After a long and winding 2021 season, the Division II playoffs of the Mid-American Cricket League, (MACL) hosted by Simply Play Cricket in Omaha (Nebraska), began with the top two Division II teams facing off in the first match, where the winner would move directly to the final while the loser would await the winner of the 3-4 placed teams for a chance to play in the final.
Those are the cold, hard facts. But the facts that really matter are these: Omaha Cricket Club Patriots and Nebraska Cricket Club share a very long history, most of it covered elsewhere in this blog but none of it friendly since the two groups spilt away in 2010. The one constant has been that OCC has defeated NCC every time they met on the cricket field in the 11 years that have followed.
2010 was so long ago that only two persons from either team were even around 11 years ago when everything was going downhill. For them, the rivalry has held a deeper meaning than any of the other 9 members of the team can even begin to comprehend.
Against this backdrop, Suresh Gorantla, NCC's captain, won the toss and immediately announced his decision to bat first. All through 2021 NCC has been snakebitten as far as the weather has been concerned. If ever a team was blighted by bad weather in a season, then it was this season and this team. However, on the day the Patriots played NCC, the Gods wanted to watch too, and cleared the clouds so they had a good view of the proceedings.
Patriots Team: Achyuth Kalluchi, Ajinkya Paikine (WK), Bhaskar Setti, Deepak Agarwal, Gowtham Maranani, Harish Bv, Karthik Rao, Kiran Gade (C), Sudhir Kondapalli, Vijay Yajjala, Vinod Yarroju, Super-sub: Kaushik Chittam
Nebraska CC Team: Ashish Sathyan, Asif Iqbal, C S Manish (WK), Danial Faisal, Jainil Savaliya, Mahek Patel, Ramesh Suvvari, Sriram Surapaneni, Suresh Gorantla (C), Vijay Reddy, Vinothkumar Rajendran, Super-sub: Cornelius Aleti
The two NCC openers, Vinothkumar Rajendran and Vijay Reddy were given one mandate - do not get out in the Power play (6 overs), especially to the Patriots' best bowler - Gowtham Maranani.
A long time ago, circa 2009, this is what I had written about Gowtham on my blog:
Gowtham Maranani - Gunmaster G9. Okay, I was wrong when I said that Abhi was the fastest bowler in the team. Gowtham is it, by a good yard or two. A gunslinger in the truest sense, he is a throwback to the good old days when bowler's run-ups were 30 yards long, and their primary attacking balls were the yorker and the bouncer. Gowtham looks like a docile Telugu movie actor and the next sledge that comes from his lips will be the first words he has probably ever uttered on a cricket field but do not mistake his docility for weakness. Many batsmen have made that mistake and numerous crushed toes, jammed fingers, and dented egos have been left in his wake.
Age has exacted a toll on Gowtham and he has lost (several) yards of pace but he has lost none of his guile or control making him, even today, a daunting proposition for any batsman.
Uncharacteristically, Gowtham began with a wide but quickly found his bearings. Supporting him admirably from the other end was Harish Bv. Between them, the duo kept the openers quiet and gave 4,4,4, runs in the first 3 overs. 12 for no loss after 3, a start that was neither here nor there form both team's perspectives. Two precious Maranani overs had been navigated without losing a wicket.
Vinoth took it upon himself to take most of the strike in the early exchanges. In the fourth over, bowled by Harish, Vinoth began lofting the ball over the infield, picking up braces to get some momentum in the inning (8 runs in the over). In the meantime, Vijay was content to rotate the strike not looking to do anything foolish, letting Vinoth be the aggressor.
The 5th over of the powerplay was bowled by Karthik. By now the batsmen were ticking along nicely taking runs off every ball but the first big strike of the day was a stunning six launched over extra cover by Vijay. 33 for no loss after 5.
Harish dragged the scoring back in the next over, bowling close to the stumps and not giving either batsman any room to swing freely. 37 for no loss after 6.
