Friday, June 30, 2006
Thursday, June 29, 2006
MVP for May, June-2006
For the month of May and June, we had 47 games in Div-1, 86 games in Div-2 and 13 games in Div-30/30. We have 2 centuries in Div-1, 9 centuries(1 double century) in Div-2 and 2 centuries in Div-30/30.
Div-1MVP: Shahid Munir, from Pak Gymkhana
Shahid Munir continues where he left off last season leading the table with 55 points. He has scored 321 runs and taken 12 wickets(including 4 wickets in 4 balls against Milwaukee CC). He has scores of 42, 8, 12, 92, 50, 50, 67.
Shahid is closely followed by Mohammed Bakhshi - Pak Gymkhana with 46 points and Sohail Alvi- St Louis Cricket Club with 33 points.
Div-2MVP: Jack Challenor and Rupnarine Seenarain, both from Illinois Cricket Club
Jack and Rup lead the points table with 50 points.
Jack has scored 191 runs and taken 14 wickets. He started slow with scores of 7,1 and then went on to score 57*, 20*, 72 and 34.
Rup has scored 207 runs and taken 17 wickets. He has scored one century-112 against the warriors and has one 6 wicket haul against Continental.
They are closely followed by the run(century) machine Satha Sivapragasam - Capitol with 49 points and Subbu Kuppuswami- Eagles with 42 points. Satha has incredible scores of 105, 175, 223 and 2.
Div-30/30MVP: Afroze Siddiqui, from Spears
Afroze leads the table with 33 points. He has scored 214 runs and taken 5 wickets. He has scores of 127, 20 and 67.
Afroze is followed by Mitral Shah- Rockers with 20 points and Nadir Hussain-Burhani Cricket Club with 18 points.
How we do it:
We have developed a process that looks at all the games, breaks down the data and awards points based on an algorithm.
For batsmen, points are broken down based on the number of runs scored. For eg, 50 runs fetches 6 points and 100 runs fetches 10 etc. There are bonus points for being not out. If a player has scored 100 runs, thats 10 batting points plus 3 bonus points for being not out. We also award MVP points based on the percentage of runs the batsmen has scored with respect to the team score in a team victory.
For bowlers, a ten wicket haul fetches 15 points, a 5-fer gets you 10 points etc. There was a suggestion to use the bowling average and get some bonus points for the bowler. I will work on it. Any other sugestions are welcome.
PS: MVP's, please send in photographs to jaggi@midwestcricket.org
Div-1MVP: Shahid Munir, from Pak Gymkhana
Shahid Munir continues where he left off last season leading the table with 55 points. He has scored 321 runs and taken 12 wickets(including 4 wickets in 4 balls against Milwaukee CC). He has scores of 42, 8, 12, 92, 50, 50, 67.
Shahid is closely followed by Mohammed Bakhshi - Pak Gymkhana with 46 points and Sohail Alvi- St Louis Cricket Club with 33 points.
Div-2MVP: Jack Challenor and Rupnarine Seenarain, both from Illinois Cricket Club
Jack and Rup lead the points table with 50 points.
Jack has scored 191 runs and taken 14 wickets. He started slow with scores of 7,1 and then went on to score 57*, 20*, 72 and 34.
Rup has scored 207 runs and taken 17 wickets. He has scored one century-112 against the warriors and has one 6 wicket haul against Continental.
They are closely followed by the run(century) machine Satha Sivapragasam - Capitol with 49 points and Subbu Kuppuswami- Eagles with 42 points. Satha has incredible scores of 105, 175, 223 and 2.
Div-30/30MVP: Afroze Siddiqui, from Spears
Afroze leads the table with 33 points. He has scored 214 runs and taken 5 wickets. He has scores of 127, 20 and 67.
Afroze is followed by Mitral Shah- Rockers with 20 points and Nadir Hussain-Burhani Cricket Club with 18 points.
How we do it:
We have developed a process that looks at all the games, breaks down the data and awards points based on an algorithm.
For batsmen, points are broken down based on the number of runs scored. For eg, 50 runs fetches 6 points and 100 runs fetches 10 etc. There are bonus points for being not out. If a player has scored 100 runs, thats 10 batting points plus 3 bonus points for being not out. We also award MVP points based on the percentage of runs the batsmen has scored with respect to the team score in a team victory.
For bowlers, a ten wicket haul fetches 15 points, a 5-fer gets you 10 points etc. There was a suggestion to use the bowling average and get some bonus points for the bowler. I will work on it. Any other sugestions are welcome.
