Match 5 : Vs TroubleMakers : Ended in a Draw

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Bombay Boys drew the match against TMK on Sunday 06/20, in what can be categorized as their first truly “exciting” match of the season, complete with a nail-biting finish. With a diversion from the usual trend, Bombay Boys lost the toss this time and acceded to bowl. The team was used to batting first and defending, chasing a set target would be a true challenge to gauge form. Bombay Boys was missing a couple of mainstream bowlers like Arun and Asif, as well as the only left-hand batsman of the team, Arvind. Ashish Prabhu (hereby referred to as AP2) and Nitesh made their season debuts with this match.

Nitin and Ketan started off their bowling spells with decent overs, keeping extras in control and bowling perfect line and length. TMK openers, in first 4 overs thus, were able to post only 15 runs. At a run rate of marginally less than 4 runs per over, the start looked decent enough. However, it seemed like a bad day for Chakra bowling the 5th over. With wides abundant and a huge 6 off the last ball of the over, the 5th over by itself added another 15 runs to the TMK scorecard. Ketan and Monty followed with their overs, somewhat stabilizing the batting outburst. TMK’s main striker Bharat, the guy to watch out for, was on a roll, with a 6 and some meaty 4s, playing strong when his wicket was beautifully taken by Monty, caught by Vikram. Bharat’s dismissal wasn’t taken too well by TMK, who appealed that Bharat was not out since it wasn’t a nick. Bharat for his part, stormed out of the field, pounding his bat against the terrain. BB was on a high, including Bhavin who was having a great time provoking TMK anyway. The very next wicket went in the 9th over, again taken by Monty, who seemed to be returning to his previous dependable form! Albeit having bowled slightly costly overs, the two important wickets were a huge moral boost. At the end of 10 overs, TMK stood at 64/2. Chakra resumed after halftime, this time with well controlled bowling, and amazingly, the remainder 3 overs of his only total up to 12 runs in all. AP2 also bowled some really good balls, 2 overs in all, giving only 11 runs, much to the relief of a lot of us, whose hearts were in our mouths. The real surprise package was Saurabh, who picked up 5 huge wickets in a single match, which has probably never before happened in the history of Bombay Boys. Saurabh also contributed in one of the two runouts, the other involving Vikram and Chakra. At the end of the innings, TMK stood at 111 having lost 9 wickets.

Nitesh and Ketan opened with Nitesh at the striker end. From the very start itself, both TMK and BB seemed charged. Low level swearing from the BB was met in turn by personal comments on the BB players that slowly escalated into a verbal dual. Both teams played with a vengeance. Nitesh got bowled in the 3rd over. In walked Saurabh and between the two and them, they scored some well-timed 4s and ran a good amount of singles/doubles. Saurabh, however, fell prey to a good ball from the TMK bowler Madhu (who had been ragged for quite a while, as he stood close to the BB team at the boundary line during his fielding stint). At the end of 10 overs, BB stood at 53/2. BB now needed 59 runs from the remaining 60 balls. Monty and KT as a duo, exhibited superior batting qualities during the second half, making every use of loose balls and running well-called singles/doubles. The partnership between the two had just set in, when Ketan got bowled again to Madhu. 80/3 in 15 overs. The “equation” now read – 32 runs required from 30 balls. Doable? Paras ensured that we stay in the game, by hitting 2 back-to-back 4s in the 15th over, which brought BB closer to achieving the target. BB needed 16 runs from 4 overs. Definitely doable. However, in the next couple of overs, Paras was not able to connect, causing concern among the BB squad, neither were the batsmen able to rotate the strike. With every missed ball, the target seemed to inch away from reach. Paras’s wicket then fell, as he got bowled to Shrikant in the 19th over. In walked the BB Shrikant and tried to revive the BB scoring. 7 balls 7. 6 balls 6. 5 balls 6. Nail-biting. 2 balls 3. The second last ball of the innings was hit by Monty and the batsmen succeeding in scoring a double and could have run back for the 3rd, but confusion reined as Monty thought it was a No-Ball, given by Satchit who was the leggie but over-ruled by the main umpire. The scores now stood at level. Unfortunately for BB, we were not able to convert the last ball to a run, resulting in a DRAW, which for TMK was a huge victory in itself.

4 runs, 2 from Paras and 2 from Monty were cancelled out by the umpire, claiming that the ball had not touched the bat. Should BB have appealed stronger? The no ball was a controversy. Would that have changed the face of the match? No offense to Shrikant, but Vikram was used to playing in nail-biting finishes like these, would he have been a better fit to the situation at hand? The umpire was supposed to have been from the SOC team, turns out he was from a different team, and surprisingly his name was not even in the roster. Should we have continued? There are innumerable questions that could have been raised, but at the end of the day, the truth of the matter is that the match ended in a draw. Could we have played better? Probably. Could we have done anything different? Probably. Did we miss out on our effort anywhere? NO. We’ll just do better next time.

Bombay Boys now proceeds to their next match against KnightRiderz on 06/26. Stay tuned.
PS : The questions/opinions raised are solely mine and do not reflect the thoughts of the BB team or any player.

Scores : http://www.cricketmn.com/

For further details on Bombay Boys : http://bombay-boys.blogspot.com/

Cheers,
Deepa Duraisamy
One Team. One Dream.

Addendum :
All,

I just wanted to clarify that the question about Shrikant was not raised to undermine his playing or doubt his capability. Being a mere spectator, its not my place to do so. He scored a good 3 runs off 3 balls faced making it a perfect 100% strike rate, however this was still a question that I had in mind which I felt I could voice. Hopefully my email did not touch any raw nerves.

