Ashtamkar ton extends Dimona C winning streak; Be'er Sheva A complete derby double

Ashdod A revenged their derby defeat to Young Ashdod earlier in the season with a comfortable five wicket win over their neighbors on Saturday in Ashdod. Ra'anana also managed to reverse the result of their game against Tel Aviv in the earlier rounds, winning by seven wickets on Friday at Hadar Yosef. Dimona C scored their sixth straight win to maintain their place atop Division 2, but Be'er Sheva A are just one win behind, after victory by 46 runs in the Be'er Sheva derby.

A top order collapse spearheaded by Gershon Waskar (2 for 28) and Menashe Wadhawker (3 for 31) left the Young Ashdod innings in tatters, and although Raymond Aston (69) led a partial reconstruction, Young Ashdod were all out for 174. Joel Rubin (47) and Menashe Wadhawker (36*) then knocked off the runs with little fuss as Ashdod reached their target with ten overs to spare.

In Friday's Division 1 fixture, Dovi Myers once again found the Ra'anana bowlers to his liking, but his dismissal for 45 sparked a collapse which saw Tel Aviv lose their last 8 wickets for less than 30 runs. Adrian Vard (3 for 11) and Steven Shein (3 for 7) took full advantage of the generosity of the Tel Aviv batsmen, all out for 110. Rafi Zauer (47) and Des Moss (42) took Ra'anana within sight of victory, and although Stanley Perlman (3 for 25) gave the final scoreline some respectability, Tel Aviv would have been releived their miserable day ended after 17 overs.

Division 2 is turning into a two-way battle between Dimona C and Be'er Sheva A, and its the boys from Dimona who have the edge. Danny Ashtamkar batted through the innings to score 102*, and Israel U19 star Oren Chinchulkar added 58, as Dimona C amassed 271 for 5 in their 40 overs in Dimona on Saturday. It's not often that Jacky Divekar doesn't play a part in a Dimona C victory, and whilst others did the job with the bat, Divekar (4 for 39) was amongst the wickets with the ball. Lod were dismissed for 185, giving the home team a 86-run win.

Lions Be'er Sheva leg spinner Ronen Waskar is enjoying a magical season, but his haul of 4 for 15 was not enough to prevent Be'er Sheva A completing the derby double this season. George Sheader (42) played a typically patient innings, Naor Gudker (31) gave the innings early impetus, and despite Waskar ripping through tail, Be'er Sheva A managed to score 175. Shimshon Chordekar then produced a remarkable bowling display, taking six wickets for just 24 runs, as Lions Be'er Sheva collapsed from 93 for two to 129 all out.