With the Powerplay done, the ball was tossed to the slow bowling of Deepak Agarwal. This was just the release that Vinoth was looking for. The first ball was hammered straight over long-on's head for a massive six. The next ball was a wide down the legside that slipped by for an extra run and the third ball was pulled by Vijay to the square leg fence. However, in bowling that ball, Deepak hurt himself and left the field for the day (hopefully it is not something serious). The rest of his over was taken over by Achyuth Kalluchi , who managed to keep any further damage under control. 53 for no loss after 7 - 16 runs from the over.
Harish came back to finish his spell and was bludgeoned by (a fast tiring) Vinoth for a boundary in an over that yielded 12 runs. 4,8,4,12....Harish finished with okay figures of 4-0-28-0. 65 for no loss after 8 overs.
The foundation had been set and the time had come to launch into the next phase of the inning. Achyuth was in the line of fire. The first ball was the type of ball Vijay dreams about when he thinks of World Cup winning sixes. Short and down the leg side. Instead of the six he should have hit, Vijay toe ended the ball and it gently found the substitute fielder, Kaushik Chittam, next to the square-leg umpire.
Vijay Reddy c (Sub) Karthik C b Achyuth K 20 (18b 1 Four, 1 Six) SR 111.11
65 for 1 in 8.1 overs
Conventional wisdom says that the loss of a wicket brings the run rate back. Conventional wisdom is for statisticians and commentators. By now, Vinoth was in a groove but gasping for breath as the hot day began to get to him. Luckily for him, the next batsman Danial Faisal does not believe in the MSD school of running between wickets. Now that Vinoth was able to catch his breath, he began to free his shoulders, flicking Karthik for a four and then launching him way over midwicket for a huge six to spoil the mood of the over for the Pats. 77 for 1 after 9 overs.
Kiran Gade came on to bowl the last over before the drinks break and it was progressing sedately with singles and a couple of wides until Vinoth ushered in the break with a six over long off. 89 for 1 after 10 overs.
At the half-way stage every imaginable cliché from the Ravi Shastri bot was applicable. NCC was ahead of the game but anything could happen (and usually does).
Everyone in the NCC pavilion (and their grandchildren) knew that Gowtham was saving his overs so he could bowl to Danial. Right on cue, the 11th over featured the return of Gowtham. Once upon a time, before Life intervened, both the players were teammates at the University of Lincoln-Nebraska. Since then they have had a few good battles in different tournaments and the spectators were looking forward to see who would come out on top of this one.
Like two boxers warily testing each other out, neither player made a major strike as Danial was content to push away the ball into the gaps. The pressure of trying to compensate got to Vinoth who had a couple of swings-and-misses to end the over but no harm done. 5 runs accrued to the total 94 for 1 after 11 overs. Gowtham's analysis read 3-0-13-0.
The senior-most Patriot, Bhaskar Krishna, came on to bowl his unique brand of fast-ish off-breaks and other assorted balls in his armory. Across many state lines and midwest leagues, Bhaskar has accrued a reputation of being a wily and cunning bowler. Unfortunately, for him, Danial and Vinoth did not buy into that reputation. Two fours (Danial) and a six (Vinoth), separated by singles, ensured that Bhaskar would end the over having conceded a momentum generating 18 runs to the total. 112 for 1 after 12 overs.
By now Vinoth was swinging at every ball within his arc, and connecting lustily with most of them. Kiran came on to arrest the momentum. Two, Four, wide, wide ... and then he got the big wicket of Vinoth, who mis-hit a tired-looking shot to pop up to Kaushik inside the circle on the leg-side. All season long Vinoth has been threatening to cut loose and, finally, he produced just the type of knock the think tank has been expecting from him.
Vinothkumar Rajendran c (Sub) Karthik C b Kiran G 68 (48b 3 Fours, 4 Sixers) SR 141.67
120 for 2 in 12.3 overs. Definitely a job well done by the openers, setting the stage for the middle order to explode.
