Kuwait: Mohammed Ali leads Gulf SPC to upset title win over Al Sayer

An impressive Man-of-the-Match winning performance from all-rounder Mohammed Ali was enough for Gulf SPC to snare the Haliburton Classic League (Division One) from perennial favourite, Al Sayer, in a low scoring final recently.

Ali's 3/46 and unbeaten top score of 40 not out were decisive elements in Gulf SPC's five wicket win over Al Sayer, long a collector of the jewels of Kuwaiti cricket.

It was a shock win for Gulf SPC, who had earlier succumbed to Al Sayer in the league phase.

Basic scores:
Al Sayer 122 all out (34 overs) (Riffat Bhat 56; Mohammed Ali 3/46, Mudassar 4/25, Vishwas Acharya 2/15) lost toGulf SPIC 123-5 (28.3 overs) (Shoaib Sayed 27, Vishwas Acharya 22, Mohammed Ali 40 no; Aslam 2/34, Riffat Bhat 3/57) by five wickets. Man of the Match Mohamed Ali of Gulf SPIC

Following the final, the major awards for the league were presented. The 'Most Valuable Award' was given to Al Sayer's Mustanser Hussain, a right hander stroke maker who averaged 80 throughout the season with a strike-rate of 97, along the way smashing two centuries.

Best Batsman went to Al Sayer's Mohammed Waheed, while Upali Chandrasiri from Sri Lankan Sports nabbed the Best Bowler accolade.

Other clubs to take part in the league were Hubara, Unity, Tally and Sri Lankan Sports Clubs.

In the other major titles known at this stage:
KBRC 50 Over tournament - Kuwait Entertainment City beat Salmiya

Baker Hughes Premier League (Division 2) - Kuwait Entertainment City beat Gulf Consult by 72 runsKuwait Entertainment City 214 all out in 38.2 overs (Bilal 27, Javed Choudhary 91, Juzer Ali 3/39) beat Gulf Consult all out 142 in 27.4 overs (Dinesh 21, Hisham Asad 38, Riffat 35, Aqeel 5/26)

Winter Cup 2000/2001 (Organized by Gulf Consult Cricket Committee):
Final - Salmiya C.C. defeated Gulf Spic C.C.

The BP Inter School tournament (Under 19) - Indian Central School, Abbassiya (defending champion).

The Champions' Challenge Tournaments for Juniors -
Under 15: The Indian Schools beat The Pakistan Schools
Under 19: The Pakistan Schools Beat The Indian Schools

The team to represent Kuwait at an Invitational Under 13 tournament in the United States in October has almost been finalised. The Kuwaitis were invited following last year's win in the Under 13 Gulf Cup.

A squad of 24 has been chosen: Prateesh Rajpal, Tiaan Furstemberg, Mohammed Rakib, Asad Rehmat, Ijaz Mohammed, Mohammed Asif, Mazen Moez Ali, Umer Salahuddin, Arnav Anand, Ebrahim Saifuddin, Asim Gazanfer Ali, Melanius Caetano D'Souza, Karthik S.Shetty, Kevin Fernandes, Mohammed Tariq Ruwaisdeen, Mitul Pratik Desai, Ramesh Anand, Sheraz Kaleem, M. Ethesham Ul Hafiz, Mufaddal Hasan Ali, Waseem Ghazanfer Ali, Mohib Munawer Ali, Mufaddal Chudiwala, Lakshman Perera.