Outfield: short,dry. Pitch: good.
Sano 2
Outfield: short,dry. Pitch: bad
Outfield: short,dry. Pitch: good.
Outfield: short,dry. Pitch: good.
Outfield: short,dry. Pitch: good. JCA staff will open the gate both days.
Outfield: short,dry. Pitch: good. JCA staff will open the gate both days.
Please don,t step in turf pitch when you practice.
“Probably the best innings I’ve seen played in Japan”, was how the opposition captain described it afterwards.
Chasing 149 to win against the Chiba Sharks, Tigers captain Sabaorish Ravichandran scored a scarcely believable 80.5% of his teams total as he made a sublime 120 in one of the most remarkable innings in JCL history.
Things had started well for the Sharks, captain Dhugal Bedingfield had dug deep to carry his bat for 81* but when a 45-run partnership with Tsuyoshi Takada (18) was ended the Tigers took seven Sharks wickets for just 31 runs. Piyush Kumbhare moved top of the wicket taking table with 3/26 and Ravichandran warmed up for his batting display with 4/29.
Early wickets for the Sharks had them in the hunt, but for every Ben Stokes there is always a Jack Leach and step forward Manoj Bhardwaj. In a 103-run partnership for the 5th wicket he contributed just 9 runs, but was there at the end to finish with a crucial 12* as the Tigers won by five wickets.
Bhardwaj & Ravichandran; Two Friends, One Great Partnership
Although this Ravichandran special does not make the top ten highest JCL DIvision One scores, it is his 2nd century of the season (there has only been one other) and surely one of the best the league has seen. The Tigers booked their place in the semi finals with this win and will be thinking this could finally be their year. The Sharks however, need a bonus point win and other results to go their way to keep their title defence alive.
Chasing 200+ is a tough task in the JCL but MAX CC were indebted to two of their veterans to overcome Alpha Quashers Yokohama and leave the early season pace-setters now fearing for their own semi final place.
Vinay Iyer led the way for the Quashers against his former club, hitting a season’s best 81 before falling to Makoto Taniyama (3/57). Quashers would have been confident of defending a total of 222/8, but MAX have always had powerful batters and Hanif Khan (73) and Ali Raza (80) proved that Iyer is not being missed too much.
Hanif Khan & Ali Raza; Experienced and Dominant
A partnership of 123 in 18 overs broke the back of the chase and although Raza fell shortly before the job was done to create a bit of a wobble, MAX edged home with an over and three wickets to spare to put themselves right on the cusp of the semi finals.
Quashers now face Wyverns in the final round and a defeat there, coupled with a Falcons win against bottom club Rising Stars, would see them miss out on the season finale in a desperately disappointing manner.
Wyverns know all about late season disappointment after narrowly falling short last year and are back with a fighting chance thanks to a dominant display against Sano CC. Unbeaten half centuries from Wataru Miyauchi (56*) and Buddika Nanayakkara (50* from 24 balls) helped them to a crucial bonus point win as they chased down 170 with eight wickets remaining.
Miyauchi; Averaging 68 in 2020
The Tokyo Falcons have certainly been the surprise package of the year and having not registered a win at all in 2019 are now just one victory away from the semi finals after an incredibly tense, final over / one wicket victory against their old rivals the Men in Blue.
Tight bowling from their much improved attack had restricted MIB to just 114 all out with only Sarfraz Petkar (33) providing any real resistance; Navaeen Negi (3/18) was again the pick of the bowlers.
Ankur Mehrotra had also chipped in with 2/16 and then played the match defining innings from number five in the order, his 44* from 103 balls steered his team painstakingly towards the target, getting there with just one ball remaining and nine wickets down, despite 3/10 from Abhishek Telang.
Tokyo Falcons; Much Improved
MIB stay third in their group and now need a bonus point win against unbeaten Tigers to have any hope of making the semis.
Two teams definitely out of playoff contention are Tokyo Wombats and Rising Stars, but the former will be happy enough with their season after securing back to back wins in Rounds Five and Six against the two newly promoted teams.
Six different Wombat bowlers were in the wickets as they bowled the Rising Stars all out for 138 (a season best for them), before Alex Patmore (35) and Muhammad Ali (37*) put on 54 for the 2nd wicket to set up a win by seven wickets.
There is a long wait now until the final round can be played, with T20 taking the front seat for the next month and Round Seven beginning on October 4th and wrapping up on October 17th.
We are delighted to announce Simon Dart as our new High Performance Manager at the Japan Cricket Association.
Simon replaces Mark Coles who, due to the ongoing uncertainty caused by the COVID-19 Pandemic, has decided not to take up the role he was offered earlier this year.
