Riju George lead Friends11 to big win vs Martians

 Seemer Riju George takes side's best-ever bowling figures of 6 for 30 after smashing a quick  half century in the first innings to defeat Martians by 55 runs.

Riju grabbed 6 for 30 from six overs, the best bowling figures by a bowler of F11, to be a shoo-in for the Player of the Match, as Martians failed to successfully chase 181 in the nineth match of the tournament on 25^th Jun 16 at John Ruskin.

Riju had struck 7 fours and 3 sixes to score 57 from 33 balls and led a strong middle-order batting effort, as F11 ran amok to reach 181 for 10 from 30 overs. The aggressive batting wonder reached the milestone when he wacked the Martians’ bowlers and got the grip of the innings even after F11 lost few early wickets. The partnership of 90 runs Riju made with Mithun Sebastian (18) and Abhilash Sudhakaran (19), helped F11 a solid base for the onslaught.

Nawas Muhammed hit the top score of 22 and gave Martians a typically rousing start with Mithun M G 21, but the F11 bowlers – led by Riju – gradually found their range and the host team’s batting crumbled under the weight of the chase.

Eventhough the chase, and the support of the spectators seems to be backing up Martians at one stage, F11’s players where not driven under any pressure, rather the team cohesion and determination within the players gave more strength for F11 and Riju George kept the spectators in silence after taking 3 wickets in his 5^th over missing a hat-trick by one ball and  ended the game in style by breaking the bails once again with an outstanding yorker, defending Martians for just 126 in 30 overs.

After the nineth match Friend 11 is still on top of the league table with 168 points. Friends 11 will be playing MCC on Saturday 09^th Jul 16 at John Ruskin.