Tourney starts today, 145 schools in fray

MUMBAI:BUDDING players from 145 schools of the Maximum City will look to showcase their skills on the cricket field in the prestigious Harris Shield that gets underway here on Friday.

This year, the tournament will hold a special significance as its parent body, Mumbai School Sports Association (MSSA), is celebrating its 125th anniversary. A breeding ground for future stars of Mumbai cricket, Harris Shield, which is named after former England captain and governor of Bombay Lord Harris, was first staged in 1897.

Over the years, the interschool tournament has witnessed the emergence of several stars including Sachin Tendulkar and Vinod Kambli who first came into the limelight with a record 664run stand in 1988. Young sensation Prithvi Shaw also shot to fame via this tournament when he blasted 546 while playing for Rizvi Springfield against St Francis D’assisi in 2013.

“This year, the opening day of the tournament will witness multiple matches being played at Cross Maidan, Oval Maidan and Shivaji Park simultaneously. The tournament will feature 45-overa-side knockout matches till the quarter-finals. Quarter-finals and semi-finals will be a two-day affair while the final will be of three days,” MSSA cricket secretory Nadim Memon informed Hindustan Times on Thursday.

Al Barkaat are the defending champions, who defeated Swami Vivekanand International on the basis of first innings lead in December 2017.

“As it has been a case for the last two years, the tournament will see teams using 14 players instead of 11. The idea of playing inter-school cricket with 14 players in a side was the brainchild of cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar and has generated great response since then,” Memon further went on to add.