PS: MVP's, please send in photographs to jaggi@midwestcricket.org
Monday, June 19, 2006
Rain God and sportsmanship...
Sunday morning June 18th and its game day for PCC and QC Kings. Its the first game away for QC Kings from comfort of their home ground where they had a unbeaten season so far. From just looking at the body language of the team, I can tell, they are riding high with confidence and very much looking forward to secure their first win away from home. Its one and half hour drive to Mossville, Peoria where they will meet formidable PCC team. Its clash between two brand new, entirely different brand of Div-II teams this year. QC Kings, a new dynamic team with lots of confidence in their ability. PCC team with mix of experienced and new players who are playing together to bring some order to their season, win back glory of yester years. Lots of questions in the air; QC Kings a unbeaten team not looking forward for their first loss of the season, and PCC looking forward for a commanding win to set things straight in their quest towards championship. A perfect setting for a great clash! Sukhen Chatterjee, vice captain of QC Kings had requested to start the game at 10 AM in the morning and PCC team obliged his teams request. Sukhen being a past Peoria resident knew the area too well was first to arrive to the ground. Unfortunately his team members have taken a wrong exit and have gone too far in opposite direction. Finally, every one arrived to the ground at around 10:30 AM with high intensity as one of QC Kings team member Raj said "We looking forward for something special'. Match was about to begin and drama was to unfold!
Weather forecast for the day did not sound promising according to weather.com. There was 60% chance of rain through out the day and every one knew and said to each other "This is 'Illinois' weather Man; its here, there and its gone". And, seldom does weather man win their bets in these parts of Midwest. By time QC Kings team arrived, it was slightly drizzling. It was still playable conditions. Both team started their warm up drill and suddenly heavens opened up; It started to down pour. Clouds were thick and there was no sign of rain abetting. Both teams stood under shelter praying to Rain God to stop. Vivek Bhaskar from PCC was entertaining every one by imitating every member on the PCC team. It very nice atmosphere; but my one eye was always on the rain which did not show any signs of stopping. Rain kept on falling nonstop. It was like some one in Heavens forgot to shut off sprinklers for the day. At about 11:30 AM, exact hour half after the schedule start time, down pour changed to slight drizzle with sky clear at the far end. There was slight hope that if clouds above the ground pass, there might good weather coming our way in about hour or so. Dr B and myself inspected the ground and pitch was unplayable with water 'slurping' when you walk on it. Dr. B decided that it was unplayable but said they would hang around Peoria for another couple hours before taking route back to Moline. All hopes were lost at this point for a crucial tie between two exciting teams. Umpire Kiran Vukanti was very gracious enough volunteer to hang out to see if there is possibility of the game in hour or two. But hopes were dim. With nothing to do QC Kings decide to took off on tour de Peoria with Vice captain Sukhen at the helm. Dr B, Captain of QC kings came up to me and said current conditions were not ideal for a game. But he added they would hang around Peoria for couple hours before they take off to Moline. Vice Captain Sukhen dropped off his cell phone number with me and umpire to call him right away if conditions change. And off went entire QC Kings team.
PCC home ground at Midwest Sports Complex, Mossville Peoria, was recently added to list of many grounds that MCC management helped local teams to acquire in bid to expand league and provide better facilities to visiting MCC teams. PCC home is basically a huge soccer field and pitch is built between two existing soccer fields, minus the soccer goal posts. There was lots of convincing done by PCC team management that SFC management (who owns Midwest sports complex) would NOT lose soccer fields by having a cricket ground build there. Basically, pitch was planned in such a way that it is constructed midway (parallel) to least used soccer fields. It was such a scary thought to board of members who could not comprehend that we would be basically digging up 12X80 ft area, put concrete and stick astro on the top of the pitch. But once they saw vision through series of meetings, atlast gave PCC permission to go ahead with project. PCC ground is very picturesque with hills (should say mounds as locals call it!) on west and Illinois river at visible distance in the east on the other side of RT 29. Basically its a river basin and perfect area to play cricket with gentle wind always blowing one end. Since the ground is build for soccer, it is setup with perfect water drainage. Also, there are good rest room facilities and mess hall available for teams to use. (Working on getting a key to the facility; Volunteers open the facility and for couple games for Lucky XI and QC Kings it was not opened until really late in the afternoon. But we do have portable potties at ends of the ground which are 500 yards away) Best part about the out field is water never logs on the ground, but gets quickly absorbed and always dry from the top. This setup suits to cricket much better. Also, astro that MCC management helped PCC acquire is very thin (its not carpet based) and water dries so fast as heat radiated from concrete. Its amazing!
