CHANDIGARH, June 25:Hosts Chandigarh started their campaign with a bang by routing goal with a 22-0 margin in the men’s opening match of the 30th Senior National Softball Championship which commenced at the Panjab University Campus here today.
Dewan (4 home runs), Ravinder Singh, Nimit, Rohit and Vijay (3 home runs each), Vishal, Harshit and Vijay ( 2 each) engineered Goa’s rout.
In another one-sided encounter, Andhra Pradesh carried too many guns against Haryana whom they handed out a 18-0 drubbing. Srinath and Ashih were their main scorers with three home run each. Karunakar, Narinder, Vinod, Deepash and Vinod Jr contributed two home runs each.
Jharkhand also proved too good for Tamil Nadu whom they routed by 15-5. Praveen Kanahaya, Ravi, Mahesh, Sashi Kant and Roshan (2 each) paved the way for Jharkhand’s triumph.
Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Chattisgarh women also made winning start in their respective groups. Punjab got the better of Puddicherry by 4-0 and Madhya Pradesh downed Himachal Pradesh by 12-2. Chattisgarh defeated Manipur by 16-4.
Earlier, Panjab University Director Sports Naval Kishore inaugurated the Senior Nationals in which players from 20 states and union territories have staked their claims for the top honours. This is the first Senior Nationals after Rana Gurmit Singh Sodhi was unanimously elected president of Softball Federation of India in which secretaries of 24 states attended the annual general body meeting held yesterday.
Chairman of the organizing committee SS Dhillon said participation of such a large number of states was a testimony that softball was becoming popular in India.
A cultural programme was also presented on the occasion.
Results:
Men: Chandigarh bt Goa 22-1; Madhya Pradesh bt Uttranchal 10-0; Chattisgarh bt Himachal Pradesh 8-6; Andhra Pradesh bt Haryana 18-0; Jharkhand bt Tamil Nadu 15-5.
Women: Maharashtra bt Uttar Pradesh 10-4; Punjab bt Puddicherry 4-0; Jammu and Kashmir bt Haryana 10-0, Madhya Pradesh bt Himachal Pradesh 12-2; Chattisgarh bt Manipur 16-4.