Excelsior Sports Correspondent
JAMMU, Dec 11: Hosts Jammu and Kashmir began their campaign in a style, drubbing Andhra Pradesh by a huge margin of 87 runs in the inaugural match of the 58th National School Games Under-19 boys and girls Tennis Ball Cricket Tournament, which was declared open by Deputy Chief Minister, Tara Chand in an impressive, well attended and colourful opening ceremony at MA Stadium, here today.
Speaking on the occasion, Tara Chand lavished praise on the organizers for holding this sports extravaganza, which is being participated by 13 States in boys section and 12 States in the girls section.
Earlier, in the inaugural match at MA Stadium, J&K boys thrashed Andhra Pradesh by a big margin of 87 runs in a one-sided affair. Batting first, J&K rode on superb knocks by Burhan and Hanan and scored a good total of 110 runs in the stipulated 12 overs. Burhan made power-packed 49 runs, while Hanan contributed brisk 35 runs to the total. Amir chipped in quick-fire 17 runs in just 6 balls. In reply, AP were bundled out for a paltry total of 23 runs in just 7.3 overs. None of the AP players managed to cross the double figure mark. For J&K, Sultan Sikander and Mubasher bagged 2 wickets each, while Aditya and Omar claimed one wicket each.
At Jammu University, CBSE boys trounced UP by 5 wickets in an easy contest. UP scored 68 runs for the loss of 5 wickets in stipulated 12 overs, Vivek Yadav being the main scorer with 18 runs. CBSE scored the required runs in 11.3 overs, losing 5 wickets in the process, thus won the match by 5 wickets.
At Parade Ground-A, Gujarat defeated Rajasthan in an easy contest. Rajasthan scored 53 for all, while Gujarat chased the target in 7.3 overs, while at Parade Ground-B, Jharkhand outplayed Tamil Nadu by 16 runs. Jharkhand scored 75/6 in the stipulated overs, while Tamil Nadu managed to score 59 runs only to lose the match by 16 runs.
Meanwhile, in girls section, Chhattisgarh defeated AP by a narrow margin of 9 runs at Green Field Ground, Gandhi Nagar. Chhattisgarh scored 57 runs, while AP in reply bundled out for 48 runs, thus lost the match by 9 runs.
In another match at Green Field, UP girls trounced CBSE in a one-sided affair. CBSE scored 50 runs, while UP chased the target without losing any wicket.
At Parade Ground-A, Tamil Nadu girls defeated Rajasthan by a narrow margin of 8 runs in a tough contest. Tamil Nadu scored 76 runs, while Rajasthan managed to score 66 runs to lose the match by 8 runs.