Midwest Cricket Fantasy-06

We introduced the Midwest Cricket Fantasy League for the playoffs and had a pretty decent rate of success. The process involved chosing 11 players from div1/div2 and using the MVP system to calculate the points, based on the players performances in the games. A total of three players were allowed to be changed per week from the roster.

Since, this was the first year, the entire points calculation and updating the various teams were done manually. We plan to automate it by next year.

I would like to thank Vijay P, Vijay G from Purdue, Ram from Eagles, desi_babu and Sajid Patel for all their help. The job involved getting all the points per person on a weekly basis, updating the various teams, building up and updating web pages for the various teams and uploading it to the website.

The winner of Midwest Fantasy League-06 is Sajid Patel with 181 points. The key to being the winner is to be able to predict who the week's top performers would be and effectively use the constraints of changing only three players in the roster per week , which Sajid did very well. Desi_babu ended up with 160 points followed closely by Vijay G with 154 points.

I would like to thank everybody who participated in such a short notice. We plan to have the Fantasy League version for 07 starting with the regular season games. See you all then and have a wonderful off-season.

For a complete list of teams, the total points, the rosters and the player changes, please visit the Fantast 06 homepage

Hafez Adam Menk powers AAA to the Div II Championship

AAA paid the ultimate homage to the late Abid Laheri by winning the Div 2 Championship in commanding fashion over Capitol. The fact that they were able to do this at the same ground where they last played with Abid Laheri must have made this a bitter sweet occasion. Led off by Khalil Dadabhai's blistering hitting combined with the steady batting of the consistent Imran Taylor and some big hitting from the always happy to oblige, Bilal Patel, AAA got to 205 in 40 overs. When you have a man called Satha Sivapragasam yet to bat I guess no target is really safe. But that is when the talismanic Hafez Adam Menk ( photo above) decided to take matters in to his own hands. Just like his superb performance last week that decimated ICC, he turned in another matchwinning performance. Bowling 8 over on the trot ( while fasting!) he carved out the heart of the Capitol batting - including a sensational clean bowled dismissal of the master Satha to end with figures of 8-2-17-4. Truly a match winning performance!

Hari's Photos

Jaggi's Photos (Currently these are from Shiv, I will add mine shortly)

( Others that took photos: Please place them on the web and send link to editor@midwestcricket.org)

Discussion Board: Super Sunday 2

Discussion Board for Sunday, Oct 8th: One day - 3 Finals! Div 2 Finals between AAA and Capitol, Div 3 Finals between Burhani and Rockers, Abid Laheri Night Tournament Final between Flames and Challengers. More importantly, the last day of the 2006 season.

Division 3 Finals Poll

Who will win the Div 3 Finals?
	Burhani CC
	Rockers CC
Free polls from Pollhost.com

Poll

Who will win the Midwest Cricket Conference Div-2 Finals? AAA Capitol Free polls from Pollhost.com

A letter from Rockers CC

Editor,

Much has been written about DIV I and Div II through the season. I have not read a single post on Div 3 (30/30)...I play for Rockers CC. We have been a part of MCC for 4 years and have had a very dismal 3 years. This year we have made it to the finals after defeating all odds. A player from our team (Varun Parekh) has written a poem on our game against the Spears on 10/1 at Heritage Park. It would be a good start for Div 3 and a huge confidence booster for the Rockers who have seen a lot a adversity in the past 4 years if this poem is published.

Thanks

Mitral

Inspired by the amazing true story of the Rockers. That showed just what a little fire, determination and planning can do...

Stars Cant Shine All The Time

On one cold Sunday morning at Heritage Park
Gather the Rockers early that day
Nervous but happy, scared but charged
We were fired up to play

Satya wins the toss and makes a bold move
On seeing the damp outfield and wicket
To take a chance and give the Spears
First bat in semi-final cricket

We bowled with fire, with zest, with pride
With unerring length and line
We proved today my fellow men
That stars cant shine all the time

Mithul and Varun started things off
Unsettling the batsmen's groove
Rehman and Vamsi then paved the way
Like men with points to prove

We skittle a team that has tormented us
The team that beat us two straight this year
We roll them over, stars and all
Is a Rokers win really near?

In strolled Asif and Mitral
Who cut, pulled and 'straight drove' their way
To a resounding victory in record time
We really Rocked it that day

And now with just a single game
Separating us from ultimate glory
To the final lets march as men
Lets cap off this perfect story!

Hats off to Satya, Remmy, Asif and Vamsi. You guys made this happen!
Lets do this all over again!

Varun
10/01/06

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A Note from the Editor: It is true that we have not written much about Div 3, Night Cricket etc. But that is only because we have not had anyone sending in anything about those divisions. This blog is a volunteer supported project and we depend on the volunteers to help program the site. While we have a lot of activity on the Discussion Board ( comments) for some reason we don't have too many people sending articles, videos etc. The editors ( Jaggi and Hari) review everything that comes in and if it is publishable ( we use our discretion to make that judgement ), we post it. Essentially what we are saying is that the ball is in your court - you can take the lead in spotlighting top performers in Div 3, Night Tournament etc as well as cover the matches, provide previews etc. This is how you can contribute to the blog.

