All-rounder Syed Aziz stars as FT take cricket gold

FEDERAL Territories defeated Perak by 29 runs in the final to clinc ch the gold medal in the Malaysia GamesG (Sukma) cricket competition n at the Ipoh Padang yesterday.

All-rounder Syed Aziz Syed Mubarak, who honed his game e while studying in Chennai, India, orchestrated the city boys’ win by knocking 47 runs and also grabbing three wickets.

Electing to bat first, FT secured 126 runs for the loss of seven wickets while the hosts gave a strong challenge but fizzled out at 97-9 in 20 overs, with Muhd Amir Azim Abdul Shukor scoring 33 runs for Perak.

Pavandeep Singh was also in top form for FT by taking three wickets.

This was the fourth time FT won the cricket gold medal in the Sukma. They emerged champions in 1986 (Kuala Lumpur), 1992 (Johor) and 2000 (Penang).

FT skipper Virandeep Singh, who is the younger brother of Pavandeep, said they were confident of winning the title as they had a strong line-up of players in batting, bowling and fielding.

The 19-year-old Virandeep, Pavandeep and Syed Aziz are members of the national team who finished fifth in the recent ACC Asia Cup in Kuala Lumpur.

“I salute my teammates for playing to their true form in the final. We did well to score 126 runs and bowled exceptionally well to stop Perak’s chase of runs.

“We dedicate this gold medal to the late Balakrishnan Nair, a former FT team manager, who passed away last year. He was instrumental in building this team over the years.

“Cricket is the second most watched sports in the world and I hope the game will be included in the next Sukma Games hosted by Johor in 2020,” said Pavandeep.

Perak team manager S. Jegatheesan said that despite having a young team, the players did well to reach the final.

“My players gave their best in the final and I’m proud of their achievement,” he said.

Meanwhile, Selangor bagged the bronze by defeating Kelantan by four wickets.