Season 2, Game 1 – A New Hope (taa taaa, ta ta ta taaaa, taa....)
Number 3 vs Smart CC.
Loyola College 'B', 7 May 2006.
#3 174 for 4 (Narahoo 54, Ramesh 33, Druck 26*, Kishore 21*) beat Smart CC 89 all out (Vik 3 wk, Ramesh 3 wk, Joy 2 wk) by 85 runs.
OK, season 2. Is there any point to all this? Are we killing ourselves in this blazing heat for any reason at all? The answer, my friends, is blowin' in the wind, and is an emphatic and overwhelming YES. Read on, read on, and you'll see.
The first game of season two was also the first true home game for members of our team, specifically Zeb and Indrabeer, famous alumni of Loyola College. The dancers were back, taking the place of the Bangalore bound iii and the unavailable Arjun. And no sooner did Narendra walk into the ground, than he was surrounded by fans. For you poor foreigners, who do not have access to the wonderful TV show 'Kolangal' let me enlighten you. Narendra plays a psyched character named 'Upendra' in this show, who has recently acquired a gun and is on the run from the cops. This seems enough to give him cult hero status amongst college students from far flung regions such as Katpadi.
The other team assembled and they looked pretty fit, giving rise to worries that this was another Rookies like team. Time would tell. Kishore proved to be our lucky man, as we won the toss and decided to bat first, a decision influenced by the fact that only 8 of the opposition had turned up meaning that they would be three fielders short. The only complication was that regular opener Kataan had returned from Mumbai just that morning and was delayed, so Narahoo padded up to open with Bulavar.
The first few overs were marked by a steady flow of extras, and the openers were looking pretty comfortable in spite of the bowlers working up a decent pace. A needless run out put paid to Bulavar's innings and Venkat at one drop missed a straight one and was bowled. Around 50 was on the board in decent time, but two quick wickets set us back a bit. Ramesh had arrived by now, and walked in at two down. And then the fun began. Sriram responded to the introduction of spin taking 18 off one over, with one six and three fours. and he piled it on from there, raining boundaries all around the wicket and even running a sharp two to the loud applause of the audience, particularly the Upendra fans. He kept this up and crossed his fifty (#3's second) as they came into drinks at 96 off 13 overs. He was looking good for plenty more but was bowled in the second over after drinks for a 54 that had gone a long way towards demoralizing the opposition. I walked in next, and gave Ramesh enough support to take his score to 33 and the team along to about 130 before he was caught at point. So all the recognized batsmen back in the pavilion, the field closed in and the opening bowler was back on. But if it was iii and Narendra who demonstrated the improving middle order capabilities in the rookies game, it was the turn of D and Z this time. Kishore and I managed an unbeaten 40 plus partnership, with both of us remaining not out on scores of over twenty, helping the team finish on a fantastic 174 for 4 off 25 overs. And with Kabir, Narendra and all the others to come, we were disappointed that the full 30 weren't bowled.
Easily our best team batting performance, but what would we do in the field? The answer took fifteen deliveries. We had already pegged that this team would probably rely on just a few batsmen, and Vik got things rolling by picking up one of their main players with his first ball, a faint snick snapped up behind the stumps by Bulavar. The batsman hung around and protested he hadn't hit it, but it seemed pretty straightforward to most of us. And things only got better when Joy picked up two in his first over (including a Jonty like airborne catch by Venkat at point) and Vik picked up two more in his next. Our new ball attack had decimated the opposition to 3 for 5 within three overs! Game over, one might say, but one had to keep reminding Kabir and Vik that the game isn't over till the last ball is bowled ;-)
The incredibly tight fielding performance continued... smart high catches from Vik and Joy and Ramesh's now almost mandatory 3 wicket spell kept things speeding along. And then the captain tossed the balll to Narendra, who didn't disappoint his fans, ending an annoying ninth wicket partnership by splattering the batsman's stumps, to the loudest applause of the day from his fan club. He even obligingly struck a gun pose, something that might soon come to equal the famous "Bebeto baby" celebration. Hui came on for a spell after a while and bowled with some nice control. He was rewarded with the final wicket, another smart take by Bulavar behind the stumps, and that was that. 89 all out, and a whopping 85 run victory. The after party was a big one, trust me, and involved a Michael Schumacher victory, a projector, two bottles of Scotch, Tequila, Egg Dosais.... enough said.
#3 was supported at the ground by the Wretch, balajing Satish Kumar, and the legion of Upendra fans.
In season2, Game 1, #3 was: Ramesh, Bulavar (wk), Druck, Narahoo (c), Kishore, Joy, Narendra, Venkat, Hui, Vik and Kabir.
Loyola College 'B', 7 May 2006.
#3 174 for 4 (Narahoo 54, Ramesh 33, Druck 26*, Kishore 21*) beat Smart CC 89 all out (Vik 3 wk, Ramesh 3 wk, Joy 2 wk) by 85 runs.
OK, season 2. Is there any point to all this? Are we killing ourselves in this blazing heat for any reason at all? The answer, my friends, is blowin' in the wind, and is an emphatic and overwhelming YES. Read on, read on, and you'll see.
