Fairytale start for Rajasthan Roarers and UP Heroes as Delhi Dashers and Bangalore Stars falter

IJPL witnesses two stunning all-round performances on Day 2

Anshul Choudhary (3/14& 18 off 15 balls) & Aryan Lakra (5/16 &12 off 17b)

Rajasthan Roarers beat Delhi Dashers by seven wickets

UP Heroes beat Bangalore Stars by seven wickets

Owner of Hyderabad Hawks, star Laxmi Manchu give pep talk to young guns

Bangalore Stars co-owner Aindrita Ray and Diganth interact with team

Dubai, September 20, 2017: Day 2 of the path-breaking Indian Junior Players League Talent Hunt (IJPL Talent Hunt) witnessed two sensational all-round displays from a couple of unknown rookies, Anshul Choudhary of Rajasthan Roarers and Aryan Lakra of UP Heroes. Both youngsters, inspired by the recent exploits of emerging India all-rounder Hardik Pandya, flourished with the ball and bat with impressive maturity and temperament to  lead their respective team to emphatic wins against Delhi Dashers and Bangalore Stars respectively.

A state with rich heritage of cricket but unable to produce as many international cricketers as they should have ideally, Rajasthan Roarersshowed plenty of promise in the inaugural edition of the IJPL Talent Huntas they thrashed fancied Delhi Dashers by six wickets at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Wednesday.

Anshul Choudhary became the first all-round sensation of the IJPL. The youngster shattered the confidence of Delhi Dashers batsmen with a lethal spell of three wickets for just 14 runs and returned to hammer 18 runs off 15 deliveries, including a towering six to finish the match in style.

Earlier, Delhi Dashers finished with just 80 runs on the board at the cost of seven wickets from their quota of 20 overs. While Hitesh Kumar struck 22 runs off 48 deliveries to stick around for the longest time for Delhi Dashers, Choudhary, along with co-bowlers Ajay Tanwar (1/6) and Bheem Dhamala (1/19) worked up an effective strategy and didn’t allow the frontline batsmen to find their rhythm.

Rajasthan Roarers broke no sweat in chasing down the required runs as almost all their top batsmen struck form. Younus Ali took the expressway to score 29 runs off mere 14 balls, while Keshav Sharma (21 off 21 balls) and Choudhary (18 off 15 balls) chipped in with the rest.

In the second match of the day, UP Heroes trounced Bangalore Stars by seven wickets. Bangalore Stars were dismissed for 76 runs in 13. 3 overs, with Nayan contributing more than half the runs with a brisk 39 off 24 ballls. Aryan Lakra captured five wickets for 16 runs, while Subham Agarwal (2/0) and YajuurvedaJanmeda (2/23) shared the spoils with two wickets each. In reply, UP Heroes scored 77 for three in just 12.1 overs, with Virat scoring the bulk of the runs with 32 off 30 deliveries, and Agarwal (19 off 23) and Lakra (12 off 17) making the rest of the contribution.

Former Pakistani fast bowler Sikander Bakhtwho is part of IJPL commentary team, said, he was impressed with the all-round performance of both the young all-rounders. The former fast bowler said, “The IJPL is just two days old and the tournament has already produced some sensational performances. I hope people back in India are following the exploits of these young talents. Both Anshul Choudhary and Aryan Lakra were a sheer delight to watch and it’s so nice to see these young guns completely fired up to bowl and bat, just in the footstep of the legendary Imran Khan and Kapil Dev.”

Earlier in the day, Telugu star and the owner of Hyderabad Hawks, Laxmi Manchu and Kannada film’s hit onscreen pair and co-owner of Bangalore Stars, Aindrita Ray and Diganth drew loud cheers from the 16 teams participating in the IJPL. The stars interacted with their respective teams for a pep talk.

On this occasion,Laxmi Manchu said, “I come from a family where cricket in particular and sports in general is a huge passion. I’m extremely proud to be associated with Hyderabad Hawks. The IJPL is a unique initiative and I’m confident that some of these youngsters who are participating in the IJPL will become future stars of the Indian cricket team.”

On this occasion, Aindrita Ray said, “I’ve been the brand ambassador for CCL and when IJPL MD Dr Dinesh Kapoor approached me for Bangalore Stars I was bowled over by the concept. It’s important for these youngsters to get the right exposure in their career.” On this occasion,Diganth said, “I’ve been a state-level badminton player and also played cricket for the CCL. The IJPL model is a great platform for our youngsters to perform and get noticed.”

