Spartan’s 15-match unbeaten streak was halted by the invincible Maharajas. This was also our first win over them. A resurgent and determined Maharajas stopped the Spartan juggernaut by handing them an 8-run defeat. This was their first defeat since beaten by Twenty20CC in November 2008.We can say that this was their first defeat this year.
Niloy lost the toss not much to our liking however when we are destined to win the championship these small things won’t make a lot of difference but the batting problem continued …..
MAHARAJA’S BATTING
1-5 Overs
Sandeep and Bipin opened the inning for us before Sandeep got a peach of delivery to be caught at first slip. Manish was promoted up the order for his good performance in the last match before being caught at first slip for 1. He went for an expansive drive through the off side but ball swinged away from him to catch the edge. Next, Bipin was bowled to a perfect yorker and the score read 5/3 in 5 over’s.
5-10 Overs
Walked in the captain with the same determination to again pull it for us and he started in some style. One of his cover drive went for four... such was the timing and power of the shot...If you think that was it ….nooo there’s a lot to come. Buland was sent in at 3rd down to up the tempo and the moment he started striking the ball the field was spread up…he played a shot towards long on which looked as it was six but was caught just before the boundary line…Though Niloy played a marvelous inning but for me the hero of the match was Girish …The way he meddled the ball was a treat to watch….he just dented them deep and it showed up in their fielding as there were many over throws and misfield…and for every misfield we had something to say ….Am I right Manish Sir??? After 10 over’s the score read 26/4…
10-15 Over’s
Niloy and Girish had a partnership of 29 runs which had brought us back in the game with the score reading 42/4 after 14 overs. Girish was playing great before being caught at long on just before the boundary line but he had done his job by then …Next came Vijay. He needs some luck going his way and the day that luck is on his side he is going to make us win the match single handed which he has done in past ….Then came the wall of our team Abhisek to nudge the ball around which frustrated them to an extent …..The score was 47/5
Final 5 Over’s
In order to up the run rate Niloy and Abhisek perished ….Our inning folded for 66 which was a good total to defend with the bowling attack we have…
MAHARAJA’S BOWLING
0-5 Over’s
Amit and Buland were right on money from the first ball…They frustrated their opening batsmen ……Rajat would have been out in the 3 rd over if I would have held to a top edge ….anyways we didn’t had to wait long for the first break though as Manish took a very clean catch behind the stump off Amit….Girish was brought in the 5 th over and straight away they were on the backfoot….Score read 17/1
5-10 Over’s
I was brought in the 6th over and to rectify my mistake I got a another chance to get rid of Rajat of my own bowling and the way Amit shouted Anoooooooop I knew if I drop this one I won’t be playing the next game,in the 8th over we got rid of their best batsman to a good catch taken by Bipin at wide slip. Vijay was brought in the 9th over and straight away he got rid of their captain and there was panic in their team. After 10 over’s there score was 31/4 and the game was wide open.
10-15 Over’s
Vijay continued his good spell of bowling after the break with Amit bowling the 12 th over and they both kept the pressure going, Girish was brought back in the 13th over which just put them in the backfoot and to get there condition worse Girish took a good low catch at mid wicket to make the score 41/5 and to break them completely. Girish ended his spell with a maiden over to turn the match in our favour.
15-20Overs
Buland got the key wicket to make the score 46/6 and to add to their wound Sandeep had a direct hit from fine leg to make the score 51/7.Vijay was brought and the very first ball was a controversial decision of a no ball which stopped the match for almost 15 minutes but in that scorching heat it proved a good break for our bowlers to rejuvenate their energy as we got a very crucial wicket of Anal who seemed determined to take it away from us. Bipin took a good low catch at wide slip again to make the 55/8.In the17th over we got another wicket and we were just one wicket away from one of the biggest victory in Maharaja’s history.Buland was brought in to bowl the 2nd last over and only the first ball was enough for him to get the match wrapped up……
And we won by a narrow margin of 8 runs…..It was one of the greatest match I have ever played ….We played like a team as there was a lot of performances from every player…. What a co incidence...all of our bowlers gave away 13 runs and the extra’s count 13 as well
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Last 10 Matches Stats
Some great performances by all the players are the reason we are 10-0 at the end of 1st round. Here is the quick review of performances for the last 10 matches.
