Tanmay, Sandeep lead the way as hosts capture Cup
Tanmay Agarwal and B. Sandeep came up with sterling knocks as high-flying Hyderabad Cricket Association XI brought down Air India to win the all-India Moin-Ud-Dowlah Gold Cup cricket tournament that concluded at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium here on Thursday.
In-form opener Tanmay (84) and middle order batsman B. Sandeep (71) played match-winning innings as the hosts chased down Air India’s formidable 267 with seven wickets and 2.5 overs to spare.
Kolla Sumanth played perfect second fiddle with an unbeaten 60 while A. T. Rayudu remained not out on 35 to finish the match in style and set off celebrations in the Hyderabad camp.
Faced with strong batting, Air India bowlers could not do much even as Gaurav Kumar and Sukhjinder Singh shared the three wickets to fall.
Batting first, Air India managed a strong total riding on half-centuries from Naman Ojha and Manvinder Bisla, who made 62 and 56 respectively. Hiten Dalal (35), Lalit Yadav (38) and Subhodh Bhati (29) chipped in useful scores. For Hyderabad, fast bowlers C. V. Milind and Mohammed Siraj scalped two wickets apiece while left-arm spinner Syed Mehdi Hasan snapped one wicket while conceding 32 runs.
Justice L. Narasimha Reddy, Ombudsman of the HCA, presented the Cup and awarded the cash prize of `5 lakh to the winners, `3 lakh to runners-up and `1 lakh each for the semifinalists.
No individual awards were presented for the tournament.
Speaking at the presentation ceremony, HCA president G. Vivekanand lauded the professional conduct of the tournament and promised a bigger event next year.