Match Report by – Mr.Venkatraman Iyer
Sr. Editor & Commentrator @ www.cricketgraph.com
Venue: Plot 4, LIC
All of us have heard that Cricket is a batsman’s game. It indeed is. But we also forget a bowler’s role in the game, time and again. It’s really the bowlers who “defend” a total, whether big or small to win a match for their teams. That is exactly what happened in a match between Lowe Lintas and Zeus Systems in Milan Cricket Club T-20 tournament.
After scoring less that run a ball in the shortest form of the game, no team would feel confident of defending it, let alone win by a big margin. Lowe Lintas, after being put into bat by Zeus Systems just could not increase the tempo throughout their innings and eventually ended for a comparatively low total of 118 runs for the loss of 5 wickets in their allotted 20 overs. Rather than keeping wickets in hand, they must have felt that 150/8 would have put them in a better situation.
Opener Nakul top scored with 36 (41 balls) and was looking good for more when he was castled by a Pankaj Sisodia delivery only to be stumped by Harshit. Amit Narkar (23) and Aniket Vaidya (25) steadied the ship for Lintas but it was the acceleration that was lacking throughout the innings. It never really came though. ArunKelaskar made some effort towards the end with a 10 ball 18 that move the score past 100. It was a combined bowling performance by Zeus Sytems with four bowlers capturing a wicket each and helping their side to restrict the opponents to a below par score.
But Zeus themselves were to face a reality of 118 being a score way beyond their reach. The fact that the highest score in their innings was made by “extras” bowled by Lintas bowlers, suggest a lot about the extent of batting failure. It was clearly a match to be won by Zeus but taking no credit away from Lintas who bowled extremely well while defending a low total. Top half of Zeus batting line up was back when the scoreboard read 19. The writing was on the wall. The question was when. The innings stretched till the 19th over but the match was over much before that. Only MaitrayJukar and Parth Shah could enter double digits in Zeus’s innings.
All 6 bowlers use by Lintas claimed at least a wicket each with Aditya Pratap taking a couple. But the chief tormentor was man of the match ArunKelaskar who bowled 2 maiden overs out of 4 and scalping 4 wickets in the process. This win will give a lot of confidence to Lintas which will help them later in the tournament. Zeus will have to get together quickly and move on to their next match and forget this as one off day.
Brief Score:
Lowe Lintas: 118/5 in 20 overs (Nakul 36, Aniket 25*, Ramarishnan 1/12)
Zeus Systems: 82 all out in 18.4 overs (Parth 18, Maitrey 16, Arun 4/04, Aditya 2/24)
Report By:
Sumanyu Jain
Regional Manager & Editor|www.cricketgraph.com
Venue: Cross Maidan, Plot 7
In the quarter final of Milan Corporate League (Red Ball), GSK defeated Nomura by 3 wickets in the very last over of the innings to book the semi-final seat. Man of the Match, Sagar S, first played his part in restricting Nomura to an average total by bowling a tight line and then emerged as the top scorer in GSK’s innings.
In this knockout encounter, Nomura was lucky with the coin and opted to bat first. But they were not so lucky when the innings began as opener Bhavik was clean bowled on the very first ball of the match by Pratik S. Unfortunately the other opener Pushkar retired hurt but Inderjeet got an able support from Anshul and both of them took the score past 100. Just when things were looking good for Nomura and acceleration was about the start, Inderjeet was run out after a well-made 52 that was studded with 8 boundaries. Soon, Anshul also made a long walk back to the pavilion and GSK bowlers controlled the last quarter of Nomura’s innings with some excellent bowling display. Nomura eventually ended for 131 runs for the loss of 8 wickets in their allotted 20 overs. Ganesh scalped 2 wickets while Pratik, Sagar S and Prathamesh shared a wicket each. Prathamesh particularly tightened the screws and gave only 18 runs in his 4 overs.