Thanks,
Deepa.

Match 4 : Vs Indian Colts : Won by 21 Runs

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The Bombay Boys winning streak continues with yet another victory, this time against the Indian Colts. As has become the norm, Bombay Boys won the toss this time too and elected to bat. A precursory review of the pitch came back negative for batting as the ball refused to bounce. Bombay Boys definitely couldn’t hope for many extras.

Venu replaced Arvind this match, opening at the non-striker end, aiding skipper Ketan at the striker end. Two consecutive 4s by KT in the very first over set the ball rolling for the Bombay Boys batting scorecard, also building up expectations of a huge target for the Indian colts. Venu got bowled to a good ball from Jatin of Indian Colts in the 5th over. Monty stepped in at the 1-down position and here began the solid 80-run partnership between the duo. KT and Monty continued to steadily garner runs, exhibiting a good running between the wickets, going for 4s and 6s on loose balls and overall, putting on a commendable show. High energy cereal bars and Gatorade from Costco kept them going, I have been told. Special thanks to Venu and Madhu, who were in charge of refreshments and to Arun/Paras who had introduced the bars the first time round. The duo stayed put way past halftime, right till the penultimate over, when both of them fell prey again to Jatin, KT's shot caught by Pawas and Monty for his part, caught and bowled by Jatin. KT finished his innings with a superb 53 off 57 balls, only the 2nd player in the history of Bombay Boys to hit a half century after Neeraj Sinha (Season 2006). Monty also finished with a 'Beautiful' (vocabulary credit - Jitesh) 42 off 44 balls, falling short of a half century by just 8 runs. Talking from a 4s and 6s point of view, KT had 5 neat 4s and 1 huge 6, Monty finished with 3 lovely 4s. The scoreboard at this point read 108. Srikant, Paras, Vikram and Saurabh finished off the last two overs with some quick running between the wickets taking the total score to 121, of which 13 were extras, setting a target of 122 to win.

The bowling innings started with Nitin and Asif, who made a comeback with this match this season. Indian Colts, even though having lost every match of this season that they played, refused to back down and took to aggressive playing right from the very first ball. Openers Harish and Pawas ensured that even if they end up losing this one as well, they will not do so without a fight. A steady contribution by both of them, led to a 67-run partnership, with 4s galore. The score at halftime read 50 with no loss of wickets. This was a dangerous situation to be in. Bombay Boys bowling innings missed the inherent aggression and superb mind sledging display of the previous match. To add to it, the previously unhelpful pitch seemed to have changed form as balls bounced off it in abundance, transforming into no-balls easily. As the BB skipper had mentioned during the initial preplay huddle, Bombay Boys had lost only 1 league match in the entire 2008 season, that was to Indian Colts. We sure as hell didn’t need a replay of that. But at this point, looking at the score and the attitude of the Indian Colts, the match could go either way. The only sliver of hope came in the 12th over when Pawas was caught by Asif amidst sharp intakes of breath by the onlookers, as the ball bounced off Asif's hands and he managed to take the bounced catch again while in the running mode. The very next wicket went in the same over by Srikhant, this one taken by the BB wicket-keeper Vikram in a similar enthralling fashion, followed by nonstop rooting and cheering. The 2 cut-to-cut wickets put some pressure on the Indian Colts and boosted the morale of the Bombay Boys who upped their aggression factor, having gone down due to dropped/missed catches by Satchit, Saurabh, Vikram, Monty that could have cost the team dearly. Comments coming from the direct source, Monty's bowling also needs work, pace adjustment and focus on line (length being perfect) required since wides were abundant. Other well taken catches by Vikram (who took a total of 4 catches this match), Saurabh, Ajay P (brilliant, well-timed catch, Chichi - under a lot of pressure to perform well in his 1st match this season) and Ketan ensured that history didn’t repeat itself in this case. Indian Colts ended their 20 over innings with a total of 100, of which 24 were extras. Translated to 4 complete overs. That is A LOT.

Bowling and fielding sections needs to step up. Bombay Boys now stands at 4/4, facing their next opponents in the form of TroubleMakers, who have been doing pretty good this season. Gear up people, the race has just begun to get interesting !

Scores : www.cricketmn.com
For further details on Bombay Boys, http://bombay-boys.blogspot.com

Cheers,
Deepa Duraisamy.
One Dream. One Team.

Match 3 : Vs Victors : Won by 18 Runs

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Bombay Boys maintained their impressive momentum with their third win in the MTBT, as Victors were outmuscled by an 18 run defeat that was more emphatic than the final margin suggested. After winning the toss for the third consecutive time and electing to bat, the skipper put forth the team’s target as 125. However, once the team started their batting innings and the way the initial few wickets stumbled, achieving this target seemed bleak.