Rain stopped at 12 PM, weather looked perfect with blues skies visible over head. Sun peaked His 'smiley face' little bit and we knew it was only matter of time before we can start the game. Umpire and myself decided it would take an hour to get the pitch dry and immediately called Sukhen Chatterjee that we can start the game at around 1 PM if they are available and acceptable to their team. QC Kings graciously accepted and said team will be there at 1 PM. In the mean team PCC team worked hard to get the ground dried with few old cloths and old new papers. We got it pretty dry by 1 PM and captain Dr. B came up inspected, said it was good enough to play. Myself and Dr B had consultation with umpire and decided to curtail number of overs to 30 and still have 20 over rain rule as is. We immediately went to the toss and started the game at around 1:15 PM. Game was high quality and competitive!
Most striking part about QC Kings right up front was their attitude and indomitable spirit to play cricket at what ever it takes. It was their readiness and eagerness to play the game of cricket even after three hours of stoppage due to rain (game was suppose to start at 10 AM) is what set them apart from other teams I have experienced in the past 10 years of my cricket career with MCC. I personally seen in the past where few team were ready to split points and go home with out even bowling a single ball. They would call from comfort of their to enquire about weather situation and see if they can get out of it by splitting points with out playing. But this new breed of cricket attitude has definitely caught me by surprise that MCC teams are changing their attitude about game of Cricket and are indeed becoming more professional in their approach to their playing away games. What a fantastic gesture it was to us from QC Kings. We worked really hard to the ground ready and we were not looking forward to go home with out playing the game. We love this game and wanted to play it as long conditions were favorable for decent match. Let me assert that good gestures are never forgotten and in fact contagious; I sincerely hope that all teams that are reading this follow the example set by QC Kings. Its not about the points, its about satisfaction of playing fair, competitive game of cricket that matters at the end of the day.
QC Kings and PCC played a fantastic match and what ever the outcome was, it was CRICKET in the end that was WINNER! Kudos to the QC Kings for their sportsmanship and they have just won me as their great FAN! QC Kings 'Wish you very best in your season ahead'.
Written By: Madhu Reddy of Peoria CC
Weather forecast for the day did not sound promising according to weather.com. There was 60% chance of rain through out the day and every one knew and said to each other "This is 'Illinois' weather Man; its here, there and its gone". And, seldom does weather man win their bets in these parts of Midwest. By time QC Kings team arrived, it was slightly drizzling. It was still playable conditions. Both team started their warm up drill and suddenly heavens opened up; It started to down pour. Clouds were thick and there was no sign of rain abetting. Both teams stood under shelter praying to Rain God to stop. Vivek Bhaskar from PCC was entertaining every one by imitating every member on the PCC team. It very nice atmosphere; but my one eye was always on the rain which did not show any signs of stopping. Rain kept on falling nonstop. It was like some one in Heavens forgot to shut off sprinklers for the day. At about 11:30 AM, exact hour half after the schedule start time, down pour changed to slight drizzle with sky clear at the far end. There was slight hope that if clouds above the ground pass, there might good weather coming our way in about hour or so. Dr B and myself inspected the ground and pitch was unplayable with water 'slurping' when you walk on it. Dr. B decided that it was unplayable but said they would hang around Peoria for another couple hours before taking route back to Moline. All hopes were lost at this point for a crucial tie between two exciting teams. Umpire Kiran Vukanti was very gracious enough volunteer to hang out to see if there is possibility of the game in hour or two. But hopes were dim. With nothing to do QC Kings decide to took off on tour de Peoria with Vice captain Sukhen at the helm. Dr B, Captain of QC kings came up to me and said current conditions were not ideal for a game. But he added they would hang around Peoria for couple hours before they take off to Moline. Vice Captain Sukhen dropped off his cell phone number with me and umpire to call him right away if conditions change. And off went entire QC Kings team.
