Vanderlande face TR Engineering in Junior Division Knockout final
MUSCAT: Rahul Chadha’s fine allround effort lifted Vanderlande to an exciting 7-run victory against Gitac in the first semifinal of the Junior Division Knockout competition, setting up a title clash with TR Engineering who trounced Danmark in the day’s second semifinal at Muscat Municipality ground 3.
Vanderlande posted a fighting 148 for 6 on the board in 20 overs thanks to major contributions by Barathwaj Vinayagam (42), Rahul Chadha (39) and Mohammed Sultan (39). Amir Nabil and Awais Munir picked up two wickets each.
Bowling with a lot of energy, Vanderlande restricted Gitac to 141 for 8 despite a brilliant 63 by opener Arif Hussain, whose wicket held the key to victory for Vanderlande. Rahul Chadha and Wasif Khan bowled well, taking two wickets each. Brief scores (Junior Division Knockout semifinals): Vanderlande 148 for 6 in 20 overs (Barathwaj Vinayagam 42 – 4x4, Mohammed Sultan 39 – 4x4, Rahul Chadha 39 – 8x4. Amir Nabil 2-26, Awais Munir 2-37) bt Gitac 141 for 8 in 20 overs (Arif Hussain 63 – 7x4, Ali Bilal 20. Rahul Chadha 2-16, Wasif Khan 2-24) SALMAN, JAVED SHINE Superb all-round performances by Salman Khan and Javed Shaikh powered TR Engineering to a comfortable win over Danmark, ensuring its passage to the final.
TR Engineering piled up 197 for 8 in 20 overs, Javed Shaikh (69) and Salman Khan (54) leading the way with solid knocks.
Danmark failed to rise to the occasion, folding up for a paltry 130 in the 18th over. Only Mohammed Muzammil batted with some authority, scoring a fluent 50 off 34 balls. Salman was the pick of the bowlers, taking 5 for 25 while Shareef al Balushi and Javed Shaikh claimed two wickets each. Brief scores (Junior Division Knockout semifinals): TR Engineering 197 for 8 in 20 overs (Javed Shaikh 69 – 10x4, 1x6, Salman Khan 54 – 4x4, 2x6, Sanket Bezde 24 – 3x4. Syed Mohammed Gul 2-30, Harshith Kumar 2-46) thrashed Danmark 130 all out in 17.2 overs (Muzammil Mohammed 50 – 7x4, Javed Mohammed 23 – 1x4. Salman Khan 5-25, Shareef Al Balushi 2-17, Javed Shaikh 2-42) by 67 runs.