Edinburgh South cricket club’s 2nd XI have extended a remarkable sequence of promotions through the East of Scotland Leagues – six in as many seasons – as they prepare for life in Division One.
The team, captained by George O’Neill, secured the Division Two title with a match to spare, moving from Division Seven through to Division One, where they will play in 2027.
South 2nds confirmed top-spot with a four-run win over the University of Edinburgh Staff at Peffermill under the ESCA Rain Calculator.
The bonus points collected during the match had already put the title beyond reach, but the afternoon ended with a flourish by securing the win, albeit in unusual circumstances.
University of Edinburgh Staff made 186-7 from their 40 overs, with Sriram Govindan taking two wickets and Frank Omozejele, Amiya Mishra, Praveen Kumar Mohan and Kamran Uddin taking one apiece.
South’s reply was led by Praful Pant with 48 and Vipin Gupta with 31.
As the match approached the Peffermill ground’s evening cut-off Siva Kavati hit a six from what proved to be the final ball of the game. The shot took South to 166-7, four runs ahead under the ESCA Calculator with 35.5 overs being bowled, and secured the win.
With one match to play Vipin Gupta led the 2nd XI’s league run-scoring with 479 runs, including an unbeaten 149,
the team’s highest individual league score of the season.
Praf Pant had scored 379 runs, while Amiya Mishra contributed 265. Nabkishore Pani also made a significant contribution in just five appearances, scoring 254 runs at an average of 63.50 and finishing with a high score of 99 not out.
Captain George O’Neill completed the top five with 184 runs.
Sriram Govindan at the same stage was leading wicket-taker with 22 league wickets with Kiran Sankaran on 19
and Amiya Mishra on 17.
Amiya Mishra has also had a strong all-round season, combining his 265 runs with 17 wickets at an average of 15.29.