This letter is being published with permission from Mitral Shah ( Rockers CC)

Meet the One and Only Satha Sivapragasam!

The Urban Legend, The Man, the Myth, the sledge hammer, the Midwest Bradman - when someone with nick names like that comes to town you have to hunt him down and talk to him. The good news for Division 2 bowlers is that based on Capitol's win against Giants, their nightmare has finally left the building! Satha will now have to deal with the powerhouse bowling attacks of the Divison 1 teams -- something that we all can look forward to watch next year ( Imagine Shahid Munir running in to Satha!).

To interview a man like this, we turned to one of Satha's closest friends and our fellow blogger, Shekhs Aravind. Here is what we got. ( Filmed by: Alpesh Gohil)

A conversation with Pak Gym's Shahid Munir

Pak Gymkhana's superstar all rounder Shahid Munir took a few minutes to talk with Alpesh Gohil.

A Conversation with ICC Captain Rup

Sunday turned out to be not a good day for ICC and Rup as they missed out on their coveted Finals spot to a spirited and highly deserving AAA Cricket Club. But what happened on Sunday in no way minimizes the truly sensational season that Rup has had this year -- 3 centuries, more wickets than anyone else and most importantly, he now finds himself at the helm of a powerful ICC team that looks serious about its long term aspirations. I spoke to Rup during the lunch break of the ICC vs AAA Semis. ( Camera + Audio: Courtesy - Alpesh Gohil)

Discussion Board: Sunday October 1

MWCC's very own Super Sunday! Three BIG games at WP and then the 30/30 semis at HP. Let's Discuss...

I want to congratulate the Management on conceiving and organizing this "Super Sunday". In fact, I would like to suggest that this be made in to an annual event - Div 1 and 2 semi-finals on the same day ( maybe a Super Saturday) at Washington Park and the next week have both finals again on side by side grounds. Two "Super Saturday" weekends will be a great way to wind down the season - also have a tent in the middle as a common pavilion to bring everyone together.

This Sunday was terrific. Some great games between 6 champion sides featuring some of the best players in MWCC. A lot of socializing, wonderful weather and some superb cricket...shocks, disappointments, joy of winning, thrilling finish ( Capitol-Giants), a sensational one man show ( Farman Khan), all in all a great celebration of cricket. To those who were not there today...I want to ask you to try your best to be there next year ( hopefully if the mgmt makes this a regular event).

In the mean time here are some photos/videos from today:

Hari's photos

A clip of Satha batting -- by Alpesh

Nilesh ( Challengers) bowling to Shahid Munir ( Pak Gym) -- by Alpesh

Alpesh's photos

Jaggi's photos ( Captions Added)

( If anyone of you have photos please place them on the web somewhere and send the link to us at blog@midwestcricket.org Thank You!)

The Farman Khan show!

2006 Division 1 Champions Pak Gymkhana
Well Done, Guys!!

I had never seen the Pak Gym bowling before and was looking forward to see how good they were. I guess I picked the right day! After Pak Gym struggled to put up a 200 plus total behind a classy captain's knock by Rashid Khan it looked as if Pak Gym was going to struggle in the finals for the second year in a row. But then, someone changed the script and replaced it with the "Farman Khan Show"! Wickets were falling ( and flying) at such speed that it was a struggle for the other bowlers to try and get a souvenir wicket. I think Raheel managed to pick up a couple. From around 30 odd for 8 the last 2 wickets managed to get the Challengers to 70. All I can say is that it was pretty sensational to see a blow out like that. The Challenger batsmen will have to sit down and ask some tough questions to themselves as I'm sure they realize that they just wasted all the hard work their bowlers had done earlier in the day to contain the Pak Gym batting to a very attainable target - mind you, it was a 50 over game . While Farman was just sensational, the rest of the Pak Gym bowling was almost as good - but having said that I was also really surprised to see some of the shot selection that the Challenger batsmen employed to try and get back in - it was almost a relief to see the last wicket fall to signal the end of the misery. Both teams have had a great season, but based on what I saw today, I will say that Pak Gym is one heck of a team and fully deserve to be the champions this year.

Sunday at the Park

Three cracking games including one final, a very high probability of great weather ( 70s, sunny), a collection of super star players from both divisions ready to put on a great show, a bunch of spirited volunteers managing the logistics, including chairs, tables, food, music...and last but not the least....another rare chance to watch the Midwest Bradman, Satha Sivapragasam! Now, why would any self respecting local cricket fan be anywhere else?