Earlier, in late matches completed on Tuesday, Chennai Champs beat Kolkata Strikers by 17 runs while Punjab Tigers thrashed Assam Rangers by 87 runs. Batting first, Chennai Champs were bundled out for 134 runs in 19.2 overs. In response, Kolkata began their innings well but finished 17 runs short, with a total of 117/7 in 20 overs.  In the other match, Punjab Tigers scored 177 runs in 20 overs and then wrapped up Assam Rangers for just 90 runs, to script the biggest winning margin in the IJPL so far.

Caption pic 1: IJPL MD Dr Dinesh Kapoor with Hyderabad Hawks owner and Telugu star Laxmi Manchu and their team members.

Press release

Dehradun Rockers trounce Pune Panthers in inaugural IJPL match

Dubai, September 19, 2017: Dehradun Rockers, powered by a record three wickets haul by Rohit Rana (3/16), easily won the inaugural match of the path-breaking Indian Junior Players League Talent Hunt (IJPL Talent Hunt), thrashingPune Panthers by seven wickets here on Tuesday.

September 19, 2017. Probably 10 years from now this day will be talked about for being that day in history which revolutionized grass root cricket. The IJPL commenced amidst lot of hearsay and exhilaration. The opening ceremony of the inaugural edition of the IJPL was a spectacular affair but it fell way short on the day, when compared to the fireworks displayed by the young cricket guns.

It was a blockbuster that gripped Dubai here today.  There was also glam quotient. Kannada film stars and co-owners of Bangalore Stars, Aindrita Ray and Diganth cheered Rohit Rana and Co., who bundled out Pune Panthers for just 78 runs in 17.1 overs.  Rana was assisted by his fellow-bowlers in the attack, Suraj Satwal (3/12) and Vidhigya Pathak (3/20) as the trio left Pune reeling right from the beginning. Nikit Singh (29 runs off 34 deliveries), Rohit Dinode (11 runs) and Pranay Lubal (11 runs) tried to counter the Doon bowlers but they ran short of partners and steam for a rearguard action to become a possibility.

Dehradun Rockers reached the winning run in style, scoring 83 for three wickets in just 9.4 overs. Prateek Panwar set up the run chase in a brilliant manner with an unbeaten 42 off merely 31 deliveries. Uvaish Ahmad (15 runs off 7 balls), Aditya Khokhar (11 runs off 9 balls) were the other contributors for the winning side. For Pune Panthers, Amit Chawarekar, G Toshniwal and Aditya More bagged a wicket each.

On this occasion, former Pakistani fast bowler Sikander Bakht, who is here as a commentator, praised the IJPL for being a great platform for showcasing Indian cricket’s junoon in this age category. He said, “This is a unique initiative and I salute the effort of Dr Dinesh Kapoor, IJPL managing director, for giving this opportunity to young cricket talent in India. I’m absolutely confident that the IJPL will take Indian cricket to great heights.”

In other matches, Chennai Champs take on Kolkata Strikers while Assam Rangers will face off with Punjab Tigers. Earlier, His Excellency, Hamad Abdullah Al Qasemi, chairman of Freehold Mediation Authority, UAE, Dr Ram Buxani, chairman, ITL Cosmos Group, Dubai, Mr Mohan Jashanmai, chairman, Emeritus Indian Business Professionals Group, Abu Dhabi and Dr Dinesh Kapoor, managing director, IJPL, were part of a grand opening ceremony of the IJPL.

Pune Panthers: Nikit Singh (captain), Amit  Anand Chawarekar, Aftab Alam Shaikh (wk), More Aditya Suresh, Yajurveda Janmeda, Atharva Satish Gaikwad, Navseerat , Rohit Ajay Dinode, Pranay Sampatrao Lubal, Rehan Shamim Khan, Gaurav Toshniwal, Pranav Anil Dhimate. 

Dehradun Rockers:Uvais Ahmad (captain), Prateek Panwar, Aditya Khokhar,  ArkoJyoti Chattopadhyay, Eash Paliwal, Ashwin Hooda, Shreyas Saklani, Rohit Rana, Vidhigya Pathak, Suraj Satwal, Jatin Bhatia, Harsh Mittal.

