USA Cricketer : Sharaz Baksh

USA Cricket: SCCA defeats CLNJ by 8 wickets to win 2012 American Cricket Federation Twenty20

openingbat — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 10:44:00 GMT

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By Peter Della Penna in Los Angeles (on Twitter)

Muhammad Asad Khan’s solid all-round performance in the semifinals and finals guided the Southern California Cricket Association to wins over Massachusetts State Cricket League by 89 runs in the morning followed by an eight wicket win over Cricket League of New Jersey in the afternoon as the SCCA won the inaugural American Cricket Federation Twenty20 National Tournament on Monday at Woodley Park in Los Angeles, California. Khan was named Tournament MVP for his performances in the event as SCCA knocked off the previously undefeated CLNJ in the final for the title.

SCCA began the day with an explosive batting display in their semifinal match against MSCL. After winning the toss and batting first, SCCA feasted on an MSCL bowling attack that struggled to find the right length. SCCA’s batsmen hit 21 fours and four sixes off their 20 overs, finishing on 198 for 6.

Rohit Yadav scored 22 of 24 runs in a first wicket partnership with Clayon Graham before being dismissed by Alexi Martin. Khan joined Graham at the wicket and the pair added 99 runs in 9.2 overs. Graham scored 55 off 34 balls and only had six dot balls in his innings when he was bowled by a Sharaz Baksh yorker. Khan finished with 70 off 43 balls before Baksh claimed him LBW with another yorker to make it 162 for 3 in the 16th over. Timil Patel and Amit Sood added 17 and 18 to boost SCCA to their eventual total, finishing just shy of 200.

Image (right) - Dr. Atul Rai presents Muhammad Asad Khan of the SCCA with the award for Tournament MVP. [Courtesy: Peter Della Penna/DreamCricket.com]

MSCL was 40 for 1 in 7 overs and managed to get to 53 four balls into the eighth over to stay within striking distance of the asking rate but Baksh was dismissed for 36 off 28 balls on the fifth ball of the over by Graham to put a serious dent in MSCL’s chances. When the big hitting Timmy Thomas was dismissed for a golden duck off the first ball of the ninth over by Patel, caught on the long off boundary, the dismissal all but sealed the match for SCCA. Patel finished with 2 for 18 and Shayan Abdulghani 3 for 19 as MSCL was bowled out on the last ball of the innings for 109.

In the other semifinal, CLNJ won the toss against Midwest Cricket Conference and despite the fact that CLNJ had won all three of their preliminary games batting first, elected to send MCC in to bat. MCC was restricted to 135 for 7 in 20 overs. CLNJ was 91 for 4 after 13 overs with the match evenly balanced, but thanks to 59 from Rohan Sheth, CLNJ managed to get across the line by four wickets with an over to spare.

In the final between SCCA and CLNJ, the east coast side won the toss and elected to bat first. CLNJ had several players get starts, but no one was able to carry on for a significant score. Sheth made 24 opening the innings and CLNJ captain Kunal Baride scored 25 at number four. Baride and Santosh Dani added 35 for the fifth wicket, but Baride fell with the score on 101 in the 16th, sparking a collapse that saw CLNJ lose three wickets in five balls for no runs to fall to 101 for 7. They were eventually bowled out for 118 in the last over. Left-arm spinner Abdulghani took 3 for 18 and finished with a tournament best 12 wickets.

Image (left) - Shayan Abdulghani receives an SG bat after being named Best Youth Player at the 2012 American Cricket Federation Twenty20. [Courtesy: Peter Della Penna/DreamCricket.com]

SCCA made light work of the chase, reaching the target in 13.4 overs. Yadav and Graham made 21 and 29 respectively before getting out as SCCA reached the 10-over mark at 81 for 2. Khan and Patel knocked off the rest of the runs with Khan finishing 37 not out in 25 balls and Patel 25 not out in 16 balls. Khan hit the winning runs with his eighth boundary.

At the post-tournament awards presentation, former USA U-19 player Abdulghani was presented with a bat from tournament sponsor SG after being chosen as the Best Youth Player on the weekend. CLNJ’s Jasdeep Singh was given the award for Best Bowler after finishing tied for first at the end of the group stage with six wickets including a hat-trick against Minnesota Cricket Association. Abishek Patel of the Southern Connecticut Cricket Association was named Best Batsman after being the top scorer in the group stage with 141 runs.