Arvind was the first to go in the 7th over, but his 38 run strong partnership with KT, of which Arvind had contributed a resounding six, was a good start for the batting innings of BB. Saurabh walked in at his 1-down position, made some quick singles and had barely faced 2 overs, when his wicket was taken by Pranit. The score at halftime was 54/2. KT till now had managed to stand strong and had continued to contribute mostly with quick singles and doubles, however he fell prey to Pranit as well in the 12th over. Monty had been 2-down after Saurabh returned to the pavilion but was caught-and-bowled by Pranit shortly after he had made an entry. Monty’s wicket was being discussed within the team, as a questionable decision by the umpire, Monty stating vehemently that the ball bounced off the ground before being caught. Umpire’s decision being final, Monty returned, having added a meagre 6 runs to the score, which now read 62/4 at the end of 12 overs. Next in the batting line-up, almost in step, were Paras and Vikram, who exhibited some quick running between the wickets. However, Vikram was quickly dismissed through a catch. With Vikram’s dismissal, Srikhant entered, but encountered a similar caught-and-bowled by Pranit yet again, having added a couple of the runs to the BB kitty. Paras also met the same fate as Monty, only worse. Touted as a catch by the wicketkeeper with the big gloves, this time the umpire’s decision was criticized by the entire BB team, having come close on the heels of the earlier questionable decision. Arun’s entry upped the BB score somewhat, with his well placed shots, including one sixer and one four, eliciting cheers from BB and loud shouts from the angry not-so-young man, the Victors skipper Prabhu. Chakra and Venu put in their team contributions, supporting Arun and letting him stay at the striker end. The last ball of the innings, was hit by Arun for a beautiful sixer, making the score a 3 digit number. The target for the Victors now stood at 102.

As per BB batsmen opinions, Pranit was considered to be a strictly-OK bowler. Unfortunately for Bombay Boys, however, Pranit took 5 wickets and 3 catches in this one match, probably making the inning his cricket career’s best.

The just average score, coupled with frustration at the “neutral” umpire created an unparalleled aggression among the BB team which surfaced in the bowling innings. From the very first over onwards, BB bowled and fielded with a vengeance. Every possible and not-probable catch was heavily appealed for, fielding was tight and upbeat, sledging was rampant, both on and off the field.

Nitin and Chakra started out as the opening bowlers and ensured a low batting output, controlling extras. KT took over for the 5th over, but unfortunately, ended up getting hit for a 4, a 2 and multiple singles, giving Victors 10 runs for the over. Chakra retired hurt during this over, hurting his prior ligament injury, in an attempt to field a ball at the point position. Jitesh, this time ready with shoes and all, sub’ed for Chakra. Arun bowled next, showing complete control, followed by Monty, with a mix of some really good balls and some sad extras, and Arvind who also finished his 4 overs with good statistics.

If BB continued their aggressive play, then they had an excellent shot at victory. The Victor’s keeper Prabhu stood strong, till the 14th over, slowly and steadily adding runs, through support of his other batsmen. The revival post 10-overs was thrilling enough, but the fielding performance, especially the wicket-keeping was exactly as required. A couple of the other Victors batsmen like Shiva, Ram and Akshay did play their part as they determinedly kept going with singles. The rest of the Victors team, mostly Tamilian, attempted to incite the cheering team with their choicest epithets. However, a good team play by the boys swiped the grin off their faces, as they also eventually gave up on their players and joined the BB squad in cheering the BB players !!!!!!!!!!! Victors finished at 84 at the end of 20 overs.

From the sidelines, Chichi (Ajay P) was in his best spirits, dealing out Rajinikanth slogans and punchlines in Tamil, also singing a dance number only to have the Victor’s wicketkeeper join in and dance at the non-striker end. Chichi was also joined by Bhavin who unbashedly yelled out adult one-liners, regardless of the audience.

In the past, there have been matches where everything has failed and the newsdesk has done some thorough, maybe immature, bashing. This however, is not one of those days. Even though the match was “interesting”, I strongly feel that the team played to the best of its abilities. It just wasn’t that great a day. Well, at the end of day, BB won its 3rd match and now moves on to the 4th league match against Indian Colts on 6/6 (No match during the long weekend). We have started encountering tougher teams and will continue to.

Chakra : We wish you a speedy recovery.
Arun : Great job so far, best of luck with your half-marathon, we’ll miss you !
A request to the senior players : If you have any excerpts from the 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2009 seasons, please do forward them for compilation.

Scores : www.cricketmn.com
For further details on Bombay Boys, http://bombay-boys.blogspot.com

Thanks,
Bombay Boys Newsdesk.
One Team, One Dream.

Match 2 : Vs Cricstars : Won by 31 Runs

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As a member of the opponent team Cricstars remarked “The best seats in the house seem to be taken !”, rightly so, the cheering squad and the reserved player section had already marked their territory with summer chairs, food (read : energy supplements) and the likes, all set in anticipation to be a part of the Bombay Boys second match Vs Cricstars.

Arvind and Ketan opened as usual, after BB won the toss and elected to bat. Witnessed some good hard hitting shots from both Arvind and Ketan and the partnership was just starting to look good when Arvind got bowled out in the 4th over by Sirag, one of the apparently good bowlers from Cricstars. Arvind’s score stands at 18 runs scored off 15 balls, which also included 3 well placed fours and good running singles, leading us to believe that if his current form continues, we can hope to see two additional supporters pretty soon. Ketan for his part scored 29 runs off 38 balls, playing some well timed shots, including 2 fours and one strong sixer ! The team looked strong at 51 runs in 8 overs when the BB captain’s wicket was taken by the Cricstar’s captain Deepak. Saurabh stepped in at the 1-down position and it was interesting to watch him bat. Inside sources had mentioned and I quote “Wo mast technical khelta hain" (read : technique) and Saurabh for his part delivered good on his expectations. At halftime, the BB score read 63/2. Comfortable deal so far.

The second half of the innings saw some good batting skills from players like Monty, Paras, Vikram, Arun and Chakra and sixers rained as well. Monty and Paras had 2 each to their credit and Arun had one outstanding (literally !) sixer on the offside, having come determinedly off his bat and timed perfectly. Tactful utilization of loose balls and due contributions from most of the batting segment put Bombay Boys at a final score of 129 at the end of 20 overs with a loss of 6 wickets.

