Selaqui Strikers became the first champions of the Dehradun T20 League after defeating Mussoorie Thunders by 39 runs in a rain-shortened final at Abhimanyu Cricket Academy in Dehradun. The match was reduced to 16 overs per side, with Selaqui batting first in the match.
They had a relatively slow start, with openers Abhyuday Bhatnagar and Piyush Joshi failing to make meaningful contributions. Sanskar Rawat managed to keep the scoreboard ticking, just like Piyush, but the strike rate was a major concern. However, once keeper-batter Vijay Sharma took over the business, Selaqui dominated the proceedings in the middle.
He changed the complexion of the game, scoring an unbeaten century. He ended up scoring 103* runs off 31 balls, which included five boundaries and 12 striking sixes. Based on his phenomenal knock, Selaqui posted 192 runs on the board in the first innings.
Mussoorie fail to chase
Mussoorie had a terrible start to the chase. Opener Allen Chetan scored a duck, while his partner Poorvansh Dhruv made only seven. They lost two wickets for only nine runs, leaving the team in serious trouble while pursuing 193. Batting at three, Neeraj Rathour made only eight as well, putting the team under further pressure.
Since then, Dikshu and Ayush Chauhan managed to hold the fortress for a while as they scored 18 and 21 runs, respectively. Once captain Akhil Singh Rawat arrived at the crease, things changed for a bit as he played a perfect cameo of 32 runs off 15 balls. However, he couldn’t keep up with the momentum, with Siddharth Gupta picking up the prized wicket.
Later in the innings, Anmol Shah and Jonty Rawat played important knocks. They stitched a partnership of 44 runs, but it was far from enough. Anmol made 28 runs off 12 balls at a strike rate of 233.33, while Jonty played a stunning cameo of 29 runs off only seven balls. He batted at a strike rate of 414.29, which is phenomenal, to say the least, especially for someone who bats at nine.
Selaqui eventually lifted the title, winning by 41 runs as per the DLS method. Meanwhile, Sharma’s final innings earned him the Player of the Match award, while several other players were recognised for their performances across the inaugural competition.
Piyush Joshi received the Best Batter award after amassing 193 runs in five innings. Priyank Singh was named Best Bowler with 13 wickets in six innings and also received the Player of the Tournament honour for his all-round contribution.
Mussoorie’s Anshul Kumar was named Emerging Player of the Tournament after taking eight wickets in three innings.
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