Larsen & Toubro hold nerves to snatch tense 1-run victory
by Suman Gupta
Mumbai: Larsen & Toubro SC held their nerves in the tense closing stages to snatch a thrilling one-run victory against Abhyudaya Bank SC in a Plate Category Group-C match of the 10th Insurance Shield T20 Inter-Office Cricket Tournament, organised by Oriental Insurance under the aegis of MCA (Mumbai Cricket Association) and played at the Youths Own Union ground, Cross Maidan.
Sent in to bat first, Larsen & Toubro managed to score 144 runs for 7 wickets in 20 overs. Opener Kalpesh Yeralkar played a responsible innings and scored 43 runs, while all-rounder Jatin Sethi contributed 34 runs to prop the total. Abhyudaya bowlers Mangesh Shinde (2 for 18), Pradip Kanchan (2 for 26), and Sushil Rane (2 for 34) shared the wickets.
In reply, Abhyudaya Bank batted positively and with Pradip Kanchan batting fluently they looked set to reach the winning target. But after Kanchan’s dismissal for a solid 63 runs, Abhyudaya Bank lost the fight and the match by a very close margin.
In a Group-A match, BEST Arts & SC defeated Canara Bank SC by a huge 82-run margin. Batting first BEST scored 145 for 5 wickets in 20 overs with Devraj Gaikwad 36 runs, Ketan Dhatavkar 28 runs, and Mandar Patil 26 runs contributing to the total. BEST bowlers were a disciplined lot and bowled out Canara Bank for 63 runs in 17.5 overs. Kiran Khanvilkar 4 for 8 runs was the leading wiket-taker while Pravin Pednekar 2 for 9, and Nilesh Karmale 2 for 14 played the supporting roles.
In an Elite Category encounter, hosts Oriental Insurance SC suffered a 77-run defeat at the hands of New India Assurance at the National CC ground, Cross Maidan.
New India Assurance SC 219 for 5 wickets in 20 overs. The leading batsmen who scored the runs was Vinay Kunwar 72 runs (31-balls), Shubham Ghatge 48 runs (46-balls), and Sumit Mishra 46 runs (23-balls), while Manas Tiwari got 2 wickets for /37 runs. Later Oriental Insurance were restricted to 142 runs for 7 wickets in 20 overs. Aakash Sharma was the lone batter to defy the New India bowlers and top-scored with 64 runs (38-balls), and Shiddesh Jadhav made 24 runs.
Brief scores – Plate Category: Mazagon Docks SC 163 for 6 wickets, 20 overs (Mayur Gharat 75 not out, S. Pawaskar 53; Ruchit Jani 3/21) beat Air India 141 for 4 wickets, 20 overs (Ruchit Jani 33, Abhijit Agre 27; S. Pawaskar 2/22). Result: Mazagon Docks won by 22 runs.
Larsen & Toubro SC 144 for 7 wickets, 20 overs (Kalpesh Yeralkar 43, Jatin Sethi 34; Mangesh Shinde 2/18, Pradip Kanchan 2/26, Sushil Rane 2/34) beat Abhyudaya Bank SC 143 for 6 wickets, 20 overs (Pradip Kanchan 63; Jatin Sethi 2/31). Result: Larsen & Toubro won by 1 run.
BEST Arts & SC 145 for 5 wickets, 20 overs (Devraj Gaikwad 36, Ketan Dhatavkar 28, Mandar Patil 26) beat Canara Bank SC 63 all out, 17.5 overs (Kiran Khanvilkar 4/8, Pravin Pednekar 2/9, Nilesh Karmale 2/14). Result: BEST won by 82 runs.
Elite Category: New India Assurance SC 219 for 5 wickets, 20 overs (Vinay Kunwar 72 (31-balls), Shubham Ghatge 48, Sumit Mishra 46; Manas Tiwari 2/37) beat Oriental Insurance SC 142 for 7 wickets, 20 overs (Aakash Sharma 64, Shiddesh Jadhav 24). Result: New India Assurance won by 77 runs.
