Cricket-Seychelles U17 clinch fantastic victory over Indian navy |10 June 2011

Batting first Luckstars openers Rajeewa and Pragith got off to a fluent start. Pragith scored 10 runs and Rajeewa was the top scorer of the day with 46 runs, 8 fours and a six.

Youngstars were back in the game by picking up 4 quick wickets in successive overs. Luckstars lower order batsman also fought back with Nilan scoring 17 runs (3 fours) and Nadeesha 21 runs with 2 sixes and a four. The biggest blow for Luckstars came when skipper Hirani dismissed captain Aruna for 0 as their hopes for a big score faded away with the fall of Aruna’s wicket.
 
As a result of a disciplined bowling performance by Youngstars,  Luckstars were bowled out for 126 runs in 20 overs. For Youngstars, Dharmesh picked up 2 for 12, Ajit claimed 2 scalps for 19 runs and Ricky got 1 for 11. Arka also picked up 3 wickets but conceded 53 runs.

Youngstars were off to a flying start in their run chase with openers Nayan and Milind adding 30 runs in 3 overs before Nayan fell for 13 in the 4th over after hitting 3 fours. Arka fell for 0 in the comeback game but the main blow went to Youngstars with the dismissal of the skipper Dharmesh for 10 runs.

The run chase was dented further with the fall of Raja’s and Ritesh’s wickets in quick successions. Milind anchored one end superbly and fought well , making 19 runs and was well supported by Ajit, who made 18 runs with 2 massive sixes and 1 four in 3 consecutive deliveries. When these two batsmen were dismissed, Youngstars were under pressure with 26 runs required with 2 wickets remaining with Ricky and Jaydip at the crease.

Eventually, those two kept a cool head and applied themselves superbly well, steering Youngstars home by 2 wickets under pressure.

As a result, Youngstars won their first game with a 2-wicket victory.
For Luckstars, Dias picked up 2 for 18 and Rajeewa claimed 2 scalps for 15 runs, while Bhudesh got 3 wickets for 23 runs.

Aritra Das