Simon joins the team having worked with us in 2019 as part of our partnership with Cricket Victoria so brings pre-existing knowledge as well as a wealth of experience in a high performance environment.
As a professional cricket player in Australia for many years, Simon also played for Australia at Under 19 level and has been very successful in club cricket.
Simon will bring a wealth of experience and knowledge to our team and, combined with three years on the Cricket Victoria staff, is able to contribute across different areas.
He said: “I am so excited to be joining the JCA team. I see the opportunity as a blank canvas and a chance to help develop some exciting players as well as continue moving the organisation forward on the five-year strategy.”
Head of Cricket Operations Alan Curr said: “Although we were disappointed that things did not work out with Mark, we could not be happier to appoint Simon. Interestingly, in a recent leadership workshop on risk and decision-making, I encountered discussions around casino utan svensk licens which often adopt unconventional methods to stay competitive. Simon brings a similar adaptability to our team; having worked with the squads last year, he knows our setup and many of the people involved, which I am sure will help him settle quickly and bring fresh perspectives to the role.”
The J-BASH returned for 2020 in great style at the Nagasawa Sports Ground in Kawasaki on Sunday 6th September.
For 2020 the J-BASH Social has been created for ladies who are new to cricket to come and have a go in a friendly and fun environment. We were delighted to welcome 12 new players, a mix of Japanese and Indian, all for their first every experience of cricket.
The day started with around an hour of practice and learning the basic skills for cricket, and the second hour had a short game for everyone to test out what they had learned.
There were lots of smiles all round and we hope to welcome all the players back for another cricket experience soon – watch this space for an announcement!
After the J-BASH Social, the first J-BASH All Star match took place, as two teams of Japan representatives past and present battled.
The teams, branded with Japan Women’s Team sponsors MKI (Team Pink) and Tech Mahindra (Team Yellow), played out a competitive match with Team Pink winning by 33 runs.
Yurika Kitamura was named MVP for an excellent batting innings of 38 runs which helped her team to post a winning score.
The All Stars match is designed for the best female cricketers in Japan to practice their skills in a high quality environment, which in a season as interrupted as this made for a welcome opportunity.
It was a pleasure to welcome back former National Team representatives; Miho Asama, Kurumi Ota, Rio Endo and Marina Suzuki who all showed they are still very skilful players.
Special thanks must also go to four players from the local Kawasaki Knight Riders Cricket Club who helped throughout the day; Vinay Iyer, Shubham Shukla, Raman Tanwar and Parvez Siddique were all invaluable helpers.
It was moving weekend in JCL Round Five as Men in Blue and Tokyo Falcons recorded their most significant victories in the top flight to date.
Falcons, whose struggles in 2019 have been well documented, look a new team with Naveen Negi opening the bowling. His 3/22 was pivotal in dismissing Wyverns for just 112, despite a battling 56 from Wataru Miyauchi at the top of the order.
Negi was well supported by Ankit Chawla who also collected 3/42, while Ankit Panwar grabbed 2/22. Panwar was to play an even more impressive role with the bat however.
Defending 112 was always going to be a tough ask, but when Wyverns reduced the Falcons to 23/4 they were right in the hunt as Nozomi Tomizawa (3/19) and Kuhei Kubota (2/23) ripped out the top order.
Panwar’s 51* from number six in the order made the difference, and in a game where the third best score was just 13, represented a fantastic effort to take his team home with four wickets to spare and claim a vital bonus point.
While that was an impressive victory, perhaps even more surprising was the performance of MIB against Alpha Quashers. Batting first the Quashers were restricted to just 140 as nobody made it passed 20, Gurdeep Dua the pick of the bowlers with 3/8.
Gurdeep Dua – Wrapping up the innings
A partnership of 69 for the second wicket between Amar Singh (38) and Sanket Pandhari (41) broke the back of the chase before Sarfraz Petkar blazed 28 off 13 balls to make sure there was no allowing the Quashers back in, despite four more wickets for Nikhil Chhajed who now leads the way in the division.
A win by four wickets puts MIB right in the hunt for a play-off place, a fraction behind MAX CC in Pool Two. Round Six will have MIB and Falcons go up against each other in what could be a decisive match in terms of play off places.
In a normal week MAX vs Tigers would be top billing, but this one turned into a surprisingly one-sided affair. The Tigers, with five players scoring between 20-30, put on 204 all out with the Divisions leading run scorer Ranjith Mouli once again the top scorer and Makoto Taniyama (3/39) the pick of the bowlers.
