Vanuatu T10 Blast | Nalin Nipiko masterclass helps Sharks outclass MT Bulls

Anirudh Suresh
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A remarkable display from Sharks’ main man Nalin Nipiko - first with the bat and then with the ball - handed the Blues a convincing win over the Bulls, propelling them to second spot in the points table. Nipiko also posted the highest individual score of the tournament, striking an unbeaten 78.

Brief scores: Ifira Sharks 108/7 off 10 overs (Nipiko 78* and Mansale 4/24) beat MT Bulls 95/7 off 10 overs (Mansale 34 and Sandy 3/1) by 13 runs.

Nalin Nipiko all the way for Ifira Sharks

After having lost their first game of the day chasing, Ifira Sharks were handed the challenge of having to set a target, in game 2, by MT Bulls. P Matautaava started proceedings off for the bowling side, setting the tone with the ball from the very first over, conceding just four runs to keep the Sharks under check. But that turned out to be the calm before the storm, as Nalin Nipiko, just as he did in the first game of the day versus Panthers, went berserk in the very first over he faced, pulverising off-spinner Nalisa to score 16 runs off the second over. But against the run of play, a devastating triple strike from Andrew Mansale crippled the Sharks, as he sent the trio of Stephen, Moli and Kalworai back to the hut in the third over to leave the batting side reeling at 27/3. The triple-strike from Andrew meant that he overtook the other Mansale in the team, Eddie, to become the highest wicket-taker for the Bulls in the season. But while wickets were tumbling at one end, Nipiko, at the other end, looked like he was playing on a completely different wicket as he continued to pummell the Bulls bowlers all around the ground, keeping the score ticking to take the Blues’ score to 54 at the end of the sixth over. All Nipiko yearned for was some support and the opener got that in the form of Niko Unavalu, who incidentally became just the third Sharks batsman to score over 10 runs in a match. Together, the duo put on 25 runs for the sixth wicket off 16 balls, but Unavalu perished in the 8th over, for 13, once again leaving it to Nipiko to single-handedly steer the ship. To the Bulls’ agony though, the more the pressure Nipiko was put under, the better he became, as the right-hander ended up hitting 25 runs off the final over of Nalisa, an onslaught which included four sixes, to propel the Sharks to 108/7. Nipiko ended unbeaten on 78, striking seven mammoth sixes in the process.  

Sharks hold their nerve to jump to second spot

Having chased down 131 in their previous encounter against the Panthers, the Bulls knew that 109 was an achievable target and all they needed was multiple batsmen to contribute towards the same. And much to their delight, for the first time all tournament, there were positive signs from the bat of P Matautaava, who took the Sharks bowlers on - in particular, Obed Yosef - to get his side off to a flyer. Andrew Mansale, Matautaava’s opening partner, was, in fact, a mere spectator for a vast majority of the partnership. But Matautaava threw his wicket away in the fourth over, aiming to go big off the bowling of Stephen, leaving it to Mansale and Clement Tommy, the hero for the Bulls in their last encounter, to get the job done. And Tommy looked like he was up for the challenge, as he smacked a huge six off his very first ball to make his presence known and send out a strong message to the Shark bowlers. At 64/1 at the half-way mark, needing just 45 more runs to win, the Bulls were strong favorites to make it two wins in a row. A bit of impatience from Mansale - perishing aiming for a third straight boundary - saw him walk back to the pavilion, and one brought two as Tommy was dismissed on the very next ball, leaving the Bulls in a spot of bother. At this point in time, a calm head was all the Bulls needed, some sensible batting, but that simply did not transpire, and after the dismissal of Philip Tsione in the 9th over,  the Men in Green found themselves behind the eight ball. A tight 19th over from Nipiko meant that the Bulls needed 15 runs to win off the last over but a remarkable final over from off-spinner Stephane Sandy - an over where he conceded just 1 run and picked 3 wickets - meant that MT Bulls fell short of the target by 13 runs. The victory meant that the Sharks leapfrogged the Bulls to move to second place in the points table. 

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