Maccabi-AJAX First XI remains on top

With only one month to go in the Mercantile Cricket Association regular season before the finals series, Maccabi-AJAX remains on top of the Sunday A Grade ladder after another impressive win last Sunday.

Facing second-placed Carnegie, the Maccabi men batted first and, although losing 9 wickets in their allotted 45 overs, they set a decent target of 180 to defend.

The backbone of their innings was Brad Majtlis, who scored 57 runs off 43 balls, and he was well supported by fellow opening batter Nick Gross (39) and Jonathan Weinstock (31) before a mini collapse.

Then the Maccabi-AJAX First XI’s in-form bowling attack got straight to work, taking wickets at regular intervals to bowl their opponents out for just 97 in 35 overs.

Bailey Melzak removed two top order, and two tail-ender, batters to finish the match with outstanding figures of 4/24 off his 8 overs, and Josh Jones was the other destroyer, taking 3/9.

The club’s Second XI have a bit of work do to in B Grade, after slipping to equal 6th place following a loss to Burley-CYMS.

Despite bowling out their opponents for 104, largely thanks to a brilliant bowling spell by Eli Barr (5/18), poor batting by Maccabi saw them dismissed for just 73.

Maccabi-AJAX’s Third XI also had a loss, by 2 wickets, against Ashwood.

Bowled out for 99, Maccabi nevertheless remained in the hunt for a late victory, with tight opening bowling by Jeremy Hoppe and Dean Wainstein applying pressure, and Joel Lewis taking 3/8 in his 9-over spell, which included 7 maidens.

Zak Bierenkrant also chipped in with 3 wickets for 19 runs, and Eli Paneth snared 2 wickets, but it wasn’t quite enough.