131 was not really a challenging total but it still had to be chased. GSK were on for a decent start with openers Sagar S and Pratik S scoring 25 runs in 20 balls. GSK bowler then took his revenge from Pratik by scalping his wicket when the batsman was on 8, breaking the partnership in the process. Rahul joined Sagar in the middle and both calmly moved the scoreboard past 50. Sagar lost his wicket while he was playing well at 34 of just 24 balls. There might have been some tension in GSK camp as the third and fourth wickets fell in quick succession but the rest of the batsmen contributed well enough to enable their team cross the line with only 2 balls to spare. Bhavik and Deepak were the pick of the bowlers with 2 wickets each.
Nomura bowlers showed great commitment and energy while defending a small total but it was the lack of power hitting in their innings that did them in and ultimately cost them the semi-final spot.
Brief Scores:
Nomura: 131/8 in 20 overs (Inderjeet 52, Anshul 23, Ganesh 2/28)
GSK: 134/7 in 19.4 overs (Sagar S 34, Rahul 23, Bhavik 2/28, Deepak 2/35)
Report By:
Sumanyu Jain
Regional Manager & Editor| www.cricketgraph.com
Battle of Six teams from various parts of Mumbai has been started on 25th April’2015 at All Saints School Ground, Bhiwandi to win 1st T20 Friends Cricket Club (FCC) Tournament.
FCC which is a newly formed cricket club this year has organised a tournament. The tournament is being played in 2 groups having 3 teams in each group. Each team will play 3 league matches and top two teams from the Groups will qualify for semis which will be played on 2nd May followed by the big Final. League matches are being played on 25th & 26th April. In Group-1 teams are from Dombivli i.e. Cricket Club of Dombivli, Friends Cricket Club, Vrindavan Cricket Club and in Group-2 teams are Thane Advocate, Panvel Advocate, Datafriends.
On 25ht April, three league matches were played, brief details of which are:-
Match-1 : Friends Cricket Club (FCC) V/s Vrindavan Cricket Club (VCC) (Result – VCC won by 2 wkts)
Captain Tara of VCC elected to Field first after winning the toss. Captain has made a truthful decision to bowl 1st was proved by the opening bowlers of VCC conceding 16 runs for 3 wkts. in 3.2 overs which is quite a good start in T20 game. But Hiren & Deepak from FCC came on the crease to take on the responsibility & started hitting the ball from 1st ball itself and both of them kept on moving the score board quite comfortably. They made a partnership of 47 runs in 5 overs out of which Hiren scored 38 runs in 21 balls hitting 8 massive fours. This momentum of runs was kept on moving by Captain Ashish with Deepak and they made a partnership of 93 runs in 10 overs, which took the FCC total to 160 runs in 20 overs with fall of 5 wkts. Deepak scored 52 in 46 balls with 6 fours and 1 six, Ashish scored 33* in 36 balls hitting 5 fours. Best Bowling Figures from VCC were Ritesh (4-0-23-1), Vinod (4-0-22-0) & extras were 26. While chasing a target of 161, FCC bowlers gave a good start for the team. But the Partnership between Captain Tara & Vinod of 55 runs took a turning point for VCC and VCC chased a target of 161 in 19 overs loosing 8 wkts. Vinod Scored 63 in just 35 balls (6×4, 4×6) and Tara scored 26 in 32 balls (4×3). The cool minded innings of Vinod, helped VCC to get a victory in 1st match. Best Bowling Figures from FCC were Prashant (4-0-28-3), Pandurang (4-0-26-1) & extras were 35.
Match-2 : Thane Advocate V/s Datafriends (Result – Thane Advocate won by 5 runs)
Thane Advocate decided to bat 1st after winning the toss. But Datafriends bowlers bowled a good line and length, took all the wickets and restricted advocates to 110 runs. Advocates could reach the mere target with the help of a good commitment batting from Chinmay (50 in 41 balls, 5×4, 2×6) and Mangesh (24 in 24 balls, 3×4). The other batsmen could not reach a double digit figures. The best bowling figures from Datafriends were Rohidas (4-1-13-3), Nikhil (4-0-11-1), Anmol (4-0-22-1). While chasing a simple target of 110 runs, Datafriends who are known as well chasers, gave a good start with fall of 2 wkts. at 56 runs in 9.5 overs and after the drinks, the match took a turning point towards Advocates. The Advocates spinners bowled a very tight line and took the game away from Datafriends. Datafriends were bowled out at 105 runs. Mangesh (31 in 13 balls, 1×4, 4×6) gave a good fight back at the end, but he could not convert his fight in to a win for his team this time. Best bowling figures from Thane Advocates were Jay (4-1-15-0), Omkar (4-0-29-3), Chinmay (1.4-0-9-3).
