The summit clash of the men’s edition of the Red Bull Campus Cricket National Finals 2023 witnessed a clash between defending champions Alfalah University (Delhi) and AJC Bose College (Kolkata). The 12th edition of the tournament concluded with Delhi successfully defending their title and winning the championship for the second consecutive time, this time at the Abhimanyu Cricket Academy in Dehradun.
Delhi won the toss and elected to bat first. Kolkata got an early breakthrough as Nitin Verma struck in the very first over to send the opening batter Govind Rathore packing. Delhi were left reeling at 29/2 in 2.5 overs as Nitin picked up his second, dismissing Kunal Singh.
Skipper Avneesh Sudha then came to the rescue as he notched up a magnificent half-century, thereby setting the momentum for the middle-order batters. Batting at No. 5, Rishabh joined Avneesh as the duo put up a 68-run stand for the fourth wicket, with the former racking up 37 runs off 28 deliveries.
Avneesh’s 56-ball 73, studded with five fours and three sixes, followed by Sachin Chaudhary’s cameo of a 14-ball 21 towards the end helped Delhi post a fighting total of 163/7 in their allotted 20 overs. For Kolkata, Nitin Verma was the standout bowler as he picked up a four-wicket haul, thereby registering figures of 4/44 in four overs.
Delhi bowlers take Kolkata batters down in title defence
Kolkata’s start to the chase was horrific, as they lost three wickets in the first six overs courtesy of Anshul Kamboj’s magnificent spell with the new ball. Kolkata skipper Md. Azharuddin top scored for his side, playing a 30-ball 29-run knock. Only two other batters managed to score 10 or more runs as Kolkata’s batting unit fell like a pack of cards and they were bowled out scoring mere 81 runs.
Akashdeep Bhakhar was the pick of the bowlers for Delhi as he registered 3/18 in his four-over spell. Anshul and Lakshya S. finished with two wickets each, while Aniket Singh and skipper Avneesh scalped one each. Combined efforts from Delhi bowlers and an all-round effort by skipper Avneesh Sudha helped the team win the game by 82 runs and lift the trophy for the second consecutive time.
Awards:
Player of the Match- Avneesh Sudha, Alfalah University Delhi (73 off 56; 1/9 in 2 overs)
Best Bowler- Akashdeep Bhakhar, Alfalah University Delhi (3/18 in 4 overs)
Best Batter- Mohit Roy, AJC Bose College
Player of the Tournament- Avneesh Sudha, Alfalah University Delhi