The ball after a wicket is a crucial one. Kiran bowled a full toss well above waist height and Danial needed no further invitation, hammering it for a six. The free hit was then sent to the long-off boundary and Vinoth's dismissal was already receding from the mind. 22 runs from the over. 134 for 2 after 13 overs.
The Super Sub, Kaushik, came on to bowl in place of Deepak and was greeted by the new batsman, Asif Iqbal, with a front-foot, leg-side drive over midwicket. The fielder on the boundary scrambled backwards desperately, falling over in his excitement only to see the ball sail well past him and land more than 10 yards further away. Kaushik responded by bowling a bouncer that surprised Asif. The batsman was only able to mistime a hook shot that ballooned up to midwicket where Kiran took a comfortable catch, jogging backwards, over his left shoulder.
Asif Iqbal c Kiran G b Deepak A 7 (4b 0 Fours, 1 Sixers) SR 175.00
140 for 3 in 13.3 overs. The next batsman, Ramesh Suvvari, began in his inimitable style, flicking in the gaps and scurrying a pair of twos and a single to end the over. 145 for 3 in 14 overs.
With the game running away, Gowtham came back for one last fling. Like a good understudy, Ramesh quietly took a single so the main players could take center stage. Gowtham steamed in and attempted a yorker, targeting the stumps. He missed his mark slightly and Danial's bat came down in a blur, all speed and timing, sending a flick-drive high into the air. For a split second, the midwicket fielder thought he had a chance at it. But only for a split second. The ball was still climbing as it crossed the midwicket boundary and eventually came down near the road beyond the electric poles. For a couple of seconds there was complete silence followed by gasps from everyone at the ground. Gut punches do not come in more emphatic fashion.
The next ball was quietly put away in the gap at cover for a single by Danial (somewhere Shastri approved the sensible batting). Having missed with his yorker, Gowtham sent down his next weapon - the head-hunting bouncer. Ramesh is no stranger to fast bowling (having opened the batting in earlier matches and even being involved in an unbroken stand of 210 runs with Ali Hussain against the Knights). Ramesh met the bouncer right in front of his face and had so much time that the hook shot propelled the ball in front of midwicket over the fence for a resounding six. Two singles later, Gowtham bowling was done for the day. 16 runs in the over. 161 for 3 in 15 overs.
Now that he was warmed up, Danial got into another groove altogether. A groove that very few batsmen in Omaha inhabit. Some batsmen are able to hit singles and boundaries with similar bat swings, without losing shape or appearing to be trying too hard. Danial belongs to that group and, in the past few weeks as the NCC batsmen around him started to deliver, has demonstrated why he's among the most destructive batsmen in the city.
Danial was charged up and the bowler who suffered was Kaushik. A flick to the long leg fence, a drive to deep cover, and a flick-drive to deep midwicket all fetched fours and a couple of braces that followed were enough evidence that Danial was doing as he pleased as he reached 50 off just 21 balls. The last ball of the over was met with another drive on the up in the gap between long-on and deep midwicket. Achyuth raced to his right and backwards from long on to the longest part of the ground and timed his leap to snag the ball even as it was racing past him to pull off a spectacular catch to end Danial's blitz.
Danial Faisal c Achyuth K b Deepak A 50 (22b 6 Fours, 2 Sixers) SR 227.27
In spite of the wicket, NCC managed to score 17 runs in the over. 178 for 4 after 16 overs. If the Patriots could slow things down in the next 3 overs and keep NCC under 200 it would be a great finish to the inning for them.
Ajinkya Paikine took off his keeping pads and tried his hand at some slow, spin bowling. Ashish Sathyan was new to the crease but that did not stop him from threading a cover drive to the fence past three fielders off the first ball. The next ball was a typical Sathyan double. The third ball was once again scythed by Ashish, except it went up in the air as opposed to far and Gowtham settled under it at mid-off for a simple catch to end the cameo.
