Harris Shield: Sayyed's century takes St Anne's to victory

St Anne's High School, Bandra beat Balmohan Vidyamandir (English), Dadar by five wickets in a Group 'B' encounter of the Mumbai Schools Sports Association (MSSA)-Harris Shield U-16 inter-school tourney

St Anne's High School, Bandra beat Balmohan Vidyamandir (English), Dadar by five wickets in a Group 'B' encounter of the Mumbai Schools Sports Association (MSSA)-Harris Shield U-16 inter-school cricket tournament at the Oval Maidan, Churchgate yesterday.


Sayyed Mohammed of St Anne's High School cuts a ball against against Balmohan Vidyamandir in a Harris Shield match at Oval Maidan yesterday. Pic/Suresh KK 

Balmohan Vidyamandir scored 218-6 in the allotted 45 overs, thanks to Krish Mankar's quickfire 79-ball 101. Chasing the target, St Anne's were in trouble at 20-2 after nine overs but an unbeaten 134 from Sayyed Mohammed helped the Bandra outfit achieve the target in just 34.2 overs.

Sayyed's 102-ball knock was laced with 18 fours and three sixes. He shared a 160-run partnership for the third wicket with Syngal Hari (28 off 41 balls).

Sayyed and Hari also picked two wickets each for St Anne's while Karan Risbood, with 4-47, was the pick of the bowlers for Balmohan Vidyamandir.

"It was always difficult achieving the target after losing two quick wickets. I told Syngal to stay on the wicket for as long as possible and that runs will come. Once we scored 100-plus in 20 overs, I was confident that we could easily chase the target," Sayyed said.

Coach Amit Sharma lavished praise on Sayyed and said he sees the 15-year-old breaking into the Mumbai U-19 team in the next two years. "Sayyed is a performer. I have full belief that he will make the big stage soon," he said.

Sharma added that Bollywood actor Aamir Khan, an ex-student of the school, was a big motivation for the players. "Aamir bears the cost of the kits every year. He also gives gifts to these kids, which is a big motivation for them. I hope he comes and cheers for them on the ground someday," Sharma said.

Meanwhile, Balmohan's centurion Krish could not hide his disappointment. "Obviously, I am disappointed but it happens. It's a game and one team has to lose. Today, sadly we were on the losing side," said the 14-year-old.

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