Pakistan Consulate won the second season of the Danube Diplomat Cup beating arch rivals Indian Consulate in a thrilling finale at the Insports Club.
The spectacle was played in front of a large crowd including legendary Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar- the brand ambassador of Danube Properties.
A total of 10 Consulate teams took part in the second edition of the Diplomat Cup which were: Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, England, India, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, New Zealand and United Arab Emirates.
Before the games begun, there was a brief silence observed to respect the passing of Australian batsman Philip Hughes.
After that all the Consulates were invited on the dias along with Sunil Gavaskar who declared the Danube Diplomat Tournament open.
Gavaskar did the toss for every match and the highlight of it was to see the National Anthems of every team being played before the game.
The UAE team was captained by none other than Waleed Bukhatir, son of legendary player Abdul Rahman Bukhatir who was the pioneer in starting cricket in United Arab Emirates.
Everyone was eagerly awaiting the clash of India vs Pakistan in the Pool A group match and it was India who got the better of their opposition in that game. Similarly arch rivals England got the better of Australia in their Pool B league game.
In the league stage in Pool A, India and Pakistan topped their group respectively and in Pool B it was United Arab Emirates and England who finished the highest.
To make sure all the other six teams participate, they were placed according to their seedings in the plate event.
Bangladesh got the better of New Zealand in a close semi-final beating them by 7 runs and Afghanistan beat South Africa.
The plate final was won by Bangladesh who beat Afghanistan by 9 runs who came fifth followed by Afghanistan, New Zealand, South Africa, Australia and Sri Lanka.
All eyes were on the main event where India got the better of England in the first semi-final and Pakistan beat UAE. The last United Arab Emirates and England played for pride to see who would finish in third place and it was the host country who came out on top.
So the grand final was a repeat of last year where India clashed with Pakistan and it was Pakistan that beat India by 3 runs this year in a closely contested event.
India batted first and scored 23 runs but Pakistan played excellently to win the coveted Danube Diplomat cup. Sunil Gavaskar, who stayed back till midnight, gave away the prizes to all the teams.
Mr. Anis Sajan, Managing Director of Danube Group whose brain Child was the Danube Diplomat’s Cup was 'thrilled' by the turnout and success. He announced that the third season next year would be announced soon.