Match-3 : Cricket Club of Dombivli (CCD) V/s Vrindavan Cricket Club (VCC) (Result – CCD won by 47 runs)
CCD decided to bat 1st after winning the toss. CCD had a very strong batting line up, hence from beginning they started with attacking shots and put a defendable total of 146 in 19 overs. Machindra (21 in 9 balls, 4×4), Mangesh (13 in 7 balls, 3×4), Sandesh (41 in 32 balls, 3×4, 2×6) Kiran (15 in 10 balls, 2×4, 1×6), Girish (9 in 6 balls, 2×4) were the major highlighters from CCD. While chasing, in front of Strong bowling line up of CCD, VCC could not give a good start which resulted in an increase in the required run rate due to which VCC players started to hit the ball in the air. But CCD players did not miss any opportunity to convert these hits into Catches and bowled out VCC to 100. Captain Mangesh varied his bowlers very well including himself and he bowled best bowling figure of the day i.e. (2.4-0-15-4). The other pick of the bowlers from CCD were Hitesh (4-1-31-1), Girish (3-0-12-1), Machindra (3-0-27-3).
Keep reading this space for the match updates of 26th April.
Article by Sachin Rajput, Sr. Editor – Cricketgraph
Hot and Humid says the weather reports but certainly the action got even hotter when the APL kicked off at the Indian Airlines ground in kaliana. Their Unique approach to the game certainly raised many eyebrows. Who says that Partying and a Picnic are the ways to unite different groups working for the same Firm?Lately some of the companies seem to be changing the trend. In a company that is associated with multiple ventures generally the way to get to know each other is not unknown to us, but certainly some companies think that is going Old School. An Intention can be satisfied in many ways but who ever thought that cricket would be the game changer. Yes its true that here is a company that just wants to unite multiple groups and they felt the best way to do so is to make all of the groups participate in a Cricket tournament. Their Unorthodox Rules certainly blew the wind of the sails. Unbelievably Thoughtful were their Rules where Woman got their Dew. In a Sport dominated by males we will probably never see the females take the cake. Confused?
It was Compulsory for each and every team to have Two female players in their playing 11. What’s More, they would be the two players to Open the batting at the start of every inning and a Female Player would open the Bowling from the opponent side. Sounds Strange, doesn’t it? For teams just been given a stipulated 6 overs that it is the Female players who would Compulsorarily play the first over of every single inning. That makes for a reading of almost 20% of the inningsThat the female players would participate. Yes you heard me right, the females who make up lesser than 20% of the total number of players per side would be given priority over the majority of the male players. Certainly just goes to show that in a country where it has always been Men who have been given priority in every sport here the opposite gender was entrusted with the responsibility to kick of the action which certainly speaks volumes of the character of the think tank behind the tournament. Duly paid were the motives of the think tank. All the players of their respective teams seemed to be enjoying themselves. Not Many of us saw the sight of the three players to kick of the action were surrounded by men fetching the ball for them. Irrespective of the number of wickets falling in the first over yet it would be only the three players who would complete the first over although there was a penalty imposed of a run deducted from the final total with every wicket that fell in the first over.
