TMC: Episode 5 - Sealing the BOGO deal

Welcome to The Midwest Chronicles (TMC). These are the accounts of the exploits of the Nebraska Cricket Club in the 2009 season. To spice up what would otherwise be a routine match report of runs scored, wickets taken, and catches snaffled (or spilled) these posts are being written with a tongue firmly in cheek but with the facts completely in the true. So sit back, relax, and enjoy the meandering show.

Here's a complete guide to the cast of characters and their nicknames. The cast will be updated as players are added or dropped or nicknames changed as the season progresses.

You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it.
- Margaret Thatcher

You may have to fight a battle just once to win it multiple times.
- Captain Ozone

A weekend after NCC eked its way into the finals of the Cedar Rapids Freedom Festival, it ran into a scheduling conflict with the CLIA. In an ominously prescient bit of scheduling, the weekend's match-up was against Cedar Rapids C(hallengers), the very team that NCC was to play in the finals!

Years of shopping at Payless Shoes put a brilliant thought into Captain Ozone's mind. Why not make the match against Cedar Rapids C a double-billing?! The winner would not only take home the trophy but it would also count as a win in the CLIA league standings. BOGO indeed (Buy One Get One free). A week of feverish wrangling later, it was agreed upon and a simple league match was needlessly (if you lost) or brilliantly (if you won) turned into something so much more.

So for those folks who pay attention to these things - this report can also be read under a second heading:

Cedar Rapids Festival - 3 - Second time's the charm!!

A week after losing to CR-C, Captain Ozone was taking no chances. In he sent Bob Loblaw with one mandate - win the toss and field first. Five minutes later, to the immense disbelief of NCC, that's exactly what happened! As NCC huddled up to listen to Ozone speak (which, by the way, no one ever pays attention to) they were interrupted by the match officials to say that the start was delayed as the organizers had brought just 5 stumps to the ground!

Where other teams would waste their energy during such a break fretting and fuming, NCC instead found some time to indulge in the first pre-game warm-up all season. Ozone had honorable intentions when he rounded up the bunch, but when a nice breeze is blowing, the sun is casting its warmth, and the grass is soft...why bother with exercise??!!

(click on the photo to enlarge it in a new window)

A big factor for the captains and bowlers (and batsmen) to contend with was an exceptionally stiff cross-wind that was blowing from the west. This was easily the windiest conditions most of the players had ever played in and before the match was done the wind would have a significant role to play.

Energizer Bunny got to choose his end and he, interestingly, chose to run into the wind, in an attempt to help his outswing. Not surprisingly, the first couple of balls were way off the mark as he adjusted to the new environs. But by the end of the over he had struck pay dirt. A brilliant delivery swung from the leg-stump towards first slip and all Siva Sathanathan, CR-C's stalwart opening batsman, could do was edge the ball straight to Bob Loblaw. A day after botching the easiest of catches in a local game in Omaha, Bob had a fantastic day behind the stumps, collecting every ball that came his way, off-side or leg-side, not conceding a single bye or extra off wide balls, while snaffling every chance that came his way, and helping effect a couple of run-outs. These are little things, but on that day, these little things began to add up.

Having praised him to the skies, it is also beholden upon me to strike him down. In the third over of the innings, the #3 batsman decided to loft Energizer, but only managed to hit a skier behind the bowler. As soon as the ball was hit, Bob lived up to his nickname and screamed for the long-on fielder to take the catch. But he had not taken the wind into account. As the wind caught the ball it curved away towards the long-off fielder who waited and watched as the ball dropped to the ground just a few feet away, well out of reach of the hapless long-on fielder (who is probably still running for the catch!). Energizer rightly let Bob know what he felt about that misjudgement in no uncertain terms. True to nature, the rest of the NCC found humor in this situation, too!

Energizer bowled a 4-over unbroken spell that was an exhibition in outswing bowling. At the other end, Kingsize Dada, playing in his last match before going home (Bengaluru, I believe) for a vacation, struggled with the wind behind him and delivered two lackluster overs where he bowled many wides and was hit to and over the fence multiple times. Ozone replaced him with Doctor Kamikaze who then bowled 4 overs on the trot, slowly finding his bearings until decisively breaking through the top order. The batsmen took numerous risks and (literally) rode the wind to hit sixes which would normally have been simple skiers on any other day. After Energizer finished his spell, Chikna Slater replaced him and upped the pace, while not sacrificing any of his accuracy. Not surprisingly, at least to some of his fellow-NCC-ers, he made the next breakthrough, sending in a picture perfect yorker that dislodged the stumps before the batsman could bring his bat down. Kamikaze made the next breakthrough, getting under a skier off his own bowling, taking the catch in his inimitable style. Like so:
In the 10th over, the batsmen asked the umpires for a break after the over and Bob Loblaw began beseeching his players to get a wicket so an early drinks break could be taken. Right on cue, the next ball was hit down deep midwicket's throat and Chikna made sure he did not cough this one up. The batsman was not amused and had a pleasant (ahem) tête-à-tête with the wicket-keeper on the way out, probably more out of embarrassment than anything else for having fallen for the banter.

