MUMBAI: Mumbai have been knocked out in the Vinoo Mankad Trophy (for Under-19), but a Mumbaikar has made it to the final of the tournament.
Coached by former Mumbai wicketkeeper Sulakshan Kulkarni, Punjab have reached the final, where they will play Vidarbha at the Sports Hub International Cricket Stadium in Trivandrum on Monday.
On Friday in the semifinals, Punjab dismissed Rajasthan for 217 in 48.2 overs, and then had little trouble in cruising to the target in 44.4 overs. In the other semis clash, Vidarbha beat Maharashtra by 48 runs via VJD method.
"Our team is playing some quality cricket. We are playing well as a team, and not winning due to individual performances. We have tremendous talent and depth. To give you an idea about our depth, our No 10 batsman (Aryamann Singh) scored 45 against Mumbai in the quarterfinals after I promoted him up the order," Kulkarni told TOI from Trivandrum.
While he is has been a Ranji-winning coach with Mumbai, this is the fourth time that Kulkarni has coached a state's Under-19 team to the final-he achieved the feat twice each with Mumbai (with Rohit Sharma and Ajinkya Rahane captaining the team) and Vidarbha.
"This is yet another final for me as a U-19 coach. Having coached the Vidarbha senior and Under-19 team at the same time in the 2009-10 period, I know Vidarbha inside out," the 55-year-old said.
"At the time of joining, I had told the officials at the Punjab Cricket Association that I'll coach your U-19 team to the title. I just told them to keep the bonus ready," Kulkarni said. The Mumbaikar is constantly in touch with India's off-spin great Harbhajan Singh, who oversees the affairs of the Punjab Cricket Association, and was instrumental in Kulkarni's appointment. "Harbhajan is very happy with the team's progress," said Kulkarni.
Brief Scores: Rajasthan 217 in 48.4 overs (Karan Singh 67, Pn Jangid 32; Emanjot Singh Chahal 3-34) lost to Punjab 219-5 in 44.4 overs (Mayank Gupta 59 not out, Uday Saharan 42; Salaudeen 3-47) by 5 wickets
