The Bronze Finals of the JFSC Super Cup was played between DreamXI and Somaiya Sports Academy after gruesome league games. After winning the toss, Dream XI elected to bat first. After the crucial toss, Dream XI posed an unassailable target of 191 in 20 overs for the loss of 5 wickets. After an early wicket, Vinay Bothra took the responsibility and scored 78 at an imprrssive strike rate of 181.40. His 43-ball innings comprised of 5 boundaries and 7 massive sixes as he formed an important partnership of 96 runs with Chetan Chafekar who chipped in a handy 38-ball 45.
With such a massive total on board, Somaiya SC had a subpar outing with the ball. Pratik Garegaonkar claimed 2 wickets but the pick of the bowlers was Sohan Lal who also claimed 2 wickets but bowled at an economy of 6 runs per over in his 4-over spell.
The second innings was nothing short of entertaining. Dream XI’s opening bowler Shekhar Roy arguably bowled the spells of the tournament. In the powerplay, Roy picked up 4 wickets, dismissing 3 batsmen for a duck and claiming a hattrick in the process. In his 4 over spell he picked up 5 wickets for 30 runs. Opener Vipul Yadav steadied the rocking ship by scoring 33 off 25 as they were reeling at 25 for 4. A small partnership with Pratik Garegaonkar saw them make a comeback in the game.
Pratik’s 43-ball 63 comprised of 7 boundaries and few partnerships with Sushant and Sohan but after his dismissal, the game was over as no other batsman could finish off the innings. Apart from Roy, Vinay Bothra was the only man to claim wickets. Bothra picked up 4 wickets in the second innings after a spirited batting display. His efforts saw Dream XI win by 32 runs.
Pawan Chaulkar of Patkar Varde College oozed class with his stellar batting and brilliant bowling against Dalmia College. Patkar Varde College took on Dalmia College during the Mumbai University inter-college cricket tournament.
In the first innings, when Patkar Varde College were bowling, Pawan claimed 15/2 in four overs. He bowled with a lot of discipline and hit the right straps consistently. Later in the day, during the run chase, he made his presence felt with a blistering 43 off 35, batting at number four.
Pawan’s all-round abilities have played an integral part in Patkar Varde College’s success.
Aayush Shinde starred with the bat for Anjuman-I-Islams Allana English Medium School against Hiranandani Foundation School Thane. Anjuman-I-Islams Allana English Medium School won the toss and elected to bat at Azad Maidan, Mumbai, on January 17.
Opening the batting, Shinde muscled 81 off 68. He smashed 10 boundaries and powered Anjuman-I-Islams to 233 in 30 overs. Yuvan Sharma was the other major contributor with the bat for Anjuman-I-Islams with a 36-ball 67. For Hiranandani Foundation School, Ayush Goho was the pick of the bowlers with 35/4 in six overs.
In reply, Hiranandani Foundation School was skittled for a paltry 67 in 31 overs and lost the match by 166 runs. Anish Jadhav (17) and captain Aarush Chaddha (14) were the only two batters to score in double digits for Hiranandani. On the other hand, Anjuman-I-Islams had a brilliant outing with the ball. Yuvan Sharma, Zaid Khan, and Nirag Gharat were the most successful bowlers with two wickets apiece.
Sharvil Nalavade had a brilliant outing for St. Joseph School, Dombivali against Lakshadham High School during the Mumbai Indians Junior U14 Cricket Tournament.
Lakshadham High School won the toss and elected to bat at the Oval Maidan, Mumbai, on January 18. Riding on Shamik Shettigar’s unbeaten 53, Lakshadham High School posted 158 in 37.5 overs.
For St. Joseph School, Yash Salunkhe and Sharvil Nalavade were the most successful bowlers. The duo scalped three wickets apiece. While Salunkhe registered the figures of 34/3 in eight overs, including one maiden, Nalavade accounted for 15/3 in eight overs, including two maidens. Nalavade claimed a hat-trick as he picked up his three wickets in consecutive balls in the 33rd over.
After gruesome league games and dominating finals, GPCC and Don Bosco CA faced off in an enticing encounter in the finals of the MD Memorial Cup 2023 T20 Tournament. After winning the toss, Don Bosco elected to bowl first. In hindsight, this moved proved to be costly. GPCC managed a competitive total of 143 losing 5 wickets in 20 overs. Aarush Kolhe proved his worth in gold as he scored a crucial half century in the finals. His 29-ball inning comprised of 10 boundaries including 2 sixes. Shourya Oswal from Don Bosco bowled a decent spell of 2/20 in 4 overs.
With an achievable target, it was anyone’s game at the halfway point. Raj Bengde scored 33 alongside Dev Nafade who was unbeaten at 30 by the end of the innings but their innings were in vain as GPCC managed to hold on by just 10 runs. Ankit Mhatre’s match-winning spell of 3/19 in 4 overs saw the GPCC lift the trophy.
For his crucial knock in the first innings, Aarush Kolhe was named the Man of the Match for the finals.
In the Semi Finals of the M.D Memorial Cup 2023 T20 Tournament, Don Bosco CA took on Powai CA. Don Bosco CA bowled well first to rrstrict Powai CA to just 118 in 20 overs. Apart from restricting the runs, they also managed to claim 6 wickets. Opener Vikas scored an anchoring 31 off 43 as the other side was collapsing. Coming down the order, skipper Vivaan hammered a quickfire 34 off just 19 deliveries to push their subpar total ahead. On the bowling side, Eklavya’s exceptional spell of 3/17 in 4 overs stumped the batsmen and gave the upper hand to Don Bosco CA.
