IBI CORPORATE FINANCE FIRST TEAM LEAGUE PREVIEW (JUNE 14TH)

With The Hills set for National Cup action this Sunday, there are just two fixtures slated for the IBI Corporate Finance First Team League, as their tie against North Kildare is pushed back to July 4^th.

That means that table-toppers Knockharley visit Terenure, in a repeat of the opening Senior game of the season – which saw an unbeaten Henry Dall ton guiding Terenure to victory. Whilst in Oak Hill, Adamstown will welcome Cork Harlequins, who are still seeking their first win of the season after last weekend’s rain off in Farmer’s Cross.

ADAMSTOWN VS CORK HARLEQUINS

The hosts come into this game off the back of two defeats in their adopted home ground, and whilst they will have been disappointed with how they’ve begun life in Wicklow, there’s been plenty of positives to take from their first couple of games. Prashant Prabhu Damodaran was a centurion in May Bank Holiday fixture against North Kildare, and he’ll likely be to the fore with the bat once again. Skipper Sid Biju leads the way at the top of the order, likely alongside Angad Bawa, and whilst the experiment of moving Dinesh Antony Kidagan David up to number three didn’t work out, it will be interesting to see if he remains in that slot or pushes back down to his familiar role at number 5, where he has seen plenty of success at this level. Aryan Adelkar, Shreyas Rajesh and Nithin Namburu round out the batting unit in a very settled Adamstown side. The bowling has been an area of constant improvement throughout the season so far, Shravon Biju has excelled with the new ball and will lead the way once again, attacking for wickets from the outset. He’s supported by Kidagan David, who offers plenty of control at the other end, whilst Namburu and Adelkar fill all-rounder roles in the seam bowling department as well. The spin comes from the off-breaks of Jaivir Singh Oberoi, supported by the leggies of Arvind Olaganathan, giving skipper Sid Biju plenty of options to throw the ball to.

‘Quins meanwhile will be looking to kick-start their season this weekend. They’ve only taken the field twice in the opening four rounds of fixtures, with last weekend’s rain off meaning we haven’t seen them in action in CL competitions since May 3^rd. The batting is led by Shivam Kislay and Callum Stevenson at the top of the order, with the latter impressing in two early season knocks with the manner of how he’s gone about his scoring. Dineth Sumanasinghe is likely to slot in at three and reprise his role behind the stumps, where he has caught the eye of representative coaches in Munster, whilst Adam Hickey is arguably the main man in the side at number 4, having made several meaningful contributions in this league in the past season. A return for Ryan Joyce would be a welcome boost, and see skipper Seanan Jones rounding out the top 6 that is capable of causing teams problems on it’s day. With the ball, Jones’ left-arm swingers lead the way, with Joyce his likely partner should he play. Umer Hassan Khan is the other quick bowling option they have called upon this season, however beyond that trio it’s spin which is the side’s main weapon, particularly their left-armers in the shape of Semeth Sumanasinghe and Sidarth Pushp, whilst Hickey’s offies add another string to his bow as well.

Seanan Jones is the key man with the ball for Quins, and they’ll need him to take early wickets to put the side into the game, if he can knock over Dinesh Antony Kidagan David, it could put his side on the front foot and cause a scare in the Adamstown camp.

KEY BATTLE: Dinesh Antony Kidagan David vs Seanan Jones

TERENURE VS KNOCKHARLEY

Terenure come into this weekend’s tie looking to shake off a couple of disappointing defeats in the past couple of weeks, none more so than last time out against North Kildare, when a spirited effort with the ball just came slightly too late to deny their hosts in The Maws. Skipper Henry Dall has good memories of facing Knockharley, having made an unbeaten century in the Leinster Senior Cup tie between the two sides back in April, and he will once again feature at number three in the line-up for the hosts. Tom Shand returns to the side having shaken off a knock, whilst there’s also a return for Sophie Reid behind the stumps. Sid Nair, Zeeshan Mumtaz and Dónal Lynch round out the middle order in an experienced Terenure side. With the ball, there’s a league debut for left-arm seamer Syed Bacha, who has impressed for the side in two T20 outings thus far, and he could share the new ball with Naveed Khan this time out. Kripesh Shetty is the third seamer as the side will do without Bhavic Tukrel this weekend, whilst Aamir Bafanda’s leg-breaks see him as the frontline spin option, he’ll be supported by the offies of Dall, who has been in fine bowling form in recent weeks.

Knockharley meanwhile come into this game riding high after a thumping victory over Adamstown last weekend. It was their bowling that did the real damage that day, a five wicket haul for opener Ahmed Kayani sees him the most likely man to lead the way with the ball once again this time out. Aabis Mirza delivered a good opening spell alongside him and it will be interesting to see if this allows Syed Medhi to continue in the change-bowling role which he thrived in last weekend. Ehtesham Ahmed’s economical return to the bowling crease will also bring plenty of encouragement, giving four genuine seaming options for Mubeen Ali to choose from, and whilst they weren’t really called upon for too many overs last time out, the offies of Brandon Kruger and left-arm spin of Kashif Ali give the side plenty of variety. Kruger was the man with the bat last weekend, as his unbeaten half-century made the run chase relatively straight-forward, he’ll appear at the top once again alongside Sayed Zubair and Muhammad Nawaz. Ahmed and Sumit Singh add depth through the middle, whilst the all-round abilities of Mubeen and Kashif Ali at numbers 6 and 7 have already been shown to decent effect this term, and could prove crucial once again.

Ahmed Kayani comes into this game on a real high for Knockharley, who will know just how important the early wicket of Henry Dall could be, if they can dismiss Terenure’s captain cheaply, they could be onto a winner this weekend.

KEY BATTLE: Henry Dall vs Ahmed Kayani

IBI CORPORATE FINANCE FIRST TEAM LEAGUE

SUNDAY JUNE 14^TH - 12PM STARTS

At Oak Hill, Adamstown vs Cork Harlequins

At Terenure, Terenure vs Knockharley