Honestly it was an Overwhelming sight to see the enthusiasm and energy the woman showed on the field. Some of them certainly gave good starts to their team both with the bat and the ball. Many of us doubted whether a tennis ball from 22 yards would reach the batsmen considering that most of them would have never bowled a ball or held a bat in their entire life. But to all our expectation they certainly did not disappoint. Infact performed prolifically to overhaul all our expectations. Seeing some of the fielding, bowling and batting efforts of the girls certainly taught us that these woman from the company are filled with unlimited potential waiting to be explored further. Undoubtedly the Men gave it their all. Played some competitive cricket and there were some exceptional performances to say the least. Some of the players showed real heart and character with their performances which lifted the spirits of the players and which certainly raised the bar of the standard of the quality of cricket being played. Very seldom do you come across people with such unique thought processes and that certainly deserves to be recognized and acknowledged. They certainly have changed the dynamics of the way cricket was being played and the message being conveyed was of unity, love and brotherhood among all. There were nine matches in all that took place and many more to go on the 3rd of may where the winners of the ACL would emerge. Do join in to witness a different brand of cricket played from the young and outgoing youth, from the people of a company that are living symbols of the changing times of this day and age.
Click here to check all the scores of APL 2015
Article by Jerviis Ambosta
Professional Cricketer & Commentrator
Well Begin is Half Done – is the basic principle which was followed by CCD Avengers from a small town of Mumbai i.e. Dombivli who won 4th tournament of the Season!
CCD AVENGERS Team with Good Will Trophy
Standing L-R – Sandesh, Kiran, Pradeep, Mangesh, Adwait, Rahul, Ajit, Haresh
Seating L-R – Girish, Hitesh, Aditya, Sachin S., Sachin R.
Just to start with, CCD is not a Café Coffee Day but it’s known as “Cricket Club of Dombivli” having more than 50 members in the group. The members are Doctors, Engineers, Businessmen, Reporters, Cops, etc. who try to find at-least some time in a day from their tight busy schedule to enjoy their beloved game ‘Cricket’ like every other Mumbaiyan!
In the beginning of the current season, CCD formed well balanced 3 teams namely CCD-Danger, CCD Challenger and CCD-Avengers to promote & explore the talent within the group and from there on the battle was started….
On 14th April’2015, it was again a day of CCD-Avengers who flogged CCD-Challengers & CCD-Dangers to win 4th tournament of the season “Good Will Trophy”. The triangular tournament was sponsored by Aaryan Devcon Pvt. Ltd. and played at Dadoji Konddev Stadium – Thane. The tournament was replete of Trophies and Prizes to encourage the ability of the players.
1st match was played between CCD-Avengers and CCD-Challengers. Avengers elected to Bat 1st after winning the toss. The openers of Avengers, Advait (49* in 46 balls – 4×4 + 1×6) & Pradeep (18 in 17 balls – 2×4) gave a cracking start for the team which was well supported by Captain Mangesh (16 in 7 balls – 3×4) towards the end of the innings. Avengers Scored 112 runs in 14 overs losing 6 wkts. Dilip (from Challengers) bowled a very tight bowling and conceded just 15 runs in 2 overs taking 2 important wkts. While chasing a target of 113 runs, Challengers tried best (Satya – 31 in 34 – 4×4, Devendra – 16 in 13 – 3×4, Om 16 in 8 – 2×4) to achieve the target, but could not succeed. Avengers restricted Challengers to 103 runs and took 9 wkts. The pick of the bowlers from Avengers were Girish (2-0-11-1), Hitesh (3-0-14-1), Mangesh (3-0-24-3), Ajit (2-0-13-2). Avengers won the 1st match by 9 runs. Hitesh (at third man) showed an excellent fielding effort grabbing a catch & hitting directly on the wickets in the same over which turned the match towards Avengers.
2nd match was played between CCD-Challengers and CCD-Dangers. Dangers elected to Bat 1st and scored 99 runs in 14 overs losing 8 wkts. Rohidas scored 37 in 34 balls. Challengers bowled a very rigid bowling. Pick of the bowlers from Challengers were Satya (2-0-11-0), Amit (3-0-18-2), Machindra (2-0-12-2), Yogesh (3-0-23-1), Chetan (2-0-15-1). Whilst chasing 100 runs, Challengers achieved the target in 13.1 overs with the help of batting from Akhilesh (27 in 22 – 2×4), Captain Devendra (23 in 13 – 2×4), Yogesh (19 in 12 – 1×4). Challengers won the 2nd match by 5 wkts with the help of all round performance from Yogesh.
