Meerut Spartans clinch Future Star U-15 C'ship crown with 9 wicket win in final

Ghaziabad (Uttar Pradesh) [India], July 2 (ANI): DDH Meerut Spartans clinched the Future Star Under-15 Championship title after defeating Karim Capital Chargers by nine wickets in the final at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on Wednesday. They successfully chased down the target of 108 with more than three overs remaining.

The Chargers, put in to bat, never settled. Arjun Mishra top-scored with 27 and Eklavya struck a late 22, but the innings came apart against Prakhar Vishnoi, who took four for 33 and had two batters stumped down the leg side. Ashwin Mavi and Avi Kumar picked up two wickets each as the Chargers were bowled out for 107 with three balls still unused.

Meerut Spartans lost opener Atharv Sharma for 13, caught and bowled by Arav Patel, but that was the last time the Chargers threatened. Haryaksh and Ansh Mittal saw off the rest of the chase together, Haryaksh finishing unbeaten on 57 off 56 balls with three sixes, and Mittal not out on 31, as the target came down without further trouble.

Karim Capital Chargers 107 all out in 19.3 overs (Arjun Mishra 27, Eklavya 22, Aaditya 16; Prakhar Vishnoi 4/33, Ashwin Mavi 2/10, Avi Kumar 2/17) lost to DDH Meerut Spartans 108/1 in 16.3 overs (Haryaksh 57 not out, Ansh Mittal 31 not out) by nine wickets. Prakhar Vishnoi was named Player of the Match.

“This is exactly what we set out to build, a stage where a fifteen-year-old can bowl a spell like Prakhar’s in front of a live audience and know it counts,” said Subhash Rajput of Red Rock, who organised the tournament. “Meerut Spartans were the most complete side across the eight days, and both finalists have earned every bit of what they take home from this.”

The championship, backed by the Krishna Apra Group, ran across eight days.

For most of the boys, it was the first time their cricket had reached an audience beyond the boundary. The tournament also carried the support of Aakash Chopra and Parthiv Patel, whose involvement gave the age group a level of attention it rarely gets.

The format did the rest. Group games, knockouts and a final with a title on the line put the Under-15 sides through a proper tournament rather than a one-off weekend, and the standard rose with it. Karim Capital Chargers came through a full bracket to reach the final, and Meerut Spartans leave Ghaziabad as champions, with match figures and a streamed final that will travel with both squads into the next age group. For a group of fifteen-year-olds, that is the part that lasts. (ANI)

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