USA Cricket: 2011 Twenty20 Nationals Preview Part 2

openingbat — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 22:35:00 GMT

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By Peter Della Penna

The first ever USACA Twenty20 Nationals takes place this weekend, June 17-19, in Newark, New Jersey. On Tuesday, DreamCricket.com published Part 1 of its tournament preview featuring the Atlantic, Central East, South West and North West Regions. The following is a brief look at the other four teams scheduled to compete in the tournament – Central West, New York, North East and South East. A final confirmed tournament schedule is also listed at the bottom of the preview.

Central West – This lineup is packed with power, but has stumbled during the last two years at national tournaments, unable to make it to the Super League. They’ll be trying to set things right in New Jersey. The squad is captained by explosive USA opening batsman Sushil Nadkarni. Wicketkeeper Rahul Kukreti serves as the team’s vice-captain.

Central West has the most current USA players on its roster of any team in the tournament with four. Ryan Corns, Orlando Baker and Usman Shuja (pictured right/photo courtesy: ICC) all toured Hong Kong in January playing for USA along with Nadkarni. Kukreti and Jignesh Desai have also represented USA in the past. With New York’s Carl Wright and South West’s Ritesh Kadu not participating in this tournament, Kukreti may have a chance to force his way back into the USA team as a keeper for July’s ICC Americas T20 tournament.

Missing from the squad is talented youngster Abbas Jafri, who got rave reviews from those present at both the U-19 and Senior Western Conference in 2010 for his top class batting.

Central West squad – Sushil Nadkarni (captain), Rahul Kukreti (vice-captain), Orlando Baker, Shalil Bhatt, Owen Brown, Ruchir Chabbra, Ryan Corns, Jignesh Desai, Kashyap Desai, Vivek Inampudi, Jermaine Levine, Amir Nanjee, Ankit Mehta, Usman Shuja.

New York – After an embarrassing display in Florida last November at the 50-over Senior Nationals, the New York squad has a lot to prove heading into this tournament. The squad once again packs a big punch in both the batting and bowling departments, but it remains to be seen whether they will function as a unified team or as a bunch of talented individuals.

USA captain Steve Massiah also holds the same role for New York while Barrington Bartley (pictured left) is his deputy. Batsman Clain Williams and seam bowler George Adams have switched allegiances this year, moving from the Atlantic squad to play under Massiah.

Kevin Darlington and Adrian Gordon lead the pace attack for New York. Massiah and Williams have a big responsibility to make runs and they’ll be supported by Glen Hall, Andy Mohammed and Akeem Dodson, who are all pressing for a return to the national team. The biggest news is that both Carl Wright and Rashard Marshall were not named in the squad and it remains to be seen whether or not this will affect their chances for selection to USA’s squad for the ICC Americas T20 tournament next month.

New York squad – Steve Massiah (captain), Barrington Bartley (vice-captain), George Adams, Quasen Alfred, Kevin Darlington, Akeem Dodson, Karan Ganesh, Adrian Gordon, Glen Hall, Andre Kirton, Andy Mohammed, Bryan Murphy, Nicholas Standford, Clain Williams.

North East – The North East Region finished winless and in last place at the 2010 Eastern Conference Tournament in Atlanta and they’ll have a tough time overcoming the opposition this time around as well. Compared to the other teams in the event, they lack the star power to stand toe-to-toe with the opposition and will have to rely on chemistry and a fighting spirit to have any chance at turning things around.

The squad includes several young players including Akhil Husbands, Huen Daley and former North East U-19 captain Chevon McLean. However, the squad will depend heavily on the experience of players like all-rounder Fazal Alam, Timmy Thomas and hard-hitting opener Sharaz Baksh (pictured right), a former Guyana U-19 player, in order to be competitive.

Making matters more difficult for North East is the fact that Srinath Rajagopalan is no longer a part of their squad. Rajagopalan was one of the few bright spots for North East last year, finishing as the leading wicket-taker in the Eastern Conference Tournament in Atlanta with eight scalps, including 4 for 21 in a narrow loss to Atlantic.

The explosive Oneil Powell was a late addition to the squad, along with Kevin Baugh, and that could have an impact on the fortunes of North East.

North East squad – Prasanna Ramaswamy (captain), Sharaz Baksh (vice-captain), Manwar Abassi, Fazal Alam, Kevin Baugh, Huen Daley, Shawn Edwards, Akhil Husbands, Chevon McLean, Everton Nelson, Oneil Powell, Sheldon Smith, Timmy Thomas, Sundaharami Vankjanati.

