Played at the Air India Ground, Kalina, this time it was the all important finale of the tournament where in L&t and Intelenet who have given their best throughout the tournament took on each other for a final knockout where in L&T won the toss and elected to field first with an aim of restricting the strong batting line up of Intelenet to a low total.
However, Intelenet hardly looked affected after being made to bat first as they notched up a big total of 173/3 in 15overs. Talented Jiniv Joshi who has scored some of the fastest hundreds recently in club cricket ensured that such an important game was taken care of with his blazing knock of 78runs in 34balls smashing 7fours and 4sixes. Apart from him, Neil Narvekar was equally destructive with the bat hitting 78runs in mere 30balls smashing 4fours and 7sixes to take the game away from the opposition. Both the boys stitched a match winning partnership while enthralling the crowd with their power hitting. What’s more all-rounder Rakesh Naik(20*off 9balls) and Kalpesh Sawant (28*) gave the finishing touch taking the team total to a big one. Delivering in the finals requires a lot of character and ability to soak up the pressure and Jiniv & Neil perfectly nailed it with their brutal batting.
Defending a behemoth total of 174 in mere 90balls, the pressure was on L&T to deliver. However, Rakesh Naik’s brilliant bowling spell of 4/17 in 3overs ensured that the opposition does not even come close to their team’s total. Rakesh has been bowling with great consistency and once again he rose his stake as one of the best utility all-rounders to have in the side. The rest of the bowlers were also equally supportive as L&T managed to score only 118/7 in 15overs.
This new format of tournament has been quite a success & it was a great team perfomance by the Intelenet Boys in the finals where in Neil and Jiniv stood out with the bat while Rakesh delivered an all-round contribution. Jiniv who has been in his purple patch was also declared ‘man of the series’ as well as the “Best batsman of the tournament”.
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Played between two really talented teams namely Young Association and Aarey Cricket Club at the Western Railways,Cross Maidan, it was Young Association who won the toss and elected to bat first as the wicket had something for the batsman to make a decent enough total.
Young Association CC were however off to a patchy start with their openers not able to give a flying start and their team struggling at 27/3 at one point. However, Harsh Dodia and the left-handed Shlok utkar gave crucial contributions which took their team total to a respectable one. While Harsh scored 33, Shlok top scored with 44 off 59balls smashing 2fours and 2sixes. The rest of the batsman failed to make much of an impact as Young Association were not able to make a big total batting first. From the bowlers, medium pacer Padmanabhan C was the pick of the bowlers taking 3/34 while Anand Kumbhar and Akshad taking 2wkts each.
Chasing 185 in always an achievable target when you have 45overs in hand and the pressure was on Young Association rather than Aarey CC to restrict them and make the chase a bit tough. Shlok Utkar who top scored with 44 also bamboozled the batsman with his right arm leg spin coming up with a brilliant match winning bowling spell of 5/37 in 9overs which restricted Aarey CC to 138runs all-out in 35overs. Shlok bowled really well in the right areas troubling the batsman which fetched results for him as well as his team. Balwant D was also quite handy taking 2wkts.
Eventually, Young Association boys clinched an easy win by 45runs on the back of Shlok’s all-round show where in he completely stood out in the match.
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Played at the Century-Oval Maidan, it was an exciting clash between Mumbai Port Trust “B” and Mahindra Logistics where in Mahindra Logistics batted first on a track which has equal amount of support for the batsman as well as the bowlers.
Batting first, Mahindra Logistics notched up a very decent total of 151/9 in 20 overs which is always a defendable total. Even though the openers fell early but Ankit Juvekar and Vedant Ingle scored a handy 37 and 48 respectively which pushed their team towards a healthy total. The bowlers did a nice job with Siddhant, Sunil and Sarvesh taking 2 wickets each.
Chasing 152, Mumbai Port Trust chased really well with Gajendra Kohachade smashing an unbeaten 55* which almost did the job for his team. But in a twist to the tale, the last over was super exciting as the match remained a thriller till the last ball with Mumbai Port Trust eventually managing to equal the score which resulted in a draw.
As per the rules a super over match was held between both the teams where in Mumbai Port Trust smashed 16runs in one over batting first. With just 4runs in the first 2balls which chasing 17, the onus was on Rohan Kalbhor to help his team clinch a thriller of a win. Just like what DK did for India a few days ago, in an entertainment of sorts Rohan smashed 16runs in the last 4balls which helped Mahindra Logistics help win an exciting super over.