3rd match was played between CCD-Avengers and CCD-Dangers. Like 1st match, Avengers won the toss and elected to Bat 1st and scored 99 runs in 10 overs losing 9 wkts. Sandesh (who played excellently against Dangers in earlier tournaments) continued his batting performance and made 37 in just 22 balls hitting 5 boundaries all over the ground. Sandy was supported by a new comer of Avengers Kiran (28 in 13 balls – 2×6) towards the end. Best Bowling figures from Dangers were Atul (2-0-18-2) and Sunil (3-0-23-3).
To win the trophy on Net Run Rate basis, Dangers had to complete the target in 8.3 overs, which look quite possible with the explosive batting from CCD gem Ganesh who scored 56 runs simply in 26 balls hitting 8 Fours and one massive Sixer before returning back to pavilion. Ganesh was clean bowled by Ajit in 6th over of the innings and it turned out to be a complete turning point for Avengers. After the wicket of Ganesh, Dangers could not convert the game towards victory against the strong bowling attack of Avengers and they collapsed on 93 losing 8 wkts in last 4 overs. Avengers won the 2nd match by 6 runs. The pick of the bowlers from Avengers once again were Mangesh (3-0-23-5), Ajit (2-0-16-2). Avengers showed an admirable performance in all three (Batting, Bowling, Fielding) areas continuously 4th time this season.
All 3 captains of the team (Mangesh-CCD Avengers / Devendra – CCD Challengers / Vasu – CCD Dangers), expressed sincere gratitude to the sponsors “Aaryan Devcon Pvt. Ltd.” of the tournament and CCD core committee members.
Article Courtesy – Sachin Rajput, Sr. Editor – Cricket Graph)
It all began with a small thought. The thought came to mind after a small observation. The thought then got transformed into a small practical step taken. This step marked the beginning of what might be a stepping stone . This stepping stone could take them to new heights in the coming times.
It all happened for Achievers Cricket Academy Mr. Subramanian D. ( Mumbai Ranji Trophy player and MCA level 1 coach). While observing that there are MCA Camps for Under 14,16 and 19 category but nothing for Under 12.
Some may argue Under 12? Speaking to Mr. Subramanian who said there is abudant talent in this category and what impressed him was the technique and disclipline they possess. Not only that at the early age of 12 one gets that important chance of teaching and moulding these kids to the coaches and mentors liking.
In order to guage the talent of these kids, he has gone ahead to organise the 1st ever Achievers Cricket Academy U 12 cricket tournament which began on April 20th at chedda Nagar, Chembur with 6 teams participating. The finals slated to be on April 26th.
Participating are Achievers Academy Red, Pravin Tambe’s Academy Mulund, Avinash Salvi Foundation Vashi, Achievers academy Blue, BARC Chembur, D Y Patil Nerul.
Who ever wins the trophy on April 26th, its Achievers academy that certainly has won hearts of many cricket lovers.
While those young kids are blessed for being a part of the 1st ever tournament, i am sure the academy will certainly raise the bar in the coming times and make it big.
Wishing Mr. Subramanian and his team all the very best, due credit for him to make it happen.
Article by Mr. Venkatraman Iyer
Sr. Editor & Commentator @ www.cricketgraph.com
In the first segment of Academy Analysis, we look at one of the best cricket academies in North Delhi. Boasting of some excellent facilities including a large and well maintained ground, wickets, nets, floodlights, canteen, gymnasium etc., to go with a well-respected and hardworking coach, Khalsa Cricket Academy, located in SGTB Khalsa College, North Campus, Delhi University, is your place to be if you want something more than cricket i.e. fitness, focus and discipline.
Following are the excerpts of our conversation with Mr. Ravi Dixit:
Mr. Ravi Dixit, head coach of the academy feels that due to lack of proper guidance and flaws in the system, the real talent is not able to climb up and somehow gets buried. The deserving ones are not given ample opportunities to showcase their true potential.
