By Frederick Halley

TORONTO, Canada – Years of perseverance and dedication have finally paid off for skipper Ronald Ramnarine and members of Ambassadors Sports Club.

After several years endeavouring to capture the Scarborough Cricket Association (SCA) Premiere League title and later the Elite championship, they were rewarded for their untiring efforts last Saturday at the Ashtonbee Number One ground here in Scarborough.

In what was billed as the virtual final of Group A of the 2020 Elite League, Ambassadors thrashed archrivals Highland Creek by eight wickets to emerge undisputed champions, much to the delight of their players and supporters.

The win took them to the top of the table with 70 points, five more than Highland Creek who started the game with 65 and remained there. Victoria Park Cricket Club (VPCC) finished with 35 points while newcomers Danforth Dynamites registered 10 points after the latter forfeited their game on Sunday.

The Group B winners were Ajax/ScarboroKingz A with 80 points with Janbaaz placing second on 50 while Youngstars with 40 and Toronto Invaders on 10 were the other two teams in the group.

Led by a robust unbeaten 66 from 55 balls from former Canadian player Durand Soraine, Ambassadors raced to 155 for two in 23.4 overs after limiting Highland Creek to 154 all out in 33.1 overs in the 50-over affair.

The platform for victory was laid by openers Richard Dias who spanked seven fours in 36 from 25 balls and Talha Shaikh whose 27 included three fours and a six.

Soraine and Ramnaraine (18 not out) ensured there were no further alarms with the former blasting six fours and a similar number of sixes. Hasain Javaid took one for 27 from five overs while captain Anas Malik took the other wicket to fall for 40 runs, sending down 8.4 overs.

Earlier, Highland Creek’s innings never got going, with Numan Aslam’s face-saving knock of 67 not out, allowing them to get past the 150 mark.

Aslam, who batted at number eight, belted three fours and eight sixes in an attacking knock off just 38 balls but got little support from the top-order. Farhan Khan chipped in with 20. There were three wickets each for Neil Ramdathm, Shuab Zaidi and Kurth Ramdath for 31, 48 and 54 runs respectively.

Ramnarine, whose parents are Guyanese, played all nine games in the season and led Ambassadors’ batting aggregate with 250 runs, with a top score of 110, averaging 41.67 runs per innings. Dias totalled 182 runs from six matches, 76 being his highest, averaging 30.33. Roy Singh was the other century-maker, hitting 129 in one of his two innings.

The bowling was led by Amerish Deoraj whose 16 scalps came at an economy rate of 4.77. Zaidi claimed 15 at 4.53 while Neil Ramdath took 14 at 3.77.

Meanwhile, in another intriguing encounter, played on the adjoining Number Two ground, Toronto Rhinos upstaged Durham to claim the First Division title. Like the Elite game, it was another must-win game for either team to cart off top honours.

Set a daunting 311 for victory by the mainly Caribbean-dominated Durham side, Toronto Rhinos rallied to an enthralling win in 41.3 overs.

Abhishek Bhasan led the way with a splendid 119 from 90 balls which contained 14 fours and five sixes while Aamir Khan was undefeated on 95 when victory was achieved. His knock was spiced with nine fours and five sixes. Opener Rahul Chordekar had earlier hit 51 (seven fours).

Harley Skerrit, who was playing his first game for the season, blasted 120 for Durham but his efforts were all in vain.

The season ends this weekend with four 30-over games. The respective group winners are still to be decided. In Group A, Tpark Youngstars lead the standings with 75 points and are closely followed by Phoenix Kerala on 70. Ambassadors B are the front-runners in Group B with 60 points while Toronto Seawolves have 55.

SCA president Shiv Persaud has disclosed that unlike previous years the annual presentation ceremony will be held via Zoom at a date to be announced. This is due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.