CHANDIGARH, JAN 11 :A fine unbeaten knock of 51 by Narinder Walia enabled Godrej CC defeat INSCOL Cricket Club by nine wickets in the first semi-final of the Vth Girish Nayyar Memorial League Cricket Tournament, being organised by the Chandigarh Sports Club at Government Model Senior Secondary School ground in Sector 32 here today.
Batting first, INSCOL XI scored 126 for 7 in stipulated 25 overs. Rajesh Kumar contributed a defiant 56 off 50 balls. They suffered their blow as they lost their first wicket in the fourth over and scorecard reading 19. Barring Rajesh Kumar and Mukesh, the other batsmen also displayed inept batting and returned to the pavilion without any significant contribution.
However, Rajesh Kumar kept the scoreboard alive and ticking. He hit eight fours in his innings. Mukesh provided a little stimulus at the end of the innings. He made 30 runs off just 15 balls. Mohan Lal and Narsh Dhingra shared the bowling honours as they picked up two wickets each.
In reply, Godrej CC got off to a flying start as the openers put up 41 runs in 8 overs. Narinder Walia was the star of the innings as he played some real nice shots in his innings of 51 runs off 35 balls and got his team to the target in just 15 overs. Manav Asopa also chipped in with 33 runs and hit the winning runs for the team.
Brief scores: INSCOL CC: 126 for 7 in 25 overs (Rajesh Kumar 56, Mukesh 25, Naresh Dhingra 2 for 21, Mohan Lal 2 for 14). Godrej CC: 129 for 1 in 15.4 overs (Naresh Dhingra 51, Manav Asopa 43).
In the second semi-final, Azzaro XI defeated Numero Uno XI by 20 runs.Batting first Azzaro XI were bowled out for 137. Harman was the top scorer with 36.. Sourav Talwar was the wrecker- in- chief as he picked up four wickets for 321 runs. He
In reply, Nunmero Uno batsmen had a lot of trouble in getting a hold of their wickets as they failed to make a coordination between themselves. Two batsmen were run out. Siddharth and Kapil Puri picked up three wickets each. Numero Uno XI were bowled out for 117 runs in 24.5 overs.
Brief scores: Azzaro XI: 137 all out in 25 overs (Harman 36, Sourav Talwar 4 for 32). Numero Uno XI: 117 all out in 24.5 overs (Karan Mahajan 36, Siddharth 3 for 29, Kapil Puri 3 for 22).