The 2nd edition of the U-Pro Club World Series Indoor Cricket Tournament took place from the 22nd to the 27th of April at the U-Pro Indoor Cricket Stadium in Colombo (Talawatugoda). 17 teams from 9 different countries competed in 3 tiers in the Men’s category, while 4 teams from 3 different countries competed in the Women’s category, which took place for the very first time.
In the 1st tier of the Men’s category, 7 teams clashed against each other and it was the local team Colombo Lions, and the Barbarians – a rest of the world team with players from Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India and Singapore – which qualified for the Grand Final. The Colombo Lions defeated the SFS Hawkeyes from UAE (69-47) to qualify for the Final, while the Barbarians overcame pre-tournament favourites Hawkes Bay Turkeys the Kiwi side (74-58). In the Final, the Colombo Lions who batted first finished on 98, scoring 32-15-34-17 in the four skins. In reply, the Barbarians were in a comfortable position after the first two skins with a total of 60 on the board, but the Lions managed to register 3 dismissals in the 3rd skin to derail all the momentum of the Barbs. With 2 more in the last skin, the home team managed to edge out the rest of the world team by just 5 runs. The four skins of the runner ups read 25-35-13-20. The crowd at U-Pro Colombo went ecstatic after the Lankan side reigned supreme, but it was heartbreak for the Barbarians as this was now the 2nd time they lost the Finals in as many attempts.
Tier 1 Awards
- MVP :- Hariharan Gurumurthy (SFS Hawkeyes)
- Best Batter :- Bayley Latter (Hawkes Bay Turkeys)
- Best Bowler :- Andy Solomons (Colombo Lions)
10 teams competed in tier 3 of the tournament, where the teams were divided into 2 groups with 5 teams in each. Each team played once against the teams from the other group, and at the end of the group stage, the top 2 teams advanced through to Tier 2 while the 3rd and 4th placed teams played in the tier 3 Semi Finals. The 4 teams that qualified for Tier 2 were the Kaleen Gators (Aus), Austasia (SL), Wolves (SA), AGS Tellicherry (UAE). The Kaleen Gators overcame a spirited Austasia side in the Semi Finals of Tier 2 (149-81). The youngsters from Austasia deserve a lot of credit for the amazing showcase of indoor Cricket as they became crowd favourites, and the surprise package of the tournament which a lot of international teams under immense pressure. The Wolves managed to beat the unbeaten Tellicherry in the other Semi Final of tier 2 (130-62). The final of tier 2 was another close encounter with the Kaleen Gators only making 76 with skins of 21-04-21-30. Chasing 77, the Wolves were on course to a memorable win at the halfway mark, but lost 6 dismissals in the 3rd skin, which pegged them back and ultimately cost them the game by 11 runs as the Gators emerged victorious in tier 2. The Wolves skin totals were 35-16-(-15)-29.
Tier 2 Awards
- MVP :- Khaleel Kasim (AGS Tellicherry)
- Best Batter :- Chris Pistorious (Wolves)
- Best Bowler :- Gerhard Wessels (Wolves)
Lords Indoor from USA, Fourways Falcons from South Africa, Elite Warriors from UAE and IICA Chozha from India played in the Semi Finals of tier 3 and Lords Indoor qualified for the Final, beating the Elite Warriors (89-43), while the Falcons booked their spot in the final clash beating Chozha (105-46). The Final once again went right down the wire as Lords Indoor made history winning tier 3 after beating Fourways Falcons (97-94). Lords batted first and their skin totals were 7-29-32-29. For the Falcons, they had ok first 3 skins, but had too much to do in the last skin as they needed 40. Their skin totals were 21-19-17-37. This was a huge moment for Lords Indoor from the USA as this was their first assignment away from home, and this will certainly play a huge part in the expansion of the game in the states.
Tier 3 Awards
- MVP :- Graham Timm (Fourways Falcons)
- Best Batter :- Cherian Kurian (Elite Warriors)
- Best Bowler :- Aman Sohal (Elite Warriors)
In the first ever Women’s edition of the tournament, it was a mismatch between Ella Lions from Sri Lanka and the other 3 teams as they comfortably won all the 6 games in the group stage, and then won the Final quite convincingly, beating IICA Chozha from India with a scoreline of (127-11).
Women’s Awards
- MVP :- Nilu Mendis (Ella Lions)
- Best Batter :- Mihidi Sanudini (Ella Lions)
- Best Bowler :- Dilani Manodara (Ella Lions)
The 2nd edition of the U-Pro Club World Series was a 6-Day carnival of Indoor Cricket and the event once again created a lot of hype for Indoor Cricket in Sri Lanka and the rest of the countries which participated in the event. A lot of credit goes out to Mr. Manish Kishore, the mastermind behind the whole event and Mr. Hiran de Mel, who played a pivotal part in making this tournament a grand success.
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