Played at the Santosh Sports Cricket Academy, it was the all important semi-finals between Vasant Vihar High School, Thane and Billabong School where in Billabong won the toss and elected to bat first in order to make a big total and put the opposition under pressure.
Billabong batting first did not make the biggest of scores as they managed to post a total of 102/3 which is defendable but not a healthy one. Though most of the batsman failed to convert their starts, all-rounder Aarush Patankar top scored with 42 off 52balls which included 5fours to help Billabong cross the 100run mark. From Vasant Vihar, Shivam Thakkur bowled well taking 2/23 in 4overs.
However, Billabong did a commendable job of defending a low total of 102runs as they restricted Vasant Vihar School to just 88runs all out. The bowlers did a commendable job bowling really tight as Cahir Wahik (2/14), Arjun Bagaitkar (2/16) and Aarush Patankar (2/16) were the pick of the bowlers to help their team clinch a semis win by 14runs. It was a big win for Billabong where in Aarush who did one run, scored 42 and took 2wkts was declared ‘man of the match’
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Played at the Worli Sports Club, it was the all important match between Worli SC and DPC sports club on their home ground where in Worli SC won the toss and elected to bat first with an aim of making a big total on their home ground.
Batting first, Worli SC did face some early jitters when they were struggling at 15/3 at one stage but Sachin Keny (57) at no..3 and Sumedh Tare (92) at no.5 stitched an 118run stand between themselves to resurrect the innings back. Sumedh played some really good cricketing shots where in he faced 174deliveries smashing 8fours while also doing a lot of good running between the wickets. Manoj Yadav and Rehman Shaikh also chipped at the middle order also chipped in with 40’s which propelled their team total to a respectable 296 in 69.1 overs. Fast bowler Siddarth and spinner Ashutosh Gharghe chipped in with 3wkts each while medium pacer Mukund Sardar took 2/49.
Chasing 297 is not the easiest of tasks and especially when your team is struggling at 55/4 at one stage. However, Pranav Kela who batted at no.4 anchored the chase with a thumping 119 off 177balls (16fours) which helped DPC to come back into the game. By the time Pranav Kela was out, he had already completed more than half of the job for his team while Ashutosh Gharghe who came at no.8 scored a crucial 58* off 60balls to seal the chase for DPC. DPC sports club won the match by 3wkts and 5.1 overs to spare on the back of great team perfomance and especially Pranav’s anchoring ton and Ashutosh Gharghe’s all round heroics.
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Played at the Santosh Sports Cricket Academy, it was the all important third round match between Titans Cricket Academy and Mulund Gymkhana where in Titans won the toss and elected to bat first with an aim of making a big 1st innings total.
Titans who batted first posted a decent score on the board scoring 132/1 for a 1st innings total where in dependable Arjun Bagaitkar scored a solid 54 while Omkar Patankar scored an anchoring knock of 52*runs. Both the boys looked solid as they did good running between the wickets while also smashed some really good cricketing shots. From Mulund Gymkhana, Laksh Shinde was the only wicket taker bagging one wicket in his 3overs.
Chasing 133 against a good bowling attack is not the easiest and Mulund Gymkhana must have felt the pressure of chasing against the quality bowlers of Titans Academy. Mulund gymkhna were bundled out for 78runs in 17overs where in Pranav Prabhu was the pick of the bowlers with impressive bowling figures of 3/9 in 4 overs while Jason and Rishikesh Chavan took 2wkts each to help Titans Cricket Academy clinch a important win by 54runs. It was a big win for the boys where in Arjun and Omkar did the job with the bat while the bowlers also bowled really tight. Omkar Patankar was also declared ‘man of the match’
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Played at the Bharat CC, Dadar in Shivaji Park, it was a crucial face off between Modern Cricket Club and Mandvi Muslim Sports Club where the winner would be qualified for the quarter finals. On winning the toss, Modern CC elected to bat first with an aim of making a big total to put the opposition under pressure.
Batting first, Modern cc were cruising on 80 for 2 at one Stage but introduction of Mandvi’s young left arm spinner Shubro Dutta who is a student of M .D. college changed the scenario with his mesmerizing spell in which he claimed six wickets along with a hat-trick. Shubhro was well supported by off spinner Vinay gupta who took 2 for 38. Shubhro created a major dent in Modern CC’s batting line up as kept on bowling at good line and length which reaped rewards for him as well as his team. What’s more he cleaned up the lower order with a hat-trick where Modern CC from 82/2 were all out for 135runs in 36.2 overs on the back of 6 for 31 by Dutta.
