All-rounder Ayush takes IES VN Sule Guruji to final

IES VN Sule Guruji’s Ayush Mhatre at the MCA-BKC ground. Pic/Sameer Markande

IES VN Sule Guruji, Dadar, snapped the winning streak of defending champions Al-Barkaat English Medium School, Kurla, beating them by a thumping 147 runs on Day Two of the two-day MSSA Harris Shield inter-school semi-final at the MCA-BKC ground on Monday.

Al-Barkaat had emerged champions in 2017-18, 2018-2019 and 2019-2020 (the last edition). The highlight of Sule Guruji's stunning win was the all-round contribution of Ayush Mhatre, 15. He first scored 68 in the team's total of 228 all out in 77.2 overs on Day One, and then took three wickets for 19 runs as Al-Barkaat were dismissed for a paltry 81 in 57.3 overs on the second day.

Al-Barkaat, who were the only team in the competition to play all three league matches and the semi-final at the same MCA-BKC ground, were expected to hold the edge, but besides left-handed No.4 batter Siraj Sanap (29 runs off 91 balls) and lower-order bat Saad Khan (22 runs off 81) no other batsmen did anything noteworthy against a Sule Guruji side that played their three league matches at three different venues (Parsee Gymkhana, Islam Gymkhana and National CC).

Meanwhile, in the second semi-final, IES New English, Bandra, rode on opener Varad Ranavare's century (101 off 123 balls) to beat Swami Vivekanand International School (SVIS), Borivli, by two wickets at the Sachin Tendulkar Gymkhana, Kandivli. Having dismissed SVIS for 253 on Day One, the Bandra school scored 258 for the loss of eight wickets off 70.3 overs to seal the win and their place in the final. The three-day final will be played at the Wankhede Stadium from March 3 to 5.