Thursday, August 11, 2011

Bombay Boys : The 2011 Team


Note: This collage only includes players who have played atleast one complete match in the 2011 season. Other members on the roster include Siddharth Santhanam, Muzafar Zaman, Saurabh Jawkar and Vikram Namjoshi. 

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

2011: Match 11: Vs Knight Riders: Won: By 6 Wickets


Bombay Boys sealed their victory in their 11th match of the season as they beat Knight Riderz after a 2 year hiatus and also succeeded in knocking them out of the battle for the cup. 

BB elected to bowl after winning the toss, and it proved to be a wise choice when Ketan picked up the first of his 3 wickets, nabbing opener Sujith who was caught at long-off by Ajay in a “breathtaking” (ahem heart-stopping for everyone else) catch, for a golden duck. Abhishek gave BB another boost in the 5th over as opener Premson was clean bowled for 3 runs and both openers were back to the pavilion. One-down and two-down batsmen from the KR team succeeding in steading the batting innings somewhat and Knight Riders posted a decent 34 runs in the first 10 overs, but the batting lineup started collapsing dramatically towards the second half of their innings as BB came together as a team and played a perfectly controlled bowling innings coupled with precise fielding.

KR lost 8 wickets in the second half of the innings and were all out at the end of 18.2 overs, posting a total of 75 runs - mainly due to the spells of Ashish (3.2-0-10-3) and Ketan (4-0-8-3) who snared 3 wickets each, aided by Saurabh scoring 2 wickets, Chakra and Abhishek taking up the remaining 2.

Openers Ketan and Saurabh both failed to click in this match as KT was dismissed for 8 in the 4th over. Swaroop walked in at the 1-down position and played quick onesies and twosies balancing the pace of the match and setting a steady run rate well in control of the required run rate. When Saurabh was dismissed in the 7th over for 11 runs, Monty got in at the 2-down position but departed soon after in a bizzare fashion, going for the big shot on the very first ball which unfortunately went for a catch.

Swaroop and Paras played well-timed shots, in a sensible method that was the need of the hour, especially after the top order collapse. Both batsmen scored 24 runs each to their credit, of which Swaroop had 2 fours and Paras had 3. BB resumed from the score of 31 at the end of 7 overs when Monty and Saurabh fell and moved way into the 16th over without any further loss of wickets. Swaroop fell prey to a catch in the 16th over and he had to retreat. Chakra and Paras succeeded in chasing the rest of the equation and BB posted 79 runs at the end of 18.2 overs with Paras hitting a 4 as the winning runs.

The league matches have ended and KT defends his MVP title again this year ! BB has 2 batsmen in the batting top 10 and 2 bowlers in the bowling top 10. BB now moves on to the jinxed section of the tournament, the make-or-break knockouts and if we do not make it to the semis, the individual standings might really not carry much meaning.

BB can now boast of a well rounded team completely capable of going all the way to clinch the cup. Calm and steady batting from the middle order in addition to the already firm top order instills further confidence in our batting lineup and recent displays have confirmed that the BB batting can be a complete team effort as and when required. Bowling has improved considerably though we still contine to dole out extras. This match however showed total restraint as we only gave 13 extras in all. If one were to compare fielding attempts from the 1st couple of matches with the latest ones, it would only prove that fielding efforts have improved multifold.

We face Gujju-XI in the quarterfinals on Aug 13, 2011.
Scores as always have been uploaded on www.cricketmn.com
For more on Bombay Boys, https://www.bombay-boys.blogspot.com


Wednesday, August 3, 2011

2011: Match 10: Vs India XI: Won: By 31 Runs




Bombay Boys crushed India XI in their 10th match of the season at Hopkins on the 24th of July 2011 (This synopsis comes at the pace of snail mail in this age of e-mail). After winning the toss, Bombay Boys elected to bat first with Saurabh and KT walking in as the opening batsmen. 

