Written By BRIAN LOCKHART

The Shelburne Cricket Club's premier team, the Shelburne Stars, travelled to Brampton on Friday, Oct. 11 to take on the Brampton Strikers at Teramoto Park for the Shel-Bram Cup.

The Stars are last year's winner of the Cup.

The match was played in the evening under the park's lights.

Winning the toss, the Strikers elected to field first to start the match.

It was the right move for the Strikers when their bowling put the Stars back to 41 in five, in just the seventh over.

Despite the shaky start, Sarfaraz Bhula led a crucial fight with 42 runs.

Hisaan Siddiqui played on the mat under the lights for the first time and had great poise and skill. His 23-run contribution was vital in steadying the Star's innings, demonstrating confidence and cricketing ability beyond his years.

The total was further boosted by Samir's 12 runs and Ahsen's 10 runs, moving the Stars to a competitive score of 123.

Harsimran Virk was the bowling hero for the Strikers, taking five wickets to stifle the Stars' batting effort.

The Stars' bowlers took to the field but struggled to make early in-roads as the Strikers' openers, Mihir with 49 runs and Fraz with 20 runs, laid a strong foundation for the chase.

The Stars managed to grab eight wickets, but it wasn't enough to prevent the Strikers from chasing down the target with two wickets in hand.

Tabish Taufiq led the bowling efforts for the Stars, claiming three wickets, while Sarfaraz Bhulla chipped in with two.

Harsimran Virk's five-wicket haul earned him the Man of the Match accolade.

The Brampton Strikers took home the Shel-Bram Cup.

The night match offered a good learning experience for the Shelburne Cricket Club, especially for emerging youth players.