Bowlers Vijay S, Abhi , Sam and Gopal playing for Team B, relished the bowler friendly conditions at Nobel Recreation Centre Ground(Small), having been asked to bowl first by Team A. Mudit put up some resistance at the top but runs were hard to come by. Team A crawled to 27/2 at the half way stage in the 16 over game. Team A was eventually dismissed in 13 overs scoring just a modest 64/5. Parag provided some acceleration in the latter half of the inning. Mudit 12 (27b) and Parag 28 (26b, 3*4) scored a few runs for Team A.
Team B opened with Rajesh and Shekhar. Rajesh was unable to score with ease. Shekhar kept hitting the ball softly to the gaps thereby being able to squeeze singles. Shekhar 22 (38b) and Abhi 12 (22b) later on guided Team B to a relatively easy win with an over to spare and 2 wickets in hand. Amit and Rosie bowled well between them restricting the scoring to just 26 runs in their allotted overs. The modest score would have appeared larger had Team A bowlers managed to capture wickets more frequently.
About 3 or 4 players skipped the internal game having confirmed their presence earlier. Internal games are equally enjoyable and challenging.
http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=pEn3926bpcprd2sdckZjUVw&hl=en
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Monday, October 20, 2008
Match against Shadows on 10/11/2008
We won the toss and elected to field in the 20 over game. The game began at Cypress Canyon Ground (Big) but had to be moved to Westview Parkway Ground(Upper) after the first 4 overs.
Hari and Ajay shared the first 8 overs with the new ball and between them picked up 3 of the top 4 batsmen. Gopal and Parag shared 4 overs but gave away a few runs between them. Regular bowlers Sam, Abhi and Vijay S returned later on and picked up the next 7 wickets between them. All catches that went to hand were collected. The top pick was the one held by Abhi at first slip as he stretched his hand back and held on to the ball even as he fell down.
The new opposition named Shadows was dismissed for a meagre 84 runs in 17.67 overs.
Abhi and Vijay S opened the batting but Yoga dismissed Abhi on only the second ball of the chase. Amit and Vijay S steadied the inning. The ground the match was played on was very uneven, devoid of grass, and was even dusty. Vijay S adjusted to the uneven nature of the pitch pretty well. Amit too seemed to have settled but was needlessly run out when he hit one straight to short cover and started off for a run but was sent back by Vijay S. Shekhar joined Vijay S and together they ran singles and twos to take us closer to victory. Vijay S was held in the deep on the off-side with a very few runs left in the chase. Vijay S made a valuable 30 (47b) and Amit contributed with 19 (26b, 1*4). Shekhar made way for Hari who hit one boundary and returned after being held at short mid-wicket. Rahul B and Ajay then stuck around to erase the short deficit. We thus won the game by 6 wickets and 15 balls to spare.
This win came as a relief after three successive losses to Sony. As expected we dominated the game against a new team without using available resources to the fullest.
http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=pEn3926bpcpoVPxvzTOfQfQ&hl=en
Hari and Ajay shared the first 8 overs with the new ball and between them picked up 3 of the top 4 batsmen. Gopal and Parag shared 4 overs but gave away a few runs between them. Regular bowlers Sam, Abhi and Vijay S returned later on and picked up the next 7 wickets between them. All catches that went to hand were collected. The top pick was the one held by Abhi at first slip as he stretched his hand back and held on to the ball even as he fell down.
The new opposition named Shadows was dismissed for a meagre 84 runs in 17.67 overs.
Abhi and Vijay S opened the batting but Yoga dismissed Abhi on only the second ball of the chase. Amit and Vijay S steadied the inning. The ground the match was played on was very uneven, devoid of grass, and was even dusty. Vijay S adjusted to the uneven nature of the pitch pretty well. Amit too seemed to have settled but was needlessly run out when he hit one straight to short cover and started off for a run but was sent back by Vijay S. Shekhar joined Vijay S and together they ran singles and twos to take us closer to victory. Vijay S was held in the deep on the off-side with a very few runs left in the chase. Vijay S made a valuable 30 (47b) and Amit contributed with 19 (26b, 1*4). Shekhar made way for Hari who hit one boundary and returned after being held at short mid-wicket. Rahul B and Ajay then stuck around to erase the short deficit. We thus won the game by 6 wickets and 15 balls to spare.
This win came as a relief after three successive losses to Sony. As expected we dominated the game against a new team without using available resources to the fullest.
http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=pEn3926bpcpoVPxvzTOfQfQ&hl=en
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Match 10 against Doyle Devils on 10/19/2008
Doyle Devils won the toss and elected to field at Cypress Canyon Ground (Small).
