The European Cricket League (ECL) 2019 caught everyone’s attention right on the first day. The 10-over per side format is quite exciting and it was great fun to watch. There was some big hitting on display and there were also big totals that were put up on the board. Moreover, massive targets were chased down courtesy brilliance from some individuals.

While you thought it was all about batting, some unbelievable bowling spells were also on the display. Zeshan Khan picked up a three-wicket haul for the Svanholm Cricket Club while Vijay Kumar Gautam, Syed Sherazi and Khurram Shahzad picked up three-wicket hauls for their respective teams in the game between Catalunya Cricket Club and St. Petersburg Lions.

Here is how things progressed on the day:

JCC Brescia vs Catalunya Cricket Club – Group B

This high-scoring encounter involved the JCC Brescia team and the Catalunya Cricket Club. Catalunya batted first in this match and their innings was dictated by some sheer brilliance from skipper Muhammad Khan. He took 32 balls to score an unbeaten 63 while his opening partner Yasir Ali scored 24. Muhammad Asif Zia Mughal provided the team with the final impetus with a 10-ball 23.

Although they were chasing 119 runs, JCC Brescia never seemed to break a sweat. Their openers Muhammad Jafri (38 off 15) and Fiaz Ahmed (34 off 16) laid a wonderful platform for the chase. Then, Hassan Ahmad took over and was unbeaten on 29 from 10 balls which helped the team chase down the target with 9 balls to spare.

Brief Scores:

CTL: 118/2 in 10 overs (Muhammad Khan 63*, Yasir Ali 24, Muhammad Iqbal 1/21)

JJB: 120/4 in 8.3 overs (Muhammad Jafri 38, Fiaz Ahmed 34, Muhammad Asif Zia Mughal 2/19)

Result: JCC Brescia won by 6 wickets.

Catalunya Cricket Club vs St. Petersburg Lions – Group B

This encounter was yet another high-scoring fixture but it was Catalunya who dominated this time around. Muhammad Asif Zia Mughal played one of the best knocks on day-1 of the European Cricket League and scored 76 off only 27 balls. A 31 from Muhammad Khan and an unbeaten 17 from Nisar Ahmed helped the team get to 128/5 despite Vijay Kumar Gautam returning with figures of 3/12 in his 2 overs.

The chase was a struggle for St. Petersburg Lions. Rinku Singh with 24 runs and Vijay Kumar Gautam with 15 runs were the highest scorers in the game. In 10 overs, the team could only get to 62/7 and lost the game by 66 runs. Syed Sherzadi and Khurram Shahzad picked up three wickets each and conceded 5 and 6 runs respectively in the two overs that they bowled.

Brief Scores:

CTL: 128/5 in 10 overs (Muhammad Asif Zia Mughal 76, Nisar Ahmed 17*, Vijay Kumar Gautam 3/12)

PTL: 62/7 in 10 overs (Rinku Singh 24, Vijay Kumar Gautam 15, Syed Sherazi 3/5)

Result: Catalunya Cricket Club won by 66 runs.

The brief scores of the other games that were played on the day:

V.O.C Rotterdam vs Dreux Cricket Club – Group A

DRX: 98/7 in 10 overs (Muhammad Bhatti 37*, Ahmad Nabi 22, Pierce Fletcher 2/19)

ROT: 99/2 in 7.4 overs (M O’Dowd 53, Pieter Seelaar 29*, Sher Afridi 1/12)

Result: V.O.C Rotterdam won by 8 wickets.

Dreux Cricket Club vs Svanholm Cricket Club – Group A

DRX: 60/9 in 10 overs (Mohammad Shahzeb 14*, Niaz Hamza 8, Zeshan Khan 3/10)

SVH: 63/1 in 6.3 overs (Zishan Shah 35*, Mads Henriksen 26*, Yaseen Afridi 1/21)

Result: Svanholm Cricket Club won by 9 wickets.

V.O.C Rotterdam vs Cluj Cricket Club – Group A

CLJ: 87/5 in 10 overs (Taranjeet Singh 42, Vasu Saini 12*, Max O’Dowd 1/4)

ROT: 88/2 in 5.3 overs (Pieter Seelaar 25*, Max O’Dowd 21, Taranjeet Singh 2/24)

JCC Brescia vs SG Findorff – Group B

FDF: 97/5 in 10 overs (Ahmed Wardak 37, Aziz Ullah Dawodzy 16, Zahid Hussain Cheema 1/17)

JJB: 99/2 in 5.5 overs (Muhammad Jafri 59, Shahrukh Nawaz26*, Israr Khan 2/15)

Result: JCC Brescia won by 8 wickets.