A Bud Cricket Club (Blue) batsman plays a shot at Nehru Stadium in Guwahati on Friday. Picture by Eastern Projections

Guwahati, Feb. 20: Guwahati Cricket Coaching Centre (GCCC) A stormed into the semi-finals of 7th Jugal Kishore Newatia Bud Challenge cricket tournament by handing a humiliating nine-wicket defeat to Bud Cricket Club (Blue) in a quarter-final match at Nehru Stadium here today.

The second string squad of the defending champions Bud Cricket Club elected to bat first and were all out for 153 in 37.4 overs.

Later, Pritam Debnath and former Ranji player Parag Das took advantage of some indisciplined bowling by the Bud bowlers to guide their team to victory. GCCC (A) piled up 156 losing only one wicket in 18 overs to storm into the last four.

The Bud side played an average innings losing wickets at regular intervals against some tight bowling by the opponents, especially spinner Bhaskar Jyoti Barman who notched up four for 20 in eight overs and Jyoti Medhi who accounted for three scalps giving away 27 runs in 6.4 overs.

Dipjyoti Nath topscored for Bud with a steady 42-run knock hitting four boundaries. Twenty-nine runs came from the bat of Rajib Kalita while Debojit Bhuyan added 20 to the total. Both of them hit two boundaries each.

Later, Parag Das topscored for GCCC (A) with a hurricane 85 in only 57 balls. His unbeaten knock was laced with 13 hits to the ropes and two over it. His innings earned him the Man of the Match award.

Pritam Debnath also gave him good support at the other end with a classy 64. His 51-ball innings comprised 11 boundaries and a huge six.

Moinuddin Ahmed of Bud claimed the only wicket conceding one run off the only over he bowled.

Gauhati Town Club will meet hosts Bud Cricket Club (Maroon) in the first semi-final on Sunday.