Thanks to superb unbeaten knock of 55 runs by opening wicket-keeper batsman Rahul Bhat, Mandvi were off to a super smooth start. Bhat was also well supported by Sarthak Kolambekar who smashed 39* while Abhishek Ambole (27*) finished the chase with Sarthan. Mandvi Muslim trounced Modern cc by 9 wickets and win the all important pre quarter finals of the Mumbai Junior Tournament.
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There are players who perform for years silently but remain in the backdrop like Dravid, Chanderpaul, Clarke amongst others and then there are players like Mccullum, Afridi and Gayle who sizzle and become an overnight star with their swashbuckling innings which remain etched in our memories for a long time. Opener Rohan Bhosale from Ruparel College played a similar sort of an innings at the local level where he completely took on the bowlers with domination.
Played between Ruparel College and Chetana College at the LIC cross maidan, Ruparel won the toss and elected to bat first. Their decision to bat first was completely spot on as they managed to score 229/6 in 20 overs which is a very good score to defend in a T20. The major reason for such a big total was their opener Rohan Bhosale who spelled carnage over the bowlers smashing 131 off mere 58deliveries smashing 20fours and 5sixes. Playing at a strike rate of 226, Rohan did not spare a single bowler leaving behind his presence in almost every corner of the ground with his fours and sixes. The rest of the batsman batted around him chipping in with 20’s.
Defending a great total of 230, Ruparel College did an equally commendable job with the ball too bundling out Chetana College for just 93runs all out. Left-arm spinner Heramb Parab came up with a match winning bowling spell of 4wkts/2runs in 3.3 overs (1maiden) which did the job for his team. Pranav Kela also bowled really well coming up with bowling figures of 4/22 in 4 overs. Ruparel College won the match by 136 runs where in Rohan Bhosale was rightly adjudged ‘man of the match’ while Pranav and Heramb’s bowling also played a major role in the win.
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Played at the Sydenham College Gymkhana at Oval Maidan, it was a match between two promising teams namely Shivaji Park Youngsters and Dadar Union where in Shivaji Park Youngsters won the toss and elected to bat first in order to make a big 1st innings score and put the opposition under pressure.
Their decision to bat was first was not exactly accurate as Shivaji Park youngsters were restricted to a modest total of 259 in 68.2 overs. The bowler who bamboozled the batsman was this 29yr old Akshay who has been an experienced warhorse by now coming up with excellent bowling figures of 6/65 in 20.2 overs. Akshay who has played 47 First Class games showed how potent he can be with the ball as kept on bowling in the right areas with discipline which fetched rewards for him as well as his team. From Shivaji Park, opener Suraj Singh(73) and Kinshuk Rai(50) who came at no.5 were the highest scorers smashing solid fifties.
However, Dadar Union could not exactly replicate their good bowling perfomance while chasing as they were given a tough fight by Shivaji Youngsters where in they were bundled out for 159runs in 39.4 overs. While they were struggling at 6/62 at one point, Akshay Darekar (32*) and Tanush Kotian with 47 saved the grace by not letting their team all out in two figures. Dadar Union were all out for 159 and lost the match by 110runs but Akshay surely stood amongst the 22boys who were part of that match with his all-round perfomance.
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Played at the Karnatak SC, Cross Maidan, it was the all important semi-finals between Nanavati Super Speciality hospital and Shinrai Toyota where in Nanavati who have a quality bowling attack elected to bowl first in order to restrict the opposition to a low total and put them under pressure.
Their decision to bowl first was quite spot on as they successful restricted Shinrai Toyota to 178runs all out in 56.4 overs with Amir and Manesh Bhogle top scoring with 30’s while the rest of the batsman falling for 10’s and 20’s. Not a single batsman was about to convert their starts as the bowling was too tight where in Skipper Sahil Madgaonkar leading from the front as a leader shining with the ball scalping 4/25 in his 8.4 overs while spinner Atharva Ankolekar chipping in with 3/63 in 22 overs. Hero of the quarters Rahul Sawant also chipped in with 2wkts.
Chasing 179 is usually not a tough task but Nanavati did felt some early jitters where they were 3down for 32runs at one stage. However, Prakash aswani smashed 38 while the experience of Bhushan Shinde under crunch situations came in handy as he scored a match winning 61* off 70balls while he also got able support from the talented Atharva who also remained unbeaten with 44* to steer their team to a thumping semi-finals win. Nanavati who have fought hard throughout the tournament were the deserving semi-final winners where in Atharva’s all-round perfomance and Bhushan’s crucial 61 played a big role to register their place in the finals of the prestigious Times Shield.
