EPC Solar Park in Phillip saw plenty of action on Sunday, with 2nd, 3rd and 4th Grade each playing their respective Greg Chappell Cricket Centre Blast Twenty20 Grade Finals. Queanbeyan were on track for a clean sweep for the day, clinching victories in 3rd and 4th Grade, only to be denied by Weston Creek Molonglo, who snatched the 2nd Grade decider in the last over.
2nd Grade: Weston Creek Molonglo defeated Queanbeyan by 5 wickets
In a rematch of the One-Day final two weeks prior, Queanbeyan started strongly in their quest for revenge over Weston Creek Molonglo after winning the toss and opting to bat. Opener Jack Sutton (33) and skipper Zac Harlow (38) came out fast to have Queanbeyan 1-68 after 12 overs, before ‘Creek skipper Shubhang Mehta (3-21) managed to stall Queanbeyan’s momentum. Queanbeyan’s middle order fired towards the end of their innings Jordan Hedington (25 off 11 balls), Phil Moore (20 off 12 balls), and Brad Moore (12* from 5 balls) pushing Queanbeyan’s total to 7/160 from their 20 overs.
Ansh Tiwary got WCM off to an excellent start, smacking three boundaries off Queanbeyan skipper Zac Harlow’s first four balls. But Harlow would have the last laugh, bowling Tiwary (27) through the gate, bringing no.3 Yogesh Mahajan to the middle. Partnering with Nick Owen (18) and Siddharth Girish (11), Mahajan kept the ‘Creek’s score ticking along with
excellent running between wickets and pushing them to 4/133 from 17 overs.
Still requiring 27 runs to win from three overs, Mahajan took control with a crucial 19-run 18th over, including two boundaries and a six, to bring victory within reach. Mahajan couldn’t see the ‘Creek home, falling next over for a match-winning 72 from 49 balls, leaving Nick Barclay (2*) and Aditya Thumma (7*) to guide WCM to victory, with Thumma hitting a boundary to seal the win with five balls to spare.
3rd Grade: Queanbeyan defeated Western District by 2 runs
Winning the toss and batting first, openers Rory Di-Campli (16) and Matthew Rebus (16) pushed Queanbeyan to 30 without loss from the first five overs. Wests made inroads with a few wickets to have the game evenly poised at 4-71 after 12 overs, before Queanbeyan legend Peter Solway (42) and Mitchell Jessop (19) accelerated towards the end of the innings, pushing Queanbeyan’s to 8/146 after their twenty overs.
Wests started very well, losing just two wickets in the opening ten overs, and setting a strong platform for their middle order for the second half on their innings. The dismissal of no.3 Fletcher Tarry (28) in the 13th over brought Jake Provan to the crease, who wasted no time trying to push the game forward.
The match came down to the last over, with Wests needing 16 to win and experienced bowler Justin Lott to bowl the final over for Queanbeyan. Provan managed to reduce the deficit to 8 runs, hitting the first ball for two and then clearing the boundary with the second ball, but Lott used all his experience and composure, conceding only six runs from the final four deliveries for Queanbeyan to clinch yet another 3rd Grade premiership.
4th Grade: Queanbeyan defeated Eastlake by 75 runs
Queanbeyan’s top order flexed their big guns after winning the toss and batting first, with veterans Michael Frost (49) and Adrian Brunker (58) combined for 95-run second wicket partnership to assert Queanbeyan’s dominance. Jas Mankoo (28) contributed at the end of the innings, guiding Queanbeyan to a final score of 5/179 from their twenty overs. Olin Lamond was the pick of Eastlake’s bowlers, finishing with figures of 3-35.
In reply, Eastlake lost opener Lal Wikesiriwardana for a duck in the first over. Skipper Iranthan Rajapaksha and Rukshan Abeysekera then settled the innings, before Rajapaksha holed out to young quick Tyson Russell to leave Eastlake 2-41.
The Demons struggled to recover from there, losing wickets at regular intervals. Micah Manners was the chief destroyer for Queanbeyan in the middle overs, picking up 4-11 from his three overs as Queanbeyan emerged comfortable winners, bowling Eastlake out for 104 in the 19th over.
Women's Grade Competition
- In the Women’s Grade semi-finals, Mia Phelps played a pivotal role for Western District, scoring an unbeaten 22 runs and picking up 4-13 runs against ANU to give the Lions a chance to defend their Glenda Hall Shield T20 title.
- The other Women’s semi-final saw Eastlake's Clare Murray top-scoring with 32 runs, while Georgia Bye impressed with the ball, taking 3-11 runs against Ginninderra, as the Tigers lost six wickets for one run to give Eastlake a chance to get one back on Wests from last summer’s T20 final.
On Saturday, the second day of Round 19 two-day matches continued across Canberra:
- Tuggeranong defeated North Canberra Gungahlin by 195 runs at Chisholm (Finlay McGurk 27; Daniel Oysher 3-21).
- Queanbeyan defeated Ginninderra by 138 runs at Kippax (Ethan Fitzpatrick 67*; Raakin Rahman 2-6).
- Eastlake defeated Western District by 2 wickets at Kingston (Jake Monie 98, Oliver Blaney-Brown 59, Nick Kent 53; Liam Barlow 2-18).
- Weston Creek Molonglo defeated ANU by 225 runs at ANU North (Dave Dubey 31; Blake Faunce 4-82).
Lower Grade Standouts:
- Sineth Hearth and Dinesh Chovatiya from North Canberra Gungahlin 2nd Grade stood out with exceptional bowling performances against Tuggeranong, claiming 4-15 and 3-8, respectively.
- Ishan Dalvi from Queanbeyan 3rd Grade showcased spun a web, taking 6-19 despite his team's loss to Ginninderra.
- Karthik Subramaniam starred for Tuggeranong 3rd Grade with 5-28 to lead his side to a 69-run victory over North Canberra Gungahlin.
- Dylan Lamb's 133 powered Weston Creek Molonglo 4th Grade to victory over ANU.
- Nathan Simons from Ginninderra 4th Grade, toiled hard with the ball, claiming 5-64 against Queanbeyan.
Upcoming finals:
Manuka Oval plays host to its final day of cricket for the summer on Sunday, with the Greg Chappell Cricket Centre T20 Blast Grand Finals to be played following the Glenda Hall Shield Women’s decider.
- 1st Grade Men’s SF1: Weston Creek Molonglo v Tuggeranong from 9.00am
- 1st Grade Men’s SF2: Queanbeyan v North Canberra-Gungahlin from 12.30pm
- Glenda Hall Shield Grand Final: Western District v Eastlake from 4.00pm
- 1st Grade Men’s Greg Chappell Cricket Centre T20 Blast Grand Final, under lights from 7.20pm
Article by UC Sports Media student Oliver Nguyen