Siva and Hari opened the batting. Kartik started the first over with a few wides but then bowled Hari on a ball that stayed relatively low. Siva was bowled by Pankaj in the third over with a delivery that came in and was well pitched. Parag and Shekhar steadied the batting for a while and the score at the end of 5 overs was 22. Shekhar was run out by Venkat running to square leg from mid-wicket. Santosh walked in to join Parag and together they took the score to 48/3 in 10 overs. Early morning conditions saw the ball come with good pace and high bounce making scoring not all that easy.
Santosh lofted one to long on where Sriram held a good catch running in towards his right. Samir walked in and within a few balls struck a boundary towards long with a firm drive. Prashant had been bowling well throughout on the day. He bowled Samir with a good delivery that was almost a yorker and was also angling in. Parag was run out when the firm uppish shot was stopped by Kartik at short cover. The ball rolled towards the bowler and Abhi began running towards the batsman's end. Parag had scored a steady 34 (50b) but was dismissed just at a time when the acceleration had begun. The score at the end of 15 overs was 78/6 and a target of 110 seemed a possibility. Abhi and Vijay S scored a few quick runs and were dismissed going for shots. Abhi scored 13(23b) and Vijay S played a good brisk knock of 13 (11b). We eventually scored 104/9 which was about 6 runs short of what we could have reached.
The conditions for batting in the second half are much easier at this ground but 105 was a good target to defend. Tushnim and Kartik opened the batting. Tushnim hit one over the infield towards cover and got a boundary on the very first ball bowled by Abhi. Suresh at the other end began with a few wides and DD (Doyle Devils) reached 13/0 in 2 overs. Abhi bowled a good third over and dismissed Tushnim caught by Santosh behind the wicket. Venkat came in one down and started with a flurry of fours in the 4th over bowled by Suresh. At 26/1 in 4 overs DD were well placed to chase the target. Kartik and Venkat continued to play the bowling with ease and maintained the scoring rate at or below the required rate. Venkat in particular was playing excellent shots over the infield on the off side and was also picking up the gaps well. Kartik at the other end played steadily and provided good support from one end. Rajesh threw one from deep cover to Parag at short cover who then passed on to Santosh to dismiss Venkat just before the 10 over break. DD were placed at 48/2 at the half way stage and the game was thus in balance with DD having the advantage of knowing the target with batting conditions also in their favor.
Vijay S and Siva had done well to pull down the scoring rate prior to the 10 over break. Samir and Hari continued from there and did extremely well to keep the game in balance until the end of 17 overs. Kartik and Joy were run-out going for the second run. Vijays/Abhi did well in the field to send the ball in sharp to Santosh from behind the wicket. Prashant was caught behind in the 17th over bowled by Samir. Overs 11 to 17 with the Samir/Hari bowling combination had yielded just 28 runs for 3 wickets. 29 runs were required in the final three overs and we seemed to be in control of proceedings and the favorites to win. Pavel had other ideas and had decided to not leave things until the final over. Pavel struck two huge shots towards wide mid-on and then over extra cover. The 18th over from Siva produced 11 runs and 18 runs were required in 2 overs. Vijay S bowled a fantastic 19th over yielding just 5 runs which meant that 13 runs were required in the final over. Pavel and Pankaj were the batsmen at the crease and Pavel had strike on the first ball. The first ball from Hari was hit towards long on and the batsmen scampered for a quick two. The second ball was struck for a huge six over long on and the balance quickly shifted in favor of the DD side. Hari came back well and conceded a single in the next two balls leaving just 4 to get in the final two balls. Hari then bowled a wide at a very crucial point and then conceded a two leaving the scores tied, with Pavel on strike and one ball to go. The game was up for grabs for DD mainly due to the heroics of Pavel. The fielders on the off side were brought in and there was cover on the leg side with three fielders in the deep. Hari pitched the ball up and Pavel decided to not go for the slog but just drive the ball towards the fielder at long on. The ball caught the very bottom of the bat and popped up right towards the bowler. Hari having had come in as he bowled held the catch with ease. The game ended as a tie bringing satisfaction / disappointment to either side at different points in the final three overs.
In the end we were glad to not lose a game that we should have ideally won. The game also brought some excitement with display of good batting skills by a few of the DD side and some signs of a fight back by our bowling/fielding side.
http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=pEn3926bpcpoUMRtYYEkUKw&hl=en
Siva and Hari opened the batting. Kartik started the first over with a few wides but then bowled Hari on a ball that stayed relatively low. Siva was bowled by Pankaj in the third over with a delivery that came in and was well pitched. Parag and Shekhar steadied the batting for a while and the score at the end of 5 overs was 22. Shekhar was run out by Venkat running to square leg from mid-wicket. Santosh walked in to join Parag and together they took the score to 48/3 in 10 overs. Early morning conditions saw the ball come with good pace and high bounce making scoring not all that easy.