PCC home ground at Midwest Sports Complex, Mossville Peoria, was recently added to list of many grounds that MCC management helped local teams to acquire in bid to expand league and provide better facilities to visiting MCC teams. PCC home is basically a huge soccer field and pitch is built between two existing soccer fields, minus the soccer goal posts. There was lots of convincing done by PCC team management that SFC management (who owns Midwest sports complex) would NOT lose soccer fields by having a cricket ground build there. Basically, pitch was planned in such a way that it is constructed midway (parallel) to least used soccer fields. It was such a scary thought to board of members who could not comprehend that we would be basically digging up 12X80 ft area, put concrete and stick astro on the top of the pitch. But once they saw vision through series of meetings, atlast gave PCC permission to go ahead with project. PCC ground is very picturesque with hills (should say mounds as locals call it!) on west and Illinois river at visible distance in the east on the other side of RT 29. Basically its a river basin and perfect area to play cricket with gentle wind always blowing one end. Since the ground is build for soccer, it is setup with perfect water drainage. Also, there are good rest room facilities and mess hall available for teams to use. (Working on getting a key to the facility; Volunteers open the facility and for couple games for Lucky XI and QC Kings it was not opened until really late in the afternoon. But we do have portable potties at ends of the ground which are 500 yards away) Best part about the out field is water never logs on the ground, but gets quickly absorbed and always dry from the top. This setup suits to cricket much better. Also, astro that MCC management helped PCC acquire is very thin (its not carpet based) and water dries so fast as heat radiated from concrete. Its amazing!
Rain stopped at 12 PM, weather looked perfect with blues skies visible over head. Sun peaked His 'smiley face' little bit and we knew it was only matter of time before we can start the game. Umpire and myself decided it would take an hour to get the pitch dry and immediately called Sukhen Chatterjee that we can start the game at around 1 PM if they are available and acceptable to their team. QC Kings graciously accepted and said team will be there at 1 PM. In the mean team PCC team worked hard to get the ground dried with few old cloths and old new papers. We got it pretty dry by 1 PM and captain Dr. B came up inspected, said it was good enough to play. Myself and Dr B had consultation with umpire and decided to curtail number of overs to 30 and still have 20 over rain rule as is. We immediately went to the toss and started the game at around 1:15 PM. Game was high quality and competitive!
Most striking part about QC Kings right up front was their attitude and indomitable spirit to play cricket at what ever it takes. It was their readiness and eagerness to play the game of cricket even after three hours of stoppage due to rain (game was suppose to start at 10 AM) is what set them apart from other teams I have experienced in the past 10 years of my cricket career with MCC. I personally seen in the past where few team were ready to split points and go home with out even bowling a single ball. They would call from comfort of their to enquire about weather situation and see if they can get out of it by splitting points with out playing. But this new breed of cricket attitude has definitely caught me by surprise that MCC teams are changing their attitude about game of Cricket and are indeed becoming more professional in their approach to their playing away games. What a fantastic gesture it was to us from QC Kings. We worked really hard to the ground ready and we were not looking forward to go home with out playing the game. We love this game and wanted to play it as long conditions were favorable for decent match. Let me assert that good gestures are never forgotten and in fact contagious; I sincerely hope that all teams that are reading this follow the example set by QC Kings. Its not about the points, its about satisfaction of playing fair, competitive game of cricket that matters at the end of the day.
QC Kings and PCC played a fantastic match and what ever the outcome was, it was CRICKET in the end that was WINNER! Kudos to the QC Kings for their sportsmanship and they have just won me as their great FAN! QC Kings 'Wish you very best in your season ahead'.
Written By: Madhu Reddy of Peoria CC
Thursday, June 15, 2006
The 45-over Conundrum
The British author and historian C. Northcote Parkinson
once wrote (later made famous as "Parkinson's Law")
that "Work expands to fill the time available
for its completion". Meaning as a corollory, one
supposes, that no matter how much more time
you're given, you aint gonna get anything extra
achieved. Our current cricket season seems intent
on once again proving the truth of Parkinson's Law.
When the Powers That Be changed the Division One
format to 45-overs-a-side from the tried-and-trusted
40-overs, the natural assumption of everyone
involved was that scoring would increase. Totals
would go up proportionately (or, some felt, even
disproportionately - since the extra 5 overs
might well translate to an extra "5 slogging
overs" rather than just "building" overs). But
all had reckoned without good old C.Northcote.
So far there have been 34 games played under
the new 45-overs-per-side format; thus, there
have theoretically been 68 opportunities for
a First-Division team to bat 45 overs (but
only theoretically - in actuality, obviously,
it is much closer to only 34 such chances, by the
teams that are batting first only; and
maybe even less, since some games have been
played with a reduced-overs format due to weather).
Even so, the numbers are instructive, not to
stay stunning - the total number of times
45 overs have been actually been batted this
season is... 4!
Those 4 occasions are:
1) Milwaukee United vs United
2) St Louis vs Rivercity
3) Milwaukee United vs Flames
4) Bears vs Purdue
As can be seen, only 3 teams have managed this
feat so far - Milwaukee United has done it
twice. Special mention must be made of
Pak Gym however - who have twice totalled over
270 so far, but without actually batting out
the full 45 overs either time!