Powai CA had little to no reply against the batting line up of Don Bosco CA as they chased down the target with ease. Swanand Palav scored an unbeaten match winning knock of 57 off 48 balls to seal a spot in the finals for his team by 7 wickets.
Eklayvya was named Man of the Match for his bowling.
GPCC took on Bhosale CA in the Semi Finals of the M.D Memorial Cup 2023 T20 Tournament as the former convincingly won. Batting first, GPCC hammered a total of 173 losing 9 wickets in the process. Opener Viraj Patil gave a flying start to the innings by scoring 56 off just 38 balls with 8 boundaries to his name. After his departure, Aarush Kolhe continued the run flow from one end as he hammered 51 off 32 deliveries including 6 fours and a six. It was an expensive outing with the ball for Bhosale CA. Mihir Mahtre claimed 3 wickets as Chinmay Patil and Ved Nadkarni took 2 wickets each.
Bhosale CA had a disappointing outing with the bat as no batsman passed the 20 run-mark. This resulted in the team getting dismissed for just 113 in the 17th over. Anish Mhatre and Vidvesh took 2 wickets as every other bowler claimed a wicket to make sure GPCC win by 60 runs and qualify for the finals.
Cricket is just more than a sport, it is an emotion. The game is played by everyone and regardless of the level, the enjoyment and passion for the game remains constant for every player holding the bat or the ball in hand. Just like the many who play the spirited game, one personality is multi-talented to say the least. With an impeccable cricketing talent, he is capable of suiting up and performing in front of a camera as an actor. The story of Maitrik Thakkar is as intriguing as it can get.
For the unknown, Maitrik is an incredible performer and has acted for numerous projects. His mainstream debut was in the “Moksh to Maya” movie released in 2019 alongside other infamous talents which was produced by Neeraj Bharadwaj. He has also worked for Gujarati romantic-comedy “Satti Par Satto”. But despite his filming exploits, Thakkar has impressed everyone with his cricketing prowess. The upcoming star is a high caliber wicketkeeper-batsman.
Before rerouting his drive to the field of cinema, Thakkar stunned everyone with his dazzling stroke play since school days. Born and brought up in Gujarat, Maitrik received numerous educational offers from various schools and colleges just so they could recruit him for their cricket team, such was the talent he possessed. The cricketer-turned-actor represented Gujarat U-19 age group at the state level. Little did he know, destiny held something else for him.
4 years ago, Maitrik moved to the City of Dreams to pursue a career on the big screen. After coming to Mumbai, he instantly made a mark in the film industry with his debut. But alongside his acting profession, the superstar continued to express his passion for the game as he competed in numerous private leagues which featured TV personalities. The Actors Cricket Bash is a well known cricket tournament in the film industry where actors display their cricketing skills. He took part from the inaugural season of the tournament becoming one of the MVPs of the tournament and is currently preparing for the 4th season starting in February. Maitrik was also the highest run getter in the Mid-Day Cup and was also named the player of the tournament for his splendid scoring spree.
Cricket is like a second life for me. Apart from the big screen, cricket pitch is the other place I would spend my life. I have made sure that I work on my process rather than thinking about the results. I have never dreamt for success rather I have worked days & nights for it . It is a result of preparation, hard work & learning from failure.
Maitrik Thakkar
Thakkar re-initiated his professional cricket career in Mumbai with the legendary Shivaji Park Youngsters team which in C Division of the Mumbai circuit. The Cricketgraph managed club added the actor in their squad in 2021 and has left everyone stunned with his performances. Apart from crucial knocks with the bat, Maitrik also contributed to the team with his glovework behind the wickets. In the Sheth Gordhandas T20 Tournament organized by the Mumbai Cricket Association, the southpaw is the highest run scorer in the tournament across Mumbai.
He credits his recent success to coach Vikrant Gupta, Head Coach of Winz Cricketgraph Academy in Borivali who helped Maitrik train at the academy and sign with the Shivaji Park Youngsters and Maskati Cricket Club which are managed by CricketGraph.
With two highly demanding ventures of acting and cricket, Maitrik has found the perfect balance to excel in both simultaneously. His, is an inspiring story on how each one of us can grind, work hard and yet do something we are passionate about.
Sporting Club Committee and Prime CC locked horns against each other during the GK Phanse Sports and Cultural Foundation 2023 tournament. Sporting Club Committee won the toss and elected to bat at Oval Maidan, Mumbai, on January 12.
Riding on Yaseen Shaikh’s stellar half-century, Sporting Club Committee posted 208 in 38.4 overs. Yaseen, batting at number seven, mustered 59 off 61 and peppered the boundary rope six times. For Prime CC, Sarthak Goregaonkar was the pick of the bowlers with 34/3 in eight overs.
In reply, Prime CC were skittled for a paltry 78 in 22.5 overs and lost the match by 130 runs. Kedar Patil fought hard with his 35-ball 33 for Prime CC. For Sporting Club Committee, it was again Yaseen Shaikh, who starred with the ball. Yaseen opened the bowling and claimed 13/3 in 5.5 overs.
Yaseen Shaikh won the player of the match award for his all-round brilliance.
Dikshant starred with the bat for VG Vaze College against ML Dhanukar College during the Mumbai University inter-college tournament.
Batting first, Vaze College posted 143/7 in 20 overs. Dikshant, batting at number three, muscled 72 off 51, hitting 10 boundaries and two sixes. He powered his team to a competitive score and played a pivotal role in the 43-run win.
Dikshant also opened the bowling with Nishant and bowled his full quota of four overs. A promising all-rounder, Dikshant has had many good performances for Vaze College.