Santosh lofted one to long on where Sriram held a good catch running in towards his right. Samir walked in and within a few balls struck a boundary towards long with a firm drive. Prashant had been bowling well throughout on the day. He bowled Samir with a good delivery that was almost a yorker and was also angling in. Parag was run out when the firm uppish shot was stopped by Kartik at short cover. The ball rolled towards the bowler and Abhi began running towards the batsman's end. Parag had scored a steady 34 (50b) but was dismissed just at a time when the acceleration had begun. The score at the end of 15 overs was 78/6 and a target of 110 seemed a possibility. Abhi and Vijay S scored a few quick runs and were dismissed going for shots. Abhi scored 13(23b) and Vijay S played a good brisk knock of 13 (11b). We eventually scored 104/9 which was about 6 runs short of what we could have reached.
The conditions for batting in the second half are much easier at this ground but 105 was a good target to defend. Tushnim and Kartik opened the batting. Tushnim hit one over the infield towards cover and got a boundary on the very first ball bowled by Abhi. Suresh at the other end began with a few wides and DD (Doyle Devils) reached 13/0 in 2 overs. Abhi bowled a good third over and dismissed Tushnim caught by Santosh behind the wicket. Venkat came in one down and started with a flurry of fours in the 4th over bowled by Suresh. At 26/1 in 4 overs DD were well placed to chase the target. Kartik and Venkat continued to play the bowling with ease and maintained the scoring rate at or below the required rate. Venkat in particular was playing excellent shots over the infield on the off side and was also picking up the gaps well. Kartik at the other end played steadily and provided good support from one end. Rajesh threw one from deep cover to Parag at short cover who then passed on to Santosh to dismiss Venkat just before the 10 over break. DD were placed at 48/2 at the half way stage and the game was thus in balance with DD having the advantage of knowing the target with batting conditions also in their favor.
Vijay S and Siva had done well to pull down the scoring rate prior to the 10 over break. Samir and Hari continued from there and did extremely well to keep the game in balance until the end of 17 overs. Kartik and Joy were run-out going for the second run. Vijays/Abhi did well in the field to send the ball in sharp to Santosh from behind the wicket. Prashant was caught behind in the 17th over bowled by Samir. Overs 11 to 17 with the Samir/Hari bowling combination had yielded just 28 runs for 3 wickets. 29 runs were required in the final three overs and we seemed to be in control of proceedings and the favorites to win. Pavel had other ideas and had decided to not leave things until the final over. Pavel struck two huge shots towards wide mid-on and then over extra cover. The 18th over from Siva produced 11 runs and 18 runs were required in 2 overs. Vijay S bowled a fantastic 19th over yielding just 5 runs which meant that 13 runs were required in the final over. Pavel and Pankaj were the batsmen at the crease and Pavel had strike on the first ball. The first ball from Hari was hit towards long on and the batsmen scampered for a quick two. The second ball was struck for a huge six over long on and the balance quickly shifted in favor of the DD side. Hari came back well and conceded a single in the next two balls leaving just 4 to get in the final two balls. Hari then bowled a wide at a very crucial point and then conceded a two leaving the scores tied, with Pavel on strike and one ball to go. The game was up for grabs for DD mainly due to the heroics of Pavel. The fielders on the off side were brought in and there was cover on the leg side with three fielders in the deep. Hari pitched the ball up and Pavel decided to not go for the slog but just drive the ball towards the fielder at long on. The ball caught the very bottom of the bat and popped up right towards the bowler. Hari having had come in as he bowled held the catch with ease. The game ended as a tie bringing satisfaction / disappointment to either side at different points in the final three overs.
In the end we were glad to not lose a game that we should have ideally won. The game also brought some excitement with display of good batting skills by a few of the DD side and some signs of a fight back by our bowling/fielding side.
http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=pEn3926bpcpoUMRtYYEkUKw&hl=en
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Match against Sony on 10/04/2008
We fielded a well balanced team against team against Sony after two successive losses and were confident of doing well on the day. The wicket at Nobel Recreation Centre (Big) had good bounce and pace and was dry. We chose to field to test ourselves in a chase. Little did we know as to what the turn of events over the next few hours would be.
Sony started with Amit and Narayanan who provided a start at almost a run a ball. Amit hit a couple of fours but was bowled by Sam. Pankaj struck a quick 13 (8b, 1*4, 1*6) but was run out when he glided one to third man and went for a sharp second run. The sixth over being bowled by Vijay S yielded 12 runs but a good throw by Abhi had provided an opening with Pankaj being dismissed. Boundaries however were being hit with fair regularity on the occasional loose ball being bowled every odd over.
Sony progressed from 30/2 in 5 overs to 45/3 in 7 overs and 52/4 in 10 overs. Bala came in after 10 overs and struck 15 runs in the 13th over being bowled by Siva. This over tilted the momentum of the inning heavily in favor of Sony. Three successive boundaries were followed by a huge hit off Amit towards mid-wicket in the very next over. Amit however struck back to get Bala bowled.