Having been present on both occasions when
Milwaukee United achieved this feat, I think there
were a couple of factors in common. Both games
were played on astroturf at Whitewater - a good
batting track. Both times Milwaukee started slow, a
solid start with singles and twos provided by their
openers, keeping wickets in hand for late order
hitting. And both times that late order surge was
provided by some fleet-footed and tireless running
allied with some incandescent strokeplay from their
brilliant late-order duo, Satya and Bhavneet - who
must both surely be among the best allrounders in the
league. (Against United this duo smashed 120 runs in
the last 12 overs - Bhavneet bludgeoning 3 sixes in
his unbeaten 81, and Satya 4 sixes in his unbeaten 48.
Against the Flames they reversed roles to similar
effect - Satya hit 1 six in his 51 while Bhavneet
smacked 3 more in his unbeaten 45, as this time 126
runs came off the last 15 overs of the innings). And
both times, with that frenetic late-inning charge
coming from solid batsmen who were well set,Milwaukee
United still had wickets to spare at the end.
It is interesting to ponder what has led to this flood
of all-outs from Division One batting sides - many of
these same teams, after all, often had wickets in hand
in past years when their alloted 40 overs came to an
end. Could it be that, subconsciously, some teams are
being more aggressive than usual as they think they
need to set higher targets this season... and are
losing wickets more rapidly as a result? Or has the
bowling and fielding improved this year? Or might it
just be an early season statistical anomaly, with
batsmen not yet hitting the proverbial mid-season
form, and with everything due to return to normal
fairly soon?
Each team will obviously have to find its own style to
maximize their 45 overs - Milwaukee United seem to
have found theirs earlier than most, which has led to
their fast 3-0-1 start. There are signs that other
teams are beginning to adjust to the new format too,
though - 3 of the 4 occasions teams batted their full
45 overs came this past weekend. (Before this weekend,
the full 45-overs had been batted one single solitary
time in 26 matches, a quite staggering statistic). 15
out of 18 teams have still never batted their full
45-over quota yet, however, so there is clearly more
adjustment to come.
Once the league as a whole adapts, it will be
fascinating to see if the scores are indeed higher in
45 overs this season, than they were in 40 overs last
season. Or if an old British historian will once again
be proven correct - and it will only be the time
(overs) available that will have increased, with the
actual production (runs) seeing no change whatsoever!
By Sadiq Yusuf
once wrote (later made famous as "Parkinson's Law")
that "Work expands to fill the time available
for its completion". Meaning as a corollory, one
supposes, that no matter how much more time
you're given, you aint gonna get anything extra
achieved. Our current cricket season seems intent
on once again proving the truth of Parkinson's Law.
When the Powers That Be changed the Division One
format to 45-overs-a-side from the tried-and-trusted
40-overs, the natural assumption of everyone
involved was that scoring would increase. Totals
would go up proportionately (or, some felt, even
disproportionately - since the extra 5 overs
might well translate to an extra "5 slogging
overs" rather than just "building" overs). But
all had reckoned without good old C.Northcote.
So far there have been 34 games played under
the new 45-overs-per-side format; thus, there
have theoretically been 68 opportunities for
a First-Division team to bat 45 overs (but
only theoretically - in actuality, obviously,
it is much closer to only 34 such chances, by the
teams that are batting first only; and
maybe even less, since some games have been
played with a reduced-overs format due to weather).
Even so, the numbers are instructive, not to
stay stunning - the total number of times
45 overs have been actually been batted this
season is... 4!
Those 4 occasions are:
1) Milwaukee United vs United
2) St Louis vs Rivercity
3) Milwaukee United vs Flames
4) Bears vs Purdue
As can be seen, only 3 teams have managed this
feat so far - Milwaukee United has done it
twice. Special mention must be made of
Pak Gym however - who have twice totalled over
270 so far, but without actually batting out
the full 45 overs either time!
Having been present on both occasions when
Milwaukee United achieved this feat, I think there
were a couple of factors in common. Both games
were played on astroturf at Whitewater - a good
batting track. Both times Milwaukee started slow, a
solid start with singles and twos provided by their
openers, keeping wickets in hand for late order
hitting. And both times that late order surge was
provided by some fleet-footed and tireless running
allied with some incandescent strokeplay from their
brilliant late-order duo, Satya and Bhavneet - who
must both surely be among the best allrounders in the
league. (Against United this duo smashed 120 runs in
the last 12 overs - Bhavneet bludgeoning 3 sixes in
his unbeaten 81, and Satya 4 sixes in his unbeaten 48.