"Veni, Vidi, Vici" - translated to "I came, I saw, I conquered" originally written by Julius Caeser in 47 BC, could have been very well be applied to Saurabh Gandhalikar in this tiny context. Even though Bombay Boys was off to a slow start, Saurabh and KT stood strong and steady with Saurabh clearly in the limelight hitting colossal sixes and fours building a gigantic score for himself, an unbelievable 79 off 67 balls, an individual score which could easily have been the final score of a full 11-player team. He is also the only player since the inception of Bombay Boys for whom the scoresheet space ran out and we had to use up a whole new batsman record to score his runs. Saurabh and KT built up a steady partnership playing quick singles and doubles and going for the big shots every once in a while. Bombay Boys maintained an impressive momentum right through the 10th over halftime break at which point their score stood at 62 runs for no loss - and remained wicketless right until the 16th over when KT's shot went for a clean catch and Bombay Boys lost its first wicket. The score at the end of this over was 96 runs. KT to his credit scored 17 off 34 balls. A decent score - awaiting more action in the upcoming matches. In the interim, the India XI captain managed to drop 2 catches - both of Saurabh - which proved to be mighty expensive for them as the vice-captain got life after life and Bombay Boys continued to make mincemeat of the bowlers. 1-down Paras scored 5 runs, 2-down Monty posted 15 off 9 balls and 3-down Abhishek completed the batting innings contributing 3 runs finally taking the Bombay Boys total to 130 runs at the end of 20 overs. 

With the exception of Amol and Ananda who bowled good innings with statistics of 4-0-11-2 and 4-0-13-0 respectively; all the other bowlers ended up bowling atleast 6 runs per over; the most expensive one bowling 12 runs per over. 

The boys also bowled and fielded decently well with enough agression taking wickets at regular intervals. Nitin and KT shone at the very start as they took 3 wickets in the very first 3 overs of the bowling innings - 2 catches and a well co-ordinated runout - as both openers, usually strong batsmen were cleanly dismissed for measly single digit scores. AP2 took another well timed catch in the 6th over proving to be another setback for India XI. It looked promising for BB as the bowlers and fielders continued to keep their aggression on for the rest of the innings. At the end of 10 overs, India XI stood at 51 runs for the loss of 4 wickets. Not bad at all except for the number of wickets they had in hand. 

The overs following the halftime break went by without much activity but a magnificient catch by Milind in the 14th over woke up the dormant audience on both sides of the game. This time clearly enunciating his call to take the catch so that there would be no confusion with Monty like the prior match, Milind ran headlong and dived an unbelievable distance grasping the ball but hitting the ground with his head and kinda ended up doing a cartwheel on his head. Stunned initially, it took a couple of seconds for the players and the supporters to recover as they ran towards him, where he sat clutching his head with one hand and the ball with the other - to make sure he was alright. The first words he spoke were "Is baar maine call diya!" - Yes Milind, you did ! But I'll be the first one to say - please DO NOT try that stunt again !

The rest of the India XI batting line-up slowly crumbled and BB sealed their 8th victory bowling out their most vengeful opponents till date by 31 runs - remaining unbeatable so far in the league matches. Sourabh Jain had come expecting an India-Pak match and I am sure was mighty disappointed when it fizzled out and looked like the outcome of a peace treaty discussion with India XI and the BB players chatting amicably. Of the bowlers, Abhishek had a near perfect statistics of 3.4-1-11-3 and KT, Nitin, Ashish and Monty contributed to the rest of the 5 wickets (in addition to 2 runouts)

BB now faces their last league match of the season on Saturday, Aug 6th 2:00 PM at Eagan. Being on top of their group, BB can now afford to experiment in this last match. We now are closer towards the true test - the knockouts which haven't been favourable to us for the past few years. Time to break the jinx. Time to bring the cup home. Go Bombay Boys !!!

Scores as always have been uploaded on www.cricketmn.com 
For more on Bombay Boys: http://bombay-boys.blogspot.com

Cheers,
Deepa.
One Team. One Dream. 

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

2011: Match 9: Vs Company: DRAWN


People with a history of recent surgery, heart trouble/high blood pressure, neck trouble, back trouble, or any other condition that may be aggravated by jumping or screaming should carefully heed all warning signs.  If you are in doubt about your ability to safely experience a Bombay Boys match, please refrain from attending.  We’ll be happy to brief you once the match is over.

Watching a cricket match being played by the Bombay Boys team is definitely not for the faint hearted and this was proved once again during the third such fast-paced match between Bombay Boys and Company. On the 16th of July 9:00 AM BB won the toss and elected to bat.

