The 124th Dream Sports-Mumbai School Sports Association (MSSA) Giles Shield inter-school final between Dnyandeep Seva Mandal (Nerul) and Swami Vivekanand International School (SVIS), Borivli, that gets underway at Brabourne Stadium, Churchgate, on Tuesday promises to be a thrilling affair.
Dnyandeep enter the three-day final high on confidence, having beaten SVIS via the first innings lead in the league phase of the competition. Also, this is the Nerul side’s second successive final, having finished runners-up to Dr Ambedkar Vidyalaya (Vikrohli) last season. Coach Abdul Khan insists his boys are eager to make up for last year’s heartbreak. “Our plans are in place and we have worked hard on improving on our shortcomings. Being last year’s runners-up, the boys know what it takes to reach this stage. Also, since we played against them [SVIS] in the league round and were clearly the better team, my boys are confident of winning,” Khan told mid-day.
Coach Abdul Khan speaks to his Dnyandeep Seva Mandal team at a practice session at the Future Star Clinic Academy, Panvel, on Monday
SVIS, winners of the Giles Shield in 2019, are no strangers to big-match pressure. The Borivli outfit believe that the league-stage result against Dnyandeep will have no bearing on the final outcome. “We have confidence in our strengths and have ironed out our flaws. Statistics throughout the season do not matter. What matters is winning the final, and we are primed for it,” SVIS coach Lalu Yadav told mid-day.