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Played between two promising teams namely SVPT and BSMS at the Raymond Cricket ground, SVPT won the toss and elected to bat first with an aim of making a big 1st innings total and put the opposition under pressure.
Saraswati English School team took a right decision to bat first as they made a mammoth total of 397/3 in mere 30 overs. Right-handed young prodigy Atharva Sawant who opened the innings took on the bowlers from the word go. The opposition bowlers were least aware about the carnage which was about to hit them as Atharva hardly spared any bowler attacking almost every ball which came by his way. Atharva who reached his hundred in mere 41deliveries converted his hundred into a thumping double ton smashing 204* off just 90 deliveries in which he smashed 32fours and 6sixes. Atharva also got a good partner in Vedant who scored 119 off mere 54balls while stitching a 300runs+ stand between themselves propelling their team total to a very big score. Vedant Wadekar smashed 18fours and 4sixes and was equally destructive with the bat where he took on almost every bowler in every corner of the ground.
Chasing 398 in mere 180 deliveries is a gigantic task for most of the teams and BSMS were bundled out for mere 64runs as they may have felt the pressure of chasing such a big score against a quality bowling attack. Right arm leg spinner Kashywap Waykar bowled an amazing spell of 5/7 in 3overs which turned the tides furthermore in SVPT School’s favor. Kashyap bowled at impressive line and length which reaped rewards for him as well as his team.
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Played at the Cricket Club of India, it was the all important match between between two big teams of Mumbai cricket namely Cricket Club of India and PJ Hindu Gymkhana where in CCI won the toss and elected to bat first on the back of their strong batting line up.
CCI were off to a shaky start with their prolific Paul and Saksham failing to give a flying start while Mr.consistent and solid no.3 batsman Vinit Indulkar once again came good smashing a well made 82 off 135balls to bring back the momentum. Vinit also got along well with one of the most utility all-rounders of Mumbai Cricket Sujit Nayak who came in at no.5. Sujit stitched a 100+ run stand with Vinit while also went on to score a ravishing 101 off 146 deliveries. Sujit who is usually attacking this time kept his calm to bring back his team into the game and help them cross the 300run mark which is a good total to defend. Experienced left arm spinner Salil Agharkar and Sachin Wagh took 3wkts each and bowled in the right areas where in CCI managed to score 316/9 in 70overs.
Chasing 317 in 70 overs and especially against a quality bowling attack is not a cakewalk for sure and especially when half of your batsman are bundled out under 150runs but once again middle order batsman Anup Revandkar who came at no.5 scored a match-winning 113 off 131balls (11fours and a six) to anchor the chase for his innings. Sachin Wagh who took 3wkts also gave nice support with the bat scoring 40runs at no.6. Anup not only smashed good cricketing shots but also kept on rotating the strike well which helped PJ Hindu Gymkhana successfully chase down the score in a thriller of a chase winning the match by just 1wkt and 4balls to spare!. PJ Hindu Gymkhana won the match and it was surely Anup’s 113 and some good bowling by the bowlers which did the job for them!
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Played between two really promising teams namely Khar Gymkhana and Ghatkopar Jolly Gymkhana at the Ghatkopar Gymkhana Ground. Ghatkopar boys won the toss and elected to field first with an aim of restricting Khar Gymkhana to a low total and put them under pressure.
However, things turned out to be quite different as Khar Gymkhana boys pounced on the opportunity to bat first as they started attacking from the word Go. Experienced and dependable Akshay Powale who opened the innings smashed an entertaining 82 off mere 35deliveries which included 7 fours and 7sixes. Akshay did not spare a single bowler as he smashed boundaries in all the parts of the ground. Akshay also got good support from Gaurav Suryavanshi who chipped in with 44 while Ankur Kunder who came at no.5 smashed a 21ball 51 to take the team total to 242/7 in 20 overs. Ankur did some tremendous hitting smashing 3fours and 5sixes to pump up the last leg of their innings. Both Akshay and Ankur were a treat to watch.
Chasing 243 at more than 12runs per over, Jolly Gymkhana must have felt the pressure of chasing as they were skittled out for 124runs in 16.5 overs by the quality bowling attack of Khar Gymkhana. Though all the batsman struggled but Pranav Makwana was the shining spot in the dark smashing a fighting knock of 68(39balls). Talented left-arm spinner Anirudha Mainkar was once again impressive with the ball bagging 4wkts to trouble the batsman. Anirudha not only bowled in the right areas but kept giving breakthroughs at regular intervals while Lal Vishwakarma also took 3wkts. Khar Gymkhana won the match by a big margin of 118 runs on the back of collective team perfomance and especially Akshay, Anirudha and Ankur who stood out with their individual perfomances.
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