VAP Trophy: Kousik, Harish shine with unbeaten tons

CHENNAI: Captain J Kousik led from the front with an unbeaten 152 (135 balls, 9 fours, 8 sixes) as Vijay CC defeated Nelson SC by four wickets in its opening VAP Trophy Group B match at the Guru Nanak College Ground here on Friday.

Chasing 301 for victory, the Vijay team got the job done with three overs to spare, thanks to Kousik’s belligerent hundred. Meanwhile, in the Group A match at the Murugappa Ground, S Harish Kumar smashed 113 not out off just 52 deliveries (1 four, 14 sixes) to help Sea Hawks CC get the better of UFCC (T Nagar) by 51 runs. Sea Hawks, which put 324 for seven on the board while batting first courtesy of Harish’s blitzkrieg, bowled UFCC out for 273.

Elsewhere, Under-19 boy KS Vinu Kumar (4/29) enjoyed a dream debut as his four-wicket haul was crucial in India Pistons CC’s 39-run win over MRC ‘A’.

BRIEF SCORES: Group A: At IIT-M Chemplast Ground: Grand Slam CC 229 in 48.3 overs (C Hari Nishaanth 50, Muhammed Adnan Khan 45, Nidhish S Rajagopal 59, R Sonu Yadav 4/50) lost to Jolly Rovers CC 230/4 in 43 overs (B Sai Sudharsan 52, A Varun Goud 41*, R Ram Arvindh 64*). Points: Grand Slam 0; Rovers 4.At SRMC (Turf) Ground: Swaraj CC 108 in 32.4 overs (N Sunil Krishna 3/10, B Aaditya 3/29) lost to Madras CC 109/4 in 22.4 overs (Tushar Raheja 41*, P Hemcharan 41). Points: MCC 4; Swaraj 0. At Murugappa Ground: Sea Hawks CC 324/7 in 50 overs (U Mukilesh 62, AVR Rathnam 42, S Harish Kumar 113*, M Abhinav 3/75) bt UFCC (T Nagar) 273 in 47.1 overs (K Vishal Vaidhya 81, S Abishiek 60, G Kishoor 3/55). Points: Sea Hawks 4; UFCC 0.Group B: At Guru Nanak College Ground: Nelson SC 300/6 in 50 overs (S Karthik 67, Ashwin Venkataraman 84, S Sunil Rithik 44) lost to Vijay CC 301/4 in 47 overs (J Kousik 152*). Points: Vijay 4; Nelson 0.At SSN College Ground: India Pistons CC 218 in 48.3 overs (GK Shyam 67) bt MRC ‘A’ 179 in 45 overs (M Affan Khader 63, KS Vinu Kumar 4/29, M Monish Raj 3/36). Points: Pistons 4; MRC 0.At Pachaiyappa’s College Ground: Alwarpet CC 148 in 33.1 overs (NS Harish 48, B Emmanuel Cherian 3/15, Akshay V Srinivasan 3/32, S Ajith Ram 3/25) lost to Globe Trotters SC 149/1 in 26 overs (D Santhosh Kumar 75*, G Ajitesh 59). Points: Trotters 4; Alwarpet 0