Team Herald
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PANJIM: Priority Titans cruised into the semi-finals of Rajdeep Builders Sarsangan Super Series Cricket 2024-25 defeating Ultracon Madgaon Royals by 4 wickets and 15 balls to spare at Arlem ground.
In the second match, Vimson Panjim Powerplay cruised past 108 Delite Titans by 5 wickets and 19 balls to spare.
Put into bat, the Ultracon Madgaon Royals openers put on a 66 run stand in 7 overs with the skipper Damodar Pai Patnekar making 35 and Vishwesh Kamat making 38. Kartik Hattangadi (11) and Megh Netravalkar 35 put on 39 runs in 30 balls for the 3rd wicket and with useful contributions from Nikit Naik Dalal (14 no) and Prasheel Kamat (19), Royals put up a formidable 169-5 in 20 overs.
Sudin Kamat with 2-27 was supported by Animesh Prabhugaonkar and Rauji Kakodkar who picked a wicket each.
In reply, Priority Titans were helped by Sudin Kamat’s (14), Adv Sahish Mahambrey’s 29 and Samar Dubhashi’s 22 as they reached 59-3 in 8th over. Granthik Buyao 35 tilted the scales in favour of the Priority Titans with an aggressive innings and took the game away in the company of the south paw Sunil Salgaonkar 28 no with Rauji Kakodkar completing the formalities making 16, helping Priority Titans reach the semi-finals with a game to spare. Siddesh Desai, Sandesh Kamat Bambolkar, Kartik Hattangadi, Megh Netravalkar, Nikit Naik Dalal and Shaunit Sawardekar picked a wicket each.
Madgaon Royals chances of making it to the semi-finals depend upon the outcomes of other matches.
In another match, electing to bat first, 108 Delite Titans put up a mammoth 173-5 in 20 overs, thanks to Abhijeet Bhandare’s 35, Nikhil Virginkar’s 38 and Avinash Kossambe’s 36. Vidheya Kossambe (15) and Amogh Agshikar (17) helped to boost the total. Anurag Borker with 2-21 was the pick of the bowlers and received support from Vardhan Prabhu Miskin and Pranav Kamat who picked a wicket each.
In reply, Vimson Panjim Powerplay were struck a double blow as they lost 2 wickets to be 10-2, both the openers being dismissed by skipper Ashay Ambe. However a 81 run partnership in 37 balls for the 3rd wicket between Vardhan Prabhu Miskin 38 and Pranav Kamat 34 changed the momentum. Rasik Pai Khot (24) and Mahendra Pai Kuchelkar 26 sealed the victory with a 38-run stand in only 20 balls, as they reached 176-5 in 16.5 overs. Ashay Ambe and Amogh Agshikar picked 2 wickets each, while Viraj Puranik took a wicket. Both the teams have no chance of making it to the knockouts.
The crucial matches which will decide the semi-final spots will be played on February 2, between the DNS/VMJ’s Rookies, who will take on the Mapusa Dream Crushers, while Commonwealth Fountainheads will face Desserts n More Avengers.