14 teams taking part in Buchi Babu tourney

Like last year, the MRF sponsored Buchi Babu all India invitation tournament to be held in Chennai from August 12 to 30 will have an international flavour. And again this will be provided by the presence of the New Zealand Cricket Academy.

The popular annual tournament this year will have 14 teams and the presence of some strong teams is bound to add spice to the contests. Last year's winners National Cricket Academy and runners-up Oil and Natural Gas Commission have drawn byes into the quarterfinals.

The tournament commences with two matches with Indian Railwways meeting Maharashtra Cricket Association and All India Associate Banks clashing with Tamil Nadu Districts XI. These matches are scheduled to be played from August 12 to 14.

The other four first round matches will be played from August 16 to 18. These pit MRF against Hyderabad Cricket Association, Mumbai Cricket Association against New Zealand Cricket Academy, Indian Airlines against Jolly Rovers and MAC-TNCA XI against Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA).

ONGC await the winners of the match between MAC-TNCA XI and KSCA while NCA meet the winners of the game between Indian Railways and Maharashtra. The four quarter-finals will be played from August 20 to 22. The semifinals are slated to be held from August 24 to 26 and the final will be played at the MA Chidambaram stadium from August 28 to 30.