Against the Flames they reversed roles to similar
effect - Satya hit 1 six in his 51 while Bhavneet
smacked 3 more in his unbeaten 45, as this time 126
runs came off the last 15 overs of the innings). And
both times, with that frenetic late-inning charge
coming from solid batsmen who were well set,Milwaukee
United still had wickets to spare at the end.
It is interesting to ponder what has led to this flood
of all-outs from Division One batting sides - many of
these same teams, after all, often had wickets in hand
in past years when their alloted 40 overs came to an
end. Could it be that, subconsciously, some teams are
being more aggressive than usual as they think they
need to set higher targets this season... and are
losing wickets more rapidly as a result? Or has the
bowling and fielding improved this year? Or might it
just be an early season statistical anomaly, with
batsmen not yet hitting the proverbial mid-season
form, and with everything due to return to normal
fairly soon?
Each team will obviously have to find its own style to
maximize their 45 overs - Milwaukee United seem to
have found theirs earlier than most, which has led to
their fast 3-0-1 start. There are signs that other
teams are beginning to adjust to the new format too,
though - 3 of the 4 occasions teams batted their full
45 overs came this past weekend. (Before this weekend,
the full 45-overs had been batted one single solitary
time in 26 matches, a quite staggering statistic). 15
out of 18 teams have still never batted their full
45-over quota yet, however, so there is clearly more
adjustment to come.
Once the league as a whole adapts, it will be
fascinating to see if the scores are indeed higher in
45 overs this season, than they were in 40 overs last
season. Or if an old British historian will once again
be proven correct - and it will only be the time
(overs) available that will have increased, with the
actual production (runs) seeing no change whatsoever!
By Sadiq Yusuf
Monday, June 12, 2006
Master Blaster Imran Syed
It was a cold, wet, windy day.. temps were in the 50's (is this march or june?). The ball was hit high in the air towards deep long off.. it was now a battle between the fielder and the wind gods. There was a good bit of dancing, both by the cricket ball (caught in the wind) and the fielder trying to catch the ball (the fielder can now audition for "dancing with the stars", except he aint no star). Guess who won.. the wind, ofcourse, and the prize for losing was a broken right thumb. That unfortunate soul trying to catch the ball was me and what hurt more were a bunch of sixes by the same batsmen after that letoff.
That was the only chance that Irfan Syed, from Muslim Gymkhana, playing against the Tigers, offered in what could be described as an exhibition of superb, clinical hitting. He remained unbeaten on 113, scoring 10 mighty sixes and 5 fours. There was not a single cross batted shot. He is tall and uses his height very well to reach out to good length deliveries and smack them high over long on and long off. In the past, Kamran has been our chief tormentor and when he was nailed in front by Ravi, we thought half the battle was won. We were so wrong !! With Irfan, anything that is overpitched can be declared an automatic six. The good length balls were safely negotiated, the bad and not so bad balls were all punished.
The only positive note for us was Vinod's bowling. On a day when everybody went over 8 runs per over, he finished with figures of 6-1-14-0.
After defeating the Wildcats and destroying the Tigers, Muslim Gymkhana is high on confidence and a team to beat. They have Milwaukee United, Pak Gymkhana and StLouis coming up... it will be interesting to see how they move on from here.
Friday, June 09, 2006
The Saga Continues…
The 2006 season is in full swing and it’s getting exciting. Two players who had finished their last season in style have stepped it up a notch and are continuing to dominate their respective divisions with electrifying performances. No points for guessing this one!!!
I am talking about Satha Sivapragasam from Capitol CC and Shahid Munir of Pak Gymkhana.
Satha has started this season with a bang!!!! His blistering centuries in both games he has played speaks for itself. The recent mammoth 175 against Jolly Rovers CC with 13 fours and 9 sixes can just be the beginning of what is to come for rest of the season. Satha is undoubtedly the most feared batsmen in Division II. I can only imagine the frustrations of the opposition and a long day of fetching if they fail to get him out early on. With about 75% of the season remaining we can all look forward to a 1000 runs season from him if he continues his current form and dominance.
