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Star studded Punjab Reds, Blues register easy wins
Punjab Reds beat Jalandhar XI by 5 wickets in its first league match
Star-studded teams of Punjab Reds and Punjab Blues emerged victorious after defeating their opponents in their first league matches in the ongoing Trident Cup T-20 cricket tournament on the grounds of Hara Cricket Club and GRD Academy here on Tuesday.
In the first match, Punjab Reds beat Jalandhar XI by 5 wickets at Hara Cricket Club. Jalandhar XI won the toss and chose to bat first. A third-wicket partnership of 57 runs between opener Azam Nazar (39 runs in 34 balls, 6 fours) and Abhishek Gupta (22 runs in 26 balls) helped Jalandhar XI score 111 for 8 in 20 overs.
For Punjab Reds, India player Sandeep Sharma claimed two wickets for 27 runs. Gurkeerat Mann got one wicket for 19 runs, and Siddharth Kaul got 2 for 17 runs.
Punjab Reds started well with IPL players Abhishek Sharma ( 20 runs in 19 balls), and Prabhsimran Singh (18 runs in 20 balls,) scored 39 runs in partnership. India player and Punjab captain Mandeep Singh with 24 runs off 23 balls, Gurkeerat Mann, 22 runs off 14 balls, and Anmolpreet Singh, who remained not out with 16 runs, helped the team achieve the target in 19 overs.
Gurkeerat Mann of Punjab Reds was declared man of the match.
In the second match played at GRD Academy ground, Punjab Blues beat Mohali Legends by 39 runs. Punjab Blues won the toss and decided to bat first. An opening partnership of 98 runs between Sanvir Singh, who remained not out with 98 runs off 60 balls, and Abhijeet Garg, who scored 52 runs off 35 balls, proved to be instrumental in the victory of Punjab Blues. The team ended the innings with 175 runs for 5 wickets in 20 overs. Mohali Legends’ Maninder Singh claimed two wickets for 25 runs, and Saurabh Dhaliwal got two wickets for 27 runs.
In response, Mohali Legends could manage only 136 runs for 9 wickets in 20 overs, losing the game by 39 runs. For Mohali, Sachin Sohal scored 39 runs off 35 balls, and Jasinder Singh, 17 runs off 12 balls. Punjab Blues’ Karan Kaila sent four players to the pavilion for 13 runs, Birender Sran got 1 wicket, and Rahul got 2 wickets.
Sanvir Singh of Punjab Blues was declared the man of the match.
Punjab Blues will face Amandeep Club, Amritsar while Punjab Reds will take on Patiala Colts
