Cricket is not just a game, but is considered as a religion in our country. And students of SCIT make no exception when it comes to the favorite sport of the country. The Independence Cup in SCIT tries to bring in all the mixed feelings when it comes to true competition. After all the hard work with sweat and blood on the field, Division C in spite of losing one match in their pool stage went on to triumph their opponents to reach the final. This time they had to face the same opponents who defeated them in the league stage to pick the crown. The match seemed to be more of a war than a normal game with each of the division’s pride and honor at stake. After initial level of sledging in the group stages and strict action being taken against the same, the final needed to be played with all the sportsman’s spirit which shows the true character of the game. The support for the match was no less than an international match. The match was more of nerves than firepower. The match started with all the essence and flavor as needed. Captain of division-A Nikhil winning the toss chose to set the target. Before the match most of the speculations revolved around the notion that division-A had an upper hand being ‘The Rampant Assassins-TRA’. Coming into bat SJ and Sareen gave a slow start keeping in mind to play maximum overs. A ruthless bowling spell by Priyank and Gaurav removed the top order at a very staggering low score. The wickets kept on tumbling at one end where Sareen stood at the other. Everyone’s hearts were fastened at the moment when Ashu got out to make way for the mighty Sachin who had made many a bowlers tremble with his hefty blows in the tournament. But a patient Venky kept his nerves to chump Sachin to play a wrong shot making him go on a duck which changed the entire landscape of the match. On his dismissal, some of the supporters came rushing in the ground dancing on their feet showing the importance of the wicket. The score was 33 at the end of 6 overs making it tough for TRA guys on the field. A brisk batting by the captain Nikhil and others somehow managed to put the total at 53. The bowlers making a mark were Priyank, Gaurav and Venky where Akshit took two good catches on the field. The second half of the match started with high hopes for division C with a decent score to chase. The bowling attack from TRA was led by captain Nikhil. As the opening pair Jinay and Akshit gave a very positive start to the innings with Jinay hitting a very powerful six with his unusual batting stance. But after the fall of Jinay, wickets kept on falling at regular intervals. Some good bowling by SJ and Nikhil damaged the line-up but the runs kept on coming. Akshit a natural stroke-player of the ball showed an amazing character of playing in ones and twos to keep the scoreboard ticking. But at a point when score came at 29 for 4 and Venky & Priyank started their partnership, all relied on this last known pair. The next two bastmen Vamsi & Ankur have hardly faced any ball in this season making the scenario tougher for division C. But when it came to show their true potential, Venky and Priyank held their nerves. With the bowlers having a tendency to make mistakes at crucial situations, this pair capitalized on the same. With runs leaking with wides and poor bowling, Priyank and Venky kept on rotating the strike. With the target moving from 16 in 4 overs to 9 in 2 overs, Nikhil came to bowl the penultimate over, taking the bowling powerplay. Priyank with his natural ability showed how strong he is when changing the entire landscape, hit the winning run with a boundary. With this boundary, division C team showed what the power of being positive can have on not just the playground but in every aspect of our lives. After the assassination of TRA, the entire division C celebrated their team’s victory with all the flair and amuse. The electric moment made Gaurav-the captain of the team had tears in his eyes. The triumph became sweeter after the results of table-tennis doubles final which was won by division C’s own Karan & Himanshu. With this win, division C picked the coveted crown of being the ultimate cricketing champs of SCIT in Independence Cup 2015.
