Lalitpur, April 13

Aryan International School of Varanasi and Balbhawan International School of New Delhi advanced to the final of the first DAV International Fraternity and Unity School Cricket League here at the Institute of Engineering College grounds today.

In the first semi-final match, Aryan defeated DAV School by six wickets. Batting first, hosts DAV were bowled out for 68 runs in 16.2 overs before Aryan raced to 71-4 in just 7.3 overs. Sujal Gupta top scored for the hosts with 20-ball 22, while Rajat Prashad (13) and Aashutosh Ghiraiya (10) contributed in double figures. Prashan Dubey took 3-18, while Subham Verma and Rohit yadav claimed two wickets each for Aryan.

In reply, Manish Kumar Patel scored a fiery 23-ball 47 with the help of nine fours and a six as Aryan chased the total with ease. Patel was later named the man-of-the-match. Subham Verma struck three fours in his 10-ball 12, while Anurag Mishra finished it off with a four in the first ball he faced. Aashutosh Ghiraiya, Sujal Gupta and Prashant Yadav took one wicket each for DAV.

In the second semi-final match, Balbhawan outplayed New Horizon School of Butwal by 52 runs. Batting first, Balbhawan scored 173-4 in 20 overs, while New Horizon managed 121-7. Man-of-the-match Aakashdeep Singh struck nine fours and two sixes as he went on to top score for Balbhawan with 65 off 39 balls, while Nikhil Tanwar scored 29-ball 42 that included three boundaries and two sixes. Akhilesh Samwal remained unbeaten on 25 off 16 balls with the help of a four and a six. Suraj Shrestha, Kushal Malla and Prashant Sharma took one wicket each for New Horizon.

In reply, Bishal Khatri scored 37 off 33 balls that included three boundaries and a six, while Haddish Mushalman scored 30-ball 28 hitting five fours and a six and Kushal Malla scored 16. Abhinav Bhatt (3-19) and Saksham Singraha (3-23) shared six wickets between them, while Ishan Singh took one wicket for Balbhawan.

The final is slated for Thursday at the IoE grounds. A total of 10 teams took part in the tournament organised by DAV Sushil Kedia Vishwa Bharati Higher Secondary School.