Afridi stars

Cricket Cranes celebrate a dismissal. The team defeated Singapore by 66 runs with Afridi (shirt 66) picking four wickets. PHOTO BYEDDIE CHICCO

ENTEBBE- Team Uganda overcame intense pressure with both bat and ball to beat Singapore by 66 runs on Day Two of the ICC World Cricket League Division Three tournament at the lakeside Oval in Entebbe yesterday.
Having lost their tournament opener by a similar margin to three-time ODI World Cup finalists Canada on Tuesday at Lugogo, Uganda endured several nerve-wrecking moments before downing the Asian nation.

“This means a lot to us,” Uganda’s captain Davis Karashani said in the post-match press conference. “It gives us a chance to bounce back into the tournament.”
“We are going to rest tomorrow (today) and do our analysis of Oman ahead of Friday.” Karashani added.
Unlike Tuesday, Karashani and company could afford to give a few hugs to the fans near the dugouts.

A wobbly batting start after Singapore skipper Chetan Suryawanshi asked his opponents to bat first coupled with the Cranes’ blunt bowling and fielding had put Uganda’s chances of progressing to the 2018 ICC World Cup Qualifier in jeopardy.
But a much needed 86-run fifth-wicket partnership off 71 balls between Kamal Shahzad (46 off 51) and Arnold Otwani (47 off 46) and later, Mohammed ‘Afridi’ Irfan’s superb spell of 5/38 somehow got Uganda home as the beautiful sun set over Entebbe.
Uganda’s openers Hamu Kayondo and Arthur Kyobe faced another test to prove themselves after stuttering at 20-3 when chasing 235 against Canada.


The pair had only piled 16 runs off the first 36 balls and only added 11 by the end of the 10th over. By the time Kyobe (20 off 36) fell, they had constructed 43 runs.
Kayondo upped his strike rate (SR) with three boundaries and fell for the third wicket, returning with a respectable 88-ball 41 at 84-3 after 26.4 overs.
Roger Mukasa’s rare brief innings of 15 off 34, Shahzad-Otwani combo and Deus Muhumuza’s late 25* off 26 had Uganda over the 200-run mark notwithstanding Anantha Krishna (2/37) and Selladore Vijayakumar (2/39). But they tail end vanished under Mulewa Dharmichand’s (2/42) command from 203-6 to coast to 217-9.
In the chase, Singapore, who lost to Uganda by a run at WCL Division Three in Malaysia three years ago, were 10 runs ahead with the SR before the scoreboard read 65-2 when Chaminda Ruwan (40 off 62) had been trapped lbw by Karashani (1/32) after 19.2 overs.
Anish Paraam (20 off 39) and Arjurn Mutreja (35 off 56) reconstructed the innings with a 38-run combo for the third wicket. Wicket-keeper Otwani stumped and caught the pair after 35.5 overs.
Here, after Mutreja, best batsman with 282 runs in seven innings in Malaysia, had departed, Singapore needed 11 runs per over to win.

Afridi ran riot as he took four more wickets, Singapore’s hopes of adding to the opening win over Malaysia faded as they lost six wickets for 19 runs. They were bowled for 151 at the end of the 44th over to Afridi’s delight.
“I have always believed I am match winner for my team,” Afridi said after receiving his diadem from former Uganda Cricket Association chairman Richard Mwami. “I want to win more of these awards. If I continue bowling like this, my team will win 99 percent of the matches.”

ICC WCL DIVISION THREE
YESTERDAY’S RESULTS
Uganda 217/9 Singapore 151/10
(Uganda won by 66 runs with 36 balls remaining)
Malaysia 117/10 USA 118/4
(USA won by 6 wickets with 132 balls remaining)
Canada 274/9 Oman 191/10
(Canada won by 83 runs with 55 balls remaining)
FRIDAY FIXTURES - 9:30AM
Singapore vs. USA, Lugogo
Uganda vs. Oman, Kyambogo
Canada vs. Malaysia, Entebbe