Match Report
by
Ravi Suri
JECC beat Majestic by 1wicket. Batting first Majestic were all out for 140 in 36 overs.
JECC chased down the target with the last wicket remaining .
JECC chased down the target with the last wicket remaining .
Wins
like these give you such a HIGH!!! For past few games, rather most of the
season we have had the rough end of the stick. We lost too many close games,
let slip from our grip many games which were in our control. Not this one
though. We lost the toss on a hot day and were put in the field first up.
Man of the Match: Srinivas for electrifying 27* in a tense chase and Dhanushka for 4 wkts bowling, an astounding catch and 19 runs batting.
Bowling:
By and large this season we bowled well but missed one ingredient. The UNIT as
a whole dint hunt as a pack. By that I mean if Venki bowled well in a game, Sid
was not in full support or if Sid was firing on all cylinders then Venki was
off the boil. So also with Dhanu and Chinmay. But this game the 4 of them
bowled in tandem and put so much pressure on the top order. I was commenting to
Ananth at slip saying our previous season we had opponents 4 down by about 15th
over in almost every game. That was missing this season till now. But this game
brought the Eagles bowling combo back. Venki brought one in sharply to clean
bowl the opener after he got off to a very decent start. Other end Sid was
bowling very fast and had the batsman in trouble with his pace. The ball was
thudding into Bhanu’s gloves.
Dhanu came in first change after Venki and Sid
bowled a tight spell of 4 overs each. At 9 over stage Majestic were 36 for one.
The next 11 overs changed the game completely as Dhanu and Chinmay bowled a
brilliant spell. Chinmay in particular bowled as well I have ever seen him. He
dint bowl a wide in his entire spell and such accuracy puts tremendous pressure
on the batsmen. Ananth took an outstanding catch at slip, I was at second slip,
Ananth at first. Sidharth edged one which was coming straight to my face at
second slip. Last minute Ananth dove to his right and plucked the fruit so to
say from my mouth. Later when I saw where I was at second slip, I realized how
much ground Ananth covered to take that catch. Chinmay’s bowling helped Dhanu
as the batsmen felt strangulated at the other end. Relentless in his line and
length and with ZERO experimentation Chinmay was a BIG factor in the game
turning around.
From 36 for one in 9 overs Majestic slipped to 54 for 4 by 20th
over. From there on the odd dropped catch and two leg spinners bowling in
tandem, with the wides coming as can be the case with leg spinners Majestic
started to get back in the game. Dilip was smart to realize the pacers could
the nail the deal, brought them back. Sid got 2 wickets with Dhanu taking one
catch a long on and another one which was a stunner at cover. The second catch
was a terrific effort with the ball going way high and Dhanu covered a lot of
ground, tumbled and took a brilliant catch 99% effort with 1% DRAMA. We got
Majestic all out for 140 which was a very easy target on a good batting wicket
with reasonable outfield.
Batting:
As a team we have been quite jinxed with the batting. Something or the other is
going wrong and we are not able to bat to potential. Dhanu and I opened the
innings with our captain laying the instructions to bat time and build a
partnership. My troubled season continued and despite defending well for 10
balls and seeing the ball well and doing most things right I was out played on.
The rub of the green is just not going our way. That said I will share some
thoughts later in this report about how this great game balances the ends of a
spectrum between good and bad times. Ananth replaced me and played an UN-
ANANTH like innings. By that I mean normally Ananth is 0-1 mode either he is
batting brilliantly or is out, have hardly seen him not time the ball or play
airy fairy shots. This innings dint have the typical flow.
Dhanu on other hand
was grinding it out. He defended stoutly and took some well-placed singles and
doubles. Ananth ran very well between the wickets and called particularly well.
With his timing not being at its best Ananth pulled one to mid-wicket a soft
shot which lobbed to mid-wicket, the fielder put down a SITTER. As Ananth was
anxiously looking at result of the catch he was not prepared for next action
point which is to ensure he is not run out. The fielder who dropped a sitter
made up with a good throw. The bowler dint collect the ball but broke the
stumps with his hand. Umpire was probably un sighted and gave Ananth out. Sid
replaced Ananth, all this while the chase was not getting the right flow. We
were getting our runs but the calm in the tent was missing. Dhanu’s
determination was re assuring. Sid too was not in his elements and like Ananth
was not timing as well as he usually does. Sid perished to his favorite shot,
the pull.
