Harris Shield: Bowlers thrive in wet conditions

VK Krishna Menon Academy's spinner Kush Yadav at Cross Maidan. Pics/ Suresh Karkera

Bowlers dominated Day One of the rain-hit U-16 Harris Shield Super League matches at various venues on Thursday. All four matches were delayed due to wet conditions caused by early morning rain in the city.

Riding on some excellent bowling performances, Don Bosco (Matunga) bundled out former champions Anjuman I-Islam Allana English (CST) for a mere 62 in 20 overs at Islam Gymkhana.

Left-arm spinner Chris D'Britto (3-17) and pacer Harsh Mendon (3-28) were the wreckers-in-chief for the Matunga school, while speedster Sahil Jadhav and off-spinner Aayush Sawant claimed two wickets each.

In reply, Don Bosco openers Sudesh Pednekar (84') and Aaryaraj Nikam (28') frustrated the opposition bowlers as the Matunga school ended the day at 116-0.

'"We were confident of our strong bowling unit, but never imagined bowling them out for such a low score. This performance will surely boost our confidence for the upcoming matches,'" Chris, a Class X student, told mid-day.

Don Bosco bowlers Harsh Mendon (left) and Chris D'Britto

Don Bosco coach Rohan Nagvekar was delighted with his team's performance. '"Anjuman I-Islam are a very strong side but my boys showed a exemplary courage. Before the game, I asked them to just relax and not take any pressure. We will try to restrict them early tomorrow and aim for an outright win,'" he said.

Meanwhile, at Cross Maidan, spinner Kush Yadav (5-13) helped VK Krishna Menon Academy, Borivli bowl out Dr Antonio da Silva (Dadar) for just 58 runs. Mustafa Mohammed (3-9) was the other wicket-taker for the Borivli school. Dr VK Krishna Menon Academy were 115-2 at stumps.

In another match at Cross Maidan, Bombay Scottish's (Mahim) spinner Anuj Giri and pacer Aaryaman Bhan helped their team restrict Parle Tilak Vidyamandir English (Vile Parle) to 155. In reply, the Mahim school reached 26-1 at stumps. Only 17 overs of play were possible in the match between Al-Barkat MMI English (Kurla) and Children's Aid Society (Mankhurd). Batting first, the Kurla school ended the day at 77-2 at Oval Maidan.

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