After the 10th over, CR-C were 78 for 4, courtesy some lusty hitting and a lot of egregious wides.

In the 11th over, a thick edge to third man resulted in a mix-up between the batsmen which would would have made Sirian blow a blood vessel if he had seen it. Bob collected the incoming throw and calmly threw it to Chikna at the non-strikers end to complete the dismissal.

Another run-out, a more conventional one this time, was effected in Kamikaze's last over and NCC was threatening to run away with the game at this time. After Chikna finished his spell, U-turn (formerly known as the Tasmanian Devil; see cast of characters for an explanation) came on at the windy end and bowled out the rest of the innings. At the other end, over number 17 by Warney proved to be ultra-expensive as a few expletive-inducing wides were sandwiched between boundary hits. Suddenly the momentum that had been gained was dissipated and Kannan, the CR-C captain, began to churn together some runs. U-turn was effective in snapping the stumps a couple of times in his typically non-threatening way, but Kannan was unruffled at the other end, even as he was running out of partners. In a controlled innings, where he took risks when warranted, the opposing captain played a solid innings and shook off a brilliant 19th over from Kingsize Dada (who gave away just 4 runs thereby partially atoning for his profligate start) to take CR-C to a highly challenging 155 for 8 in 20 overs.

A target of 156 in 120 balls was what lay between NCC and a double-dip victory. Stay tuned to see how it turned out.

Now, we take a break for our mid-match staple - some more interesting facts about the world we live in.

• It cost 7 million dollars to build the Titanic and 200 million to make a film about it.
• The plastic things on the end of shoelaces are called aglets.
• A Boeing 747s wingspan is longer than the Wright brother's first flight.
• No word in the English language rhymes with 'MONTH.'
• Only two countries in the world are doubly landlocked: Liechtenstein and Uzbekistan.
• Of all the nations of the world, China has the most people. But there are 71 nations that are more crowded.

The key to NCC's successful chase would be partnerships. But Thin Man had other ideas. From the first ball of the match, he took to swinging as hard as he could at the ball, as is his wont, but in this case he seemed to underestimate the skill of the bowlers. In spite of hitting a typical six over long-off and a four through midwicket, Thin Man did not look composed and soon enough another wild swing resulted in a top edge that was brilliantly held by the fielder at third man. Bob Loblaw was resurrected to the top of the order and middled every ball he played. But the excitement of doing so got to him and he took off for a non-existent single and was stranded mid-pitch when U-turn wisely refused the run.

Dipleased with this turn of events, Ozone sent in Kingsize Dada to steady the innings and KD did just that. Finding the off-side tenented by 7 fielders did not dim his enthusiasm or his run-scoring in that area. With U-turn regularly finding the gaps, and KD willing to run vigorously when called upon, the score began to bulge and tense shoulders began to relax in the NCC pavilion. Against the grain, after a calm innings where he even found the timing to punch a flick for a six, U-turn spooned a catch off Ranjit, and just like that CR-C was back in the game.

Energizer and KD then proceeded to almost put the game away in a partnership that relied heavily on Energizer's favorite phrase, "Single, double. Single, double." With KD providing the ideal foil to Energizer's energy, CR-C were treated to a heavy dose of Energizer doing this to them:

KD enjoyed the bowling so much he even found time to punch two sixes over cover, his strong suit, to provide the impetus to the innings. Not to left behind, Energizer calmly stepped out to the fast bowlers for two sixes over cow corner and long-off, and two neatly placed boundaries to the cover region. By now the equation had come close to a run a ball, when KD backed up too far and was run out by a quick-thinking midwicket fielder. This appeared to disturb Energizer's equilibrium and he perished soon after, too.

CR-C were jumping up and down with joy, but NCC's team game came to the fore to squash their dreams. Undeterred by the mounting pressure, Chikna picked up two short-pitched balls and slammed them over deep square-leg. Kamikaze played the sedate role, giving the strike as often as possible to Chikna. With 6 runs to win, Chikna's eyes lit up when he saw a full toss. But in his haste he overswung and the resultant top edge was snapped up at mid-off. The CR-C flame flickered one last time, but the captain and vice-captain quickly extinguished it, taking NCC past the target with 4 balls to spare.

And wild celebrations ensued!

For his splendid opening spell and fine 30 (in 19 balls, with 2 fours and 2 sixes) in the tense moments of the chase, Energizer was recognized with the man of the final award.

Since this was a dual match, for the CLIA league game Kingsize Dada was given the man of the match award for his momentum-stopping 19th over, and measured innings of 34 (in 31 balls with 2 sixes).

For the team, it was a victory within a victory. Every player had a role to play, some bigger than others, and it was with great joy that Captain Ozone led the NCC players in receiving the inaugural Freedom Festival CVB Cricket Classic Trophy.