Most Run Scored: Niloy 74
Most Wicket Taken: Girish 18 Anoop 17
Best Econ. Bowling Rate: Buland 2.29
Man of the Match: Annop (3) Niloy (2) Bipin(2) Buland(2) Girish(1)
Most 6’s: Buland(4) Niloy(3)
Most 4’s: Bipin (4) Niloy (3) Girish(3)
Most Catches: Abhisek (9) Rajesh K(4)
WicketKeeper: Manish(13 cb 3 stumps) Himansu(1 cb)
Run out: Sandeep(2) Niloy(2) Abhisek(2)
Best Bowiling: O R W
Girish 2 4 3
Vijey 3 7 3
Most Ducks: Girish (2)
Most Not Out: Anoop(6)
Most Do not Bat: Aizaz (4) Manish(4)
Most Run Scored: Niloy 74
Most Wicket Taken: Girish 18 Anoop 17
Best Econ. Bowling Rate: Buland 2.29
Man of the Match: Annop (3) Niloy (2) Bipin(2) Buland(2) Girish(1)
Most 6’s: Buland(4) Niloy(3)
Most 4’s: Bipin (4) Niloy (3) Girish(3)
Most Catches: Abhisek (9) Rajesh K(4)
WicketKeeper: Manish(13 cb 3 stumps) Himansu(1 cb)
Run out: Sandeep(2) Niloy(2) Abhisek(2)
Best Bowiling: O R W
Girish 2 4 3
Vijey 3 7 3
Most Ducks: Girish (2)
Most Not Out: Anoop(6)
Most Do not Bat: Aizaz (4) Manish(4)
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Pictures - Maharajas Vs. Spartans at Evergreen Valley High School , San Jose - June 27 2009
A PERFECT 10 OUT OF 10! Here are pictures from the match against the Spartans today in Evergreen Valley High School, San Jose. Simply click on the thumbnails below, or view the slide show here.
Monday, June 22, 2009
Nail Bitter
The momentum that our team has right now is a beast that cannot be contained. A close match like this one has geared everyone for the big one next week. Teams who succeed are not always the ones who are the best on paper or the ones who have prepared the best. What matters is which team can develop the knack to bring out their best performance when they need it the most….
We have been having those performances when we really needed it…Buland, Bipin and Niloy have come good when we needed and that matters the most….We are good on paper but we are great when it comes to performing on that particular point of time….Vikas and Rajesh have played some good knocks but we still want our big guns to fire..Amit, Sandeep,Vijay and Abhisek all are big match player and they all will come to the party for the big one……The way Manish has been behind the stumps has been a revolution for the team…
It was an edge-of-the-seat match that would have dented all hard work we had been doing this tournament .To everyone surprise the opponents won the toss and elected to bat and the very second ball they lost their first wicket to a perfect throw from Niloy and Amit did the rest…We got our second wicket to a run out as the batsman played the ball to long off and wanted to steal a second as I was late in throwing the ball however I threw the ball on time and the batsman was caught short ….When I am writing this article, I think how silly was that on my part….
Amit and Vijay gave a perfect start with score reading 4 overs 9 runs and 2 wickets and good catches by Bipin at mid on and Vijay at long on of Vikas broke their back….Abhisek bowled a steady spell and kept everything within control….They got a good partnership going which dragged them for 14/4 to 42…Everyone was waiting for Girish to come and break this partnership but he looked a little rusty in his first over, though I am using the word rusty but still batsman had hard time figuring out what they were facing….