Shahid is probably one of the best all-rounders in the league. The ability to take games away from opposition with clean hitting and quick bowling makes him an extremely valuable asset to Pak Gymkhana. With three half-centuries in the last four games he is poised to rake up lots of runs for a successful season. He has made a mark as one of the quickest and best bowlers in the league. Four wickets in four balls – that’s just impressive by any standards, and I am sure that’s a league record. Milwaukee CC can attest to it that he can produce Yorkers at will and before you can react the furniture will be rearranged. Shahid has dominated the ranking table consistently in the past few years and I think this year will be no different.
Watch out for these guys and follow them for rest of the season ….We wish them the very best of luck for the season!!!! - Until they are playing against your respective teams :):):)
I am talking about Satha Sivapragasam from Capitol CC and Shahid Munir of Pak Gymkhana.
Satha has started this season with a bang!!!! His blistering centuries in both games he has played speaks for itself. The recent mammoth 175 against Jolly Rovers CC with 13 fours and 9 sixes can just be the beginning of what is to come for rest of the season. Satha is undoubtedly the most feared batsmen in Division II. I can only imagine the frustrations of the opposition and a long day of fetching if they fail to get him out early on. With about 75% of the season remaining we can all look forward to a 1000 runs season from him if he continues his current form and dominance.
Shahid is probably one of the best all-rounders in the league. The ability to take games away from opposition with clean hitting and quick bowling makes him an extremely valuable asset to Pak Gymkhana. With three half-centuries in the last four games he is poised to rake up lots of runs for a successful season. He has made a mark as one of the quickest and best bowlers in the league. Four wickets in four balls – that’s just impressive by any standards, and I am sure that’s a league record. Milwaukee CC can attest to it that he can produce Yorkers at will and before you can react the furniture will be rearranged. Shahid has dominated the ranking table consistently in the past few years and I think this year will be no different.
Watch out for these guys and follow them for rest of the season ….We wish them the very best of luck for the season!!!! - Until they are playing against your respective teams :):):)
Thursday, June 08, 2006
"Just be men, be sportsmen"
"Just be men, be sportsmen," he said. "At the end of the day, it's a sport that you are playing and you've got to trust your competitor, the guy you are playing against. Of course, it's left up to the umpires, but if you can't come to a decision, if we can't back each other on the field, even though we are on opposite teams, it doesn't say much for the sport."
That was Brian Lara, talking about the Dhoni controversy after the First Test between India and West Indies in Antigua. Irrespective of what any of us think about that incident, I think Mr Lara has a very valid point, especially in the context of how we play in our league. We are fortunate to be able to play organized cricket in this country. It may be an amateur league, but we certainly play a very passionate brand of cricket. Most of you have played a lot longer in MWCC than me, but I'm sure you will agree with me that we have all seen situations where the unsaid and unwritten code of brotherhood among cricketers have been broken. I personally think that it will be a lot more fun if we all as individuals try to respect and trust our opponents a little bit more. I know that a lot of players agree with this. In our own league, I have seen batsmen walk after nicking a ball. Last week, I saw a wicket keeper admit grounding a catch after seemingly having taken it, and that too, without any pressure from anyone. Last year, amazingly enough, I even saw a square leg umpire ( or should we say square leg batsman because sometimes you never know if he is there as a 3rd batsman or coach or water carrier) call "one short". I wonder, wouldn't it be great if such behaviour were the norm and not the exception?
I don't claim to be a saint. I have had my fair share of unsavory conduct.Things that I'm really embarrassed about when I look back. Once, when I was a kid playing yard cricket I went home with the bat ( the only bat!) after being given out. It was my way of sticking it to the guys. Alas, little did I know that my own match referee had caught me in the act and unlike the ICC version, had no qualms about taking immediate and unilateral action. My father who unknowing to me was watching the incident from the terrace of our house made me go back and apologize to all my friends - for a 10 year old, having to do that was humiliating. But, it was a lesson that I never forgot. These days, if I do something idiotic ( mostly a spur of the moment thing) I try to go back and apologize to whoever I may have crossed. It's not easy to suck it up, stick your hand out and say " I'm sorry", but I guess easier than having to live without putting a closure to it.
Just think about how much more fun it will be if before each match, the Captains, the teams and the Umpires all shook hands and agree to play hard and fair in the true spirit of the game? No personal sledging, fielders wishing new batsmen Good Luck, Batsmen walking if he knows he edged, fielders being honest about boundaries, sixes, catches and run outs. Maybe, even the square leg umpires can be fair and objective ( I know that is asking a lot...but still). In the event that a "heat of the moment" incident happens, wouldn't it be great if, once everything is under control, the players involved themselves apologize and shake hands with each other ( maybe with a bit of a push from the team mates).