The Division 1 Finals is expected to start at 9.30 AM with Pak Gym taking on Challengers. Based on the poll on our blog, Pak Gym certainly starts with a slight edge and justifiably so given their outstanding form this season. I'm certainly looking forward to see their highly rated bowling attack led by the other perennial superstar of MWCC, Shahid Munir and with the likes of Farman, Rashid, Bakshi and our very own Raheel ( surely the blogger's favorite!) the heat is going to be on the Challengers batting to stand and deliver. If Daxx's stunning 99 in the Night semis earlier this week is any indication then, Challengers batting will be ready to dish out their own menu. Also, with guys like Tushar, Bhavesh, Nilesh, Sanjay etc.. all matchwinners on their day, this final looks like a very tight contest irrespective of what the polls say. But, my pick for the player to watch out for is a guy who seems to love the big occasion. He made a quite unbeaten 27 in the semis, but those who watched the sensational finals between the Wildcats and Pak Gym last year may not have forgotten this man's superb century that set up the mammoth Pak Gym total. He is Hasan Shah and I say watch out for him!

In Division II we have Capitol taking on Chicago Giants. Capitol as the higher seed obviously goes in as the favorite but I will say that it will be a colossal mistake to underestimate the Giants. This is a team that is on a mission. They played several games earlier this season without their full arsenal, but the second half of the season has seen a revitalized Giants clinically knocking off team after team to reach the semis. Satha is obviously the biggest threat for the Giants, but this Capitol is not just Satha ( part of the reason why they are in the semis). There are guys like Rahul, Vamshi, Madan etc that can turn the game on their own. Satha's presence is going to cast a huge shadow on this game but to me the player to watch out for sits on the Chicago Giants roster. I'm a big fan of his batting and I can assure you that if this guy gets going he can rip apart any attack to shreds. My team has been on the receiving end of his brutality and so from personal experience I will say -- watch out for the explosive Mohammed Yaseen.

The last match up is an absolute cracker of a contest between the alphabet teams, ICC and AAA. Both teams are going to have huge cheering squads and with all the marquee names on either sides this will be a highly interesting game to watch. ICC captain Rupnarine Seenarain will be the biggest name on the field - astute captain, legendary wicket taker, champion bat - he can do it all. With guys like Challenor Jack, Colin Burgins, Simeon Xavier, Aaron Challenger etc, Rup and Co have the firepower to blank out any opponent. But, this is not just any opponent that stands across them. Led by the most unassuming super all rounder Hafez Adam Menk - a guy who can hurt you with the ball and with the bat ( not to speak of his magical ability to win tosses!), this is a team that has a collection of guys who can beat you before you even know what happened. Guys like Imran Taylor, Khalil Dadabhai, Abdul Behrin etc can destroy bowling attacks in no time and then they have the always dangerous Bilal Patel who floats around the batting order and you still have Hafez Adam Menk to deal with. It will be an interesting battle between these two totally different teams. The fact that our friends Rup and Jack have pretty much guaranteed a win on the blog makes this a must follow game for us bloggers. No questions as to who to watch for in this game: All eyes should be on the incomparable Rup...and with the corner of the eye watch out for Hafez A. Menk. One thing is for sure - this sunday will be fun!

We are hoping to have a " Midwest Cricketer" area out in the middle of the Park. Hope to see you there.

The Div 1 Finals Poll: Who will be the 2006 Champ?

Who will be the 2006 Division I Champions?
	Pak Gymkhana
	Challengers
Free polls from Pollhost.com

Discussion Board: Week of Sept 23/24

Discussion Board for games played during weekend of Sept 23/24. Lets hope rain does not ruin this weekend also.

The Future of Washington Park?

I dont know if anyone watched the news yesterday - our beloved
Washington Park was in the news. And Big News, at that!

With Chicago bidding for the Olympics in 2016, and the idea of
the "Olympic Stadium" in Soldier Field not flying with the
committees, Mayor Daley has decided to build the new Olympic
Stadium at... Washtington Park!

( Read the Chicago Tribune article)

( Read the Public's Reaction to the plan from the Tribune)

The idea, supposedly, is to construct a 95,000 seat stadium in
what currently constitutes Washington Park (a 350-acre area),
used for the track and field events, and the Opening and
Closing ceremonies. After the Olympics are over, the seating
will be dragged away, leaving a 10,000 seat stadium around
a "sunken area". There will be astroturf areas left behind
which will be used for "soccer and football for high schools".

Obviously, no mention was made of cricket. Is this horrible
news for us cricket fans? Will we see the end of 4
cricket-fields in Chicago in one stroke? Or can it actually
turn into something good - if we get good representation to
the city, can we end up with astroturf and grass fields
that are better maintained, that could be used for years to
come (and also have seating and restroom facilities, which
would greatly improve the place overall)?

The Olympics may only be in 2016, but this is not very far
away for us - the US Olympic Committee will decide by spring
if they have chosen Chicago for the US bid, and the IOC itself
will decide within a year. If Chicago makes the cut, one would
presume that construction would start pretty much right away,
or fairly soon anyway... which means it will directly
affect us and our league maybe as early as next summer,
definitely by summer 2008!

If we want to retain our best cricketing fields, we probably
should start working on it with the city right away! Else
cricket will just be forgotten, and we may suddenly be left
with 4 fewer cricket grounds in our city!

Written by Sadiq Yusuf