Ross County Cricket Club celebrate cup win after ‘special’ Basit Watoo performance with the bat in final at Nairn
Ross County Cricket Club are celebrating after winning the 2026 T20 Cup final.
The Castle Leod club won their group to qualify for the final, where they faced Northern Counties at The Links in Nairn.
Choosing to bowl first, Ross County were set a target of 185 to win, with Alex Green top scoring for Northern Counties by hitting 83 off 34 balls.
It could have been a tough ask with more than nine runs per over required, but captain Graeme Carney had full faith in Ross County’s batting line-up to deliver.
A lightning fast start from Carney himself (58 not out) and Basit Watoo, who hit a blistering 82 in just 28 balls, had Ross County most of the way to victory, and they sealed victory with seven wickets and six overs in hand.
Carney said: “It’s fantastic to win our
“We’ve made a solid start to the season, doing well in all competitions, so it’s great to have some silverware to show for that.
“We’ve chased totals like that throughout the season with batters who can score quickly, so while it was a big target in 20 overs, we always backed ourselves.
“Credit to Northern Counties for putting us under real pressure, especially Alex Green. His innings of 83 was exceptional and would have been match-winning on most other day.”
The wickets Ross County took were shared around, with Basit Watoo (2), Shahid Khan (2), Paul Moxon, Matt Baron and Shahzad Oryakhel all chipping in.
With the bat in the second innings, there were also valuable contributions from Jee Arachchige (5), Oryakhel (18) and Alex Mackenzie (eight not out).
There was no doubting that Watoo’s contribution with the bat was a stand-out factor in Ross County’s win, though, with Carney believing it was up there with the club’s best ever knocks.
“I had the best seat in the house for it,” he added.
“It was incredible to watch him hitting to all corners of the ground. Scoring 82 off 28 balls is special, but to do it in a cup final under that sort of pressure makes it even more special.
“It has to be up there as one of Ross County’s greatest knocks.”