By Jigmet Dadul
LEH: Kashmir Cricket Club (KCC) won the 18th Nawang Dorjay Stobdan Memorial Cricket tournament Leh 2015 by defeating Servo Taru Enterprises by 13 runs in the final played at NDS Memorial Cricket Ground, here on Sunday.
KCC became the first team in 18 years to win the trophy for third consecutive years.
Earlier, batting first after winning the toss, KCC, with the stupendous performance of Manzoor Pandu, was able to put 161/7 on the board in 20 overs. Manzoor Pandu scored a blistering knock of 77 runs of just 34 balls with the help of 10 sixes.
After losing the first wicket early, there was a need of good partnership to build the innings. But Manzoor left no stone unturned to do his job for the team. He kept hitting the balls to cross the boundary both in air as well as through ground. But unfortunately he was nun out after scoring 77.
The target seems to be crossing the 200 mark when Manzoor was batting but Servo Club could manage to restrict KCC at 161 in their second half of the innings. It was indeed a great effort from Tsering who took five wickets in his four over spell (5/21) with a hat trick. But his hat trick and five wicket haul went in vain.
With a huge target to chase with a required run rate of more than 8 runs per over, the Servo team came up to bat in the second innings. They kept losing wickets at regular intervals while trying to pace the scoring rate. They could only score 148 runs in the 20 overs.
Tip Top Sports and Culture Welfare Society had been organising this tournament since last 18 years in the memory of Nawang, Dorjay and Stobdan who sacrificed their life in 1989 during the agitation for struggling UT status for Ladakh.
With the highest score of 318 runs in the tournament Manzoor Pandu of KCC became the Orange cap winner while the highest wicket taker in the tournament Tsering of Servo Club with 18 wickets became the purple cap winner.
A winner trophy along with Rs 30,000 cash prize was awarded to KCC while runner up trophy with Rs 20,000 cash prize was awarded to Servo Club.
Chief Executive Councillor LAHDC Leh Rigzin Spalbar, Executive Councillor for Tourism Shafi Lassu, Deputy Commissioner Leh Saugat Biswas, SSP Dr. Sunil Gupta, Commanding Officer Ladakh Scout Regimental Centre Col S.S Patel, LBA president Tsewang Thinlay and president Anjuman Moin Ul Islam Saif-Ud-Din Sheikh were the dignitaries present on the occasion.
