DU Inter College Cricket: Hiten Dalals knock of 75 helps Khalsa defeat SGGSCC to grab 3rd spot
Two of the strongest teams of the tournament were up against each other. Both were ousted in semi-final. Both had already qualified for the groups for the next edition. These two teams belonged to the institutions where cricket is not just a game. It’s a matter of pride. There were a lot of emotions as one of the captains was playing his last Inter College match.
So it would be an appropriate assumption that everything was at stake, despite the match not being the final. So was the attitude and body language of each and every player involved. To win was not a choice, it was the only option. To Khalsa, it was their shocking semi-final defeat in the hands of Shradhanand a couple of days back. To SGGSCC, it was to give a perfect farewell to their inspiring captain TusharKhattar. Unfortunately, one had to be foregone at the expense of other.
SGGSCC captain won the toss for the third time in a row and decided to put runs on the board. He was about to ponder over his decision in the very first over itself when opener Aprameya was out for a duck. But Sameer Rajput and ParthMadaan not only steadied the ship for SGGSCC but were unseparated for next 30 overs for a whopping 147 run stand. An injury to Sameer forced captain Tushar to enter the ground for his last Inter College innings. It did not last for long as Khalsa fast bowler Anuj broke his middle stump when he was on 3. Parth top scored with 84 as the innings eventually ended at 185 for the loss of 5 wickets in their quota of 35 overs. Anuj and Vikas shared 2 wickets each on a flat batting track.
Considering the strong top order of Khalsa, SGGSCC could not take a sigh of relief even after scoring a competitive total. But AkshitGoel gave them that relief by snapping opener Aditya leg before on the second ball of the innings. But after that it was Khalsa all over. They had partnerships for every wicket with the highest being 66 for third wicket between opener Hiten and Mohit. Hiten was particularly brutal in his scintillating knock of 75 from just 53 balls with 9 fours and a solitary six. He virtually took the game away from SGGSCC by maintaining a run rate of more than 6 throughout the innings. Vikas and Manpreet completed the formalities with a partnership of 52 in just above 6 overs. Vasu Goel picked 2 wickets while Tushar and Akshit shared a wicket each.
Overall it was a good game of cricket with both teams playing in harmony. SGGSCC skipper TusharKhattar could not get a deserved farewell win but he will always be remembered as a great captain and motivator for his team. His teammates giving him a guard of honor was the least they could have done for him on his last match.
Watch out for the Grand Finale of the tournament between Shradhanand&Aryabhatta on 13th April at SGTB Khalsa College Ground. Exclusive coverage only on CricketGraph!
Report By: Sumanyu Jain,
Regional Manager & Editor
www.CricketGraph.com