Panaji: Desserts N’More Avengers moved to the top of the table with another commanding display, while Prescon Panthers tasted their second consecutive victory in the 3rd Panjim Gymkhana Members League T20 tournament at Panjim Gymkhana ground on Sunday.
Desserts N’More Avengers, who beat Priority Titans by 39 runs, occupy the top position in the table with 3 wins and a loss from 4 matches.
In the other match, Prescon Panthers got the better of RC Goa by 2 wickets in a thrilling finish and moved up to the third position in the table. They have played one game less than Desserts N’More.
Put into bat, Desserts N’More Avengers posted a challenging total of 156/8. The second-wicket partnership of 68 runs between Ojas Mehta (40) and captain Sameer Chodankar (34), who is now the proud owner of the Orange Cap, provided a solid foundation to the Avengers to build on.
However, Priority Titans bowlers Mrunmay Das (2/21) and Pranav Dhuri (2/18) managed to take vital wickets to put the brakes on the rivals’ scoring rate. Rajaram Kundaikar (27 runs off 18 balls) and Saif Ali Karajgi (25 off 19 balls) were instrumental in providing the impetus with powerful hits towards the latter stages of their inning.
In reply, Priority Titans – who had lost both their earlier matches in the league, looked to be heading in the right direction with openers Om Fadte (17) and Akshay Badami (17) putting on 36 runs in 3.3 overs. After a mini-collapse, the fourth-wicket stand of 43 runs between Vedant Naik (19) and Pranav Dhuri (17) kept the Titans in the hunt. However from a competitive stage of 83/4 in 11.1 overs, Priority Titans lost their way to be bowled out for 117 in 19 overs. Desserts N’More Avengers came up with a superb effort in the field with the commitment of the fielders complementing the bowlers and thereby the team clawed their way back into the contest to clinch their third victory in four matches. Saif Ali Karajgi once again dished out an all-round show, picking 3 wickets, and was named Man of the match. Edwin Menezes was the chief guest for the presentation ceremony.
Electing to bat first, RC Goa captain Harshad Gadekar scored a fluent 39 runs of 19 balls. His entertaining knock comprised three sixers and two boundaries. Devidas Kholkar played a steady knock with 35 runs coming off his bat. Swayam Naik contributed 23 runs. Overall the RC Goa batting performance was much better than in their previous outing as they posted 160/7 on the board.
However with a stunning combination of power-hitters that Prescon Panthers have in their lineup, the former champions backed themselves to finish the job. It was clear that the way to glory was a counter-attack and Prajyot Rivonker, who was at the crease when the Panthers were reduced to 3/2 in the second over, launched an all out assault hitting four sixers and a boundary in his 20-ball 40 runs. The supporting act was equally good with Neel Netravalkar keeping a calm head in a knock of 36 runs off 31 balls (3×4, 1×6) as he held the inning together. Vivek Karapurkar (20) ensured that the chase didn’t lose the momentum. In the end, Siddharth Ghanekar (17 not out), gaining reputation as a finisher, and Amey Dongrekar (16 not out) guided the Panthers home 163/8 in 19.5 overs with an unfinished 32-run stand for the ninth wicket. Prajyot Rivonker was named the Man of the match. Satish Shirodkar was the chief guest for the presentation ceremony.
