TEAM HERALD
MAPUSA: Dempo Cricket Club clinched their second consecutive Goa Professional League Twenty20 cricket title by defeating debutants Geno Sports Club by seven wickets in the finals of 5th edition at Goa Cricket Association ground, Porvorim, Saturday.
This was the first edition played under the new floodlights and lived up to the expectations with a jam-packed audience cheering for their respective teams.
The teams met only once in the tournament, where Dempo had the edge over their opponents in the first Super League match and the defending champions banked on this psychological advantage.
Geno Sports Club won the toss and elected to field first, a move that backfired as their batsmen could not keep the scoreboard ticking and managed a meager 117 runs for the loss of eight wickets.
Gauresh Gawas was the game changer for Dempo Cricket Club as he picked up four crucial wickets in his four overs, giving just 19 runs.
In reply, everyone expected Dempo Cricket Club to start attackingly and finish in style but instead, the Blues approached the chase cautiously with skipper Swapnil Asnodkar remaining 61 not out of 52 balls. They chased the target with 11 balls to spare with the fall of only three wickets.
Dempo Cricket Club received the winner’s trophy alongwith a cash prize of Rs 8 lakh while Geno had to be content with the runners-up trophy with Rs 5 lakh. The other two teams in the Super League mainly Chowgule Warriors and Salgaocar Cricket Club were awarded Rs 1 lakh each.
Swapnil was adjudged man-of-the-match and also man-of-the series for being the tournament’s highest scorer with 325 runs.
Chief guest and owner of Dempo Cricket Club Shrinivas Dempo gave away the prizes in the presence of guest of honour Dr Dilip Salgaonkar, owner of Geno Sports Club; MLA Subhash Phaldesai, Vinod Phadke, president of GCA; Dr Shekar Salker, vice-president; Chetan Desai, secretary and other dignitaries.
