JECC beat HBCC by 92 runs. It was a jinx we had to break against HBCC, having never won against them and a thumping win like this one gives us lot of confidence going into the league matches starting next week.
Batting first, JECC scored 210/8 in 40 overs and HBCC managed 118 all out in 28 overs.
Man of the Match: Rushi Amin for a classy 87 not out, batting for almost 45 overs and taking 3 top order wickets in 4 balls, just missing a hat trick.
The knock must be especially satisfying for Rushi as it was not his typical aggressive style, more workman like, and did not include any sixes! Most of the runs came off well timed shots and he played a sheet anchor role to perfection guiding the others around him.
Batting: JECC won the toss and elected to bat first on a sunny day with a slight breeze blowing across the ground.
Rajesh was out quickly at the start of the innings. Rushi, together with Preetham played sensibly against the new ball being watchful as the pitch was tricky in the morning. The bounce was variable, spongy sometimes which did not help the batsmen to time their shots at all. Although HBCC had some good bowlers, they were made out to look unplayable on occasions. Preetham got out for 14 just when he started to get his eye in and Suneel followed him, out bowled off a full toss.
With three wickets down on an uneasy pitch, Lucky (niladhar) and Rushi started to bring some stability to the proceedings. They saw off some quiet overs for a while but made sure that the score board was ticking with singles and twos. Lucky started to open up and timed some glorious shots over cover and a magnificent six over midwicket. Rushi meanwhile made sure the bad balls were punished chipping in with the odd boundary. He was watchful but was never bogged down and calmed Lucky down at the other end , who was beginning to get aggressive. Lucky's aggression ultimately led to his downfall as he was out caught for 29, attempting a big shot. Amit joined Rushi and continued his good form with the bat scoring a breezy 27. He pulled a muscle while running and got the quick silver Preetham as a runner. Preetham was lightning quick and converted dots into ones and ones into twos and threes…now we know who is our designated runner! (he is faster than Dhanu :) ) ..
Rushi meanwhile completed his half century and was planning to retire to give the other batsmen some playing time.. but wickets kept falling from the other end as he went on the offensive in the slog overs. A century was easily on the cards but he gave way for our lower order to bat the last 5 overs to end up at 210. Excellent team spirit Rushi!!..
Bowling: Suneel and Rushi started off as new ball bowlers with big swinging deliveries . A couple of big shots by the HBCC openers did not affect them at all and the pressure with their line and length resulted in a string of wickets in the sixth over. Rushi got the swing to work for him resulting in three quick wickets in 4 balls, destroying the top order for HBCC. First change – enter Srinath and as ever, got two wickets which made sure we had the match in the bag.
Suneel then rotated the bowling, making sure everyone got to bowl. Mital substituted Amit , keeping wickets and did a pretty decent job, although a couple of chances went down. The run scoring was completely curbed with the HBCC batsmen’s intent being on survival.
Dhanu, Vishal, Rishi and myself got to bowl a bit too which dragged on the proceedings till the 25th over. I got two wickets and a run out by Suneel left HBCC in complete disarray. Preetham took the last wicket wrapping up HBCC for 118.
Verdict: A very good outing for JECC getting rid of the jinx and making sure we enter the league matches on a high note. We set the bar high this season and the expectation to go all the way is surely possible. Rushi displayed his all round skills and his addition to our team makes us even better. The batsmen should always aim at scoring 20’s and 30’s atleast in every game. A tendency to throw the wicket when settled throws away all the hardwork and the team loses momentum. With everyone chipping in, even if one batsman then goes on to make a big score, a total of 200+ will then be easy. Preetham, Amit, Lucky, Dhanu are looking good with their starts and a big score from them is surely to be expected.
Bowling was OK, as we always have been, but extras need to be controlled. All the runs we gave were off extras and the wind blowing across the ground did not help at all.
The fielding needs to be improved…we need to practice more of the catching /throwing and should support the bowlers.
The first league game is against SJCC on Sunday. Please sign up before Wednesday.
