MIC A and Railgaon Club Storm Into Finals of Syed Asad Qasim U-16 Cricket Tournament

Prayagraj : MIC A and Railgaon Club produced dominant performances on Monday to book their spots in the grand final of the Syed Asad Qasim Under-16 Cricket Tournament. Winning their respective semi-final encounters at the Majidia Islamia Inter College ground, both teams will now face off in the title clash on October 28.

In a nail-biting first semi-final, MIC A edged past Zaidi Indoor Club A by a razor-thin margin of two runs. Batting first, MIC A posted a total of 152 for 9 in their allotted overs, backed by key contributions from Altamash (38), Ansh Singh (37), and Pranjal Singh (13). For Zaidi Indoor Club A, Srijan Patel impressed with figures of 3/20, while Harshit Tiwari took 2/38. Chasing 153, Zaidi Indoor Club A fell just short, finishing at 150 for 9 in 20 overs despite Harshit Tiwari’s brilliant knock of 71 runs and Harshvardhan's 20. Ansh Yadav (4/40) and all-rounder Ansh Singh (2/22) led MIC A's tight bowling display. Ansh Singh was awarded the Man of the Match trophy by Gauhar Kazmi, Chief Patron of the organizing committee.

The second semi-final proved to be a one-sided affair as Railgaon Club outclassed Savitri Devi Club by 66 runs. Batting first, Railgaon Club put up a daunting total of 194 for 5, propelled by an unbeaten 60 from Shadaan Abbas Rizvi, alongside key runs from Saksham Verma (47), Mohammad Aqsam Ali (31), and Naitik Shukla (30).

In response, Savitri Devi Club's batting lineup crumbled for 128 in 19.2 overs. Vivek Yadav top-scored with 31, but Shlok Chaturvedi destroyed their middle order with an outstanding spell of 4/15, supported by Saksham Verma’s 2/18. Saksham Verma was named Man of the Match, presented by Shamsher Ali, former Allahabad University cricketer and ACA Senior Selection Committee member.

(Zainul Abdin)