After a gruelling five-month elimination process, Choice XI of Thohoyandou emerged the winners of the Venda Technical Cricket T20 Tournament. They played against Sibasa XI in the finals.

The finals of this annual tournament took place at the Venda Technical High School sports grounds on Sunday.

Sibasa were the first to bat and managed to score 122 runs in 20 overs. Choice replied with 123 runs, with one over to spare.

Twenty-three teams from areas like Sibasa, Giyani, Polokwane, Malamulele, Louis Trichardt and Thohoyandou participated in the tournament. The defending champions, Hingalla XI, made an early exit from the tournament when they were eliminated in the preliminary stages.

Choice XI  took home a big trophy and medals for all the players, while Sibasa XI also received a trophy and medals. The Man of the Match in the final, Salim Patel, and the Man of the Series, Imram Masa, also received trophies during the prize-giving ceremony. Ikram Mella was named best bowler of the tournament.

Businessman and community leader Mr Ayub Madina of the Madina Group of Companies, who co-sponsored the tournament with the Choice Group, said sport had the potential to build unity among people. Speaking during the ceremony, Madina said businesspeople encountered a lot of stress in their day-to-day running of their businesses.

'Like any other human being, we sometimes get tired and our minds are saturated with business activities. We felt that sitting down and rest would not help us and this is where the idea of a cricket league came about. We are very happy that it is doing the trick. Every day after work we participate in cricket. It is an excellent stress reliever," he added.