Mahindra Logistics won the match on the basis of super over win and it was certainly Rohan who became an instant star in the tournament with his brilliant hitting in the last 4balls of the superover.
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Played at the Oval Maidan, it was the all important finale between DTDC and IDBI where in DTDC won the toss and elected to bat first on the back of their strong batting line up.
Batting first, DTDC scored 147/5 in 20 overs on the back of their openers Sunny G (38) and Sushant Kadam. Both the openers stitched an 84run stand between them in 10overs which created a positive momentum. Opener Sushant scored 66 off mere 35deliveries smashing 6fours and 3sixes. From IDBI, it was Tarun who was the pick of the bowler taking 3wkts in 4overs.
Chasing 148 which is a very competitive total in a finals is always going to be a pressure situation. IDBI however received a tough fight from the DTDC bowlers as IDBI were restricted to just 135/7 in 20 overs. IDBI’s most prolific batsman Vivek Patel who has been scoring runs consistently top scored with a fighting 58* off 40balls. Vivek who gave his best while chasing smashed 4fours and a six in his unbeaten knock but he lacked support from the other end.
DTDC won the finals of the tournament lifting the title where in Sushant Kadam was declared ‘man of the match’ while Vivek Patel continues to impress with his elegant knocks.
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It was the all important semi finals of the Gannon Dunkerley Tournament 2018 between two promising teams namely Sony TV and Intelenet where in Intelenet won the toss and elected to bat first with their strong batting line up.
Intelenet opening the innings were off to a flying start as their openers gave a quick cameos while their star all-rounder Rakesh Naik top scored with a 22ball 36* which included 3big sixes to take the team total to 129/6 in 15overs. The rest of the batsman also contributed well with their quick cameos which resulted in a healthy team total. From the bowlers, it was Vishal who did a good job being the pick of the bowler taking 3wkts.
Chasing 130 in 15overs is very difficult and a pressure situation but Sony TV gave a tough fight but they eventually fell short of 20runs as they were all out for 110. The bowlers did an excellent job restricting the batsman as they took wickets at regular intervals. Rakesh Naik was also impressive with the ball taking 2/13 in 3overs making it a complete all-round show.
Rakesh Naik who had recently taken a 5wkt haul while had also scored a brilliant ton in Mumbai Junior Shield once again proved that he is an all-rounder to reckon with.
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Played at the Bombay Gymkhana ground, it was an exciting clash between Cricket Club of India and Bombay Gymkhana on its home turf where in CCI which has a promising batting line up elected to bat first.
However, batting first, CCI managed to score only 131/10 all out in 17.5 overs. Even though the top 3 batsman failed to give a good start, it was Sahil Purohit who rescued his innings with a 39ball 65 smashing 9fours and a six to take his team to a respectable total. Not a single batsman managed to convert their starts apart from Sahil who batted bravely. From the bowlers, it was Burzin Mehta who bowled an impressive spell taking 3/16 in 4 overs becoming the pick of the bowlers while Burzin Dubash and all-rounder Sohrab took 2wkts each in a collectively good bowling perfomance by Bombay Gymkhana.
Chasing 132, it was not required to start hitting every ball out of the park, just taking single till the end would help them clinch a win and Sohrab Khushrushahi who opened the innings scored a 62ball unbeaten 66* smashing 8fours and anchoring the chase perfectly while he also got good support from Armaan Jain who scored 39 off 33balls. Sohrab looked exquisite in his stay at the crease which included some really good shots.
Bombay Gymkhana eventually won the match by 7wkts and an over to chase where in Sohrab who took 2wkts while also anchored the chase was declared ‘man of the match’
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Played at the Raymonds Cricket Ground, two promising teams namely SVPT and Euro School took on each other where in Euro boys won the toss and elected to bat first with an aim of making a big 1st innings total plus the wicket looked good to bat on.
However, their decision to bat first wasn’t the best of the lot as Euro Boys were bundled out for 123runs all out in 30 overs with opener Shashwat top scoring with 24 while Aditya Chavan remaining 20*. The bowlers of SVPT did a fantastic job bowling really tight in the right areas with their star all-rounder Atharva Sawant being the pick of the bowler taking 3/15 in 3overs while Rishikesh, Vedant and Vaibhav chipping in with 2wkts each.
Chasing 124, Atharva Sawant who opened the innings scored an anchoring knock of 53* off 52balls(3fours) smashing some really regal shots while also engaging in good running between the wickets. SVPT did lose 5wkts and it wasn’t an easy win but eventually Atharva steered his team towards a 5wkt win with his confident all-round perfomance.
