Ngara Sports Club take on Nairobi Gymkhana in the Eliminator 1 match as the Nairobi Provincial Cricket Association (NPCA) Twenty20 enters the play-offs stage tomorrow.
The NPCA T20 is run on play-offs format, featuring four teams. The top two teams from the league stage collide in the Qualifier 1 and the winner of the match qualifies directly to the final while the loser gets one more chance.
Meanwhile, third and fourth-placed teams meet in the Eliminator 1, where the winner will advance to Qualifier 2 to face the loser of Qualifier 1. The winner of Qualifier 2 will then face off with the winner of Qualifier 1 in the final.
Against Gymkhana, the odds are heavily stacked against Ngara men as they seek to reach Qualifier Two.
Ngara’s skipper Karan Patel believes having qualified for the knockout stage, the boys who a year ago were playing in the NPCA second tier league, have come of age and have what it takes to beat a side they lost to by 26 runs a week ago. “We have had a good show throughout the campaign. The boys have worked hard and so far, their efforts have paid off. I hope we will put up an equally good show against a side that beat us convincingly last weekend,” he said. Patel said he is very much aware that they will have to punch above their weight to win the match. “It has to start somewhere. We just have to be consistent in what we do,” said Patel. “We just need to put our heads together and try to fight through situations,” he added.
Gymkhana equally comprise a youthful team that has remained average. For the last four years, the Forest Road side have always moved closer to major titles but have been let down by lack of finishing power. Patel will rely on Shivam Devadi, Subham Patel and Mehul Patel to get the runs ticking. Devadi and Subham will also be banked on with the ball.