercontinental Cup match, UAE skipper Khurram Khan told Gulf News that the defeat was due to the excess of Twenty20 tournaments his team are exposed to. But now the ‘A' divisionBlenheim Champions Trophy, which is a 50-over tournament, has provided the stage for top cricketers to play a longer version of the game. But Shyam Bhatia, the patron of the DCC, believes that the need of the hour is two-day matches. "It is important that all councils stage two or three-day matches to help batsmen and bowlers learn the art of playing in longer versions of the game," he told Gulf News. "It is foolhardy to think that UAE players can perform in four-day matches without ever playing in such a format in domestic tournaments." All-round performance A lack of grounds, the high cost of hiring those venues that are available and also a lack of time for cricketers to play three-day matches have all prevented councils from staging such games. But the Blenheim Champions Trophy has shown that even 50-over tournaments can lift the standard and produce some exciting cricket. The first match of this tournament between Nucaf Tellicherry and Fly Emirates, two of the finest domestic teams in the UAE, turned out to be a thriller, with Tellicherry winning by four runs. C.T.K. Mashood, a former Ranji Trophy player who had missed playing longer games since he stopped playing first-class cricket, utilised the opportunity to put on an all-round performance. The match between the Yogi Group and Zultec Cricket Club provided a stage for former UAE player Zahid Shah to produce a brilliant four-wicket haul. His four for 36 spell helped Yogi Group win by seven wickets after bowling out Zultec for just 121. Fly Emirates regained their form in the second match, defeating Xpress Money Farooq Cricket Club by eight wickets, mainly due to UAE players Amjad Javed and Mohammad Iqbal. Javed destroyed Farooq's batting with a spell of four for 24, while Iqbal went on to hit 78 to ensure an eight-wicket win. Victory Even though Farooq Club lost to Fly Emirates, they too tasted victory over Phoenix Medicine, with the help of an all-round show from Ahmad Shaukat. He hit 66 runs to help his team rack up 239 runs batting first, and then took two wickets to help bowl out Phoenix for 138. Meanwhile, in the sixth Al Dhaid Cricket Village Tournament, Salman Farooq of HSBC bagged five for 21 to give his team a six-wicket win over Zultec. Seven Seas and Golden Line have reached the final of the DCC's Shijana Cricket Cup at the Seven Seas ground in Dubai Investment Park.