Dhenkanal Cup cricket tournament begins

Dhenkanal: Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Minister Krushna Chandra Patra inaugurated the first edition of Dhenkanal Cup All India Cricket Tournament at Dhenkanal Stadium on Sunday. The tournament, organised by PRAYAS, will conclude on February 23.

According to the organising committee, the tournament aims to provide young players with a competitive platform to showcase their skills, sporting spirit and gain recognition at a higher level.

The tournament features eight teams, four from Odisha and four from other States. The participating teams are Rameswar Sporting (Dhenkanal), CL Kolkata, Solar Cricket Club (Cuttack), SERSA Ranchi (Jharkhand), Rising Student (Cuttack), Forest 11 Chhattisgarh, MMCC Sambalpur and RiseUp Cricket Academy (Jaipur, Rajasthan). Cricket lovers from different regions have gathered to witness the tournament.

Patra praised PRAYAS for organising the tournament in Dhenkanal and encouraging young players.

“This is a good initiative taken by PRAYAS members, and this will also become a big tournament later at the all-India level. Players who perform well here can get a chance to represent the Odisha team. From next year, more teams from across the country will participate in the tournament,” he said. Patra also urged the players to give the best and make the most of this opportunity. The organisers announced that the winners of the tournament will receive a cash prize of ₹1 lakh along with 2-gram gold coin.

The runners-up will get ₹75,000. Additionally, cash prizes will be given for hat-trick and player of the match.