Ashish Sathyan c Gowtham M b Ajinkya P 6 (3b 1 Fours, 0 Sixers) SR 200.00
184 for 5 in 16.3 overs. The batsmen crossed over while the catch was being taken and that was a good thing. Ramesh stepped back and pulled a short ball high over square leg to snatch back the momentum with a six.
190 for 5 in 17 overs.
Kaushik pulled things back spectacularly with Jainil Savaliya struggling to find the middle of the bat. 3 dot balls and 2 singles to Jainil sandwiched a solitary single by Ramesh. 3 runs in the over. 193 for 5 in 18 overs.
The pressure of the quiet over told as Ramesh tried to clear the longest boundary where Bhaskar comfortably took a routine high catch to end the flashy inning.
Ramesh Suvvari c Bhaskar S b Ajinkya P 21 (12b 0 Fours, 2 Sixers) SR 175.00
If Ajinkya thought there would be a respite having taken a big wicket, it was immediately dispelled by Jainil. Having struggled to time the ball, Jainil took the proactive measure of hopping down the wicket to meet the ball and sent it high over long-off's head for a huge six to take the NCC total to 200. C S Manish and Jainil then proceeded to take singles and doubles on offer, collecting 12 runs in all in the over, to take the score to 205 for 6 in 19 overs.
The last over was bowled by Vijay Yajjala. All six balls produced the same result - a cross batted slog by Manish. The veteran missed three of them, connected with two (a four and a couple), edged one to third man for a couple and watched a wide ball go by to scarf up an underwhelming 9 runs in the final over.
214 for 6 in 20 overs
Jainil Savaliya not out 10 8 balls (0 fours 1 six) SR125.00
C S Manish not out 11 9 balls (1 four 0 sixes) SR 122.22
The Patriots' task was a simple one - score big upfront, score big through the middle, and score big at the end. An asking rate of close to 11 runs an over is a daunting one, especially if a team has to sustain it for 20 overs.
The instructions in the NCC huddle were simple - make the Patriots earn their runs. Limit the extras (wides) and look to always take wickets with attacking fields.
Harish Bv and Ajinkya Paikine squared off against Ramesh. Ajinkya made the first thrust by dragging a ball outside the off stump to the midwicket boundary to send notice that it would not be a simple defense. Two balls later, he tried the same thing, except this time the ball was even wider and all Ajinkya did was chip it up for Danial to accept the generous offering at mid-on.
Ajinkya Paikine c Danial F b Ramesh S 4 (3b 1 Fours, 0 Sixers) SR 133.33
5 for 1 in 0.4 overs. Gowtham quietly played out the next two balls. 5 for 1 in 1 over. 210 runs needed in 19.0 overs (114 balls) with 9 wickets remaining. RRR: 11.05
During the regular season, the most consistent batsman in the MACL league was Gowtham, so much so he topped the run-scorers charts with an incredible tally of 549 runs in just 10 innings, including a whopping 149 in one match. Here's another incredible stat that shows how consistent Gowtham has been. In his T20 career in SPC, he has batted 32 times. He has scored at least 25 runs on 27 of those occasions! To say, his wicket was the key is an understatement.
