Four teams competed in the league stage of the men’s edition of the Red Bull Campus Cricket (RBCC) National Finals India 2023. The competition took place between RKM Vivekananda College (Chennai), AJC Bose College (Kolkata), DAVV University (Indore), and defending champions Alfalah University (Delhi). Delhi’s Alfalah University and Kolkata’s AJC Bose College will now take on each other on June 2, 2023, at the Abhimanyu Cricket Academy in Dehradun with an aim to clinch the championship.
Here’s a report of the league stage matches:
Match 1: Kolkata vs Chennai
The RBCC National Finals India 2023 kicked off with a game between Kolkata and Chennai. AJC Bose College won the toss and put RKM Vivekananda College to bat first. Chennai could manage to put up only 133/6 in their 20 overs quota as Badrinath A. top-scored with his 33-ball 37, followed by Ajay Chetan’s 36(34). In reply, Kolkata chased it down in 17.3 overs with seven wickets to spare and clinched an easy victory, thanks to Mohit Roy’s unbeaten 41-ball fifty. Notably, Md. Naseeb Alam picked up two wickets for Kolkata in the first innings and top performed with the ball, registering figures of 2/18.
Match 2: Delhi vs Indore
The tournament’s second game took place between defending champions Alfalah University, Delhi, and DAVV University, Indore. Delhi won the toss and elected to field first. DAVV’s first innings got off to a sluggish start as they lost two wickets and were reeling at 82/2 at the end of 15 overs. There was no result due to heavy rains at the venue and was abandoned eventually. As a result, both teams were awarded a point each.
Match 3: Delhi vs Chennai
Alfalah University and RKM Vivekananda College squared off in Match 3 of the tournament. After being put to bat first, Delhi scored 118/6 in the 15-overs-a-side game. Kuldeep D was the standout performer for Delhi as he notched up 57* off 39 deliveries including three fours and four sixes. In reply, Chennai closed their innings at 103/6 and were kicked out of the tournament, suffering their second loss. Kuldeep won the Player of the Match award as Delhi made it to the summit clash.
Match 4: Kolkata vs Indore
AJC Bose College and DAVV University locked horns in the fourth game of RBCC National Finals India 2023 where the latter decided to put up a score and defend it. Their decision at the toss eventually proved to be wrong as Indore managed to put up only 106/5 in 15 overs, and Kolkata chased down the total in 13.3 overs with six wickets to spare and topped the table to make it to the final.
Match 5: Kolkata vs Delhi
The eventual finalists of the tournament faced off in a dress rehearsal game, in the fifth and final match of the league stage as the sixth game between Indore and Chennai was called off upon the former’s exit. Alfalah University posted 137/6 in their designated 15 overs, and in reply restricted AJC Bose College to 72/8 in 11.5 overs to win the game by 65 runs. Avneesh Sudha was named the Player of the Match for his 27-ball 47 which included nine boundaries.