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By Peter Della Penna

Central East wicketkeeper Gordon Makin struck a determined 57 to lead his side to victory over South West by 95 runs at Branch Brook Park in Newark, N.J., on day three of the USACA U-15 National Tournament. Makin top-scored in Central East’s total of 191 for 9 before they bowled out South West for 96 in 32.3 overs. Central East finished 2-1 in Group A and will play in the third place game against Atlantic, who finished second in Group B with a 2-1 record.

Pic (Right):  Gordon Makin made a determined 57 for Central East [File photo]

Central East won the toss and elected to bat first on another sweltering hot day in New Jersey as temperatures once again climbed into the 90s with high humidity. Makin and Rohit Mogalayapalli teamed up for a 97-run stand to open the match. South West captain Shakeel Ahmad finally made the first breakthrough in the 23rd over as Mogalayapalli played across to a good length ball from the spinner and was clean bowled for 45.

From that moment forward, South West took wickets at regular intervals to climb back into the game. No one else crossed double-digits for Central East as Makin was the backbone of his team’s innings. He reached his 50 in 91 balls but was clean bowled five balls later on the first delivery of the 38th over from pace bowler Sahaj Patel. Makin tried backing away to cut but missed and the stumps were rattled. However, he had carried Central East to 167 for 5 and got a richly deserved applause from both teams while walking off.

South West looked tired coming out to bat after spending the second straight match fielding first for more than three hours in brutal heat. Central East opted to open with two spinners and the strategy worked wonders as they suffocated the South West top order. Nauman Khan took the first two wickets, having Murad Khan caught for 2 by captain Paarth Joshi at short midwicket prodding at a full length delivery. Khan then had Brahmam Chunduri caught for 1 by Joshi at short cover as the batsman backed away to punch a delivery through the off side but Joshi scooped it inches from the ground and South West was struggling at 13 for 2 in the ninth over.

Ahmad was one of two South West players to pass double-digits and the number three batsman was the only person standing in the way of Central East wrapping up the match. Ahmad had reached 31 by the last drinks break after 30 overs with the score on 92 for 6 as South West clung on hoping that he might lead them to a thrilling comeback needing 100 off the last 10 overs.

But on the very first ball after drinks, Ahmad got his bat stuck in the pitch as he came down the track trying to drive the leg-spin of Arsalan Babar. The batsman couldn’t get his bat back in time and was stumped for the seventh wicket. The final three men fell for another four runs as Central East wrapped up the game easily. Three bowlers had two wickets apiece but Khan finished with by far the best figures, taking 2 for 10 in eight overs with three maidens.

In the other match at Branch Brook Park, New York once again feasted on the tiny west side boundary at the northern ground, racking up 299 for 5 in 40 overs as they defeated Directors’ XI by 186 runs to sweep Group A and clinch a spot in the championship match. Randall Wilson scored 163 not out coming in at number four, hitting 26 fours and six sixes along the way.

Pic (Right): New York's Randall Wilson looked like he hardly broke a sweat after walking off with 163 not out. [Courtesy: Peter Della Penna]

Directors’ XI gave New York a few tense moments as pace bowler Harish Saikara took all five wickets to make the score 99 for 5. But Wilson was unperturbed and finished the innings putting on an unbroken sixth wicket stand of 200 in the final 30 overs with Surendra Singh. Such was the dominance of Wilson that Singh only scored 18 runs in that partnership.

“My coach tells me that when I go into bat, make sure we bat all 40 overs,” said Wilson. He has done his best to follow New York coach Ricky Kissoon’s advice. As a result, Wilson is the leading run-scorer in the tournament heading into the final day with 228 runs in three innings while he has only been dismissed once. In the field, Zahib Tariq had the best figures for New York, turning in 3 for 16 in five overs to help bowl out Directors’ XI for 113 in 24.3 overs.

At Weequahic Park, Atlantic defeated South East by 91 runs. Rishi Patel hit 41 opening for Atlantic while Ryan Persaud hit 10 fours and two sixes during his 75 in a team total of 192 for 5. The two leg-spinners then rolled through South East’s lineup as Patel took 4 for 16 in six overs while Persaud finished with 3 for 11 in 6.1 overs. South East’s Faraz Jaferi scored 28, but got no support as his side was bowled out for 101 in 29.1 overs. South East will play South West in the fifth place game as both teams finished 1-2 in group play.

As was anticipated after day one, North West punched their ticket into the final against New York by sweeping Group B with a 254-run win over North East at Orange Park. North West racked up the highest innings score in group play, registering 326 for 6 in 40 overs. Arsh Patel scored 87 for North West while fellow opener Dave Parikh scored 51. North West captain Roshan Varadarajan cashed in for the first time with the bat in this tournament, finishing 54 not out.

North East captain Karanjit Singh played a lone hand at the top of the order, scoring 35 not out in North East’s total of 72. Five North West bowlers took two wickets apiece, including Varadarajan and Parikh. North East will play Directors’ XI in the seventh place game where both teams will be trying to avoid going winless in the tournament.

USACA U-15 National Tournament
Central East vs. South West
Central East won by 95 runs
Central East won the toss and elected to bat

Central East Batting
Batsman        Runs    Balls    4s    6s    Dismissal
G Makin+        57    96    3    0    b Sahaj Patel
R Mogalayapalli    45    80    5    1    b Ahmad
A Ahuja        7    18    0    0    b Ahmad
P Joshi*        6    10    1    0    ct P Singh b Sahil Patel
A Mayasandra        5    6    1    0    b Heran Patel
A Sridher        3    18    0    0    b Sahaj Patel
P Patel            0    1    0    0    runout (Suraj Patel/Chunduri)
N Khan        9    8    0    0    st Arjun Patel+ b Suraj Patel
V Joglekar        9    4    0    1    not out
S Kumar        0    3    0    0    b Suraj Patel
Total Extras        50 (4 no balls, 4 byes, 3 leg byes, 39 wides)
Team Total         191 for 9 in 40 overs

Did not bat: A Babar

South West Bowling    Overs-Maidens-Runs-Wickets
G Singh        5-1-20-0
Sahaj Patel        5-0-28-2
M Khan        6-1-22-0
S Ahmad        8-0-28-2
P Singh        2-0-13-0
Heran Patel        5-0-28-1
Sahil Patel        8-0-36-1
Suraj Patel        2-0-9-2

South West Batting
Batsman        Runs    Balls    4s    6s    Dismissal
M Khan        2    12    0    0    ct Joshi b Khan
B Chunduri        1    26    0    0    ct Joshi b Khan
S Ahmad*        31    71    2    0    st Mayasandra+ b Babar
P Singh        2    26    0    0    runout (Joglekar)
Suraj Patel        6    17    1    0    LBW Sridher
T Mohammad        9    10    0    1    ct Mogalayapalli b Babar
Sahil Patel        0    3    0    0    ct Joglekar b Sridher
Arjun Patel+        10    17    0    0    b Joshi
Sahaj Patel        0    7    0    0    ct Khan b Patel
G Singh        1    5    0    0    runout (sub (Tirunalayi)/Joshi)
Heran Patel        1    1    0    0    not out
Total Extras        33 (1 no ball, 0 byes, 1 leg bye, 31 wides)
Team Total        96 all out in 32.3 overs

Central East Bowling    Overs-Maidens-Runs-Wickets
N Khan        8-3-10-2
V Joglekar        5-1-14-0
A Sridher        8-1-31-2
A Babar        8-1-26-2
A Ahuja        2-0-10-0
P Joshi            1-0-1-1
P Patel            0.3-0-3-1