Wednesday’s schedule: Delhi Dashers vs Rajasthan Roarers; Bangalore Stars vs UP Heroes; Mumbai Masters vs Ranchi Boosters.

All IJPL matches LIVE streaming on Sports Flashes: Sports Flashes will cover every single ball bowled and every single run scored live. Download the Sports Flashes app for your ios and Android devices and don't miss a single second of the action, live and exclusive from Dubai!  

Caption (top): IJPL Managing Director Dinesh Kapoor with Mr Mohan Jashanmai, chairman, Emeritus Indian Business Professionals Group, Abu Dhabi 

Photo caption (second from top): IJPL MD Dr Dinesh Kapoor with His Excellency, Hamad Abdullah Al Qasemi, chairman of Freehold Mediation Authority, UAE

IJPL Press release

IJPL Talent Hunt: Telugu star Laxmi to own Hyderabad Hawks; Kannada stars Aindrita and Diganth to co-own Bangalore Stars

New Delhi, September 16, 2017:The Indian Junior Players League Talent Hunt (IJPL Talent Hunt) is proud to reveal its first woman-owner in the path-breaking league for upcoming cricketers. Telugu starLaxmi Manchu, who has also starred in American television series, Desperate Housewives and Las Vegas, comes on board as the owner of Hyderabad Hawks franchise.

In another major boost to the IJPL Talent Hunt, Kannada film’s hit onscreen pair, Aindrita Ray and Diganthhave padded up for their maiden cricket venture as the co-owners of Bangalore Stars franchise.

IJPL Talent Hunt’s managing director, Dr Dinesh Kapoor expressed that he was extremely proud to reveal Laxmi Manchu as the owner of Hyderabad Hawks and Aindnrita Ray and Digant as the co-owner of Bangalore Stars and welcomed them to the family of IJPL Talent Hunt. 

Kapoor said, “In addition to having film-maker and actor Arbaaz Khan and actor Rajeev Khandelwal, the introduction of Telugu star Laxmi Manchu and Kannada film icons Aindrita Ray and Diganth speaks a lot about the level of the IJPL Talent Hunt. Their stardom will be an honourable addition to the existing group of owners of teams in IJPL Talent Hunt.” 

Laxmi Manchu has carved a niche for herself as an actor, TV host and film producer. She has worked in 20 feature films in India and the US, besides acting in American television series, Las Vegas, Desperate Housewives, Mystery ER to name a few of them. 

Manchu said, “I’m super excited to be part of IJPL Talent Hunt and I hope my team, Hyderabad Hawk goes all out to win the Cup in Dubai.”

Aindrita Ray received critical acclaim for essaying the role of a mentally-challenged girl in the Kannada film, Manasaare, and has worked in successful films down south. She is already connected to cricket as the brand ambassador of Celebrity Cricket League. Diganth Manchale, popularly known as Diganth, is in the top league of Kannada actors.

The IJPL Talent Hunt will culminate in a grand competition between 16 teams at Dubai’s state-of-the-art International Cricket Stadium, from September 19-29, 2017. Star cricketer, Gautam Gambhir is the Brand Ambassador of IJPL Talent Hunt. All the IJPL Talent Hunt matches will be brought to the cricket-crazy fans via LIVE streaming on India’s No.1 Sports App, Sports Flashes, and online on sportsflashes.

The young guns will have plenty at stake in the path-breaking IJPL Talent Hunt as the 16 franchise teams will slog it out for the winner’s trophy, with the champions set to take home a prize money of INR 21 lakh and INR 11 lakh for the runners-up. The man of the tournament will be sent to play in minor county cricket in the UK. 

List of 16 Franchises in 2017 IJPL Talent Hunt:

Gujarat Greats, Kolkata Strikers, Bangalore Stars, Assam Rangers, Pune Panthers, Delhi Dashers, Ranchi Boosters, Punjab Tigers, Dehradun Rockers, UP Heroes, Hyderabad Hawks, Chennai Champs, Rajasthan Roarers, Mumbai Masters, MP Warriors, and Haryana Hurricanes.

Format of the 2017 IJPL Talent Hunt: The 16 teams have been divided into four groups where all the teams will play against each other once. The top-2 teams from each group with maximum points will qualify for the quarterfinals, followed by the winning teams’ progress to the semi-finals and further to the final. 

IJPL Press release