Cricstars had lost one match and won one in this season so far with decent doable scores both matches, so it was an open match so far with this one went. The bowling innings of BB got off to a casual start as Ketan got pounded in the first over itself, including a sixer on a no ball. Nitin for his part tried to stabilize the opening overs delivering perfect line and length. The 3rd over, again bowled by Ketan, was very much controlled and added only two runs to the Cricstar’s scoreboard. Unfortunately, as Monty’s overs followed, the saga of full toss balls and wides continued. Every full toss and no ball was aptly converted to an advantage by the opponenents and the downpour of fours and sixes seemed to loom threateningly.
If there was any consolation, it was the fact that, despite the definitely-needs-work bowling, the wicket taking streak did wonders for BB. Perfect take-your-time catches by Arun, Saurabh, Monty and “bowled” wickets taken by Arun, Monty, Chakra and KT more than made up for the fulltoss fiasco. So, on one side though the wicket taking showed complete team contribution, on the other side so did the worrisome bowling and dropped catches. Paras, Monty and Chakra all dropped catches. The BB team did ensure that Cricstars was bundled out for a measly 98 at the end of 18.2 overs.

Post match : So far, we are good as far as batting goes. Team effort through and through. Bowling sadly is another story. Looking at this match in perspective, the dropped catches and loose bowling did not affect this match’s result but with the right opponent could turn the match around. BB won the match sure, but we need to use this match to learn from our mistakes.

Note : There also needs to be ready, a 12th player complete with shoes (chuckle !) in case of any emergencies pulling off a playing member. A special “Thank you” to Dishant whose extension promises to provide tremendous support to BB as he tried to keep the team going with his remarks ! Thank you also to the cheering squad and the rotating reserve section, who’ll always be there.

From the Bombay Boys Newsdesk,
One Team, One Dream.

Match 1 : Vs Desi Devils : Won by 38 Runs

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Bombay Boys Vs Desi Devils
MTBT Season 7 : 2010 : Match 1
Saturday May 08, 2010. 9:00 AM CST. University Ground.

Chilly winds blasting at speeds of 15 mph. Cold weather temping 46F. Predictions of rain and sleet. No respite in sight. Bombay Boys couldn’t have had a worse forecast as a start to the season.

Rocking jerseys. Team unity personified. 11 players inside. 9 outside. Adrenaline pumping. Bombay Boys couldn’t have asked for a more enthusiastic team either !

After winning the toss and electing to bat, Bombay Boys got off to a decent start with openers Arvind and KT making quick singles. However, BB experienced a very early FOW when Arvind’s shot went for a neat catch in the second over itself. Jitesh, unfortunately was in and out pretty quickly, followed by the skipper, who tho’ off to a good batting start making 11 runs off 13 balls, was the next to go in the 5th over. The score at the end of 5 overs read 25/3. Monty and Paras stepped in almost consecutively to build an impressive 86 run partnership which included 3 resounding sixes by Paras and 1 power-packed one by Monty. The duo kept up a good pace through the overs right till the 18th over with the fall of Monty’s wicket. Saurabh and Paras finally wrapped up the last 2 overs; with Saurabh getting run out on the very last ball. At the end of 20 overs , having lost 6 wickets, Bombay Boys had set a pretty decent target of 126 runs.

The second innings of the match commenced with KT and Nitin bowling the first 4 overs. 3 commendable sixes by the Desi Devil’s opener Naresh, 2 of them on 2 consecutive balls hit to Nitin and 1 to KT, coupled with Naresh’s crazy-looking head jerks raised questions, concerns, eyebrows and laughs everywhere. When KT and Jitesh both angled themselves to take a catch, off Naresh’s shot – a very important one, the cheering squad members held their breath. Finally KT took the catch, possibly the most important one of the Desi Devils team, not that we ever doubted Jitesh. Good calling and coordination gentlemen !

Sudhir and Sarath of the Desi Devils tried to keep the match going, pitching in from their end. A few runs here, a few there. At halftime, Desi Devils almost stood neck-to-neck with Bombay Boys at 61 runs off 10 overs with an advantage of a wicket. But all the king’s horses and all the king’s men could not put Humpty Dumpty together again ! The team kept losing batsmen as BB exhibited a superior bowling performance during the second half of the match. Excellent bowling statistics by Arun, Chakra and KT, decent bowling overs by Nitin, Monty and Arvind coupled with efficient fielding displays by Jitesh and KT (having taken 4 catches himself) ensured that the opponents were bundled out for a meagre 87 with 1 ball to spare !

Congratulations on the first win of the season boys ! The team now advances to their next match with Cricstars on 05/16 at Cedar Lake.

Cheers,
Bombay Boys Newsdesk.

Quarterfinals : Vs Howitzers : Won

Author Credit : Rajib Das

Bombay Boys launched their knock out campaign in an emphatic manner, routing minnows(I called so to commensurate their name, originally they are very spirited team) Howitzers by 34 runs in their quarter final match in University Ground on super Sunday.

Electing to bat, BB rattled up a decent 91 for eight, riding on marvelous knock of 31 runs by Vikram Namjoshi , practicing well ahead of clash against arch-rivals Geeks on next Saturday.They then bundled out the opponents for a paltry 57 in 14 overs to register their one of the best victory margin, the highest being 87-run win against Pinch Hitters in last match.BB started the match from the point where they had left off in last match. Feeling the same hit in mind they were just about to engulf the opponent right from the beginning.

