Shivaji Park Gymkhana’s opening batsman Siddhant Singh’s stroke-filled 65-ball century knock 105 runs (15×4,2×6) went in vain as a determined Mumbai Police City Riders produced a solid fight and snatched a tense 3-run victory in the eight and concluding round match of the Mumbai Cricket Club (MCC) and Jwala Sports Foundation (JSF) organized MitsuiShoji T20 Cricket League (Season 9), played at the Police Gymkhana ground, Marine Drive on Tuesday.
‘Man of the Match’ award to Ajit Yadav of Bandra Heroes.
Opting to field first, the Shivaji Park bowlers were unable to contain the Mumbai Police batsmen who batted freely and went on to amass a massive total of 194 for 2 wickets from their 20 overs. Opener Aakarshit Gomel top-scored with a solid innings of 84 (56-balls, 4×4,7×6) while Sagar Mishra 50 runs (32-balls, 4×4,3×6) and Tanmay Mayekar 40 runs (24-balls, 4×4,3×6) helped swell the Mumbai Police total. Later, Shivaji Park Warriors started the chase in a positive fashion with Siddhant Singh leading the way with a solid knock. Jayesh Pokhre 39 runs (28-balls, 5×4,1×6) and Puneet Tripathi 21 runs kept Warriors hopes alive, but the Mumbai Police players stayed calm and did well to restrict the opponents to 191 for 5 from their 20 overs.
Former Mumbai Ranji Trophy player Santosh Shinde (right) presents the ‘Man of the Match’ award to Aakarshit Gomel of Mumbai Police City Riders.
In the last league match, Bandra Heroes defeated Thane Marathas by 8 runs. Batting first Bandra Heroes scored 191 for 8 wickets in 20 overs and then managed to restrict Thane Marathas to 183 for 6 wickets in 20 overs.
Shivaji Park Warriors who suffered their first defeat stayed at the top with 14 points while Mumbai Police who registered their fifth successive win finished in second position with 10 points followed by Ghatkopar Jets with 8 points. Thane Marathas and Bandra Heroes both tallied identical 4 points each, but the latter with a better run quotient claimed the fourth position, while Bandra Heroes finished in the fifth place. The top four teams advanced to the semi-finals.
Brief scores: Mumbai Police City Riders 194 for 2, 20 overs (Aakarshit Gomel 84 (56-balls, 4×4,7×6), Sagar Mishra 50 (32-balls, 4×4,3×6), Tanmay Mayekar 40 (24-balls, 4×4,3×6) beat Shivaji Park Warriors 191 for 5, 20 overs (Siddhant Singh 105 (65-balls, 15×4,2×6), Jayesh Pokhre 39 (28-balls, 5×4,1×6), Puneet Tripathi 21; Sujit Nayak 2 for 28). Result: Mumbai Police City Riders won by 3 runs.
Bandra Heroes 191 for 8, 20 overs (Ajit Yadhav 98, Ayaz Khan 22, Ankush Paswan 22; Veera Sigamani 2 for 28, Parikshit Valsangkar 2 for 35) beat Thane Marathas 183 for 6, 20 overs (Harshal Jadhav 87, Ronak Shinde 69*; Aman Maniar 3 for 22). Result: Bandra Heroes won by 8 runs.