A place in the quarter-finals escaped Limerick as their run chase against Ardmore Cricket Club fell just 14 runs shy of victory in Derry on Sunday evening. Anvesh Bogavelly and his side made the long, sub-650km round trip in search of another victory up north, but couldn’t chase down a gettable target in perfect playing conditions. 

Bogavelly elected to bowl first having won the toss, a decision which, at the halfway point in the day’s play, looked to be the perfect one. Ramoji Alla struck in the third over to bring his side’s first on 17-1, before some economical spells allowed the score to be kept below par after the power play. The duo of Ramay and Bogavelly paid dividends with spin, with Bogavelly taking two in the nineteenth over to leave the score at 87-4 at drinks. A good piece of fielding from Ullah ensured the runout of Safi at 93-6 as Ajay Hari and Prasad Hegde joined the party to take two and one wickets respectively, dismissing Ardmore fully for 154 runs.

The pressure was piled on early from the hosts as the visitors found themselves one down inside the first over, losing Nishant Kumar to the new ball. Karur and Venkatesh attempted to stem the momentum and did well to take the shine off the new ball, but were both dismissed in the same over before Limerick lost Ullah in the 14th to 54-4. Ramay, in at 6, was dismissed on the final ball before drinks to turn the tide in Ardmore’s favour as Limerick now relied on their tail to get them over the line. Bogavelly and Hegde put together 37 runs, accumulating to their side’s highest partnership, before a late flurry from Manoj Sharma couldn’t be helped from the other end as the end of Borghare, Alla and Hari came in quick succession as the Shannonsiders finished on 140 all out, needing 14 runs from the remaining 15 balls before the final wicket fell.

RESULT| CI National Cup

We lost to Ardmore by 14 runs yesterday. 

Ardmore 1: 154 all out off 38.1overs.

Anvesh Bogavelly 3-15

Ajay Hari 2-21

Limerick 1: 140 all out off 37.3 overs.

Prasad Hegde 29

Anvesh Bogavelly 28

                                           * * *

Limerick’s 2nd XI visit to the Mardyke on Saturday was short-lived, with both innings completed in just under a mere 22 overs. Waqas Mehmood batted first against a youthful Cork County side which included some experience as well. Limerick tried to attack the ball early but continuously found the opposition fielders. It wasn’t long before a procession ensued with the middle and late order not offering much to defend the County attack as the away side set a target of 47 runs. 

The home side made light work of the run chase, securing some early boundaries with the new ball and fast outfield allowing the runs to come off the bat easily, with just 7.4 overs needed to surpass the 46-run mark and clinch a 10-wicket victory. 

RESULT| MCU Division One. 

We lost to Cork County by 10 wickets today. 

Limerick 2: 46 all out off 14.5 overs.

Nishant Kumar 14

Yousaf Ramay 8

Cork County 2: 49-0 off 7.4 overs.

Yousaf Ramay 0-0

Sourabh Teke 0-14

                                           * * *

Limerick climbed back up to second place in Division Two with a strong win over local rivals Limerick Blasters on Sunday afternoon. 

It was two pieces of fielding which kickstarted the momentum for Limerick on this occasion, with two runouts coming in the opening four overs through Shinde and Pawar to see Blasters two down for 11 runs. The hosts battled their way back into the innings, constructing partnerships of 35, 24 and 28 runs to get them up towards the 100-run mark. Prabu lead by example with the ball as he picked up four wickets in two spells to finish on 4-18 for his eight overs. He was backed up by Robert McCutcheon, who dismissed Jishore and Roy before Aziz picked up the wicket of Jose to finish the Blasters innings and set a target of 161.

Another exemplary opening performance with the bat from Abubakar Aziz settled his side into the run chase nicely, and despite the fall of some wickets around him, the youngster continued to set the pace and carried his bat just past the 20th over. His dismissal on 90-4 meant a lot of the ground work had been done as the middle order and tail saw their side home, most notably through Nofil Khan, who showed maturity in his 24 runs from 29 deliveries which included 3x4s and 1x6, as Limerick got over the line with three wickets remaining.

RESULT| MCU Division Two.

We defeated Limerick Blasters by 3 wickets yesterday. 

Limerick Blasters 2: 160 all out off 38 overs.

Sathya Prabu 4-18

Robert McCutcheon 2-28

Limerick 3: 161-6 off 33 overs.

Abubakar Aziz 47

Nofil Khan 24*

                                           * * *

What a grand day out for the 4ths!