Fierce speed star Arun Kadam (4/23) weaved the bowling magic, firing with guile as he forced three players in just only seven runs in three overs by foxing batsmen with his intriguing line and length apart from his outstanding fielding.Mr Extra(31) and Ranga(9) were the main contributors in their(Howitzer) side's dismal run-chase. Beginning from their innings they were loosing wickets on almost each over collapsing down to 27 for 9 in 10 overs. Courtesy to BB’s torment focus at the end they managed to cross 50 runs in cemetery.

Right-arm paceman Ketan drew the first blood in his very first over, trapping Ramji for a mere single, to begin the rot and in next over to pick Ram, the most value able wicket of Howitzers. Mr VC Asif was also jubilant with his bowling arms after failing in batting this time; He dethroned two opponent in quick succession. In short Howitzers batsmen lacked confidence in negotiating BBs bowling attack. Poor running added to the woes of Howitzers as lack of understanding resulted in excellent run out of Guru by Monty in direct throw.

Arvind closed Howitzers hope with last wicket clean bowled Lefty Ranga when wacky whispering was about to commence in cheering team after 30 runs partnership stand.Earlier, Vikram notched up his second 30 in this ground and Ketan on 10 and Arun on 8. Namjoshi spearheaded the batting blitz with his scintillating knock with many couples and a huge six towards end of the innings helps BB reach defendable total of 91 runs in 20 over match.

Howitzers pacers Anant, Neela and Saravana who had done an admirable job against opponents in their group match were also shinning in this match. Among them Anant was the most economic bowler conceded only 9 runs in 4 overs and bagged two wickets.Saravana took maximum 3 wickets for the team costing 16 runs in 4 overs. Neela(23/1) was bit expensive but he reimbursed the fact by grabbing three exuberant catch in the field.

This was a convincing victory for BB showing their strength and nature as usual in the field. Just two more matches are behind to lift the cup and repeat 2005 history. Like other days cheering stand(Deepa, Sunaina, scorer Bhavin Bhai, Vikas Bhai – Kancha Specialist, Nitin, Nitesh) has the same contribution as before to achieve this sweet victory. I always mention their name at the end, does not mean that they are mere spectators. Contrary they are the people, we player for, to give smile in their face, to crave for cup, to share few happy moments out of our busy IT life. We always keep them in mind with strong bondage with the team and say…


“Three cheers for Bombay Boys..Hip Hip…….Congratulations Everyone…..”

Cheers
Author

PS: Unfortunately there was no photo session this time as Photographer was busy analyzing Share market !

Match 6 : Vs Indian Colts : Lost

Watching the Bombay Boys play and writing for them has always been a treat. And much as I have tried to put off writing about the hopeless debacle that ensued on Saturday, June 28th, it was either this or an entry in my diary, so I might as well say it out loud.

Disclaimer : The reminder of the email is intended to be unbiased yet not intended to offend anyone.

Looking at this match in the perspective, I would say there were a host of events that went bad causing the team strategy, if any, to fail. The idea of experimenting with the batting order for one looks to be a bad idea now; maybe one wouldn’t be saying this had Bombay Boys won. But they didn’t and its safe to say that we cannot afford this again. 4 ducks in the team. Kind of hard to digest. Only 2 double digit scores. The second one barely making it in at 10. The skipper Chakra and Dada gave a somewhat admirable stand, considering the circumstances, pulling in 10 and 8 respectively. KT and DevAnand giving in their share of 7 and 8 as well. The Wall, Satchit, barely edged up 3 runs. Needless to say; the others Asif, Arvind, Monty and Arun walked back to the pavilion the same as they had gone in to play. The series of ‘bowled’s one can understand; but the catches? Well, if the team knew they were losing wickets I wonder what prompted each of them to keep flicking their bats? At the end of the batting innings; the Bombay Boys wicketkeeper Vikram is clearly the one who pulled them
through with the batting innings; making a good very sensibly played 34 taking the team to a very well defendable score of 92 when at times it looked like even 60 was a good enough score.

Now the real test began. It was upto the bowlers and the overall fielding to fall into place. The initial 10 overs were a pleasure to watch. The top order of the Indian Colts was bundled out for a measly 27 at the end of the first 10 overs. The Indian Colts had to make 66 in 10 overs. The Bombay Boys were all set for a victory. Well then, what failed? Misfields, totally unecessary extras, short balls, full-tosses, missed really-important catches. The next 10 overs had all the mistakes one should learn from to get better in the game. Colts had lost atleast 4-5 wickets in the first 10 wickets yet they won the match fair and square with 3 wickets to spare. OK, the Bombay Boys performed badly; but we have to admit; they made an awesome comeback too and played to win. I applaud the 3 hugely hit sixers from IC to each of our mainstream bowlers. Even though I thought then that a couple of runs would have made the difference, thinking back, now I beg to differ. Where they made 93, they could also have made 100. What we needed was a good score maybe 120+ and each of you know we could have done it.

Its bad enough to lose a match but losing to a team who has lost every other match; never won a single one before and wins straight against the Titans, well that doesn’t sit too well. Were the boys too complacent? Probably yes. Indian Colts was percieved to be a poor team and did the boys think this was too easy? Probably yes again. (Saturday’s opponents don’t look so tough?? Reality check needed here !!) Another mistake to be learnt from. Its important that we end the losing sequence with just this one. Thanks to Naren and Nitesh (and probably even Feroz) we have the entire match caught on tape (shortly to be uploaded on KM .. LOL .. Just kidding Arvind), and what better take-away but to analyze and ensure that every match henceforth is played with a vengeance.

