RLCA, Okara National Seniors Cricket final today

KARACHI: The National Seniors Cup Cricket Tournament, being organized by the Pakistan Veterans Cricket Association (PVCA), will be having a new champion as Rashid Latif Cricket Academy (RLCA) will be pitted against Okara in the final here at the Lawai Naya Nazimabad on Sunday (today).

Neither RLCA nor Okara had reached the national final of the Seniors Cup in the past. They will be battling out for their maiden national title after having emerged as the champions in the Southern Region and the Northern Region respectively. The 19th edition of the National Seniors Cup 2017 was contested by a total of 103 teams and it’s being sponsored by Omar Associates with Naya Nazimabad and State Life Insurance Company of Pakistan being the co-sponsors.

It was for the first in the 19-year old history of the tournament when no team from Lahore could force its way into the northern region final which was contested between Okara and Wah Power.

Lahore, in fact, has dominated the Seniors Cup since inception in 1998-99. They have been the national champions outright for record nine times while the outfits from Karachi have clinched the crown eight ones and the trophy was shared between them in 2002-03. This season’s National Seniors Cup has witnessed the emergence of some powerful new outfits, having succeeded in going all the way to the final at the expense of the fancied teams in their respective regions. Omar Associates, which had annexed the trophy in 2010-11 and 2014-15, besides having ended as the runners-up in 2011-12 and 2016-17, could not make it to the southern regional this time and it was contested between RLCA and Gold Bridge Media. Similarly in the northern region, Amar Cables, who clinched the national title in 2014-15and 2016-17, could not even advance to the regional final this season with Okara and Wah Power stealing the show. It may be recalled that skipper Asim Jah, with his brilliant all-round performance, had played the key role for RLCA in the Southern region final in which they overpowered former champions Gold Bridge Media by 28 runs. Put in to bat, RLCA posted an impressive total of 250 for eight in the allotted 30 overs. Gold Bridge Media, aiming to regain the regional title they had won annexed a couple of seasons ago, lost their last five wickets for 21 runs to be bowled out for 222 in 28.4 overs. The 2015-16 regional champions were derailed by the left-arm spin of Abdul Qadir (4-19) who was well supported by the captain himself whose off-spin fetched him three wickets for 39 runs.

Meanwhile it was Muhammad Hafeez’s brilliant all-round performance which played the pivotal role in guiding Okara to their maiden triumph against Wah Power in the Northern region final. Wah Power had posted a respectable total of 238 for eight in the allotted 30 overs but Okara reached the target of 239 in 28.1 overs with five wickets in hand.