[door de redactie] TKcricket publiceert weer previews van de Topklasse-wedstrijden tijdens Pinksteren. In de eerste, de tweede moet nog verschijnen, gaat het onder meer over HCC - ACC a.s. zaterdag in Den Haag. Oja, Rod Lyall denkt dat ACC, gedeeld lijstaanvoerder met HBS, wint, maar Bertus de Jong voorspelt verlies... Niks ervan, mannen, succes gewenst.
Rod Lyall: Back at the top of the table by virtue of a better net run rate, ACC travel to De Diepput to take on HCC. The Lions disappointed last week when the batting folded against Excelsior, but they had a significant plus point in the Topklasse debut of Raafiek Isaacs, who claimed four wickets, a contribution all the more valuable because of the absence of Ali Ahmed Qasim. ACC’s victory over VOC owed much to a superb innings from Sikander Zulfiqar, as well as to the opening onslaught of Brady Barends with the new ball. ACC have shown considerable consistency in the first month of the season, and if the top order of the brothers Saqib and Rehmat Zulfiqar and Shirase Rasool have been less productive in the past couple of weeks, others have done enough to keep them winning. HCC’s efforts have been much more fluctuating but they’re only one game behind, and if they can withstand Barends and Aryan Kumar early on they have the ability to give ACC a real run for their money.
Bertus de Jong: HCC have indeed blown rather hot and cold so far this season, and with a rather top-heavy batting line up could be particularly vulnerable to ACC’s new ball pair. Conversely the quality of the HCC top four is such that ACC will likely struggle if they fail to make early inroads. ACC’s top order will have their own worries too, facing the abovementioned Isaacs as well as an in-form Hidde Overdijk, who has already racked up 14 wickets with the new ball for HCC this season, as well as another six (and counting) for Netherlands A against Guernsey during the week. It may well come down to which of the sides weather the new ball with the fewest casualties.