In a match that had spectators spilling their tea, LCC clawed their way back from the brink of disaster to secure a famous victory over Cork County.

With Darshan captaining the side for the first time, LCC produced a superb all-round performance to secure a memorable victory. 

After electing to field, our bowling unit turned the screws early. Muhammad starred with four wickets, while Arham and Darshan bowled absolute pennies to keep the scoring in check. A special mention must also go to Jack for an outstanding spell that kept Cork under relentless pressure. Congratulations as well to debutant Shaheer, who claimed a wicket in his very first hardball match to cap off a superb collective effort in the field.

The chase began in typical village-cricket fashion, with two quick wickets falling for just 19 runs and the panic buttons being firmly pressed. Enter Chiranjeevi and Skandan, who put on an absolute masterclass, compiling a magnificent 101-run partnership. Their balanced and composed batting display had the Cork bowlers scratching their heads, chasing leather, and burning through their best bowlers' overs.

Of course, it wouldn't be a true Saturday thriller without a little drama. From a comfortable 120-3, a classic middle-order collapse saw us lose four wickets for just 16 runs in the space of 2.3 overs, leaving us wobbling at 136-7.

Thankfully, Deepak and Arham came together with nerves of steel. Deepak provided the fireworks, launching two huge sixes over the hedge, while Arham rotated the strike beautifully to cap an outstanding all-round performance with both bat and ball. The pair guided the hosts over the line for a brilliant, hard-fought victory that showcased the energy, resilience, and teamwork of the entire squad.

Finally, a special thank you to Ramji for his tireless support throughout the day, his assistance to the team, and for doing a stellar job standing as umpire. A thoroughly deserved win for the 4th XI who will now look to continue their run of form and climb up the league table!

RESULT| MCU Division Five. 

We defeated Cork County by 3 wickets yesterday. 

Cork County 4: 179 all out off 39.3 overs.

Muhammad Aziz 4-47

Arham Ullah 3-23

Limerick 4: 180-7 off 32.4 overs.

Chiranjeevi Totad 56

Deepak Nagaraju 28*

                             * * *

Our women’s side capped off the weekend with two friendlies against Lismore and County Galway on Saturday afternoon.

Travelling down to Lismore, the girls had a great couple of games where each player was rotated to give an even chance to bat and bowl. Bohr and Nimbalkar were the stars of the show in the first game against Lismore, both carrying their bat through the fifteen overs in a record partnership of 66 runs. Bohr was undefeated on 21 runs with Nimbalkar likewise on 19.

Their even contributions offered a total too high to attain for the opposition batters, with Lismore making 39 runs and falling short by 27 runs. Mahmood, who was the captain on the day, ended with match-winning figures of 2-3.

RESULT| Friendlies. 

We defeated Lismore Cricket Club by 27 runs yesterday. 

Limerick W: 66-0 off 15 overs.

Kajal Bohr 21

Gauri Nimbalkar 19

Lismore W: 39-6 off 15 overs.

Saadia Mahmood 2-3

Kajal Bohr 1-4

Limerick’s fortunes weren’t as good in the second game, falling an angonising five runs short in their chase. A great effort with the ball was spearheaded by Sana George, who took two wickets at the expense of just three runs. She was well backed up by teammates Mahmood and Bohr, who took one wicket each to end the opposition innings in the 13th over and set a target of 57. The second innings went down to the final over, with George hitting some nice boundaries to give her side a great chance in chasing the target, but the girls fell just shy of the target.

We lost to County Galway Cricket Club by 5 runs yesterday.

Galway W: 56 all out off 13.4 overs.

Sana George 2-6

Saadia Mahmood 1-4

Limerick W: 51 all out off 14.5 overs.

Sana George 12

Gauri Nimbalkar 12

* * *

The focus will be the whiteball competitions this weekend with three of Limerick’s four senior teams in T20 action. The 4th XI take centre stage on Saturday for a doubleheader against County Clare and Limerick Blasters in Ballyneety, the action there gets underway at 1.30pm. The women’s side will welcome County Galway and Cork County to Adare on Saturday for back to back T15 games also. Sunday sees the 1st XI open their T20 campaign with the visit of County Clare and County Kerry to the Manor Fields, with the first game starting at 10am. Meanwhile, the 3rd XI will make the short trip to Shannon to face County Clare and County Kerry in consecutive T20 encounters as they look to bring their red ball form into the shorter format.