I'm old enough to realize that nothing is going to be perfect. But as an eternal optimist, I believe that together we can get better. Its up to each one of us - " Just be men - be sportsmen"
That was Brian Lara, talking about the Dhoni controversy after the First Test between India and West Indies in Antigua. Irrespective of what any of us think about that incident, I think Mr Lara has a very valid point, especially in the context of how we play in our league. We are fortunate to be able to play organized cricket in this country. It may be an amateur league, but we certainly play a very passionate brand of cricket. Most of you have played a lot longer in MWCC than me, but I'm sure you will agree with me that we have all seen situations where the unsaid and unwritten code of brotherhood among cricketers have been broken. I personally think that it will be a lot more fun if we all as individuals try to respect and trust our opponents a little bit more. I know that a lot of players agree with this. In our own league, I have seen batsmen walk after nicking a ball. Last week, I saw a wicket keeper admit grounding a catch after seemingly having taken it, and that too, without any pressure from anyone. Last year, amazingly enough, I even saw a square leg umpire ( or should we say square leg batsman because sometimes you never know if he is there as a 3rd batsman or coach or water carrier) call "one short". I wonder, wouldn't it be great if such behaviour were the norm and not the exception?
I don't claim to be a saint. I have had my fair share of unsavory conduct.Things that I'm really embarrassed about when I look back. Once, when I was a kid playing yard cricket I went home with the bat ( the only bat!) after being given out. It was my way of sticking it to the guys. Alas, little did I know that my own match referee had caught me in the act and unlike the ICC version, had no qualms about taking immediate and unilateral action. My father who unknowing to me was watching the incident from the terrace of our house made me go back and apologize to all my friends - for a 10 year old, having to do that was humiliating. But, it was a lesson that I never forgot. These days, if I do something idiotic ( mostly a spur of the moment thing) I try to go back and apologize to whoever I may have crossed. It's not easy to suck it up, stick your hand out and say " I'm sorry", but I guess easier than having to live without putting a closure to it.
Just think about how much more fun it will be if before each match, the Captains, the teams and the Umpires all shook hands and agree to play hard and fair in the true spirit of the game? No personal sledging, fielders wishing new batsmen Good Luck, Batsmen walking if he knows he edged, fielders being honest about boundaries, sixes, catches and run outs. Maybe, even the square leg umpires can be fair and objective ( I know that is asking a lot...but still). In the event that a "heat of the moment" incident happens, wouldn't it be great if, once everything is under control, the players involved themselves apologize and shake hands with each other ( maybe with a bit of a push from the team mates).
I'm old enough to realize that nothing is going to be perfect. But as an eternal optimist, I believe that together we can get better. Its up to each one of us - " Just be men - be sportsmen"
Saturday, June 03, 2006
The New Washington Park Pitch: First Look
The new WP pitches saw real action today for the first time and the verdict is good ( with one major question). My team played at WP-4 today and after batting on that wicket I can tell you that it is a super pitch for both batsmen and bowlers. The bounce is even and there is good carry. The surface looks well polished with a nice clean sheen and once the mat goes over it there are no bumps. So overall it looks very good. The soil on either sides of the pitch was very loose and so the nails were going down like a hot knife on butter ( in fact I was just pressing the nails down with my hands!). In the next few weeks, I'm sure that will slowly get harder. I think the MWCC Team that did this project has done a good job.
But, there is one slightly baffling issue. If you look at the photo above you can see that there is a 3-4 feet patch of gravel where the bowlers run in. While I assume this was intended to address the legendary run up problems where by the middle of the season bowlers have to carefully navigate a ditch created by countless bowlers landing or pressing on the same spot over and over, I'm not sure how this new gravel patch will solve the problem. On the contrary it raises some new issues.
First of all , if a player dives in that area, I guarantee you that he is toast ( Though the always athletic Giants wicket keeper Shashi Buluswar was seen putting life and limb at risk by flinging himself at the stumps in a run out attempt - but then, we are talking about normal people here!). I think the wicket keepers are going to be a bit annoyed since this impacts them more than anyone else, especially when standing up. Secondly, if the ball lands in that patch ( happens several times when fielders throw in from the deep), it soon starts to lose shape. In fact, in today's game we had to replace the ball around the 30th over.
Personally, I would have preferred the old grass strip with teams bringing soil or mulch to patch up any ditches. But, then we cannot make progress if we try to make everyone happy. I'm still curious to know why this particular choice was made.
The pitch itself is great. Here is a pat on the back to all those who made it happen. Thank You!
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