We all know that everybody loves a good game of cricket. The game is so deeply ingrained in the psyche of Indians in particular that almost everybody is drawn into it. Amateurs and professionals alike, they play it everywhere. Be it in the nook and corner of a street, an open playground, in the close confines of a room, in the virtual world on a computer screen or the well maintained turf in a stadium, the game is omnipresent. It is this cricketing spirit of its people that Mindfire respects and encourages as well.
Want to know how? Then here you go. For all its employees who practically eat, sleep, watch and play cricket, Mindfire Solutions’ Bhubaneswar office organizes a homegrown version of IPL every year. A tradition that started in the year 2008 and famously known amongst the Mindfireans as Mindfire Premier League, this is a much awaited event for both players and spectators alike. Although the event is mostly held in the month of February, the preparations for the D-Day start off more than a month in advance.
This year saw three teams viz. Lions, Cheetahs and Panthers fighting for glory at the Kalinga Stadium cricket ground on February 8.
Match details:
There were three qualifier matches of twelve overs each. The match details are as follows:
Qualifier match 1: The first match was between Lions and Cheetahs. The Lions won the match and chose to field first. At the expense of 4 wickets the Cheetahs scored 93 runs. Sudhansu Panda from team Cheetahs scored 31 runs which helped his team immensely. The Lions conceded defeat by scoring a total of 87 runs at the loss of 3 wickets.
Qualifier match 2: The winner of the first qualifier match i.e . the Cheetahs were to meet the Panthers in the second qualifier match. On winning the toss, the Cheetahs allowed the Panthers to bat first. The Panthers could only manage to score 63 runs at the expense of 8 wickets. The Cheetahs easily achieved the target within 9.4 overs. Sudhansu Panda was again a star player by taking 4 wickets in this match.
Qualifier match 3: The penultimate match was between the losers of the first and second qualifier matches i.e. the Lions and the Panthers. The Panthers did a remarkable job of clocking 122 runs at the expense of 3 wickets. A major contribution towards this score was by Susangeet who played his best innings of 37 runs. The Lions were going through trying times put their best foot forward. Kaushik, the captain of Lions joined with Mainak to open the innings and the duo scored a flawless 56 runs before he gave his wicket away, a soft dismissal. A visibly injured Mainak showed great character and stayed till the end to ensure that Lions won the match to qualify for the finals.
The Finals: The invincible Cheetahs who had become the favorite MPL team by then played the finals against the Lions. Mainak and Satyaprakash from the team Lions contributed greatly to a decent score of 94 runs. The Cheetahs who had won the toss and decided to chase won the match in 9 overs and 10 wickets. Sudhansu Panda proved to be the star yet again by scoring an undefeatable 60 runs and was greatly supported by Kshirodra who scored 32 runs.
The Cheetahs proved to be an invincible team and won the Mindfire Premier League hands down. Undoubtedly, Sudhansu Panda walked away with many laurels which included three Man of the Match, Best Batsman of MPL-2014, Best Bowler of MPL-2014 and the Man of the Series awards.Indeed this winner took it all.
It would be unfair if we do not give kudos to the MPL core team for organizing a splendid cricketing session for us spectators thereby transforming an otherwise dull Saturday into a fun-filled one. The entertainment made sure our day was well spent. Last but not the least, thank you Mindfire Solutions for keeping the cricketing spirit alive!