Information on Loughborough

Loughborough Students win inaugural national Twenty20 tournament

Posted on 26/06/2008
P. Klein

cricket ball

The Loughborough University Cricket Centre of Excellence (UCCE) team has won the inaugural MCC Universities Twenty20 tournament hosted in Durham this week (23-24 June).

 

After a successful run on day one of the tournament, where Loughborough put up convincing displays against rivals Cardiff and Oxford, the Midlanders met Leeds & Bradford UCCE in the final, which they won with ease by eight wickets.

 

Chasing 140 for 9, opening batsmen Paul Borrington and Johan Malcolm eased a century, before Borrington was caught out at 116-1. Malcolm was joined by Arun Harinath and Richard King for the remainder, the students taking the title in the 19th over.

 

In the earlier rounds, Loughborough beat Oxford by eight wickets and Cardiff by five wickets.

 

The MCC has introduced Twenty20 cricket to the UCCE programme as the discipline increases in importance on both the domestic and international scene. All six MCC Universities; Cambridge, Cardiff/Glamorgan, Durham, Leeds/Bradford, Loughborough and Oxford, as well as teams from Exeter and Bristol/UWE took part.

 

 

The inaugural tournament was utilised as a test run for a new pink ball that the MCC believes has better visibility at the end of an innings as it is less likely to pick up green colouring from the grass or become murky.

 

Loughborough’s UCCE squad now travel to London on Monday (30 June) for the UCCE Challenge final against Leeds/Bradford at Lords cricket ground. It is the first time Loughborough has made the final since 2005, having topped their league table.

 

The University’s women’s UCCE squad is also at Lords on Monday for the annual Loughborough vs the best of the rest fixture.