After 14 overs we were kicked out from the ground and moved to the nearby small ground in the same park. The 20 over game was reduced to a 16 over affair. Sony finished with 92/8 in 16 overs which was a very healthy score on a bowler friendly wicket with odd bounce and pace.
Samir and Parag held a couple of good catches. Shekhar came up with a direct hit to dismiss Narayanan but the ground fielding was loose on a few occasions.
Hari and Samir opened the inning. Hari went after the bowling from the first ball but Samir at the other end played with caution. Hari was caught in the deep at long on after scoring 9 (8b, 1*4). Abhi joined Samir and both could not overcome the uneven pace and bounce of the wicket. The scoring rate hovered around 4 an over when a run-a-ball was required. Samir finally decided to lash out but was bowled (7 in 21b) by Pankaj. Abhi too got held in the deep on the leg side as the ball took the edge when he lashed out on an overpitched ball (4 in 21b).
At 29/3 in 8 overs, an RPO of 8 was required to win the game which was a tough ask on that wicket. Every new batsmen that came in thereafter had to go after the bowling without taking a good look at the bowling and the wicket.
Sam struck a huge six straight over the bowler's head on the off side but was bowled by Pankaj (11 in 10b, 1*6). Sam, Suresh and Vijay S were all dismissed in a single over from Pankaj. Parag (15 in 18b) and Siva were dismissed by Pankaj as well.
Sony struck our bowling for 10 fours and a six, whereas we were able to hit only one four and a six. We eventually were dismissed for a paltry 65 in 15 overs. 54 dot balls by us in the 16 over game meant we were required to score 93 in 42 balls which is a quite an ask at any level of the game. Pankaj bowled exceedingly well to dismiss 6 of our batsmen in four overs and was the performer of the day.
With three successive wins in three games Sony seems to be on top at this time. We on the other hand seem to be not maintaining our high standards and expectations with no combination yielding any results.
http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=pEn3926bpcprL29BLK2hfIg&hl=en
Sony started with Amit and Narayanan who provided a start at almost a run a ball. Amit hit a couple of fours but was bowled by Sam. Pankaj struck a quick 13 (8b, 1*4, 1*6) but was run out when he glided one to third man and went for a sharp second run. The sixth over being bowled by Vijay S yielded 12 runs but a good throw by Abhi had provided an opening with Pankaj being dismissed. Boundaries however were being hit with fair regularity on the occasional loose ball being bowled every odd over.
Sony progressed from 30/2 in 5 overs to 45/3 in 7 overs and 52/4 in 10 overs. Bala came in after 10 overs and struck 15 runs in the 13th over being bowled by Siva. This over tilted the momentum of the inning heavily in favor of Sony. Three successive boundaries were followed by a huge hit off Amit towards mid-wicket in the very next over. Amit however struck back to get Bala bowled.
After 14 overs we were kicked out from the ground and moved to the nearby small ground in the same park. The 20 over game was reduced to a 16 over affair. Sony finished with 92/8 in 16 overs which was a very healthy score on a bowler friendly wicket with odd bounce and pace.
Samir and Parag held a couple of good catches. Shekhar came up with a direct hit to dismiss Narayanan but the ground fielding was loose on a few occasions.
Hari and Samir opened the inning. Hari went after the bowling from the first ball but Samir at the other end played with caution. Hari was caught in the deep at long on after scoring 9 (8b, 1*4). Abhi joined Samir and both could not overcome the uneven pace and bounce of the wicket. The scoring rate hovered around 4 an over when a run-a-ball was required. Samir finally decided to lash out but was bowled (7 in 21b) by Pankaj. Abhi too got held in the deep on the leg side as the ball took the edge when he lashed out on an overpitched ball (4 in 21b).
At 29/3 in 8 overs, an RPO of 8 was required to win the game which was a tough ask on that wicket. Every new batsmen that came in thereafter had to go after the bowling without taking a good look at the bowling and the wicket.
Sam struck a huge six straight over the bowler's head on the off side but was bowled by Pankaj (11 in 10b, 1*6). Sam, Suresh and Vijay S were all dismissed in a single over from Pankaj. Parag (15 in 18b) and Siva were dismissed by Pankaj as well.
Sony struck our bowling for 10 fours and a six, whereas we were able to hit only one four and a six. We eventually were dismissed for a paltry 65 in 15 overs. 54 dot balls by us in the 16 over game meant we were required to score 93 in 42 balls which is a quite an ask at any level of the game. Pankaj bowled exceedingly well to dismiss 6 of our batsmen in four overs and was the performer of the day.
With three successive wins in three games Sony seems to be on top at this time. We on the other hand seem to be not maintaining our high standards and expectations with no combination yielding any results.
http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=pEn3926bpcprL29BLK2hfIg&hl=en
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