Next 4 overs conceded 13 runs and no wickets which was unusual for us but Vijay gave us the very required break in 15th over and then it was all in our hand .Last 5 overs conceded just 12 runs with 5wickets falling…..The way Manish has been stumping , the opponents might have the myth that our team is full of spinners….The way he stumped one of their batsman at Amit’s pace just kept me wondering how can he stump someone at his pace….The day is not very far when he is going to stump someone when Girish would be bowling ….Though everyone looked a little rusty after the picnic but the bowlers still did a pretty good job in restricting them for 56….
It was again the same story with our batting and extras being the highest scorer…..
I know it might be harsh but I really want to bring this to everyone attention that confidence is good but over confidence is suicidal….We have started thinking that we will play some overs cautiously and then strike the ball but this plan doesn’t seem to work …The ball has to be played on the merit it being the 1 st ball of the inning or the last ball…
Bipin and Sandeep opened for us but both of them seemed struggling and finally it led to debacle of Sandeep in the 4th over and the very next ball Bipin was run out which made the score 11/2 in 4.1 overs….To make situation even worse Umpire took one of the most dim-witted decision which saw Vijay ruled run out…He was well behind the wicket at the non striker end when a fielder threw the ball from point to hit the stump direct and umpire raised his finger …..I don’t know what the umpire was thinking and then walked in the captain to perish of the very next ball…He was tempted by the bowler as long on and long off both were inside ….The score was 16/4 in 6.3 overs..
Though Girish was not at his best with the bowling but he was determined to do it with the bat as he was the second highest scorer for the team …..the pull shot he played would have cleared any ground in this world but he just got 2 and the very next ball he smashed it for 4 over long on to make us feel a little better ….Himanshu hung in there with Girish and made sure no more wickets fall before 10 overs…
After 10 overs the score read 26/4 but it just took 4 balls for us to lose the 5 th wicket as Himanshu was run out….Vikas was given the job to finish the match for us but he was also caught short of the crease before playing some good shots…..the pressure was building even the wall of our team(Abhisek) had a little tough time in the middle as he was not able to middle the ball as he normally does….we lost our 7 wicket in Girish when he was trying to flick a ball and it caught the top edge for a simple catch……Then walked in the finisher Amit …everyone had a lot of hope from him and the very first ball he got his stroke going and got 2 crucial runs for the team ..It looked Amit and Abhisek will finish it off however they both fell in order to play a stroke….It was left for Manish and me to finish it off…with the equation reading 15 needed off 3 overs… We got 5 in the 18th over and the equation read 10 needed of 2….They brought their best bowler to bowl the 19th over and he just gave away 4 runs which left us with 6 needed of the final over….
Manish elegantly flicked the first one for 1 … I played the next ball towards long off and we stole 2 runs, the next ball was a no ball which left us 2 to get from 3 balls …and the bowler bowled a perfect length delivery outside the off stump which resulted in a dot ball which made the situation tense but the next ball I flicked the ball in air to get the winning runs and we won…………………..As the whole team embraced mid-pitch after the winning moment the emotion showed what this victory meant for our team
We have won 10 matches in row but still the big one is next week ……………
We are gonna rock guys….
We have been having those performances when we really needed it…Buland, Bipin and Niloy have come good when we needed and that matters the most….We are good on paper but we are great when it comes to performing on that particular point of time….Vikas and Rajesh have played some good knocks but we still want our big guns to fire..Amit, Sandeep,Vijay and Abhisek all are big match player and they all will come to the party for the big one……The way Manish has been behind the stumps has been a revolution for the team…
It was an edge-of-the-seat match that would have dented all hard work we had been doing this tournament .To everyone surprise the opponents won the toss and elected to bat and the very second ball they lost their first wicket to a perfect throw from Niloy and Amit did the rest…We got our second wicket to a run out as the batsman played the ball to long off and wanted to steal a second as I was late in throwing the ball however I threw the ball on time and the batsman was caught short ….When I am writing this article, I think how silly was that on my part….