While NCC was focused on Gowtham, it was Harish who thundered away and crashed the party. Ashish Sathyan, who was entrusted with the second over, is menacing when he gets late swing. He did not get that swing on Sunday and Harish punched him over cover for a six and Gowtham repeated the dose, this time for a four. 13 runs in the over. 18 for 1 after 2 overs. 197 runs needed in 18.0 overs (108 balls) with 9 wickets remaining. RRR: 10.94
In a surprising move, Ramesh was replaced by Jainil. As a bowler Jainil's strength is to pitch the ball just short of good length and getting it to jag back in or swing out with little change in his action. Harish sat back on the crease and waited for the ball to do its bit. When the ball moved away he pounced on it to pound two fours - one to deep cover and the other off the edge to third man. 11 runs in the over. 29 for 1 in 3 overs. 186 runs needed in 17.0 overs (102 balls) with 9 wickets remaining. RRR: 10.94
Ashish came back for his second over and kept things quiet, except for one short pitched ball that was hit way over the boundary by Harish, who was beginning to get into a dangerous mode. 11 runs. 40 for 1 in 4 overs. 175 runs needed in 16.0 overs (96 balls) with 9 wickets remaining. RRR: 10.94
Jainil bowled a much better over, hurrying Gowtham with his extra pace and bounce. The fourth ball, however, was short and wide and Harish sliced it over the point boundary. The next two balls were among the fastest of the match, thudding into the keeper's gloves before Harish could finish his swing. 7 runs in the over. 47 for 1. 168 runs needed in 15.0 overs (90 balls) with 9 wickets remaining. RRR: 11.20
With the required rate still hovering over 11, something had to give and when it did the Patriots were ahead of the game. Ramesh was brought back to continue from where he had been abruptly left off after the excellent first over. However, after Gowtham took a quick single, Harish relished the fuller length balls from an increasingly helpless Ramesh, thumping the ball majestically in the arc from point to long-off. Six, Six, Four, Six, Four - 27 runs from the over and the Patriots were definitely in the hunt. In the midst of that carnage, Harish reached 50 off just 17 balls. 74 for 1 in 6 overs. 141 runs needed in 14.0 overs (84 balls) with 9 wickets remaining. RRR: 10.07
With things getting uncomfortable, Suresh turned to his lynchpin, Asif Iqbal. Asif managed to hurry the batsmen for pace but still conceded three boundaries to Harish, two of them off thick edges to point and third man and the third an exquisite off drive on the up that simple raced away to the left of long-off. 16 runs in the over. 90 for 1 in 7 overs. 125 runs needed in 13.0 overs (78 balls) with 9 wickets remaining. RRR: 9.62
Suresh brought Jainil back and, by now, the bowler was well into a good rhythm, getting the ball to cut in or swing away from the same spot on the pitch. After two singles, the third ball was pitched on the 5th stump, drawing an ambitious drive from Gowtham. It instead moved away and took the outside edge and swirled up in the air to the Suresh, fielding at point. Suresh and Cornelius (subbing for Ashish) nearly collided on the field but the captain at least held onto the crucial catch! Gowtham had been contained to less than 25 - goal #1 fulfilled.
Gowtham Maranani c Suresh G b Jainil S 15 (18b 1 Fours, 0 Sixers) SR 83.33
92 for 2 in 7.3 overs
The batsmen crossed over while the catch was being taken and Harish capitalized by brutally smashing a six way over long off to stall the slight shift in momentum. 8 runs in the over. 98 for 2 after 8 overs.
117 runs needed in 12.0 overs (72 balls) with 8 wickets remaining. RRR: 9.75
Suresh Gorantla has reinvented himself as a bowler seemingly on a weekly basis. Each time he comes with more tricks up his sleeve and greater control and variation in his armory. On Sunday, he slowed down the pace and focused on wobbling the ball from outside the off-stump. The very first ball was punched by the new batsman, Achyuth, straight to the cover fielder. For some inexplicable reason (nerves?) Achyuth just took off and did not stop. Unfortunately for him Harish did not budge. Vinoth calmly collected the ball and lobbed it back to Manish to complete the simplest of runouts. 98 for 3 in 8.1 overs
Achyuth Kalluchi run out (Vinothkumar R/C S M) 0 (1b 0 Fours, 0 Sixers) SR 0.00
Bhaskar Setti came to the crease with the required run rate under control and the situation needing his experienced hand. He began in typical style, chipping away singles until Suresh decided to test Bahskar's ability to hit short pitched bowling. Four runs later, Suresh went back to his normal bowling. 9 runs in the over. 107 for 3 in 9 overs.
