SALEM Athletic have won the Bradford Mutual Sunday School League’s prestigious Rizues T20 Cup, becoming only the third team to have their name engraved on the trophy.
They defeated Apperley Bridge by 24 runs in the final at Park Avenue.
After winning the toss, Salem opted to bat on what looked a favourable wicket and made the most of that decision.
Openers Mehrban Khan (41 off 32 balls) and Zain ul Abideen (33 off 24 balls) set the tone with a fluid partnership of 59, and Ali Ismaeel accelerated the innings with a brisk 41 from 28 deliveries, pushing Salem to 118 before the fall of the second wicket.
The middle order then capitalised on the solid foundation, with Mohammed Imran smashing 21 off just six balls, including three massive sixes, and Nazir Ahmed finishing unbeaten on 24 from just eight balls as Salem made a formidable 201-6.
For Bridge, Nasir Maroofkhil stood out, taking 1-21 from his three overs, although his team rued a couple of missed opportunities in the field.
In response, Apperley Bridge started their chase with intent, racing to 50 within five overs. However, the momentum shifted when opener Yasir Shezad, who scored 25 off 21 balls, was caught at cover off Mohammed Siraj’s bowling.
Salem’s bowlers then tightened their grip, restricting Nizam Shah (40 off 44 deliveries) and Mohammed Saeed (31 off 20 balls) from finding consistent boundaries.
Despite Saeed’s two big hits, their partnership of 43 for the second wicket helped Bridge to 101 by the 12th over, leaving them with an uphill task of needing another 101 from the final eight overs.
As the run rate climbed, the batters were forced into taking risks, leading to regular wickets falling.
Mohammed Abid showed some creativity with his paddle flicks but eventually fell, attempting the same shot, to a well-placed wide third man.
With 46 needed from the last two overs, Apperley Bridge could only manage 22, finishing on 177-8.
For Salem, man-of-the-match Ismaeel capped an excellent all-round display by taking 3-26 in his three overs, while Siraj was economical with 1-24 from four overs as their bowlers were well backed by sharp fielding and clinical catching.
The post-match presentation was led by Dr Rizwan Hameed, chairman of the Bradford Mutual Sunday School League and chief executive officer of tournament sponsors, uniform brand Rizues.
Also in attendance were Anna Potjakina, manager of th emblem department at Rizues; Dr Manoj Joshi DL of sponsors Britannia Care, and Mabs Hussain, the equality, diversity, and inclusion manager at the Yorkshire Cricket Board.
Dr Hameed, whose company continue to support grass-roots cricket, expressed his gratitude to several individuals, including Park Avenue’s groundsman Nasa Hussain, and the league’s executive committee for their efforts in organising another successful cup final.
Dr Rizwan also extended his thanks to other sponsors, including Mavericks Sports, Rehmani Sports and Grill City.
Trophies were also presented to the cup final match scorers and to the umpires, Ijaz Khan and Waheed Butt.
Hussain recalled the coloured kit launch at Headingley earlier this year, while the trophy and cheque for £1,700 was presented to Salem’s skipper Hafeez Rahman by Anna Potjakina.
Salem now turn their attention to winning Group A - the top flight of the Mutual Sunday School League.
With five matches to go they were a point ahead of Omars.
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