DAV Chandigarh win

India-Pakistan final. That's the ultimate finish for any cricket tournament across all levels and formats. And when an upstart like the Red Bull Campus Cricket gets the dream final, that's the best they could have hoped and prayed for, reports Subhash Rajta.

India-Pakistan final. That's the ultimate finish for any cricket tournament across all levels and formats. And when an upstart like the Red Bull Campus Cricket gets the dream final, that's the best they could have hoped and prayed for.

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The final, unlike other contests between the arch rivals, was though played out in front of empty stands, it did have some shades of the well documented rivalry as DAV College Chandigarh beat Karachi University by 49 runs to emerge champions.

The final got interesting as soon as it started with India losing three wickets for just two runs on the board. DAV couldn't have had a worse start, yet they ended up posting 170 run total that eventually turned out to be a winning total. Much of the credit for this stunning recovery goes to DAV captain Kunal Mahajan who hammered sizzling 73, studded with seven sixes, in just 36 balls. Gurinder Singh, the vice captain of the side, chipped in with valuable 39 runs.

The bowlers came up with a more consistent performance to keep Pakistan under pressure right from the start. The DAV attack, spearheaded by left arm spinner Gurinder Singh who picked up for wickets conceding just 20 runs, struck regularly and eventually cut short Pakistan's chase at 121. Jaskaran Singh, the aggressive wicketkeeper batsman, and Gurinder Singh, with his consistent allround performance, have been the star performers for DAV Chandigarh in this competition. Gurinder was adjudged man of the series for his consistently good showing through the tournament.

The writer’s trip was sponsored by red bull