South East – The region’s squad combines young talent with some fairly grizzled vets. They have the right balance to come in first, but everyone needs to fire. South East is captained by Nasir “Charlie” Javed, whose ESPNcricinfo profile says he will turn 45 two days after the end of the tournament.

Wicketkeeper Steven Taylor (pictured left) is one of only two players in this tournament – along with Hammad Shahid – expected to tour Ireland with the USA U-19 team in July. Bhim George had a scintillating weekend with the bat in the South East inter-league tournament prior to this event and he’ll be expected to provide most of the runs along with Taylor, Japen Patel and Timothy Surujbally.

On the bowling side, the Georgia combination of Anand Tummala and Jibran Gul will have the lion’s share of the pace duties. Spinners Hussain Haidar and Javed are also expected to have important roles to play in the field. Timroy Allen was not picked to be a part of the squad because he did not play in the South East inter-league tournament, allegedly due to a dispute between rival competitions in which he was participating in Orlando.

South East squad – Nasir Javed (captain), Shane Ford, Bhim George, Jibran Gul, Hussain Haidar, Syed Hasan, Moazzam Imtiaz, Dunae Nathaniel, Ishmael Parchment, Japen Patel, Anthony Sahadeo, Timothy Surujbally, Steven Taylor, Anand Tummala.

2011 USACA Twenty20 Nationals Schedule (as of June 15 – subject to change)

The following schedule was obtained from USACA General Manager Manaf Mohamed on Wednesday afternoon. Instead of having Groups A & B determined by rankings from last year’s 50-over tournaments, the schedule has reverted back to an Eastern Conference and Western Conference round robin stage. At the end of the round robin stage, each team will contest a playoff match against the team who finished in the corresponding position in the opposite conference to determine final rankings (i.e. 1st place Eastern vs. 1st place Western, 2nd place Eastern vs. 2nd place Western, etc.).

Watsessing Park in Bloomfield will now be used as a venue instead of Laurel Hill Park in Secaucus. However, that could change as rain is forecast in the area for Friday and the fields at Watsessing Park have a historically poor drainage system. Matches that were scheduled for Watsessing Park for the 2010 USACA U-15 National Tournament had to be moved to other venues when rainfall at the park in the lead up to the event rendered the grounds unplayable.

Conditions permitting, DreamCricket.com will provide live ball-by-ball commentary of all Group A matches taking place at Watsessing Park on Friday and Saturday as well as the 3rd place and championship matches at Weequahic Park on Sunday.

Group A/Western Conference – Central East, Central West, North West, South West
Group B/Eastern Conference – Atlantic, New York, North East, South East

Friday June 17 at Weequahic Park in Newark, NJ
9 a.m. – New York vs. South East
12:30 p.m. – New York vs. North East
4 p.m. – Atlantic vs. South East

Friday June 17 at Watsessing Park in Bloomfield, NJ
9 a.m. – Central West vs. Central East
12:30 p.m. South West vs. Central East
4 p.m. – South West vs. North West

Saturday June 18 at Watsessing Park in Bloomfield, NJ
9 a.m. – North West vs. Central East
9 a.m. – Atlantic vs. North East
12:30 p.m. – Central West vs. North West
12:30 p.m. – North East vs. South East
4 p.m. – South West vs. Central West
4 p.m. – Atlantic vs. New York

Sunday June 19 at Watsessing Park in Bloomfield, NJ
9 a.m. – 7th place playoff: Group A #4 vs. Group B #4
12:30 p.m. – 5th place playoff: Group A #3 vs. Group B #3

Sunday June 19 at Weequahic Park in Newark, NJ
9 a.m. – 3rd place playoff: Group A #2 vs. Group B #2
12:30 p.m. – Championship match: Group A #1 vs. Group B #1
4 p.m. – Tournament Awards Presentation

USA Cricket Eastern Conference 2010 Tournament Preview

openingbat — Thu, 16 Sep 2010 19:54:00 GMT

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By Peter Della Penna

The following is a preview for each of the squads headed to the USACA Eastern Conference Tournament that will take place from September 17-19 in Atlanta, Ga.

Atlantic – In 2009, the team had a ticket to the Super League just about punched in Washington, D.C., but a dismal final day performance against New York cost them a chance to play for the national title in Florida. Several new faces are in the squad, but ones that bring a load of experience.

