Thinley Namgay

Dragon Strikers and SKD All Stars are leading the ongoing Bhutan T20 Smash being held at Dechencholing in Thimphu with four points each from pool A and B, respectively.

Nine teams from Thimphu are participating in the second edition of the cricket tournament organised by the Bhutan Cricket.

On Saturday, Paro Virtual CC defeated JDWNRH by five wickets. This was the second consecutive loss for JDWNRH.

In just 12.5 overs, Paro Virtual scored 80 runs, losing five wickets. The opponents were all out for 79 runs in 15.2 overs.

Both the teams have played two games each. Paro Virtual CC have garnered two points.

Last week, SKD All Stars set a new record by thrashing Youth XI by 173 runs. SKD All Stars scored 277 runs, losing four wickets. It was the highest score of the tournament.

Jigme Singye of SKD All Stars became the first player to score a century in the tournament. He made 156 runs.

On the same day, Dragon Strikers defeated JDWNRH by eight wickets. Dragon Strikers scored 89 runs in 11.2 overs, losing only two wickets.

JDWNRH scored 86 runs in 17.2 overs and lost 10 wickets.

So far, six games have been played in the tournament.

However, True Warriors and the Titans have not played any match as most of their players were quarantined after a hotel cook in Thimphu tested positive for Covid-19 last month. The two teams are expected to play their matches this week.

The cook had sneaked out of the quarantine facility to a cricket match at Dechencholing where players of True Warriors and the Titans had also participated. The players were home quarantined after completing their 21-day quarantine period last week.

The media officer of Bhutan Cricket, Jigme, said that the T20 Smash in the past used to be an exciting tournament for cricket enthusiasts from across the country.

However, he said that in view of the Covid-19 pandemic, the opportunity this year was given to teams from Thimphu only. He added T10 tournaments would be held in dzongkhags to engage cricketers from other dzongkhags.

Currently, games are played on weekends due to Covid-19 restrictions. Jigme said that some of the players were office goers and students, who also got the opportunity to play on weekends.

The league-cum-knockout tournament began on May 1 and will come to an end next month. The tournament was approved by the Bhutan Olympic Committee and the National Covid-19 Taskforce.