Kenya in India: Kenyan batsmen go on a run spree

The visiting Kenyan team sent the Maharashtra CA XI on a leather hunt on the opening day of their two day game at the Poona club grounds on Friday. Winning the toss, they rattled up 432 for eight wickets in 90 overs by stumps.

The little solace for the home side came early in the day when opener KO Otieno (0) and Divyesh Shah (3) were dismissed with only 19 runs on the board. Then the other opener Ravindu Shah and Steve Tikolo came together for a third wicket association that added 214 runs off 50.5 overs. Both got hundreds with Shah hitting 103 and Tikolo scoring 173. While Shah batted 237 minutes, faced 193 balls and hit 15 fours and two sixes, Tikolo batted 288 minutes, faced 199 balls and hit 25 fours and two sixes.

Shah left at 233 but Tikolo kept going. He added 41 runs for the fifth wicket off 7.4 overs with HS Modi (18) and then put on 62 runs for the sixth wicket off 11 overs with TM Odoyo. Tikolo was sixth out at 358 but Odoyo sustained the later order batting with a bright unbeaten 81 off 71 balls. He hit 13 fours and two sixes and added 48 runs for the seventh wicket off 6.1 overs with Tony Suji who hit a breezy 22 off 16 balls with five hits to the fence. S Shah who took the wickets of both the century makers finished with four for 42 off nine overs. But generally the Maharashtra bowlers received a pasting, symbolised by MJ Dalvi who went wicketless after sending down 22 overs and conceding 102 runs.