The North Park Student Newspaper Since 2023
Senior Boys’ Cricket Team becomes division champions in ROPSSAA
SPORTS
Goransh Gujral
6/11/20264 min read
The Senior Boys’ Cricket team stormed the playing field in ROPSSAA by going undefeated in their division. Playing a total of five matches, the senior cricket boys easily defeated the other teams and finished their regular season at the top of the leaderboard, but unfortunately, they got eliminated in their quarter-final match.
The Senior Boys’ Cricket team, coached by Mr. Budhram and captained by Adhi Rajesh, played their first game on April 7th, 2026, against Louise Arbour SS. Taking the batting field first, they were able to score 73 runs, setting a target of 74. Louise Arbour lost by a huge margin of 33 runs. Their next game was the day after, on April 8th, against Sandalwood Heights SS. Again, starting off batting, North Park scored 76 runs. Sandalwood lost by 27 runs, only scoring 49 runs. Their third game, played against Castlebrook SS, changed the pace a little as they started with their bowling lineup. Castlebrook was only able to take 47 runs against North Park’s bowlers, allowing for an easy game and an easy win by six wickets. Their fourth game, against Chinguacousy SS, started with them bowling, restricting the Chinguacousy batters to a respectable total of 38 runs. The game resulted in a win for the North Park cricketers by one wicket. Their final game of the regular season, which the team called an “easy game," was played on May 4th, 2026. Taking the batting field again, the boys were able to score a season-high 81 runs on the Bramlea bowlers. Finally, the game ended for Bramlea’s batters in just 6.2 overs as North Park’s bowlers got them all out at just 29 runs. This final game could be described as nothing short of the force being with the boys (because it was May 4th), as some players, especially jersey number 44 (Goransh Gujral), took three important wickets in just two overs.
Finally, May 19 was the quarter-final. The boys were all ready to take on St Edmund Campion SS for what they thought would be another easy victory. Starting the game with their bowling lineup, the game was clearly off to a rocky start as their opening bowler, regarded as the best fast-paced bowler on the team, gave up the most runs he has given throughout the season: a whopping 16 runs. Finally, St Edmund Campion settled with a score of 59 runs. Then came North Park’s batting. It was obvious that this game wasn’t the best the boys had played, but they still pushed through, getting to 11 runs in the last couple of overs. As would be noted by many players in the post-game reflection, one of the umpires had made “many wrong calls” for both Campion and finally North Park. As the bowler delivered the ball, and as it hit the bat and went flying into the wall, it hit just behind the bleachers. That should have been two runs for North Park; two crucial runs. Here, an important rule should be considered. If the ball hits the wall above a certain point, it will be considered an out. In our case, the ball was just under that point and should have been awarded the runs. Neither of the umpires saw where the ball hit the wall; the scorekeepers did, though. They fought tooth and nail with the umpire about whether the ball was in, but he just agreed with the bowler’s end umpire, and the final decision was 'out'. They didn’t see where the ball landed and failed to consider the eyewitness testimony of the scorekeepers, and made the wrong call. The batter, with his head hung low, walked off the pitch knowing that this wicket, which was crucial for Campion’s win, had been stolen from him. Finally, North Park lost the game, only scoring 57 runs. Evidently, the players and the coach were mad; they had just lost a game they could have easily won. Tensions were high in the locker room as everyone could only stare at the floor with feelings of anger and a little sadness. Unfortunately, the outdoor season, which was played the next day, wasn’t any better, as the team lost in the semifinals.
Although the team did not win any ROPSSAA-sanctioned awards, the Senior Boys’ Cricket team was awarded Spring Team of the Year during our pep rally. At the athletic banquet, Goransh Gujral was named MIP (Most Improved Player) because of dedication, commitment, and improvement on the team. MVP (Most Valuable Player) was awarded to Jaskeerat Singh.
Arham Aziz, in an interview, reflected on the team’s performance. “We prepared and practised a lot with match simulation. It helped since it allowed us to have better control of our nerves in actual games, so we were able to just have fun,” he said when questioned about how the team approached their practice sessions. He was happily surprised by their outcome in the regular season: “I’m surprised we went undefeated since we had a bunch of great teams surrounding us.” He added by saying, “My favourite moment probably had to be when we started playing and lost the nerves and just won by a lot.” One thing Aziz promised is “we will come back better and stronger next year.”
Overall, the boys had an amazing season. Their ability to lose their nerves and just have fun allowed them to dominate the season, and it was the fun that they had that made the losing a bit better.