Amit and Vijay gave a perfect start with score reading 4 overs 9 runs and 2 wickets and good catches by Bipin at mid on and Vijay at long on of Vikas broke their back….Abhisek bowled a steady spell and kept everything within control….They got a good partnership going which dragged them for 14/4 to 42…Everyone was waiting for Girish to come and break this partnership but he looked a little rusty in his first over, though I am using the word rusty but still batsman had hard time figuring out what they were facing….
Next 4 overs conceded 13 runs and no wickets which was unusual for us but Vijay gave us the very required break in 15th over and then it was all in our hand .Last 5 overs conceded just 12 runs with 5wickets falling…..The way Manish has been stumping , the opponents might have the myth that our team is full of spinners….The way he stumped one of their batsman at Amit’s pace just kept me wondering how can he stump someone at his pace….The day is not very far when he is going to stump someone when Girish would be bowling ….Though everyone looked a little rusty after the picnic but the bowlers still did a pretty good job in restricting them for 56….
It was again the same story with our batting and extras being the highest scorer…..
I know it might be harsh but I really want to bring this to everyone attention that confidence is good but over confidence is suicidal….We have started thinking that we will play some overs cautiously and then strike the ball but this plan doesn’t seem to work …The ball has to be played on the merit it being the 1 st ball of the inning or the last ball…
Bipin and Sandeep opened for us but both of them seemed struggling and finally it led to debacle of Sandeep in the 4th over and the very next ball Bipin was run out which made the score 11/2 in 4.1 overs….To make situation even worse Umpire took one of the most dim-witted decision which saw Vijay ruled run out…He was well behind the wicket at the non striker end when a fielder threw the ball from point to hit the stump direct and umpire raised his finger …..I don’t know what the umpire was thinking and then walked in the captain to perish of the very next ball…He was tempted by the bowler as long on and long off both were inside ….The score was 16/4 in 6.3 overs..
Though Girish was not at his best with the bowling but he was determined to do it with the bat as he was the second highest scorer for the team …..the pull shot he played would have cleared any ground in this world but he just got 2 and the very next ball he smashed it for 4 over long on to make us feel a little better ….Himanshu hung in there with Girish and made sure no more wickets fall before 10 overs…
After 10 overs the score read 26/4 but it just took 4 balls for us to lose the 5 th wicket as Himanshu was run out….Vikas was given the job to finish the match for us but he was also caught short of the crease before playing some good shots…..the pressure was building even the wall of our team(Abhisek) had a little tough time in the middle as he was not able to middle the ball as he normally does….we lost our 7 wicket in Girish when he was trying to flick a ball and it caught the top edge for a simple catch……Then walked in the finisher Amit …everyone had a lot of hope from him and the very first ball he got his stroke going and got 2 crucial runs for the team ..It looked Amit and Abhisek will finish it off however they both fell in order to play a stroke….It was left for Manish and me to finish it off…with the equation reading 15 needed off 3 overs… We got 5 in the 18th over and the equation read 10 needed of 2….They brought their best bowler to bowl the 19th over and he just gave away 4 runs which left us with 6 needed of the final over….
Manish elegantly flicked the first one for 1 … I played the next ball towards long off and we stole 2 runs, the next ball was a no ball which left us 2 to get from 3 balls …and the bowler bowled a perfect length delivery outside the off stump which resulted in a dot ball which made the situation tense but the next ball I flicked the ball in air to get the winning runs and we won…………………..As the whole team embraced mid-pitch after the winning moment the emotion showed what this victory meant for our team
We have won 10 matches in row but still the big one is next week ……………
We are gonna rock guys….
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Pictures - Maharajas Vs. Weekenders at Washington City Park, Sunnyvale - June 21 2009
Nine out of nine! Here are pictures from the match against the Weekenders today in Washington Park, Sunnyvale. Simply click on the thumbnails below, or view the slide show here.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
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