KT retained his #1 spot at the MVP standings as the BB’s 9th match against Company petered out to a draw at Lord's on Tuesday. He top-scored the innings with 28, Saurabh not too far behind at 26 as the duo played sensibly and put BB in a strong position; the score steadily building through the first 10 overs. The opening partnership took BB past 50 at the end of 10 overs. BB looked strong into the 14th over scoring 70 runs for no loss of wickets. Sensing a visibly relaxed innings, BB spectators stretched out under the new addition to the BB team – the beach umbrella (chuckle! How could I not mention this!). However, both batsmen were eventually dismissed in a fashion similar to the previous match scenario, in back to back overs. KT and Saurabh were both caught behind in the 14th and 15th over respectively. The run rate had slowed down a bit following the halftime break but BB seemed comfortably placed at this point. Paras came and went for 7 off 10 – that included a power packed six and Monty posted a solid 21 off 20 – one six and one four to his credit. BB was eyeing to overcome the slow run rate but fortune (and strong bowling skills of course) favoured the toiling bowling side as BB lost 4 quick wickets in the last 4 overs. Abhishek, Jitesh, Milind and Satchit brought up the end of the innings with BB posting a total of 104 runs at the end of 20 overs.

BB was ecstatic during their start of the bowling innings as they took 3 crucial wickets in the first 3 overs of the match dismissing opener Prakash for a duck with a direct hit from KT and Satchit (WK) taking some good catches. Of special note was the brilliant single-handed catch by Milind which was instrumental in tying down the Company score. 1-down batsman Pranit was dimissed for a measly single and 2-down Pavan for 4 runs. Company struggled to find a footing and inched along till the 7th over when they lost their 4th wicket. As the “star player” walked back frustrated, he threw his bat over the fence prompting the Company team to yell foul and “Poor Umpiring” and “Umpire down down” at which stage the umpire become super serious and started declaring every other seemingly normal ball as a No-Ball or a Wide and I am not biased as I say this.

However, in walked their 4-down Ashok and changed the name of the game as he took the lead and along with the other batsman Bashyam starting accumulating runs providing Company the much needed breakthrough frustrating the BB bowlers. At the end of 10 overs the score stood at 40 runs after the loss of 5 wickets. Company needed 65 from 60 to secure a win.

Company steadied and continued without any further loss of wickets till the 16th over when the score read 78 and they lost their 6th wicket and Ashok walked back. Skipper Girish who then walked in and Bashyam labored to achieve the target. 20 off 18 required. Crucial wicket taking moments in the succeeding overs instilled confidence in BB yet it was not over yet. Overflowing extras did not help either. 11 in 12 balls. A solid run out by Pramod and Satchit ensured one more loss of wicket for Company. The opposition was losing wickets by the dozen but still stayed put. 6 runs in 6 balls. Incredible tension. And a wicket ! 3 in 2. Déjà vu all over again. At the end, the last ball of the over ended with Company scoring 2 runs and the match ended in a stalemate.

BB needs a serious check on extras. We ended up giving 29 extras – that’s almost 5 whole overs. Even with the alleged poor umpiring which might have accounted for 6 at most, that is still a lot.

BB has been consistently reaching the top 4 in the group for the past few years, what remains to be seen is how we perform in the knockouts. BB retain their league group #1 position and now move on to their next much-awaited match against India-XI on July 24, 2011 9:00 AM. Watch at your own risk !

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

2011: Match 8: Vs Bhailog: Won: By 4 Wickets

Captain Ashish’s charmed luck continues as Bombay Boys defeated Bhailog – in a thrilling 4-wicket win with just 4 balls to go in their 8th game of the season. Bhailog won the toss and elected to bat first but with the EP fields bathed in sunshine, the players took some time to establish the expected tempo. However the players and the extended team went ballistic as KT clinched the first wicket of the tournament in the very first ball of the over dismissing the Bhailog opener Abhijit for a big fat duck.

Runs at the top of the order from the Bhailog opener Anil and 1-down Venkat Ramana put Bhailog on course to reach a staggering score. Incessant sledging by the Bombay Boys and responses in kind and beyond by the Bhailog did little to dampen the aggression between the teams as swear words, actions and A-rated dialogues all came into the picture.

At the end of 10 overs, Bhailog stood at 48 runs with the loss of only the one wicket. Their partnership saw Bhailog reach 52-1 before the departure of Anil, the first of the 4 victims, as Bhailog tumbled from 52-1 to 61-5 with AP2 securing 2 of those and Pramod the other 2 wickets respectively. Middle order batsman Rohit stuck to the crease as he started creating havoc raining 6s. Bhailog was eventually bowled all-out for 103 at the end of 20 overs with the last FOW on the very last ball of the innings.

On the positive side, of the 10 wickets, 8 were well-timed precise catches taken by Abhishek, Swaroop, Monty and KT – Swaroop taking the bulk of those – 5 catches. Data and stats from this match (in isolation) would show the fielding ability of Bombay Boys to have improved tremendously. KT who clinched 4 wickets this match, has secured his #1 position in the MVP standings.

