HAVERFORD, Pa. - Homecoming returns to Haverford, and with it, the fall alumni match! In this battle of experience versus youth, the current alumni tested their youthful, arthritis-free joints against a battle-tested side that has mastered the craft of bat and ball.

Batting first, Mohanish Bajaj and Eugene Yang faced the new ball for the alumni. By opening the bowling with Anish Moore, the younger side hoped to beat Yang at his own game, with Moore desperately trying to swing the ball like Yang did. What a poor decision—Moore could never dismiss Yang! Yang saw out a generous 5-ball duck before Nihaal Kochar took his wicket.

The alumni looked in a spot of trouble when Bajaj was caught behind for just 4 runs. But a brilliant referral to the third umpire reversed the call, allowing Bajaj to instead fall for 9 runs.

Perhaps remembering the bruise first-year Zaki Siddiqui gave him when he faced Siddiqui in the nets during last year's fly-in-squirrel day, Coach Andy proved too terrified of Siddiqui's pace and let the first-year dismiss him for 8 runs. Perhaps there is a reason they say coaches don't play…

Centurion Sidd Phatak scored a few boundaries in his 13-run stand, while near-centurion Nate Rolfe scored 12, with a 6 that showed the younger side why they should fear the "baseball player who played a leg-drive that landed in Barclay Beach," as Kamran has warned.

Then came the late-order theatrics. Leo Gruestein showed he still has his finishing skills, slashing two fours and single after single for a cool 17 runs.

Even Josh Corbett's "juicing" scandal isn't enough to explain the power behind his shots. He top-scored with 22. If two boundaries weren't enough, he showed the younger side what true athleticism looked like by running a smooth 3 with the speed for which he is so well known before declining to take the 4th, 5th or even 6th run so as not to disrespect the hosts.

On the bowling side, Kochar took an easy 3 wickets, while first-years Veer Sumya and Ahmad "Safi" Bilal delivered breakout bowling performances. The young duo showed that sometimes youth does win out, taking three and two wickets, respectively.

Haverford's younger side decided to entrust a chase of 101 runs to Siddiqui and sophomore Rasik Waikar. Phatak's pace proved much too fast for Siddiqui, who was promptly caught for 1 run.

The alumni's next victim was Rustom Dubash. After scouting Dubash and realizing his only scoring shot was pulling the ball to square leg, the alumni put ace fielder Isfar Munir in at the crucial square leg position.

Coach's ball was pulled, as expected, and Munir clasped the ball in his outstretched hands. Like an insect in a Venus flytrap, the ball had no chance of escaping Munir's sticky grasp.

Munir's fielding exploits continued when he successfully ran out senior Rohan Sarma, who looked in good touch.

To finish off Haverford's innings, Mohanish Bajaj showed off his deadly spin with a three-wicket haul that saw the closest opportunity for a hat trick since Phatak dropped Bajaj's hat trick in 2023. This was largely due to the alumni's fielding efforts. Rolfe took his first-ever catch as a keeper as Charlie Lynn wept from England, knowing he had taught his classmate well.

The younger side saw some flashes of genius in their batting. First-years Kairav Khimji and Safi scored 30 and 16, respectively, with Khimji showing the class that traditionally earns him an opening role, while Safi showed what he can do when given a license to hit. Waikar found his first-year form with a solid 15, and Rustom Dubash returned to the crease after his injury and Prague exploits with 13.

In the end, the younger Fords could not chase the mammoth total, falling 4 runs short. While the younger Fords cited the fact that they did not bat three of their top four batsmen, the alumni respectfully reminded the current eleven, "SCOREBOARD!"