Hometown heroes Nosthush Kenjige and 21-year-old sensation Ali Sheikh stepped in to provide a fitting final flourish to an unstoppable Dallas Mustangs juggernaut. Ahead of their final against the Somerset Cavaliers, Mustangs looked set to clinch their maiden minor league title, coming off 11 wins out of 13 games this season, razing through oppositions at times. The Cavaliers however, had the Mustangs in shambles at 46 for 5 at the halfway stage of their innings with batting mainstays Andries Gous, Nauman Anwar and Hammad Azam dismissed.
Kenjige joined Sheikh in the 11th over in what seemed like a dead end, a complete lost cause. Refusing to capitulate just yet, the pair counter-attacked. Sheikh made his intentions clear with a lofted drive off Abdullah Gazi before bludgeoning two sixes off Sunny Patel in the following over. On a wicket that had his more illustrious teammates at sea, Sheikh batted like a breath of fresh air, totally in command of the situation and his shot selection. Sheikh showed the spunk.
“Obviously there was a lot of pressure in this big game, but I just backed my natural game and went out there with a clear mind. I just backed myself to play my shots and backed myself that if I play till the 18th-20th over, the team will get to a respectable total,” said Sheikh.
Sheikh’s flair and Kenjige’s street smarts propelled the Mustangs to 121 at the end of their 20 overs as the duo shared a 56-run stand. While the Sheikh and Kenjige’s rearguard action had brought some element of respectability to their ask, it was the Cavaliers’ game to lose with the batting firepower they possessed in the form of Kennar Lewis, Gajanand Singh and Shawn Findlay. Keeping true to his reputation, Lewis went hell for leather with a brisk 27 off 18 deliveries. Former Pakistan international Rumman Raees pinned Lewis in front in the final over of the power play with the Cavaliers in the driver’s seat at 44 for 1 after 5.2 overs.
Mustangs introduced Kenjige and Hammad Azam after the power play. In the most remarkable turn of events, Kenjige and Azam had the Cavaliers on the mat as the Cavaliers made to run the gauntlet for every possible run out there. The pair applied the perfect squeeze to choke the life out of the Cavaliers batsmen, as they mustered 6 runs off the next 6 overs losing 4 wickets in the process.
Kenjige and Azam returned figures of 3 for 9 and 2 for 3 respectively off their 4 overs, shooting down the Cavaliers for 77. Apart from his batting and bowling, the live-wire Kenjige made a real impact on the field with a stunning direct hit to catch the inform Gajanand Singh short of his ground without facing a ball, reminiscent of his run out effort in the MLC against the Washington Freedom that turned the tide towards MI New York at a crucial juncture.
“I think it was a massive opportunity in our hometown Dallas. I think when we found out that the finals and the playoffs would happen in Dallas, we were all pumped up to get the trophy back home. We always had a good team and it was just about all of us staying together and playing as a team. And then when we did well in the playoffs we knew we’re going to play the finals in front of the home crowd. And you can ask for a better setting. The crowds were in. It was a beautiful weekend. Beautiful outfields I think you all pumped and then we were just happy to win the trophy in front of our home fans” said Kenjige
The 2023 American cricket summer has seen a windfall rise in Kenjige’s stock. His exploits with the ball in MLC, his superlative fitness and work ethics earned him the respect of MI bigwigs as they wasted no time to further sign him up for the ILT20 to give him his first taste of top level franchise cricket outside the US.
The Mustangs were left without the services of their talisman Corey Anderson for the super 8s and the final, as a senior member of the side Kenjige led by example on and off the field not only to fill Anderson’s void. While he played perfect cameos in MI New York’s championship journey, at Dallas Mustangs he was bestowed with more responsibilities as a senior member and subsequently played a pivotal role throughout the season to script a fairytale end to what he describes a surreal summer, a summer that has given birth to a new American cricketing star.
