The game we all were waiting for …
I was not writing any reports as it was kind of writing the same action item in every report. It was about our batting which was not clicking for some reason. Now I am back because it clicked this time. Anyways coming straight to the point, asked to show up 1 hour early for the game and one guy created a big mess out of it 😊 Most of us were on time and we practiced a little bit and was chilling in shade before game. One funny event started; we know we are not lucky with toss this year, so we started playing a game within ourselves. Whoever wins the coin flipping game will go for toss, #TitansMcGrath won the game and guess what … he went and lost the toss 😃 Anyways it was not a surprise that we were asked to bowl first. But seriously I was not worried at all because ball was travelling as ground was dry. I knew subconsciously that we could chase a big target with the batting lineup we had. But there was a little lack of confidence too as we didn’t click in batting while chasing a big score this season.
We had one more incident prior to the game, leather ball final game was going on at the same time and #SeriousGuy was batting there. I knew he wanted to play here too but it was too late to clone him 😊 We heard he got out just when we went for the toss. He wanted to come and play but we had a strict umpire. Umpire discussed with organizers and yelled (literally yelling) at us that he will not allow him if he comes 30 mins after the game starts. But here comes the best part, I reached out to #FakeDhoni to substitute for #SeriousGuy and man he didn’t even hesitate and said yes. That’s the sign of a true team player. Thanks #FakeDhoni for your sacrifice which helped the team in a big way. Game started and #SeriousGuy joined us after 4th over and we were all relieved as we would have to play with 10 players without him. Anyways I will not go into too much details in the bowling and fielding, most of us experienced it. We didn’t click in bowling department due to 2 of our primary bowlers were tired after playing 40 overs game in leather ball. #MrCouchPotato had an amazing opening spell but one bowler’s performance stood out from rest and he seldom disappoint the team, it’s none other than our #TitansMcGrath who took all of their 4 well-set batsmen including the top batsman of the league. Our fielding was not extraordinary either, we had few misfields and dropped catches, overall it was good only in few patches. I would say it was a bad day for the team in fielding area. They scored 87 which is big against our bowling attack, I would say we expect anything below 70 considering the bowlers we have in team.
Chasing close to 90 in playoff games is not a small task by any means and it didn’t help further after the first ball we faced during batting. We saw #TheBestTeamMan’s middle stump getting uprooted in the first ball. You wouldn’t say that’s a positive start, would you 😊 But, the next pair behaved as if nothing happened. They were batting with positive intent and playing shots at will. They had 30 runs partnership without breaking any sweat. That gave a good momentum for the rest of the team members. #MadCaptain went next and didn’t score match. I would blame it on old eyes but we will discuss about that some other day 😉 #SeriousGuy joined #TitansStud and had a match winning partnership of 41 runs. What to say about #TitansStud, it was really a treat to watch his confidence and determination at the crease. Your command over your innings is exceptional and we get to experience it at the perfect time of the season. We had no issues in getting next 6 or 7 runs. This run chase was not possible without the contribution from #MrCouchPotato and #SeriousGuy. Drumroll for all 4 players please #TitansMcGrath, #MrCouchPotato, #SeriousGuy and esp. #TitansStud.
But this game belongs to only one player Rajesh #FakeDhoni. Words can’t express team’s gratitude for you.
Now the next huge task, semi-final game against a team that didn’t lose a single game this year. But this is the first time this year, I am not worried, and you shouldn’t be either. We have the team to beat anyone now and I have full confidence in the team. They didn’t lose any game so far because they didn’t play against us and of course they don’t know how to come back if they are losing in the game. Let’s practice well and give them a good fight on Saturday. Btw is it Saturday yet 😊
https://www.cricclubs.com/TennisCricketLeague/fullScorecard.do?matchId=970&clubId=2235