The away game against Sparta was one for the proverbial beard of the emperor, as VCC as the frontrunner could not be overtaken and had already qualified for the “semi-finals. However, it was beyond the Voorburgers’ honor to be led to the slaughter. VCC battled back from a deficit position and still left Capelle with two points again. In the “Qualifying Final” on Aug. 20, the Voorburgers will meet Punjab.
Sparta, choosing to bat, had a smooth start. VCC bowler Viv Kingma did not start the match fit and had to allow 15 runs in his first and only over. His replacement Mees van Vliet was successful as early as his third ball. With two matchless catches, Sybrand Engelbrecht kept William Clark and Joost Kroesen from reaching high scores. Garnett Tarr batted superbly for his 93 runs, accounting for nearly sixty percent of the Capel score (162). In the Voorburg attack, it was again Shariz Ahmad who excelled. The young legspinner got half the Spartan batsmen out. Nieuwoudt, Van Vliet and Boissevain were also successful.
Innings VCC
VCC must have been worried when, of the first seven batters, only the Ahmad brothers made runs: Musa 53 and Shariz 42. After their partnership of 65 runs for the fourth wicket, things seemed to take a turn for the worse: four wickets fell for just nine runs and VCC seemed to be heading for its second defeat of the season.
However, Philippe Boissevain (21 not out) and Mees van Vliet (19 not out) put their heads together and made no more errors. Undoubtedly to the frustration of the Capellenists, they gleaned the forty runs still needed.
On Aug. 20, VCC plays against Punjab, which it won from last week. Thoughts will go back to 2021 when VCC lost the national final to the Rotterdammers. In particular, the four Zulfiqar brothers can topple any team if they have their day. The national final is August 26 at VCC anyway.
The “Elimination Final” is between Sparta and HCC, which lost to ACC. ACC made 247 and HCC countered with 172 runs (Steel 57). In the relegation pool, HBS did good business by beating Excelsior ’20 comfortably.
Ladies VCC also in race for national title
VCC’s women’s team easily defeated The Hague All Stars, which made only 72 runs. International Eva Lynch (four wickets) bowled too hard for the visitors. For VCC, Babette de Leede made 54 runs not out. The women’s team is already certain to participate in the national finals. It is not yet known where and when that final will be played. It was scheduled for Aug. 26, but there is a request with the KNCB to consider another day because the men’s final will be played that day.