After ten grueling weeks of highly competitive cricket at the Lauderhill Sports Park, Team Sri Lanka and Team Jamaica have emerged as the two remaining teams in the 2012 Lauderhill MAQT20 International Night Cricket Tournament. On Saturday, April 21 at 6 p.m., these two teams will face off in the final battle for victory at the "Cricket Night of Champions," in the Lauderhill Sports Park.

The final Cricket Night of Champions will kick off with a brief opening ceremony at 5 p.m. followed by the national anthem and the official coin toss. After the game, the winning team will be awarded the Mayor's Cup and winning purses from the Lauderhill Mall and Cricket Council USA. In addition, awards will be given to the tournament's outstanding players.

Hard battle won

It was a hard battle won for the final, as six-time champion Team Jamaica faces the up-and-coming Team Sri Lanka, who will make their first ever championship game appearance in the history of the Lauderhill Night Cricket tournament.

Team Sri Lanka guaranteed their spot in the final after a hard won semi-final with defending champion Team Trinidad and Tobago. To fight for the title, Sri Lanka had quick fire batsman Sachith Kongahakotuwage, who scored an aggressive 47 runs in the semi-finals, and game clinching batsman Hiren Patel, who made the final blow against Trinidad and Tobago with a crucial 37 runs not out. They also had bowler Srinivas Nandina, who successful kept Trinidad and Tobago at bay by scoring 2 wickets for 34 runs.

Team Jamaica also had a lethal bowling trio. In their crucial defeat against Team World XI, batsmen Glenroy Anglin earned 3 wickets for 17 runs, Garnell Campbell 3 wickets for 13 runs and Keyonie Gayle 2 wickets for 34 runs. They also have USA national batsman Steven Taylor, who in their game against World XI slammed a majestic 62 not out from 45 balls.

Best tournament yet

This year's tournament proved the most successful in the history of the Lauderhill MAQ T20 tournament, enjoying record breaking crowds each Saturday night at the Lauderhill Sports Park. Sponsored by the Cricket Council USA and the City of Lauderhill, fans have been thrilled by the high level cricket played by the teams representing Lauderhill, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, Barbados, Sri Lanka, India, Pakistan, Leeward Islands and Windward Islands.

Cricket Council U.S.A., Inc. (CCUSA) is an international sports and entertainment management company committed to developing cricket throughout the United States.