As Monty and Arun rightly remarked; its high time that BB has the Australian attitude : Never to lose. If it’s a poor team; lets beat them even more aggressively. That’s what makes them the trend setters. Its important that BB takes this defeat in stride, positively and make up for it the next matches. This loss has cost us dearly shifting our positions within the group as well as overall. Right now; the only thing to hope for is that this doesn’t play a part to any downslides. To make it to the top, BB is going to have to play it tougher with stronger teams like Indian Knights and Indian XI.

As you can see, this week’s score came in pretty late compared to the usual SLA of 2 hour; as well as 4 totally unrelated pics of nature seem to be in KT’s Orkut album which says Match 6 : Bombay Boys Vs Indian Colts (PS : I do find that a little humorous and empathize with the players). Most of the BB team has been down in the dumps since the catastrophe; Stop whining and get over it guys. Move on; learn from it and make sure you play so well that people don’t remember this one anymore. Most of us in IT have a short memory anyways.

Am sure Harshad had a good time umpiring; the poor person got stuck in a tight spot because of the neutral umpire not making it, some say the umpiring costs did cover his Farmer's Market expenses though and Vijay needs to come for a match which the BB wins to prove that he’s not the unlucky omen.

Over and out,
Deepa.

Match 5 : Vs Victors : Won

One word to describe the attitude of Bombay Boys during their game with the Victors – Determined. Victors were believed to be a good team with a strong bowling attack. As per information from our sources within the BB team, this was where the real tournament started for the boys. It was almost as if the earlier ones were practice sessions.

Concentration, focus, absolutely no extras, brilliant fielding and not-to-miss a good batting innings were key to success in this match. One cannot help but ask the question, what’s left that needs to be mastered?

Dada and Asif opened making quick singles as BB won the toss and elected to bat; but it was hard luck for Dada as he got bowled off a slow ball very early in the game. Monty stepped in at his usual 1-Down position and it was a good initial partnership between him and Asif; one huge sixer coming off Asif’s bat towards the long on. A few more runs to add to his score and the partnership was just starting to look good when Asif got out. A decision which seemed questionable there coz as per Asif and the BBs “nick nahi laga tha; awaaz aaya tha but pata nahi kya tha”. Well, the umpire’s decision being final; Asif walked out and KT walked in. But this time before the crowd could view the fireworks coming from KT he got run out due to a hesitated decision on a run. That’s something that the team needs to get better at; running between the wickets; we were weak at it last year and we still got scope to improve. Next in line was Anand; and this time even though the opponent tried psyching Anand to hit with comments like “Last over before break” Anand stood firm. He did give a loose catch to the Victors at the start of the second innings though and walked back with hardly a couple of runs to his name. And there was one more well-placed sixer from Monty landing right in the exact same spot as Asif. Talk about consistency within the team. The score stood at 52 runs at the end of first 10 overs. The BB looked to be a formidable team at this point of time.

But the second innings didn’t hold much interest atleast till the last 3 overs. Hardly 20 runs in 7 overs brought the run rate crashing down like anything. Monty played a good 31 runs before walking back to the pavilion. Due contributions from the rest of the team in the last 3 overs - Arun Kadam, who made 17 runs with two much-needed fours, the skipper’s 7 runs and the last few runs coming in from the BB’s wicket-keeper Vikram who also hit one neat four took the total to 101. Good defendable score but will it be enough?

The bowling innings got off to a too-casual start as the bowlers seemed to give wides by the dozen. No one bowler. Charity all around. Of the first 40 runs scored by the Victors; 11 were extras. 30%. Not good at all. The Victors slowly inched their way along and even though were no where close to the BB score at break time, they definitely had enough potential to cause a huge upset. As known, the last 5 overs have the typical make-or-break play.

Some excellent catches by Asif, Chakra, KT and a brilliant runout by KT/WK – Vikram brought back some zing into the game during the second half of the bowling innings, tight fielding by Arvind, Dada and the quick wicket-taking did kind of make up for the runs donated in extras. Arun Kadam did a brilliant caught-and-bowled too. Stats wise : this match would be best attributed to our skipper who did a classic 3-1-3-1 (Overs bowled-Maiden-Runs Given-Wickets taken). Wickets were evenly distributed give-or-take 1 wicket between the regular 5 bowlers. The last 3 overs of the match sealed the victory in the hands of the BBs. Thinking back; Victors didn’t seem to be that strong a team but they didn’t give up; they didn’t throw their wickets in desperation or try any foolhardy stunts; they kept going at it silently; and maybe this was their bad day; its always better to over-estimate the opponent and play it tough rather than under-estimate them and let it loose. At such times; playing it simple; keeping enough gap between balls remaining and runs to be scored makes all the difference.

It was a good team play by the boys today – who turned out to be the true Victors; hopeless extras; an overall good victory (the cheering team is fine with average excitement in such cases provided we play strong and stay put) but what remains now to be seen is how much effort the BBs are willing to put in to stay ahead in the game; given the fact that we need just 1 more victory to get into the 2ndround. To compete with teams like Indian-XI and Geeks; the boys will need much more than the regular singles and one-off sixers.

Gear up boys – The tournament has just begun.

Scores as always have already been uploaded to www.cricketmn.com - Thanks Ketan.
Photos' on Ketan's Orkut - Thanks Feroz (who has his tripod and video shooting going !)
Thanks to Anand for the refreshments.
And last but not the least, to the ever supportive cheering team.
We Rock !!