It was a commendable win for SVPT where the bowlers did a fabulous job while Atharva’sall-round show stood out in the match.
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Played at the Central Railway Ground in Lower Parel, it was the all important clash between two really talented teams namely PJ Hindu Gymkhana and NSCI-National Sports Club of India where in PJ Hindu Gymkhana won the toss and elected to bat first on the back of their strong batting line up.
PJ Hindu Gymkhana were off to a blistering start by their talented openers Suhel Mistry (55 off 40, 6fours and 3sixes) and Maulik Merchant (64 off 34balls, 8fours and 3sixes) as they stitched a 119run opening stand in mere 68deliveries developing a positive momentum for their team. While talented wicket-keeper batsman Megh Adhwaryu who has scored a lot of runs in the professional MCA tournaments showed that he can be a equally potent T20 batsman as he smashed a brutal 51* off 26deliveries (3fours. 3sixes). Megh did excellent running between the wickets while also smashed some brilliant shots pushing their team total to a very healthy 213/5 in 20overs.
Chasing 214 at more than 10runs per is always a difficult task in a T20 match and NSCI must have felt the pressure of chasing as their batting line up collapsed to just 101/10 runs all out in 20 overs. The bowlers did an excellent job where in Paresh Shah was the pick of the bowler taking 3/22 while Saurabh Bahutule and Madhav Kotak also chipping in with 2wkts each.
PJ Hindu Gymkhana won the match in a commanding manner by 112runs where in Megh was declared ‘man of the match’ while contribution of Maulik, Suhel and Paresh was equally commendable.
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Played between New Hind and Dadar Union at the Shivaji Park Gymkhana, it was a crucial clash where in New Hind boys won the toss and elected to bat first as they have a strong batting line up to make a decent total.
New Hind CC batting first made a very competitive total of 177 runs in 20 overs on the back of really good batting. Karan Nandey and Shubham Rege stitched a match winning 100runs partnership where in solid Shubham scored while the aggressive Karan Nandey went on to score a stroke filled 52 off 34balls. Both the boys took on the bowlers with dominance smashing some really good shots while also rotating the strike nicely. It was on the back of these two boys the team reached a decent total of 177/10 in 20 overs. From Dadar Union, it was one of the most promising all-rounders in Mumbai Cricket. Tanush showing his worth with the ball changing the script of the game with a match winning bowling spell of 6/32 in 4overs. Tanush bowled in great line and length which reduced Dadar Union to 160/9 in 20overs. Karan Nandey contributed with the ball too as he took 2/24 in 4overs.
Defending 177, New Hind received a tough fight from Dadar Union batsman as the experienced Bhupen Lalwani scored a 38ball 54 brining his experience while chasing while Sairaj Patil also gave a nice contribution with the bat. New Hind bowlers did an excellent job of taking wickets at the tight time where in Karan also contributed with the ball taking 2/24 in 4overs.
New Hind won the match on the back of Shubham and Karan’s batting while Tanush Kotian’s bowling was equally commendable.
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Played at the Oval Maidan in Mumbai, it was a crucial clash between Datamatics and SBI where in Datamatics won the toss and elected to bat first on the back of their strong batting line up and post a decent total.
Batting first, Datamatics posted a very healthy total of 264/9 in 45 overs as most of the batsman from Datamatics chipped in with solid 30’s and 40’s. Dependable pair of openers Vinayak Mulay and Malang Aras gave a thumping start scoring 39 & 44respectively while also stitching a 100runs opening stand. Both the batsman smashed some really good cricketing shots which created a positive momentum for the middle order to carry on. Hemant Khanolkar and Ritesh Palav chipped in with crucial knocks of 41 & 42 respectively stitching a handy partnership which took their team total to a competitive score. From SBI, left-arm spinner Laxmikant Bemde bowled a fabulous spell winning the hearts of everyone in the field coming up with excellent bowling figures of 6/41 in 9overs. Laxmikant bowled at really nice line and length which fetched excellent results.
Chasing a score of 265 is always difficult in 45overs and that too against the quality bowlers of Datamatics. SBI were all out for 187runs in 31overs despite their top order giving a decent start. From SBI, Manish More(36) and Ameya Ubale(45) batted really well giving a strong fight. All-rounder Ritesh Palav was the pick of the bowlers taking 3/32 in 7overs while Nikhil Patil and Ravi Mali chipping in with 2wkts each.
Datamatics won the match by 77runs and it was surely a collective team perfomance which helped them continue their winning streak.
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