The first game of season two was also the first true home game for members of our team, specifically Zeb and Indrabeer, famous alumni of Loyola College. The dancers were back, taking the place of the Bangalore bound iii and the unavailable Arjun. And no sooner did Narendra walk into the ground, than he was surrounded by fans. For you poor foreigners, who do not have access to the wonderful TV show 'Kolangal' let me enlighten you. Narendra plays a psyched character named 'Upendra' in this show, who has recently acquired a gun and is on the run from the cops. This seems enough to give him cult hero status amongst college students from far flung regions such as Katpadi.
The other team assembled and they looked pretty fit, giving rise to worries that this was another Rookies like team. Time would tell. Kishore proved to be our lucky man, as we won the toss and decided to bat first, a decision influenced by the fact that only 8 of the opposition had turned up meaning that they would be three fielders short. The only complication was that regular opener Kataan had returned from Mumbai just that morning and was delayed, so Narahoo padded up to open with Bulavar.
The first few overs were marked by a steady flow of extras, and the openers were looking pretty comfortable in spite of the bowlers working up a decent pace. A needless run out put paid to Bulavar's innings and Venkat at one drop missed a straight one and was bowled. Around 50 was on the board in decent time, but two quick wickets set us back a bit. Ramesh had arrived by now, and walked in at two down. And then the fun began. Sriram responded to the introduction of spin taking 18 off one over, with one six and three fours. and he piled it on from there, raining boundaries all around the wicket and even running a sharp two to the loud applause of the audience, particularly the Upendra fans. He kept this up and crossed his fifty (#3's second) as they came into drinks at 96 off 13 overs. He was looking good for plenty more but was bowled in the second over after drinks for a 54 that had gone a long way towards demoralizing the opposition. I walked in next, and gave Ramesh enough support to take his score to 33 and the team along to about 130 before he was caught at point. So all the recognized batsmen back in the pavilion, the field closed in and the opening bowler was back on. But if it was iii and Narendra who demonstrated the improving middle order capabilities in the rookies game, it was the turn of D and Z this time. Kishore and I managed an unbeaten 40 plus partnership, with both of us remaining not out on scores of over twenty, helping the team finish on a fantastic 174 for 4 off 25 overs. And with Kabir, Narendra and all the others to come, we were disappointed that the full 30 weren't bowled.
Easily our best team batting performance, but what would we do in the field? The answer took fifteen deliveries. We had already pegged that this team would probably rely on just a few batsmen, and Vik got things rolling by picking up one of their main players with his first ball, a faint snick snapped up behind the stumps by Bulavar. The batsman hung around and protested he hadn't hit it, but it seemed pretty straightforward to most of us. And things only got better when Joy picked up two in his first over (including a Jonty like airborne catch by Venkat at point) and Vik picked up two more in his next. Our new ball attack had decimated the opposition to 3 for 5 within three overs! Game over, one might say, but one had to keep reminding Kabir and Vik that the game isn't over till the last ball is bowled ;-)
The incredibly tight fielding performance continued... smart high catches from Vik and Joy and Ramesh's now almost mandatory 3 wicket spell kept things speeding along. And then the captain tossed the balll to Narendra, who didn't disappoint his fans, ending an annoying ninth wicket partnership by splattering the batsman's stumps, to the loudest applause of the day from his fan club. He even obligingly struck a gun pose, something that might soon come to equal the famous "Bebeto baby" celebration. Hui came on for a spell after a while and bowled with some nice control. He was rewarded with the final wicket, another smart take by Bulavar behind the stumps, and that was that. 89 all out, and a whopping 85 run victory. The after party was a big one, trust me, and involved a Michael Schumacher victory, a projector, two bottles of Scotch, Tequila, Egg Dosais.... enough said.
#3 was supported at the ground by the Wretch, balajing Satish Kumar, and the legion of Upendra fans.
In season2, Game 1, #3 was: Ramesh, Bulavar (wk), Druck, Narahoo (c), Kishore, Joy, Narendra, Venkat, Hui, Vik and Kabir.
posted by koidy at 5:36 AM
4 Comments:
Oh! It was a truly spectacular display by #3.
Captain and Ramesh and Zeb and Druck and Vik and Joy... They wouldn't stop. What a treat it was!
Very well done, gentlemen!
People, #3 has arrived.
YYYEEAAARRRRRRGGGGHHHH!!!!!!!!!!
what are you saying, there can be nothing better than starting the season with a victory, and with so many options for the XI i say #3 has truly upped the scene.
narendra - who can doubt his cult status, all this can only mean good for himself and the team
Sri - well done monet, well done, like we were talking, i find my chances of making a comeback fast diminishing, i will fight my way back in to the team, our season sadly starts only in october again, we have tournament under lights though coming up.
Vik - well done bret, i'll join you soon, the old partnership shall flourish yet again
rest of the team, well done well done, fuck this is the best morning, i come to my system in office boot up and do the mandatory bikang and bccb blog checks and i get to read this.
beautiful
hee hee that projector rocks isnt it.
one clap for the wellbegun!
Wotha! Punishing victory! Whatte loulie! It's an excellent!
Well done on the celebration! Let the league know that #3 says, "Bring it on, bitches!"
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