According to him, parents’ approach has also shifted in recent years. Due to increasing popularity of T-20 cricket, focus is now more on playing matches rather than sweating out in the nets. Parents want their kid to play matches where the need of the hour is to hone their skills in the nets and prepare for the big stage.
Due to the same reason, more and more students want to become batsmen. But it becomes the duty of the coach to identify the right potential of the student and guide him accordingly. It’s really all about the basics. If more time is given on basics, there is no reason why a student can’t enter the big stage and make it count.
Student should be down to earth and focus on physical and mental fitness. Unless you are physically and mentally fit, no amount of skill can help you achieve greater heights. It is the fitness that will help you last longer.
At Khalsa, our focus is to create a holistic environment for learning. The student will learn discipline and fitness will be a major area of focus. If a student is honest to him and works hard, he will succeed in life.
Academy at a Glance:
Own ground, 3 match wickets, 3 net wickets
Age Group: 6 years and above
Schedule: Weekdays 3:30 to 6:30 PM
Head Coach: Mr. Ravi Dixit (+91 9873898899); Contact for admission and fee details
Coach Credentials: Former national tournament player, DU Captain, 5 years in University team, 2 years in Khalsa Team, UP Ranji Camp
Student Speak:
Hiten Dalal*, Captain, Khalsa Cricket Team says, “Our coach is young and understands the new generation. He is an intelligent, hardworking and polite person. Another good thing about this academy is that it has its own ground. Good nets and a healthy atmosphere to learn. Khalsa has given some really good players to the university and state teams.”
Hiten Dalal is a current DU and Air India player. He has played U- 16 and U-19 for Delhi and was captain of Delhi U-19 SGFI team.
SGTB Khalsa Team bagged third position at the recently concluded Delhi University Inter College Cricket Tournament.
Check out few videos of Khalsa academy students
Venue: Cross Maidan Cricket Ground Mumbai | Match Scorecard | Tournament Details
A superb all-round show from Nikhil Kotiyan handed a 46 run victory for Travelex against ICICI in Milan T20 cricket tournament (White Ball). Travelex won the toss had opted to set a total for their opponents.
Openers Deepak and Patel provided a dream start to the innings with a quick fire stand of 4 runs in just 4.3 overs scoring at almost 10 an over. The partnership was broken by Satish who cleaned Patel’s stumps when he was batting on 15 of 12 balls. Deepak departed soon when the scoreboard read 54. What happened after that simply took the game away from ICICI. Nikhil Kotiyan and Vijay More joined hands for an excellent display of batting, mustering 95 runs in next 10 overs. Vijay was brutal in particular consuming just 29 balls for his 49 including 7 fours and a couple of sixes. He smashed 4 boundaries in a row before getting stumped out of the bowling of Ramnath.
More drama was in store as ICICI bowler Amol captured 2 wickets in 2 balls and leaving the slog overs plan of Travelex in jeopardy. He was partially successful as well as Travelex could score just 17 runs in the last 12 balls and ended on 173 runs for the loss of 7 wickets. Kotiyan top scored with 61.
173 was a challenging yet achievable total. All that was required was some presence of mind. But ICICI batted without a plan and it could be seen in their innings. One top order batsman was required to play through the innings. Exactly the opposite happened. Batsmen kept losing their wickets at regular intervals and ICICI innings drifted apart. Amol and Ramnath offered some resistance with cameos of 28 and 22 but the writing was on the wall. Innings folded for 127 inside 18 overs with Vijay More capturing 3 wickets and Nikhil Kotiyan bagging a couple.
Nikhil Kotiyan was awarded the man of the match for his brilliant 61 and 2 wickets.
Brief Scores:
Travelex: 173/7 in 20 overs (Nikhil 61, Vijay 49, Satish 3/24)
ICICI: 127 all out in 17.5 overs (Amol 28, Ramnath 22, Vijay 3/20)
Report By:
Sumanyu Jain
Regional Manager & Editor
www.cricketgraph.com