Highlights
- The Minister XI and High Commissioner XI played a friendly match to celebrate Australia-India friendship.
- The High Commissioner XI won the match by nine runs.
- The event was attended by NSW Customer Service and Digital Minister Victor Dominello, Federal Liberal MP for Reid Fiona Martin, NSW Nationals MP for Coffs Harbour Gurmesh Singh, Consul General Manish Gupta and community members.
The 11-over match between the High Commissioner XI and the Minister XI was played at the Bressington Park in Homebush, Sydney, on Sunday 15 May.
The event was organised by the Australian-Indian Sports Educational and Cultural Society (AISECS).
Founder of AISECS Gurnam Singh said the Free Trade Agreement, signed on 2 April, would further deepen the trade and investment relationship between Australia and India.
"This event is a celebration of India-Australia friendship," he told SBS Gujarati.
Among those who attended the match were NSW Customer Service and Digital Minister Victor Dominello, Federal Liberal MP for Reid Fiona Martin, NSW Nationals MP for Coffs Harbour Gurmesh Singh, Consul General Manish Gupta, Deputy Lord Mayor of Parramatta Sameer Pandey, community leaders, international students from India and cricket lovers from the community.
Captaining the Minister XI, Mr Dominello won the toss and invited the High Commissioner XI to bat first.
The Minister XI and High Commissioner XI played a friendly match to celebrate Australia-India friendship. Source: Vatsal Patel
The High Commissioner XI put a good total on the board, scoring 83 runs from 11 overs. Varun Chhikara was the top scorer with 27 runs from 12 balls. Before retiring, he smashed three sixes and a four for his team. For the Minister XI, Gurmesh Singh took two wickets while conceding just eight runs.
In reply, the Minister XI scored 74 from 11 overs to fall just short of their target, despite Sameer Pandey scoring 25 off 17 balls, including a six and three fours. For the High Commissioner XI, Sudip Bhattacharya took three wickets for the loss of 18 runs. The High Commissioner XI won the match by nine runs.
Sameer Pandey was declared a man of the match.
Captain of the losing side Mr Dominello said, "Winning and losing is a part of the game, but we enjoyed the friendship between Australia and India through cricket.
High Commissioner XI beat Minister XI by nine runs. Source: Vatsal Patel
Relations between both countries are strong, but we need to make sure they get stronger.
Mr Dominello was also full of praise for the young players on display.
"We had some state players from the young teams who had time to shine on the pitch, and the camaraderie between the teams was great to watch."
Consul General Manish Gupta also championed the power of sports to bring people closer.
"An event like a cricket match certainly brings people and our two communities together," he said.
The Liberal MP for the inner-west Sydney seat of Reid, Fiona Martin, also took part in the match.
Liberal MP Fiona Martin takes part in the friendly match for Minister XI. Source: supplied by: Dr Fiona Martin MP Office
"Cricket is known as the gentleman's sport, but of course, many women play cricket today, and we have a great women's team that I am very proud of as well," she told SBS Gujarati.
"Cricket bonds our two countries together in many ways. It's one of the most popular sports and epitomises the shared values that the two countries have," she added.
