Manchester Super Giants owned by Indian industrialist Sanjiv Goenka have lifted their first-ever trophy after winning the Men’s Hundred title on Sunday. They beat Trent Rockets in a thrilling final at the iconic Lords stadium. Super Giants chased down the total of 158 with five wickets and two balls to spare. This win was the franchise’s first title (men’s or women’s) in The Hundred. The Manchester side was previously known as the Originals before the rebrand under Goenka’s ownership. They had reached the final twice before without winning. This is also the first major trophy for any of the Super Giants franchise.
Trent Rockets scored 158/8 in the first innings after being put into bat first. Chasing the target, New Zealand opener Tim Seifert stole the show in the Final as he smashed 72 runs from just 38 balls including seven sixes and four fours in the chase. Seifert was named both Player of the Match and Player of the Series after finishing the tournament with 394 runs. Manchester captain Jos Buttler scored a quick fire 23 while Leus du Plooy remained unbeaten on 27.
They were cruising the chase and needed only three runs from nine balls. In a shocking twist, Mohammad Amir picked up a few wickets and a string of dot balls made the equation to three runs needed from three balls but Liam Dawson held his nerve and sealed the win with a six over mid-wicket.
Sanjiv Goenka celebrates first T20 trophy for Super Giants family
Sanjiv Goenka has been in the news a lot of times for his passion around his franchise. He owns plenty of teams in franchise cricket and has created a Super Giants family in the circuit which also includes Lucknow Super Giants in the IPL and Durban Super Giants in SA20. This was the first year he brought the Manchester Super Giants. However it was a very special night for him as this was the first time his franchise has won a T20 tournament. They completed a remarkable turnaround by winning five matches in a row after sitting on the brink of elimination earlier in the competition.
Goenka celebrated the moment on social media, calling it “a proud moment for all of us in the Super Giants family” and praising the collective effort including Seifert’s batting, Noor Ahmad’s bowling, and Jos Buttler’s leadership. This victory also added another major achievement to captain Jos Buttler’s career. The England white-ball World Cup winning captain was emotional after leading his side to the trophy and credited the entire squad for their remarkable run.
“It’s a mixture of emotions, I think. Absolute excitement and euphoria of winning it. A little bit of relief after the last few balls there. But a fantastic effort from everyone. I think Tim mentioned to win five games in a row to be in this position to lift the trophy. I think we deserve it,” Buttler said after the match. The win also denied Trent Rockets a unique double. Trent Rocket women’s team had earlier lifted their first Hundred title on the same day at Lord’s, but the men fell just short in the evening final.
