Vala ton scripts historic win for Papua New Guinea

An unbeaten 124 from Assad Vala powered Papua New Guinea to victory in their maiden first-class game, beating Netherlands by five wickets in the Intercontinental Cup fixture in Amstelveen. Chasing a target of 305, Vala added 200 runs with Mahuru Dai for the fifth wicket, a partnership that secured a historic victory.

Resuming on the third morning on 66 for 2, PNG slipped to 82 for 4, losing both Vani Morea and Charles Amini for 3. Needing another 223 for victory, Vala and Dai batted for 51.4 overs, bringing up their maiden first-class fifties. Vala went on to convert his into a hundred, which he brought up off 164 balls with a four through the leg side.

Their partnership ended when Dai was lbw to Michael Rippon for 91; it had come at the rate of 3.87 runs per over. PNG needed 23 more to win and their captain Jack Vare saw the chase through with Vala, who hit 13 fours in his 200-ball innings. Vare finished the game with a boundary and put PNG on the first-class map. They had also been the first team to win their first two ODIs, against Hong Kong in November last year.

Netherlands, playing their seventh Intercontinental Cup, struggled for wickets on the day and allowed the first-class debutants 22 fours and a six.