Kohinoor won by 149 runs

Kangaroos fried by Kohinoor

24th May and the second round of the Hungarian Cricket League Premier Division saw last year's semi-finalists Kohinoor take on the Kangaroos, who were looking to put points on the table after their loss to the Tigers.

On a slightly damp pitch and in warm conditions the toss was crucial and captain Naveed won it for Kohinoor, electing to bat in the process. An early breakthrough came for the bowling team as star player Habib saw his bails flying off courtesy of a Tamas Torok delivery. Zahid and Akhtar steadied the ship until the former was dismissed for a well made 29.

At 54-2 the match was in the balance, but Haroun partnered up with Akhtar to forge a decisive stand of 108. The amount of runs would probably have been more if it weren't for the outfield or the steady fielding, but the experienced pair cared little for the conditions as they belted the poor balls, whilst also picking up singles to drain the opposition of its strength as they chased the leather.

Akhtar's brilliant innings ended on 54 when he was bowled by the Kangaroos captain. His partner Haroun followed him to the pavilion with 37 classy runs, after being adjudged LBW to Zoltan Popradi, who was playing his first ever game of cricket (!). Zoltan is a champion baseball player who has participated in first tier domestic and international action for more than a decade. 

After the master blaster partnership Suleiman continued the show, gathering 25, but his partners fell away and Kohinoor ended on 200/8 after 30 overs. Gabor Torok finished with 3 for 33, whilst Popradi picked up 2 for 39.

The Kangaroos innings was a disappointing show in comparison, as Zaheer and Habib ran through the top order in no time. The top Kangaroos bowlers put themselves down the order to regain their energy, but the tactic was useless as they had to face the music early on in any case. Suleiman's slower ball accounted for Tamas Torok, with just a boundary to his name, whilst Haroun bamboozled Agoston Viktor with a raging leg-spinner for a duck. Gabor Torok was left stranded on 12 not out as the match finished prematurely, the Kangaroos making a paltry 51.

So Kohinoor open their Premier League account with a bonus point, whilst the Kangaroos can take comfort from the fact that the losing margin was a lot lower than in last year's corresponding encounter.

Man of the match: Akhtar