MI Junior 2026 Nagpur: Double delight for Royal Gondwana PS, Rajendra School clinch U-15 girls title

Nagpur: The Nagpur leg of the Mumbai Indians Junior 2026 season concluded in an exhilarating fashion at the SB City Academy Ground on Tuesday. The Royal Gondwana Public School clinched the U-14 and U-16 boys' titles, while Shri Rajendra High School lifted the U-15 girls' trophy.Following the glittering finals, Mumbai Indians player Danish Malewar, who hails from Nagpur, said, "MI Junior is a great learning platform for the young boys and girls in Nagpur. I grew from playing school-level cricket tournaments, and I feel this is where you learn and gain the most valuable experience of your youth career. This experience will certainly help them in their journey towards senior-level cricket."In a closely contested finale, The Royal Gondwana Public School came out on top over Shri Rajendra High School with an enthralling 4-wicket victory in the U-16 boys' category.After being put in to bat, Shri Rajendra High School got off to a decent start as opener Vishesh Chawda played a resilient knock of 38 runs.However, it was Arjun Mahajan's stellar half-century of 81 runs that powered Shri Rajendra High School to a decent total of 213 runs. Coming in after the 1st wicket, Arjun Mahajan commanded proceedings as he was the last batter dismissed before Shri Rajendra High School were bowled out. On the bowling front, the dynamic duo of Siddharth Gupta (4/25) and Nagesh Umale (3/41) struck at regular intervals to keep their side in the game.With 214 runs required to win the title, the pair of Siddharth Gupta and Nagesh Umale came together once again, forging a staggering 121-run opening stand, with the former going on to score a sensational half-century of 72 runs. However, Atharva Bajad led a spirited fight-back, dismissing both the openers in consecutive overs and eventually ending the match with figures of 4 for 42. In the end, handy cameos from Rahul Sharma and Mohammad Sheikh guided The Royal Gondwana Public School to a well-deserved title.The Royal Gondwana Public School triumphed twice by winning the final of the boys' U-14 category as well, as they annihilated Centre Point School (Seminary Hills) with a pulverising 8-wicket triumph.Batting first, Centre Point School started the match in front, courtesy of a 118-run partnership for the 2nd wicket between Armaan Sadhwani and Pratham Singhania. While Armaan was eventually dismissed after a gritty knock of 72 runs, Pratham Singhania stayed unbeaten until the end, consolidating the innings with an exquisite and articulate knock of 97 runs.In response, Siddharth Namsani was at his belligerent best as he produced a pyrotechnic knock before he was agonisingly dismissed for 96 runs. Eventually, Aryan Nishad's unbeaten cameo of 38 runs propelled The Royal Gondwana Public School to their maiden U-14 MI Junior title.In the girls' under-15 category, Shri Rajendra High School dominated proceedings to thump St. Joseph Convent High School by a commanding margin of 7 wickets, thereby retaining their dominance as they were crowned the MI Junior champions for the 5th consecutive season after finishing as the runners-up in the 1st edition.Brief ScoresBoys U-14: The Royal Gondwana Public School 214/2 in 25.1 overs (Siddharth Namsani 96, Aryan Nishad 38 n o, Ronnit Rathi 36) bt Centre Point School (Seminary Hills) 212/9 in 40 overs (Pratham Singhania 97 n o, Armaan Sadhwani 72; Pratheek Jatoth 3/31, Om Dehrwal 2/32).Boys U-16: The Royal Gondwana Public School 214/6 in 38.1 overs (Siddharth Gupta 72, Nagesh Umale 44, Rahul Sharma 25, Mohammad Sheikh 21 n o; Atharva Bajad 4/42, Anukalp Wankhede 2/19) bt Shri Rajendra High School all out 213 in 38.1 overs (Arjun Mahajan 81, Vishesh Chawda 38; Siddharth Gupta 4/25, Nagesh Umale 3/41).Girls U-15: Shri Rajendra High School 72/3 in 8.4 overs (Janvee Bishnoi 29; Vidhi Karnik 2/21) bt St. Joseph Convent High School 68/5 in 20 overs (Latika Hirapure 29; Gunjan Taywade 3/4, Mihika Agashe 2/1).