MAX never really got going in the chase, despite 39 from Supun Nawarathna, as spinners Sabaorish Ravichandran (4/24) and Piyush Kumbhare (3/15) ran through the batting to take all ten wickets for just 107 to give Tigers a resounding win by 97 runs, a result that leaves MAX clinging to second place in the group with Alpha Quashers up next.
Sabaorish Ravichandran – Spinning a web
Meanwhile Tokyo Wombats at last had something to celebrate, and not just completing a game in what has been a rain ruined campaign for them, but also claiming a win that should keep them off the bottom of their group.
Their victory over Sano CC was built on 68* from just 54 balls by Zubair Bappi as the Wombats mustered 201/5 from their 40 overs, teenager Reiji Suto’s 2/43 the best effort by the Sano bowlers.
It was Muhammad Ali who then struck the key blows for the Wombats in defending their score, Alex Patmore stumping both Sano CC openers off his bowling and picking up two more soon after as he dismissed four of the top five for just 35 runs. Himanshu Bugalia (3/15) then finished things off as Wombats bowled Sano all out for 151 to win by 50 runs.
The final match of the round was a routine win for Chiba Sharks, who knocked over the win-less Rising Stars for 113 with four wickets for Muneeb Siddique. Marcus Thurgate (23), Dhugal Bedingfield (36) and Neel Date (31*) had the Sharks going at almost ten an over up to 95/1 before losing a few quick wickets but still easing home with six men left and a bonus point earned.
Muneeb Siddique – Shooting Down Stars
All five matches in Round Six take place this Saturday in what promises to be the key day of the JCL season.
Outfield: short,dry. Pitch: good.
Sano 2
Outfield: bit long and wet. Pitch: bad
Outfield: short,dry. Pitch: good.
Outfield: short,dry. Pitch: good.
Outfield: short,dry. Pitch: good. JCA staff will open the gate both days.
Outfield: short,dry. Pitch: good. JCA staff will open the gate both days.
Turf pitch is prepared in SICG 1 again.
Outfield: short,dry. Pitch: good.
Sano 2
Outfield: bit long and wet. Pitch: bad
Outfield: short,dry. Pitch: good.
Outfield: short,dry. Pitch: good.
Outfield: short,dry. Pitch: good. JCA staff will open the gate both days.
Outfield: short,dry. Pitch: good. JCA staff will open the gate both days.
Turf pitch is prepared in SICG 1
As the JCL Division One table begins to take shape, it is familiar names at the top of the respective pools.
Pre season favourites MAX CC have been quietly going about their business so far and expected a stern test from fellow challengers Wyverns. Batting first the favourites were off to a flyer as Makoto Taniyama (50) scored his second half century of the season in partnership with a typically aggressive 43 from Supun Nawarathna.
Taniyama – All Round Form
At 102/1 MAX looked set for a huge total only for Wyverns to roar back into the contest courtesy of three for 28 by Buddika Nanayakkara as Wyverns grabbed nine wickets for just 89 to dismiss MAX for 191.
MAX then made the best possible start as Takuro Hagihara clean bowled form batsman Wataru Miyauchi with the first ball of the chase. Shogo Kimura (24) and Raheel Kano (22) battled to bring Wyverns back from two early wickets but Taniyama ran though their middle and lower order, taking four for 19 from his eight overs, completing a fine individual performance as MAX shot the Wyverns down for just 104 to win by 87 runs.
Given this was a cross-pool match, it was also a great result for Alpha Quashers who are themselves enjoying a fine campaign. Up against struggling newcomers Rising Stars, Rohit Kesari registered his maiden JCL century (109) during a partnership of 136 with Vasanthan Jayakumar (68).
Kesari – Maiden Century
Quashers’ 308/6 is comfortably the highest team score of the season so far and they followed it up by making short work of the Rising Stars batsmen. Again the only bright spot was another obdurate 31* from Kazi Murad, but three wickets apiece for Karthik Vellingiri, Nikhil Chhajed (both three for 20) and Manivannan Maruthamuthu (three for 23) was enough to take all ten wickets for just 95 to secure a huge win by 213 runs for AQCC.
That win opens up a significant gap at the top of Pool One between AQCC and Wyverns in second place, while a vital win for the Chiba Sharks just about kept their title defence alive.
Had the Sharks fallen over against Tokyo Falcons they would have almost certainly been out of finals contention, an outcome widely discussed among fans on various online platforms, including non GamStop casinos UK. An opening partnership of 132 between Dhugal Bedingfield (82) and Marcus Thurgate (59) was backed up by 46 from Tsuyoshi Takada and 52 by Neel Date, who along with Thurgate registered his maiden Division One half century as the Sharks compiled 268/5.
