Salman Stores crowned T20 champions
MUSCAT: Salman Stores clinched the A Division T20 crown after beating MDC Enhance Eagles by 2 wickets in a thrilling final at the Ministry of Sports grassy ground 1 on Friday.
Seen as one of the most exciting outfits in domestic circuit, Salman Stores also ended up as the runnerup in the 50-over league. Captain Tauseef Ahmed received the Winner’s Trophy from Anil Khimji, who was the chief guest at the awards ceremony, in the presence of Madhu Jesrani, Secretary Oman Cricket, and other OC Board members, OC officials and guests.
The final also brought to end an eventful domestic season 201718 that saw international teams visiting Oman for the first time for bilateral series.
Invited to bat first, Eagles posted a robust 166 for 7 in 20 overs thanks to useful knocks by Pranav Mehta (33 off 21), Ikhtiar Kazmi (27 off 17) and Guru Prasanna (25 off 24). Young Aqib Aslam claimed 3 for 26.
Salman Stores made a solid start to the run chase, scoring 111 for 2 in 12.4 overs but four quick wickets saw them slump to 136 for 6 in 16 overs. However, they crossed the hurdle in the final over when No 9 Muzammil Ilyas slammed a six to seal a well-deserved victory for his team.
Azeem Muhammed was declared man of the match for his vital knock of 47 off 28 that included 4 towering sixes. Jahanzeb Asghar Ali (33 off 33), Ghazanfar Iqbal (32 off 16) and Asim Kamal (30 off 15) were the other notable scorers.
Omkar Pramod Ozardek was the main wicket-taker for Enhance Eagles with 3 for 17. Faisal Mohammed and Flourry Mathunny George bagged two wickets each.
Pranav Mehta of Enhance Eagles ended up as the highest scorer in the tournament. His dismissal in the final was the first time he lost his wicket in the current T20 championship.