In the U15 Group B and C final on a damp September Sunday in 2025, ACC faced Punjab in a thrilling low-scoring encounter. ACC beat Punjab twice earlier in the season, and perhaps this made the team a little bit too confident. Additionally, the disadvantage of playing away and losing the toss, especially when the pitch is damp in the morning, put them on the back foot.

First Innings (ACC Batting)

ACC struggled to 86/8 in 18.3 overs. Advay Subhedar anchored with an unbeaten 31 off 44 balls and was on the pitch the whole innings, but early blows hurt: Ayaansh Sehgal fell for 2 on the second ball, and Arrush Nadakatta was bowled for 8 (18/2 after 5 overs). Rakesh Sripatnala (8 off 7) showed brief flair, but fell too early, just like Sawan and Abhi Velidandla, Tommy van der Kroft, and Sean Ryan. Fraser Lord was sent out as the last batsman to try and increase the score, but was run out when he thought the ball was dead, and just stepped out of the crease. The KNCB umpires ruled that the ball was not dead, finishing the innings.

Punjab's Joshua Khawaja and Fezan Firdausi were the standout bowlers, they both took two wickets.

Second Innings (Punjab Batting)

It was always going to be difficult after the unusually low score for ACC, but the team gave it their very best. Cheered on by all the ACC parents as well as ACC’s chairman Joost de Bakker, Punjab reached 87/5 in 17.4 overs, clinching a tense 5-wicket victory. ACC's bowlers fought hard though: Ayaansh Sehgal struck early, making it clear that all was not lost yet. Rakesh then made a great catch, followed by some exceptional bowling by Sawan, who took two wickets. Hope was building up, also in part due to Tommy van der Kroft’s sharp wicket keeping and tight fielding by Fraser Lord. When Sean took a wicket and Tommy ran out a Punjab batsman, you could feel the tension. Unfortunately and despite a good bowling performance from Mohammad, Punjab didn’t have to rush things, and eventually managed to reach the target and win the final.

All in all we can look back at a fantastic season - despite struggling to field a team in the first match, we had an amazing season, ending up in the final! The boys can be proud of their achievements, and have shown great progression throughout the season.