108 runs needed in 11.0 overs (66 balls) with 7 wickets remaining. RRR: 9.82
The very first ball of the next over by Asif produced a fast bowler's second favorite mode of dismissal. The ball was angled in and landed in line with the stumps, then rose sharply while moving away and squared up Bhaskar, inducing a thick edge that travelled comfortably to Manish behind the stumps. Cheteshwar Pujara woke up in a cold sweat in Surat when the dismissal happened. The Patriots bus was starting to teeter but they still had two good batsmen left. One of them, Kiran Gade, came in and punched an attempted yorker right over the bowler to the straight boundary. The last ball of the over was another short of good length delivery that rose more than anticipated and, unlike earlier deliveries, came in after pitching, cramping Kiran for room. The batsmen tried to cut the ball, based on the bounce, but the inward movement ensured it caught the inside edge en route to the stumps.
Kiran Gade b Asif I 5 (4b 1 Fours, 0 Sixers) SR 125.00
113 for 5 in 10 overs. 102 runs needed in 10.0 overs (60 balls) with 5 wickets remaining. RRR: 10.20
At the half-way stage of the inning, the Patriots were ahead of where they needed to be. Having scored 113 in 10, they needed fewer in the second half - 102 runs. Unfortunately for them, they had used up 5 wickets to get there. One man stood between NCC and the victory - Harish.
Right after the drinks break, Suresh came back with a plan. Having seen how easily Harish was handling the pace of the faster bowlers, Suresh slowed it down considerably and lobbed it up outside the off-stump. Unable to control himself, Harish reached for the ball and attempted a slog to midwicket. He got more elevation than distance. Ramesh raced in from the boundary, judged the trajectory, slowed down and took the catch reverse cup as it came hurtling back to the earth near the 30 yard flag! Having endured a beating at Harish's hands, Ramesh was relieved to have taken a great catch to end the inning - and deserved all the accolades he received in the huddle.113 for 6. Dagger in the heart of the chase!
Harish Bv c Ramesh S b Suresh G 78 (31b 7 Fours, 7 Sixers) SR 251.61
By now Suresh was in great rhythm, and ended the over with no further damage. 4 runs in the over with 1 precious wicket. 117 for 6 in 11 overs.
98 runs needed in 9.0 overs (54 balls) with 4 wickets remaining. RRR: 10.89
Asif continued his good day giving away just six runs, in spite of a boundary that came out of nowhere by Sudhir Kondappali. The other 5 balls were seriously fast and bouncy, more reminiscent of the Asif we have come to expect. 6 runs in the over. 123 for 6 in 12 overs.
92 runs needed in 8.0 overs (48 balls) with 4 wickets remaining. RRR: 11.50
Suresh bowled an over similar to the previous one wherein one ball was slugged away to the boundary by Vijay Yajjala but all the others were tough to put away, yielding the stray single. 7 runs in the over. 130 for 6 on 13 overs.
85 runs needed in 7.0 overs (42 balls) with 4 wickets remaining. RRR: 12.14
At this point in time, after 13 overs, NCC had also been similarly placed at 134 for 2. Runs-wise there wasn't much separation but the 4 extra wickets were crucial. It is a measure of how devastating Harish's knock was that it wasn't until the 13th over that the Patriots actually fell behind the over-by-over scoring of NCC.
Vijay Reddy typically opens the bowling for NCC; his strength being the ball that swings in from the 5th stump. Having ceded the new ball to Ashish, Vijay finally came on in the 14th over and had the batsmen in trouble right away, inducing inside edges one after another with his inswing. The fifth ball was pushed out wide, and Sudhir reached for it and sliced it to Jainil, hovering about 3/4ths of the way to the point boundary.