Starting their batting innings, BB lost a quick wicket early in their dig with only 2 runs on the scoreboard, with Saurabh being given an out to an alleged ball bouncing off his chest. Saurabh’s dismissal brought Swaroop to the crease and together with opener KT, they steadied the BB ship with a 20-run partnership but Swaroop was out in the 7th over and it was not looking good for the BB at this point. The BB innings got tied down by some excellent bowling by the Bhailog players and progress was slow as the scorecard inched along over by over. At halftime, the BB score stood at 32 runs. To win, BB needed 72 from 60 balls. Certainly doable.

The fall of two quick wickets of Monty and KT over back-to-back balls (Monty - last ball of the 13th over and KT – first ball of the 14th over) brought Bhailog straight back into the contest and for a short period of time it did appear that BB might crumble under the pressure. But Paras and Milind had other thoughts as together they scripted an epic knock to pull Bombay Boys out of the bushes.

Their 28 run partnership put BB right back on course and saw BB reach 5-84 before the departure of Milind, in the 17th over. Needless to say another nail biting match, this time, with the added complexities of sledging and way-too-much aggressiveness both inside and outside the fields. Tension was rampant and a single spark could ignite the electric charge in the air.

Abhishek stepped in and between him and Paras, they managed to reduce the gap, however, there was still a ways to go. 20 runs needed in 18 balls. 16 in 12 needed. BB lost Paras in the 19th over and in stepped HappyDent who also came out as HappiestDent White having hit a brilliant sixer on a no-ball. 5 needed in 6 balls. Abhishek and Jitesh, though new at the crease, made the transition absolutely seamless as they hit shot after shot and also managed to run quick singles – at times risky but then very much needed. Abhishek finally sealed the victory with a 4 off his bat in the 2nd ball of the last over as the crowd went over the edge.

Bhavin met his first true opponent as Ms. Lady Bhailog walked over to give him a piece of his mind and also threatened to send an email to the board if he doesn’t mend his ways. Well, as an outsider not part of the playing team, an email to the board might hardly carry – considering that Bhavin’s not part of the roster anyway. It was an interesting conversation in its own way except that it went way beyond conversations as person after person got embroiled in the argument and at the end of the match, as KT rightly said, we ended up spending all our post-match energy trying to solve the problem rather than celebrate our well-earned victory. If this continues, BB might slowly be on its way to be known as the team winning on sledging tactics rather than fair play and that wouldn’t be right.

On the positive side, BB’s batting middle order clicked right when it needed to and this victory was through-and-through a complete team effort, giving my previous match summary observation a fitting reply. Well, none of the 4 options of the poll on bombay-boys.blogspot.com came true, but after such a victory, what more can one ask for.

Scores as always have been uploaded on http://www.cricketmn.com
For more on the Bombay Boys: http://bombay-boys.blogspot.com

BB stays at the top of their group and now moves on to their 9th match – against Company on Saturday, July 16th 2011 9:00 AM at Eden Prairie.

Friday, July 1, 2011

2011: Match 7: Vs Pinch Hitters: Won: By 7 Wickets


Bombay Boys sealed their 7th victory of the season playing against the Pinch Hitters in an absolute firecracker of a match on Wednesday June 29th  at the Eden Prairie, Flying Cloud Airport fields. Playing compressed 15-over innings on a weekday wasn’t easy for both teams, but Bombay Boys managed to nail it proving to themselves that Oh Boy! Yes, we can chase huge scores just fine !

After winning the toss and electing to field, Bombay Boys started their bowling innings with a seemingly glaring absence of their 2 mainstream bowlers – Chakra and Abhishek. However, new players for the season, Pramod and Milind seemed absolutely gung-ho and in form for their part. 

Going from 20 overs to 15 overs was like moving from the 50 over ODIs to the T20 matches. Gutsy shots, risky singles, well timed fours, thunderous sixes were all expected along with the increased probability of catches as batsmen went in for the kill. Pinch Hitters started their batting innings with a good amount of agression and despite losing a couple of wickets in the initial overs, kept going strong. The run rate trend was a steady climb as the team continued to amass 6+ runs in every over, primarily owing to contributions from the Nikhil and Nikhil duo who hung in there and went in to perfectly time and hit loose balls. Aided by Nitin, the “Ni-teen” combination seemed confident of securing their victory.