Neil McGarrell (at right in the picture) is playing in his first tournament for the Atlantic Region and will captain the squad. He’s played Test cricket for the West Indies along with Jermaine Lawson. However, Lawson’s status is uncertain after injuring himself on Labor Day weekend at the Radiant Info Twenty20 USA.

The squad also boasts four players who have represented USA in 2010: Aditya Mishra, Clain Williams, Imran Awan and Muhammad Ghous. They’ll each play a big role in deciding whether or not Atlantic makes it to USACA Nationals.

Atlantic squad – Neil McGarrell (captain), Siddharth Mehta (vice-captain), Imran Awan, Kunal Baride, Durale Forest, Muhammad Ghous, Jermaine Lawson, Aditya Mishra, Mohammad Nisar, Gowkaran Roopnarine, Akhil Sehgal, Charan Singh, Sean Stanislaus, Clain Williams.

New York – The defending national champions have a roster that is arguably better than last year’s team. It is a who’s who of local, national and international talent.

Pic (Right): Barrington Bartley, seen here at the Radiant Info T20, will be looking to reclaim his spot on the national side.

New to the team are Adam Sanford, the former West Indies fast bowler, and Stuart Mills, a former first-class cricketer from New Zealand who played 13 matches for Wellington. Andy Mohammed is in the senior team for the first time while Adrian Gordon has switched to New York after playing in 2009 for Atlantic.

The squad is once again captained by Steve Massiah. Only two players in the squad have never been selected for USA at junior or senior level, or played first-class cricket overseas.

New York squad – Steve Massiah (captain), Kevin Darlington (vice-captain), Barrington Bartley, Akeem Dodson, Adrian Gordon, Glen Hall, Andre Kirton, Rashard Marshall, Stuart Mills, Andy Mohammed, Adam Sanford, Dwayne Smith, Nicholas Standford, Denison Thomas.

North East – One of the youngest teams in the tournament, the North East enters Atlanta with at least eight players aged 25 or below. They will be coming to the tournament this year after not participating in 2009.

The team has a few hard hitting batsmen worth watching in Sharaz Baksh (picture at right) and Lakhram Sanichar. Also looking to make a positive impact is 18-year-old Jonathan Bonner, the younger brother of Jamaica first-class player Nkrumah Bonner.

North East squad – Jay Singh (captain) Sharaz Baksh (vice-captain), Fazal Alam, Jonathan Bonner, Hammad Chaudhry, Tulaib Faizy, Deigo Hanson, Akil Husbands, Chevon McLean, Chad Munroe, Abisheik Patel, Shinath Rajagopalan, Adil Rehman, Lakhram Sanichar, Karanjit Singh, Achal Yadav.

South East – Last year’s third-place team at USACA Nationals will be looking to stay in the top tier with a strong performance in their host region. The team is mostly the same from a year ago, but Timroy Allen is absent as he rehabs a torn back muscle he sustained playing for USA at ICC WCL Division 4 in Italy.

Two young faces looking to put on a good show are Zain Ali Syed and Dunae Nathaniel (picture at right). Syed captained the South East team at the U-19 Eastern Conference Tournament in Connecticut last month to a second-place finish. Nathaniel was in USA’s 2006 U-19 World Cup team and is the only player in the South East squad that played for the Central Florida Cricket Association team which won the South East inter-league tournament in 2010.

South East squad – Leon Garrick, Jibran Gul, Hussein Haider, Moazzam Imtiaz, Nasir “Charlie” Javed, Dunae Nathaniel, Vaibhav “Ricky” Nayar, Anthony Sahadeo, Ken Singh, Timothy Surujbally, Zain Ali Syed, Steven Taylor, Anand Tummala, Farhat Ullah.

Radiant Info T20 Cricket 2010: New England Pioneers rely on youth power and Indian Test cricketer Debasis Mohanty

openingbat — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 16:14:00 GMT

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Radiant Info T20 Cricket 2010: New England Pioneers - Will youth power and Indian Test cricketer Debasis Mohanty swing it their way?

Last year, New England Pioneers relied on the experience of Fazal Alam, Timmy Thomas, Sharaz Baksh and Lakhram Sanichar to propel their team into the Semis. What they were missing was some sting in their bowling and some spring in their fielding. The new look New England team have addressed these gaps, and how!?

For 2010, the Pioneers mantra is "more power to the youth!" Ten of the 14 members of the squad are under-25. They topped it off with the experience of Fazal, Sharaz and Timmy. And if that wasn't enough, they spiked up the octane level some more. The tournament's biggest x-factor - the former Indian Test and ODI cricketer Debasis Mohanty is part of the New England Pioneers!