Venkat the Majestic captain sent the mid-wicket slightly deeper and Sid
pulled one to his hands. On any other day he would have cleared the mid-wicket
fence. Dilip replaced Sid and looked the best of the men who went to the
crease. This year Dilip has been batting extremely well and one can sense his
confidence and assuredness at the crease. Ananth apart Dilip and Sid are giving
the rest of the team a sense of confidence while batting. While Dilip was
digging in we lost Dhanu and Chinmay in quick succession. This put a huge
shadow of doubt. Chinmay is a very good batsman with a sense of the game
situation. He has always played the game with a lot of match awareness which is
such a MUST to win games. Chinmay like the rest of us is having a rough time
with luck. One bad shot, or one bad judgment or just that little lapse in concentration
is getting him out. This game hinges so much on luck factor or rub of the green
as they say.
Dilip
followed Chinmay and got out as we lost wickets in a heap, we were struggling
at 98 for 7. While all this happened somewhere in between Srini slipped in and
played himself in calmly without being noticed. All eyes were on our earlier
match winners like Dilip, Chinmay, who won games for us earlier. We were
disappointed and worried when we lost them. Bhaskar and Srini started to re
build and were looking good. Bhaskar is a calm customer and has shown us in
earlier games he is a tough out and will not give his wicket easily. Just as
Bhaskar and Srini we were giving us the re assurance Bhaskar got out to a freak
catch, left handed diving effort at gully. Shekar looked good till he got run
out, Shekar played one of the shots of the day a drive to cover point which was
caressed more than hit to the boundary. It never looked like reaching the
boundary when hit, but sped past the boundary on a heavy outfield, such was the
timing on that stroke it left the fielders and the watchers wondering how did
the ball travel so fast.
The
ebbs and flow of this game were not for the faint hearted. Every time we felt
safe in the chase we lost a wicket. Every time Majestic gave up the game we
lost a wicket. Every time we felt now there is no chance, Srini came up with a
MAJESTIC stroke. Srini’s timing during his innings was pure brilliance. A flick
to mid-wicket and a cover drive were the highlights of his innings. The calmness
he showed was un believable. Despite losing wickets at the other end, Srini
dint play one rash shot or a shot in desperation to reach the target soon. With
17 more to get we lost our most dependable ice man Venky. Normally Venky is
reliable and very able in such situations. He too is having a bad run of luck,
one false shot and he was gone. Bhanu replaced Venky and to be honest some of
us gave up the game.
Unable to watch the tension we started to pack up the
bags, bring the tent down. During this time Bhanu defended stoutly and Srini
never ever gave up. The wides from bowlers helped; Bhanu gave Srini the
confidence that he would finally get a partner who will stay with him.
I
referred to the balancing act this great game provides; just a few weeks back
Srini dropped a sitter against Indians and I could see how much he hurt that
day. It was a like night which never ends for Srini, that’s the feeling when
you have a bad day in the field. You feel so low and down (as I am feeling with
my batting these days) and wonder when will you turn the corner. The game of
cricket is fascinating because you can be the HERO one day even if you have
been a villain on earlier occasions. The game provides opportunities as it did
for Srini; he controlled the chase and was the MAN OF THE MOMENT.
Under extreme
pressure the calm approach shown by Srini was admirable. The best part was he
never played a false shot, his defense was assured, his run making shots were
precise and his control over temperament was an example for rest of us to take
away from. A terrific win which I hope and expect will motivate us to more wins
this season. Let’s fight our way to # 8 spot which is still in our grasp. THANK
YOU SRINI for an inspiring knock. Dhanu well bowled and brilliantly caught!! WELL
DONE Eagles!!
I love
the spirit in our team, win or lose we stand and stick be each other. Even in
our worst phase I never noticed any finger pointing or lack of coordination in
the field. Yesterday it was embarrassing to see opponent team so ill coordinated.
A lot of this spirit in Eagles is thanks to team management; the captain- vice
captain seniors like Dhanu-Ananath-Sid-Venky-Naga. Great to be part of this
team. A word on Bhanu who kept for the first time ever and did a tremendous
job.
RS
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