Kanga League: Young and old strike gold

Bohra Cricketers pacer Rajesh Pagdhare in full flight against Dahisar Sports Club on Sunday; (right) Shivaji Park Youngsters spinner Vijay Gohil en-route his seven-wicket haul against Karnatak Sporting Association on Sunday. Pics/Ashish Raje

The Dr HD Kanga Cricket League is all about players using their experience in challenging conditions, and some veteran cricketers made the most of the opportunity during Sunday's opening-round matches.

In a Division ‘A' game at Cross Maidan, Shivaji Park Youngsters (SPY) left-arm spinner Vijay Gohil, 30, who last played for Mumbai in 2018, claimed 7-19, bowling out former champions Karnatak Sporting Association (KSA) for just 37. SPY declared their first innings at 90-6, with Al Saad Shaikh top-scoring with 35. KSA openers Siddhesh Gavande (52 not out) and Srujan Athawale (50) showed good temperament in the second innings, taking their side to 116-1. However, SPY won on the basis of their first-innings lead.

Gohil eyes Ranji return

"The wicket and conditions were in our favour in the morning, so our plan was to be consistent with our bowling and I did just that. It's a good performance, but I expect more from myself as I'm hoping to make a comeback to the Mumbai Ranji team," Gohil told mid-day.

In another Division ‘A' game, hosts National CC thrashed New Hindu CC by an innings and 19 runs. New Hindu were bowled out for 69, with off-spinner Pravesh Pal (4-17) and left-arm spinner Hitesh Kadam (2-15) doing the damage.

National's aggressive batting saw them declare at 136-2. One-drop Jayesh Pokhare smashed an unbeaten 61 off 32 balls, skipper Sairaj Patil made 30 not out off 15, while opener Shaswat Jagtap scored 30. New Hindu struggled again in the second innings, being dismissed for 48, with Kadam taking 5-16 and Pokhare 3-7.

Pagdhare defies age

In an ‘E' Division match at Azad Maidan, 56-year-old Bohra Cricketers medium-pacer Rajesh Pagdhare showed that age is just a number by claiming 8-17 against Dahisar Sports Club. Dahisar were bowled out for 45, with Ravindra Sante taking two wickets. Bohra declared at 106-7 before Sante claimed 5-23 in the second innings. Dahisar finished on 82-8.

"There's a lot of competition nowadays, even ‘E' Division cricket is tough, so I'm proud of my performance at this age. I feel I can be a motivation for the younger generation to work hard to achieve their goals," Palghar resident Pagdhare said.

In Division ‘B', young pacer Tanish Save's hat-trick helped Dadar Union Sporting Club bowl out Young Comrade CC for 45 and secure a first-innings win. Dadar Union had earlier declared at 125-8, with Aadit Degaonkar scoring 48.