Thanks,
Deepa

Match 4 : Vs Company : Won

Author Credit : Rajib Das

A cricket buff, I have no doubt, will respond the question incorrectly if you inquire him which country has invented T-20 Cricket. A simple answer coming into everyone’s mind would be either South Africa or India. Accurate reply should be Minneapolis – Cricket ball tennis tournament; a romantic dream of a glorious day at the Shakopee ground, with Monty hitting fours and sixes on every ball and batting forever – what a wonderful sight to watch for Bombay Boys Cricket lovers. This has been fifth year and this time the tournament is recognized as ‘MTBC Trophy’.

It is too early to comment that Bombay Boys is impregnable, as they have not faced the real music yet in this tournament though they have managed to win four consecutive games this year. But needless to say they are so far playing dominant cricket bringing smile to their expectator. This match purview is portrayed entirely on the game played between Bombay Boys and Company on last Saturday. Those who wouldn’t spend an afternoon watching an exacting and gripping run crawl in, say, BB versus Company, were shedding tears for the traditions of the great game.

In an era of slam-bang cricket(IPL), Bombay Boys came out with a strategy straight out of early 90s concept: win the toss, bat, see off the new ball, keep wicket in hands, accelerate and put up a respectable total. Chakra, BB’s skipper after winning the toss, never hesitated to elect bat first. The pitch wasn't conducive to stroke play early and both opener bided their time. Slow but steady start from BB puts 21 in initial 6 overs when BB lost their first wicket. It was not a day for Monty who scored almost every match, shortly he fall off when score was 35/3 after ten overs. Opener Asif contributed valuable 10 as he was promoted batting order. Ketan and Anand were two rapid snuffles for opponent though Anand hit a huge six- only one in BBs innings. At this point BB was really grappling to get some run in score board until stroke maker Arun and Mr wall Satchit played few crucial shots for BBs. Arun was 11 when he decided he had enough and Satchit on 13. Both could not gauge the low bounce from Aravind Bellan, storming off the wicket. After 15 overs BB was somewhere near 56 for 5. Everyone was onto their feet to see a good competitive total for BB. Quick contribution from Chakra(9) and Vikram(8) at the end ensured BB stayed in the fight slumming up a total of 86 in 20 overs.

Eighty six on its normal day wasn’t a safe total to defend for any team and one or two bad over could have vacillated the match to opponent’s bag. Chakra warned everyone about this at the break. A new strategy called ‘Mind Game’ was probable addition in this team to carry forward to the rival who was in daydream to beat the team that showed their stature in last three matches. Bowler Ketan and Asif made a tight start for BB fastening the seat belt for Company’s opener. After five overs they were in 16/1. Company was progressing steadily towards their target without loosing wicket when everyone was bit worry about, specially BB’s supporter I am sure of :). You need a profound cricket vision when you are stuck in mud on the field. Chakra tactfully utilize Arun on such occasion when wicket was badly needed for BB. And of all surprises Arun stood up as best bowler on right moment for the team clinching 4 magnificent wickets in 14 runs. Monty was not far apart while competing with his team mate in terms of wicket taking capabilities(4 overs – 13 runs – 3 wickets). Chakra initially struggled, finding out his length(10 runs in his first over) but unfurled thrillingly (consuming only 15 runs in 4 over), like a caterpillar escaping its chrysalis. Bowler would be successful when his fielders supported him full fledge. On the ground Ashish, Anand, Aravind, Ketan were exuberant, but WK Namjoshi was outstanding. He saved so many extras in this match probably add the right life line for the team by setting up few examples – how to do. At the end Company succumbed to 65 all out maintaining 21 runs victory for BB. This was a great team effort came up at right moment against right team.

Of course cheer leaders are happy as BB attained top of the table in this tournament, but their expectation is not so small to their erstwhile champion(2005). They definitely covet to witness their beloved team standing tall at the end of the day becoming champion this time. Every one(Bhavin bhai, Vikas bhai, Feroz, Nagesh, Nitin, Venu, Deepa, Sunaina with her new hair style, Asif bhabi :) - list is long) in BB stand has become part of the family – come for the team to cheer up, shout and deliver what ever best they can for BB. This is indeed a pleasant feeling as part of the team. THANK YOU is really a tiny word for them. I believe all BB player will show HATS OFF to them. We play for them we win for them and we will become ultimate champs for THEM.
Three cheers for Bombay Boys..Hip Hip Hurray.. Congratulation team, keep up the same spirit till end.

Cheers
Author

Official Website: www.cricketmn.com

Match 3 : Vs Knight Riderz : Won

“As per our EPCL Intelligence Bureau, Knight RiderZ team is a sort of a average team who can upset any team on a given day. So we need to make sure that we don't give them any chances. Our top order was a failure in second match, so i hope they give some rest to our lower order batsman this time :) Bowlers – No Extras, Tight fielding” – A clear and concise message from the skipper. The team in itself looked much more serious given the mishaps from the last match. The game started off without the neutral umpires (They should be fined for being late !) and paused in the very first over with both teams crying foul. BB’s WK Mr. Namjoshi had taken a brilliant catch to Asif’s ball. But the umpire (filling in from Knight Riderz wasn’t convinced). And wicket or no-wicket, the match got stalled till the neutral umpire finally joined.

The match recommenced with the benefit–of-doubt being given to the batsmen but they had it coming. A cool catch by Aadha Kadam, another brilliant one by the other Kadam, a blink-and-its-over runouts by Ketan/Arun; there was even one where Mr. Kadam threw the ball at the stumps in mid-flight, a nice dive by Mr. Komanur, a great catch by Asif Bhai, 2 nice ones by Suresh Natesan too (BTW, Mr. Nattu was replacing MultiGopal Nambiar in this match who injured his hand during cricket practice with Mr. Nattu ahem ahem !!) Literally collapsing like a pack of cards, Knight Riderz were out for a measly 51 !

