Tournament Summary

On a steamy Halloween in Rio de Janeiro the spirits were undoubtedly high as the São Fernando Polo & Cricket Club threw its doors open to host a festival of cricket and fun for all of the family – the 2015 Granado™ National T20 Cricket Championships. As the crowds flocked through the (turn) stiles, there was a sense of magic in the air, and the weather and cricketing gods did not disappoint (as they rarely do in the corridor of sunshine that is Itaguai)!
The highlight of the weekend was undoubtedly the Friends & Family Day on Saturday 31st October when more than 250 guests came along to watch Brazil’s national cricket championships and in the process smashed Brazilian cricket attendance records.

On the pitch, the six teams played three simultaneous games for the duration of both days which was a first for cricket in South America. There were also Brazilians playing for each of the competing states with particular mention going to Minas Gerais, who had 4 Brazilians amongst their ranks, all of whom are graduates of the International Cricket Council (ICC)-backed pioneering scheme in Poços de Caldas.

Former professional English cricketer, Matt Featherstone runs the initiative, which is supported by the local government in Minas Gerais state, on behalf of Cricket Brasil. Currently, more than 500 kids play cricket each week in Poços de Caldas with plans in place to increase this figure to 1,000 by next year’s tournament. With Brazil recently crowned 2015 South American Champions at under-13, under-17 and Ladies level, the future certainly looks bright for cricket in Brazil.

Aside from the cricket, there was plenty to occupy the spectators while the soothing sound of leather on willow continued on in the background. A variety of fun activities contributed to the festival atmosphere; the swimming pool was full, the churrasco gaúcho flaming, the newly laid tennis court hosting friendly duels, mini-golf being played, food stalls from Bar Da Gema selling delicious pasteis de feijão and other delicacies and the kids playing cricket amidst spectators sunbathing in the beautiful spring Rio sunshine.

In the midst of these cricketing clashes between the titans from the states of the Federative Republic of Brazil there was also the small matter of the Rugby World Cup taking place in London. A big screen had been hired and the spectators took shelter from the blazing midday sun to watch the All Blacks defeat Australia at Twickenham. A huge thank you to Austrade for their continued support and contribution towards the fantastic infrastructure which kept the cricket lovers sheltered from the blazing sun!

As the shadows lengthened and the sun dropped beyond the mountains, DJ and punk legend Mary Byker got the party started spinning some tunes on the wheels of steel. He was followed by ROXVÏLLE TENNESSEE who played a superb set of rock’n’roll classics as the CCC bonfire was lit and people danced long into the night with encore after encore demanded by the adoring cachaça-addled fans!
Huge thanks goes to Granado for making the championships possible. Emperor Don Pedro I’s favourite pharmaceutical company and one of Brazil’s oldest corporate institutions, Granado is the CCC’s main sponsor. Thanks also go to The Rio Times, the CCC’s official media partner and also to Mount and Versátil Turismo for logistical and transport support, respectively.

São Paulo may have crushed Brasilia in the final but there was no doubt that the greatest sports cliché of all was proven true: cricket in Rio de Janeiro and Brazil was the true winner and the 2015 Granado™ National T20 Cricket Championships will linger long in the memory as the biggest and best yet. The challenge will be how to make it even better in Rio’s 2016 Olympic Year!

Tournament Scores

SATURDAY 31/10/2015

MG vs CC Lions –

MG beat CC Lions

CCL – 83 all out (Kelly 38)

MG – 84 for 2.

DF VS ES –

DF beat ES

DF – 193 -6 (Arslan 43, Miziara 34, Bishnoi 40, Ricardo 3-31)

ES – 58 all out (Wasim 3-11)

SP vs CC Tigers –

SP beat CC Tigers

SP – 190 (Jonny Randolph 45, Fasih 35)

CCCT – 89 (Harris 39, Riley 27, Yassar 3-6, Sunni 2-15)

CCC Lions vs DF –

DF beat CCC Lions
DF – 207 (Umar 108, Dhanushka 24, Kelly 3-35, De Melo 1-39)
CC Lions – 197 (Suri 49, Anwar 47, Lomas 26, Kelly 24, Yasin 3 for 25, Dhanushka 2-29, Kamal 2-21)

CCC Tigers vs ES –

CCC Tigers beat ES
CC Tigers– 171 (Ballhatchet 50*, Harris 27, Nick VB 24),
ES – 33 All out ( Ballhatchet 2-8)

SP vs MG –

SP beat MG

MG – 130 -4 (Beavers 29, Featherstone 50 n.o, Nain 3-31)

SP – 134-3 (Caisley 41, Heaney 28 n.o., Yasser 35 n.o., Ryan 2-23)

SUNDAY 1/11/2015

MG vs CCC Tigers

MG – 124

CCC Tigers – 109 (Ballhatchet 37)

SP vs DF –

SP beat DF
SP – 181-8 (Caisley 55, Heaney 45, Miziara 3-35)

DF – 104 all out (Miziara 18, Abhijit 2-7, Yasir 2 -15)

ES vs CCC Lions –

CCC Lions beat ES

ES – 93 all out (David 13, Asim 13, Joao Marcelo 21, Moretti 3- 3, Brunt 2-15)

CCCL – 94- 6 (Akula 14, Kelly 33 Singh 3-15)

CCC Lions vs CCC Tigers –

CC Lions beat CCC Tigers

CCC Lions – 124 – 6 CCC Tigers – not enough

MG vs ES –

MG beat ES

ES – 111 all out.

MG – 112 for 1 (9 overs)

GRAND FINAL

SP vs DF –

SP beat DF

SP – 206-5 (Caisley 71, Heaney 51, Surya 32 n.o.)

DF – 54 all out (Umar 15, Surya 6-12)

Tournament Awards
Best Batsman: Warwick Heaney (SP)

Best Bowler: R. Suryanarayanan (SP)
Best Catch: Mark Harris (CCC)

Best Wicket Keeper: Luis Felipe Chipinho (MG)

Spirit of Cricket: Vitoria Cricket Club (ES)