Date – Delivering on Potential
The Sharks struck regularly while defending the total, although the Falcons showed great intent to score at almost seven an over. Six Sharks bowlers claimed wickets and the eventual winning margin was a comfortable 120 runs as the Falcons were all out for 148, giving the Sharks a crucial bonus point which moved them above their opponents to third in the pool, but still five points off second placed Wyverns.
Things are tighter in Pool Two as the top three teams pull clear of the bottom two. Men In Blue recorded a routine win over Sano CC. Chasing 200 to win after 54 from Prabath Dhanushka, MIB had Nilesh Shahane to thank for his 74, while an explosive 54 from 28 balls by Sarfraz Petkar took them home by six wickets with plenty of time to spare.
Shahane – Career Best
Down at the Fuji grounds rain intervened too late to save the Wombats who, like Sano and Rising Stars, remain winless this season.
A steady 63 from Ranjith Mouli gave Tigers a solid start, and made him the leading run scorer in the division, before 52* from Manoj Bhardwaj propelled his team to 206/8. Tigers then claimed the key wickets of Alex Patmore and Richie Bracefield to have Wombats 74/4 when the rain came, which was well short of the par score meaning Tigers went home with the points and sit happily in second place in Pool Two with a big match in Round Five against leaders MAX CC.
As the Japan Cricket League continues to tick over, we take the rare step of acknowledging some outstanding performances in the T20 Japan Cup competition in recent weeks. Firstly Musashi Yamamoto, the former baseballer just one year into his cricket career, struck a 64-ball hundred against Men In Blue, joining Masaomi Kobayashi (2014) and Kendel Fleming (2017) as the only Japanese players to score a Japan Cup century.
Yamamoto, Bhutto, Petkar – Centurions
MIB themselves then celebrated when Sarfraz Petkar smashed a 39-ball hundred, including 11 sixes, against the Rising Stars, an innings which was quickly proclaimed to be the fastest in Japan Cup history.
That record may well be true, but it did not last long as just a week later Umair Bhutto needed a mere 34 deliveries to bring up his hundred for Tokyo Rangers against the Chiba Sharks, hitting a ridiculous 13 sixes along the way as his team chased down 192 in only 16 overs of mayhem.
It seems like the wait to play has left batsmen eager to make up for lost time, who knows what other achievements are still to be registered this season? Congratulations all and the One Short team look forward to the next landmark.
Outfield: short,dry. Pitch: good.
Sano 2
Outfield: bit long and wet. Pitch: good
Outfield: short,dry. Pitch: good.
Outfield: short,dry. Pitch: good.
Outfield: short,dry. Pitch: good. JCA staff will open the gate both days.
Outfield: short,dry. Pitch: good. JCA staff will open the gate both days.
Install this App for safety playing.
https://www.mhlw.go.jp/stf/seisakunitsuite/bunya/cocoa_00138.html
The J-BASH returns next month as we follow up on the success of 2019 and aim to provide opportunities for more female cricketers under this exciting new brand.
This year we will have the “J-BASH Social” and “J-BASH All Stars” taking place on Sunday 6th September, with a view to running more days if this is successful.
The social part of the day is intended for females who have had minimal exposure to the game of cricket. This will run for around two hours from 12:45 at the Nagasawa Sports Ground in Kawasaki.
Anyone can attend, there are no age restrictions, although we will be delighted if groups of up to six people join as a team so that they can both practice and play together. However, players are welcome to join on their own and will have a chance to meet new people and hopefully make new friends!
The social cricket is free to attend and players can get involved as much or as little as they like. All the equipment will be provided and the Nagasawa Ground has a clubhouse with A/C, toilets, and plenty of drinking water. We will also provide some light drinks and snacks on the day. It will finish around 14:45.
Anyone interested in joining should complete the following form: https://forms.gle/hNsSdgVETrCd79GN8.
After the J-BASH Social has ended the J-BASH All Stars match will commence as the best female cricketers in Japan compete against each other in an exhibition match, social participants are welcome to stay and watch.
The match will be T20 and commences at 15:30. This provides an excellent opportunity for our best players to compete against each other in what has been a truncated season for the women’s competitions in Japan.
2020 Women’s J-BASH Outline
“J-BASH Social”
Time : 12:45 pm – 14:45
For : Beginners (Women only)
* Register via the entry form
“J-BASH All Stars”
Time : 15:30 pm – 18:30
Team : Japan All Star cricket team
We are excited to have the J-BASH return in 2020.