For the bowlers - You have to see the stats to believe it ! It was a total team effort !

As far as batting goes, the team proved their skipper’s statement right, the lower batsmen got their fill of rest this time !!! Well, it wasn’t entirely due to the top order tho !! 42% of the target came through extras !! J

Nitesh pitched in with 4 runs, Rajib got out to a sad run-out. Monty’s strokes came off strongly with 2 fours ( of a sad 3 in the entire match – cant help – the grounds are so full of grass, the ball just doesn’t travel !!) Mr. Dependable was there as always (9) and Monty ended off the match in style with the winning 4 coming off his bat.
Point to be noted : This was easy. Just shouldn’t make us complacent. Keep in mind the law of averages. Every team stands a chance to upset any team on any given day.

I did happen to joyfully mention that this was a boring match, and got hit with the fact (serves me right) that we complained that the last “exciting” match was totally unneeded. Excitement hua to bhi problem, nahi to bhi. Ha ha ! That’s us fans ! Either-way, watching and rooting for the Bombay Boys has always been fun, and regardless of whether there’s excitement or not, here’s wishing the Boys the best of luck to take on their opponents in every match and reach the very top ! Great going and Good Luck ! Dad enjoyed a lot and wishes you all the very best. So do Arunesh and Sunil.

For pictures and videos : Check out Ketan’s Orkut albums. A big thanks to - Feroz and Nagraj – our official photographers of the event; Feroz had a great time roller skating too !

For detailed scores : Check out www.cricketmn.com (Bhavin’s our official score keeper !)

Last but not the least – thanks to Sumera, Sunaina, Chakra’s friends (J), Feroz, Nagraj, Bhavin, Vikas, Jerome, Ashish, Nitin ( I know a few of you are in the team and are players – so we look forward to you in there !) - Thanks for yelling your heart out ! Keep up the volume ! It makes me proud to think we might be the only team where’s there atleast half the number of people outside the field as inside !!! My apologies if I missed anyone.

GO Bombay Boys !!!

Thanks,
Deepa

Match 2 : Vs Champions : Won

What started out this weekend as a hopeful one sided match with Bombay Boys looking the favourites to win, finally ended with a nail-biting finish taking the match right upto the last over. After losing the toss to Champions, and having to field, BB still seemed to have got off to a good start. The first 10 overs showed tons of promise, the next 10 and the following innings - absolutely none. Excellent stats from Asif Bhai, 4-1-10-3 and decent contributions from Ketan 3-0-8-2, Monty 4-0-15-2 Arun 4-0-17-0, Chakra 4-0-22-0 and Anand 1-0-5-0 had the Champions bundled out for a not-too-bad not-too-bad 77.

Now ( pause here for effect ! ) It didn’t seem that difficult a task. Atleast initially. Till it became hopeless.

The champions played a total mind game and sledging was at its best. Our openers failed. Monty got caught between deciding to go-for-it and play-it-safe and was back to the pavilion too quickly. Arun didn’t make it either and was joined by Satchit shortly. It was left to Ketan and Vikram to take us to the end who played it smart and played quick strokes. An admirable effort from Vikram and a good knock by Ketan kept it going till KT fell too. Attempts from the skipper and Anand added just a couple of runs and the overs were getting over too soon. Vikram held on steady till the end and Asif ended the finale with the last 2 runs in the very last over with 2 balls to spare. A cool start but a very unecessary risky finish. Needless to say, it was an exciting match alright ! We sure had a great time !

Point to be noted : We gave 28 extras ! Bowling Check ! And the batting line-up totally collapsed. I know its easy for a non-player to be a critic (even a critic is someone who’s been on the field usually) but face it guys, we could have done better. You are the Bombay Boys !

Match 1 : Vs Gladiators : Won

Bombay Boys took on Gladiators (previously known as TBD-XI) in their first match of Season 2008. After winning the toss and electing to bat, BB got off to a good start, with a steady opening by Nitesh Kadam (now slowly being known as Aadha Kadam ! J ) and Dada (Rajib Das). The partnership ended in an early FOW though. Monty (Mahantesh) Komanur and KT started off their brilliant knocks letting the audience catch a sneak-peak of what lay ahead. A few dependable 6s and 4s from each of them had the fans cheering like crazy.
Satchit (Mr. Dependable – Does he look like he cares !) was a good contributor too - in all taking the score to a good 133 runs.

From a bowling angle, talking from a non-player point of view, Bombay Boys seems to have a pretty strong lineup with each of the bowlers pitching in and taking wickets on and off. Asif and Venu opened and each had their share of good overs. Arun Kadam proved his prowess here with a cool statistic of 4 overs ( 1 of them being a maiden) - 12 runs - 1 wicket (4-1-12-1). The best part of watching this innings was the way the stumps were flying off the ground. 3 huge “bowled” from Monty and 1 big one from Arun, and the boys had them all squared away. Overall a good start, The result of the game may not have a bearing on the finals of this tournament but the confidence built up will no doubt come in handy for the future games.

The match, nevertheless, was full on interruptions. For those who missed it, we even had the 911 cops come in and send our boys out of the field. Turns out some high school boys team had come over for baseball practice, and probably got scared looking at our team, so just called 911 and had them do the task.

Point to be noted : We made a good start, but its still too early to say. Just need to wait and watch.