Sudhir Kondapalli c Jainil S b Vijay R 7 (9b 1 Fours, 0 Sixers) SR 77.78
132 for 7 in 13.5 overs. The over was then completed with no further damage to the wickets column. 3 runs in the over. 133 for 7 in 14 overs.
82 runs needed in 6.0 overs (36 balls) with 3 wickets remaining. RRR: 13.67
Mahek Patel had patiently waited in vain for his turn to bat and then fielded, as usual, with great verve and enthusiasm in the cover region. He was given the 15th over and produced six balls that teased the batsman's outside edge repeatedly. One edge even flew through a vacant second slip area. 4 runs in the over. 137 for 7 in 15 overs.
78 runs needed in 5.0 overs (30 balls) with 3 wickets remaining. RRR: 15.60
Vijay's next over was on the money. The first three balls found his namesake unable to clear the fielders. In desperation, Vijay, the batsman, took off for a nonexistent run off the 4th ball. Vijay, the bowler, calmly collected the ball on the leg-side and threw the wicket down to run out the striker as he ran to the bowler's end.
Vijay Yajjala run out (Vijay R) 12 (23b 1 Fours, 0 Sixers) SR 52.17
137 for 8 in 15.4 overs. Vinod Yarroju threw his bat at the ball and smashed two fours to end the over on a happier note for the Pats. 9 runs in the over. 146 for 8 in 16 overs.
69 runs needed in 4.0 overs (24 balls) with 2 wickets remaining. RRR: 17.25
Sriram Surapaneni came on to bowl his flattish off-spinners. Once upon a time Sriram was not only the captain of NCC but also the leading wicket-taker in the MACL and HCL. Those days are in the past while he focuses on the joys of spending time with a young child at home resulting in sporadic appearances on the cricket field. His over showed NCC what he was capable of with six balls pitched exactly where they used to pitch in his heyday. With no room to swing across the line and no freebies on offer, Vinod tried to manufacture a run but only succeeded in getting Kaushik Chittam run out.
Kaushik Chittam (Super-Sub) run out (Sriram S) 2 (2b 0 Fours, 0 Sixers) SR 100.00
151 for 9 in 16.5 overs. 7 runs in the over. 153 for 9 in 17 overs.
Cornelius Aleti is the oldest player in the MACL. Well into his 60th year, he retains the enthusiasm of a person without the last digit in the age. As the designated 12th man for the match, he came to the ground and when Ashish had to leave, fielded in his place and was rewarded with the 18th over. With one wicket to get, Cornelius delivered just that. Karthik Rao tried to disrupt the rhythm by walking across the stumps. Cornelius was not fooled by it and bowled a straight ball that the batsman missed completely to be bowled.
Karthik Rao b Cornelius A 1 (4b 0 Fours, 0 Sixers) SR 25.00
3 runs in the over. 156 all out in 17.4 overs. NCC won by 58 runs.
With the win, NCC completed step 1 of the two step journey, reaching the Division II final. More importantly, they finally defeated Patriots after 11 years of futility. While Harish was blazing away the game was in the balance but once his resistance was accounted for, the game was practically over.
As a bowling unit notorious for bowling wides, NCC bowled just 10 wides in the whole match, none of them went for extra runs. 5 of those wides came after Harish got out in the 11th over (by which time the match had been decided for all practical purposes). The sustained pressure by the bowlers ensured that the Patriots had to score all the runs and not get any free ones to reduce the target.
Batting-wise there were a few heroes. The opening pair of Vijay and Vinoth played it perfectly, carefully seeing off the initial overs before accelerating to 65 for no loss in 8 overs. When Vinoth was second out at 120, it was in the 13th over. The launchpad had been well set and Danial teed off from there with his blazing 50. The Man of the Match was Vinoth Rajendran for his stage-setting inning at the top of the order.
With the IPL-syle format, the Pats can make it back to the final if they beat UNO next Saturday. Either way, the final is going to be one last hurrah for this year's team. Check back in a week or so to find out how it ended.