Here is a sneak preview of the New England Pioneers:

Debasis "Debashish" Mohanty (34) - It takes extra-ordinary merit for somebody like Debasis of Orissa or Dhoni of Jharkhand to break into the Indian team. Coming from a weaker Ranji state, Debasis was noticed for his swing bowling despite domestic conditions not being conducive to his art!

Making his Test debut for India in 1997, Mohanty got a four-wicket haul in his very first match against Sri Lanka - the Matara Marauder Sanat Jayasuriya was his first scalp. Later that year, playing in his first ODI in the Sahara Cup in Toronto, Debasis Mohanty joined the rare club of ODI bowlers to get a wicket off the very first over when he dismissed Saeed Anwar off the fifth ball!

Debasis played 45 ODIs taking 57 wickets at a 29.15 average. In the 1999 World Cup, he played a key role in favorable English conditions finishing second highest wicket-taker for India. At the peak of his international career, he was among the ICC Top 20 in ODI rankings.

Mohanty continued his exploits in India's first class competition where his tally of 405 wickets includes a perfect-10 for 46 in a 2001 Duleep Trophy match against South Zone.

Mohanty is only the third Indian bowler to get a ten-wicket haul in first-class cricket. His splendid bowling effort helped Orissa win the East Zone Vijay Hazare Trophy ahead of favorites Bengal in February 2010. He was the leading wicket-taker within his zone in the zonal ODI competition. Mohanty captained the East Zone side in the 2010 Deodhar Trophy - the List A competition in Indian domestic cricket before arriving in Boston at the invitation of the MSCL President Manas Sahu, where he currently plays for the Boston Gymkhana Sports Club.

Fazal Alam (35) - The captain of Commonwealth CC, Massachusetts State Cricket League and North East regional teams is a familiar name to cricket fans across USA. Consistently among the region's best cricketers, Fazal continues to lead the league in batting (379 at a 54.14 average) and bowling (15 wickets at a 14.6 average) in 2010.

In India, Fazal played U-25 for Hyderabad and represented Osmania University as well as South Zone Universities in the Vizzy Trophy.

Fazal played for Argonauts in the 2008 edition of the Radiant Info T20 before joining New England Pioneers in 2009 in the new format of the tournament. He was the second most impactful player in 2009 with an Impact Index of 5.7 and lead the charge as he took his deflated team into the semi-finals before losing to the formidable Global Challengers.

Sharaz Baksh (29) - Sharaz, a former Guyana U-19 cricketer, has been part of of the New England side for two years. In 2008, Sharaz scored a record 708 runs in the Massachusetts State Cricket League including seven 50s and 1 century from just 12 matches. He then followed that up with 104 runs from his 4 appearances in the first edition of the Radiant Info T20 tournament. In 2009, he slipped down a few ranks on the MSCL best batsmen. But in 2010, Sharaz has returned to his usual place on top of the leaderboard where his total from eleven innings is 497 at an average of 62.12. Expect some fireworks from Sharaz at this year's Radiant Info T20.

Lakhram Sanichar (23) - Lakhram's reputation as a fiery hitter in the Massachusetts league preceded his appearance at the Radiant Info T20 2009. Lakhram did not play in the first match against the Gentlemen of Philadelphia. Then came the must-win match against the Daredevils. Batting first, the NJ team put up 158 on the back of some spectacular fireworks by Kiran Patel. When NJ finished with 158, both NJ and Philadelphia appeared confident of a berth in the semis ahead of New England. In fact, one of New England's own players left the ground disillusioned after he was given out LBW with the score reading 2 for 2!

But Fazal and Lakhram had other plans! While Fazal's patient knock of 46 brought stability, Lakhram's cameo of 45 runs from 19 balls changed the course of the match! Lakhram's quickfire essay featured 2 fours and 4 sixes! It was abundantly clear that he was trying to land the balls on the South-bound Garden State Parkway! With that entertaining knock, he despatched Philadelphia down the parkway.

This year, the New England side features several U19 players! According to New England manager, Leighton Greenidge, the U19 cricketer Jonathan Bonner had a successful swing-through Jamaica. Upon his return, he got 73 runs in the two completed matches in the recently concluded U-19 Eastern Conference. His team-mate and captain of the North East U19 side, Chevon McLean, scored 34 in North East's victorious campaign against Atlantic Region.

A more complete roster will be published on RadiantInfoT20.com in the coming days.