Day 3 of the T10 League started on a quiet note with cricketers and the fans joining in to remember the 150 students killed in a terror attack in Peshawar exactly three years ago on this day. The respectful silence against this modern scourge underscored the healing power of sport and the sense of togetherness as thousands of people from over fifty nationalities observed a minute’s silence, indicating with emphasis the priorities of the T10 as a messenger of peace and goodwill through healthy competition.
If proof was needed, the Pakhtoons took on the Bengal Tigers and in a nail biting curtain raiser for the day ran away with victory in the last ball batting second even though the Tigers knocked up 126 runs, becoming the first team to reach the semis.
Sri Lanka then came to the party with Kerala Kings to hang in there and started with a slowness that saw the youngsters swallow 24 dot balls. But a bit of a blast at the end of the innings saw the team reach an admirable 111 runs. Despite a short rain delay. Kerala proved too strong and became the second team to march into the semi-finals after a wonderful batting display by Walton and Pollard.
The rain returned but it did not dampen the Saturday crowd of over 12,000 people who stayed to watch the Punjabi Legends take on Sehwag’s Maratha Arabians, the latter winning by 14 runs.
The 4 semifinalists are Pakhtoons, Kerala Kings, Punjab Legends and Maratha Arabians with the playoff for 5th place played by Team Sri Lanka and Bengal Tigers.
