The European Cricket Series returned to the vibrant cricketing scene of Stockholm from July 21, showcasing both women’s and men’s competitions back-to-back.
The tour kicked off with the ECS-W Sweden, Stockholm, where three sides battled it out for supremacy. It was Djurgardens IF-W and Alby Zalmi-W who were the standout teams, trading wins and keeping the title race alive until the very last league match. Stockholm CC-W, unfortunately, endured a tough campaign and went winless.
The winner was decided in a virtual final — the last league match — where Djurgardens IF-W held their nerve to clinch the victory and with it, the ECS-W title.
The undisputed star of the tournament was Eman Asim, who was a class apart with the bat. Her tally of 284 runs, including a scintillating century and two fifties, made her the tournament’s top scorer and earned her a well-deserved MVP award.
The men’s tournament followed, and with two past champions Huddinge and Alby Zalmi in red-hot form, expectations were sky high. Both teams ended the group stage with six wins each, finishing top of the table. They were joined in the playoffs by Rising Phoenix and Jinnah CC Stockholm.
The playoff stage lived up to the billing. Alby Zalmi took the direct route to the final by defeating Huddinge in Qualifier 1. Rising Phoenix eliminated Jinnah CC in the Eliminator, only to fall to Huddinge in Qualifier 2, setting up a mouth-watering final — the third ECS Stockholm final between Alby Zalmi and Huddinge.
With both teams winning one final each against the other (Alby Zalmi won in 2021, Huddinge in 2023), this one was bound to be dramatic — and it delivered. After electing to bat first, Huddinge were cruising toward a big total before Qudratullah Mir Afzal turned the game on its head with a stunning hat-trick in the 7th over. He finished with five wickets, helping restrict Huddinge to 134.
Alby Zalmi responded with a strong powerplay but stumbled in the middle, losing four quick wickets. The game was hanging in the balance — until Chinthaka Rajapaksha stepped up. In an innings that will go down in ECS folklore, Rajapaksha smashed 70 not out off just 16 balls, single-handedly steering his side to victory in the 8th over.
It was Alby Zalmi's third ECS title in Stockholm, having previously won in 2021 and 2022. The MVP title for the tournament fittingly went to Chinthaka Rajapaksha, who finished with 313 runs. Skipper Azam Khalil led from the front picking up 15 wickets - most in the tournament.