Bombay Boys bowlers for their part worked extra hard at securing wickets but in the process also ended up bowling expensive extras. Despite this, Pramod for this part, was instrumental in damage control as he took 2 wickets superbly bowling out the batsmen as the cheering team yelled their heart out. (Special appearance by Shilpa and Saachi). Passionate fielding also went in tow with the bowling as we witnessed a brilliant catch by HappyDent Whtie and a superb run-out by KT and Nitin. Pramod and Vijay took some well-timed catches soo. At the end of 15 overs, having lost 8 wickets, Pinch Hitters had set a tough but achievable target of 93 to win.

The second innings of the match commenced with KT and Swaroop opening up the BB batting innings playing for a RRR: 6+ per over. However, BB experienced a very early FOW as Swaroop’s shot went for a neat catch in the second over itself. Jitesh too, unfortunately, was in and out in a jiffy. It wasn’t looking good for BB at the end of 5 overs – 18 runs in their kitty at the loss of 2 wickets. The revival by Paras and KT was thrilling enough as Paras hit a couple of hard power-packed sixes, sending the crowd roaring and upping the BB score in a very short period of time. But the batting partnership performance between KT and Monty was exceptional and a complete treat to watch.

Despite their best contributions, the BB score stood at 58 at the end of 11 overs. 35 required off 24 balls. The last 4 overs triggered off multiple nail-biting moments as the equation seemed like a mirage. Doable but something that could just as easily slip away as sand. 28 in 18. 14 in 12 as the players and the spectators all held their breath. The Pinch Hitters were at their fielding best. A couple of mad hits in the air as BB also tried their best to hit every ball. Ultimately, Pinch Hitter’s score of 92 for 8 proved woefully inadequate in the wake of a dominating batting display from Players of the Match (if I may say) Monty who finished with an unbeaten, 31 off 25 balls, and KT, in his 3rd consecutive notout 27 off 36 balls. Monty proved his mettle yet again with 3 astounding sixes and a clean four – perfectly timing shots on loose balls and scoring singles as and when they could.

Just the previous match had been termed “boring”. This match however, was anything but. Complete with a nail biting finish, the match was splattered with just enough edge-of-the-seat excitement to keep one’s attention always on the field.

Bombay Boys has now succeeded at a high-speed chase and are confident that they can repeat the magic if required. From the sidelines, excitement was rife as the crowd went into an animal frenzy during major shots by the BB batsmen – what with someone even jumping on the fence at one point in time (chuckle). This probably was also the first match in years when I “ran” into the field at the end of the match. No victory dance or Cadbury’s ad mind you ! (contrary to what Chichi might have been saying !).

We have started encountering tougher teams and will continue to. Lets not forget the extras which might prove costly and gutsy as this may sound, we need to have an overall stronger batting line-up. KT notout for the 3rd consecutive time is both a very positive thing and concerning at the same time (coz it only means that the non-striker end kept changing). Hang on to your seats folks, this was just the trailer, the real movie now begins ! BB bid Adieu to Vijay as he played his last match of the season and moved back to India this past weekend.




Scores as always have been uploaded to : www.cricketmn.com
For further details on Bombay Boys, http://bombay-boys.blogspot.com

Monday, June 20, 2011

2011: Match 6: Vs Twin City Twisters: Won: By 6 Wickets

Twin City Twisters. No twists and turns in any way. A Decent team. Quiet players. No controversies. No sledging. No cheering. No supporters outside the playing 11. Decent leg umpiring. No extravagant appeals. They were all out at 65 runs in 18.4 overs. Great bowling statistics by KT (3.4-1-6-3)and Mahantesh (3-0-12-3) well aided by the skipper. 
Check: 18 extras awarded (3 whole overs !) and several dropped catches!

Favour returned in kind by the Bombay Boys. Decent leg umpiring. No controversies. No sledging (well Sourabh and Ajay tried a bit but no one from TCT responded, finally the two made peace with the fact and proceeded to sledge Jitesh Chavan of the Bombay Boys team itself – this comment sponsored by HappyDent White!!) . Chased 66 runs in 17.4 overs. Top scorers - KT who scored 26 and Mahantesh 21. Current overall MVP and Batting statistics topped by KT.

An easy win. I wont take the risk of asking for more excitement, we have enough of it in other matches, a match here and there like this is a good breather.
A very insipid match. Really, nothing more to it.

Scores as always have been uploaded to www.cricketmn.com
More details on Bombay Boys: http://bombay-boys.blogspot.com