Battle of Wankhede - Part 1

Hi Cricket Lovers,
  
Welcome to Wankhede, Mumbai for the inaugural ODI match between The Riders of the Storm and The Invincible Titans. The players have arrived to Mumbai from all corners of the world to participate in this highly anticipated fixture.

It has been raining since a few days but today it is bright and sunny. Sunil Gavaskar and Ian Chappell are out there in the middle for the pitch report.

Sunny: Welcome everyone! Due to the preceding rains there is going to be swing for the seam bowlers initially due to some dampness in the pitch. But as the sun comes out, it should become better for the batsmen. What is your opinion Ian?

Ian: Yes I agree with you Sunny but I do see small cracks in the pitch. As the day wears on and the ball gets old it will come on to the bat slowly. So ideally the team winning the toss should bat first and post a challenging score on the board.

Hmmm, interesting. Now it seems the two captains are ready for the toss with Ravi Shastri. Lets get down to the middle.

Ravi: Hello Mumbai!! Are you ready? (the camera zooms over some "tracer bullet" posters in the crowd) Shane (Warne) what is your call?

Warne: Heads!

Ravi: Heads it is! What would you like to do?

Warne: Bat first. We would like to post a formidable score and are pretty confident that we will be able to defend it..

Wasim (Akram): The toss is irrelevant. The team who plays better cricket will win.. (In a whisper to Ravi: Hey Shaz, use this cliche in the 20th over of the second innings. You are hereby allowed use it more than once. You are welcome!)

Here come the umpires followed by the The Riders of the Storm. The Riders would hope that their new ball bowlers can get some early breakthroughs and put early pressure on the opposition.

On the other hand, the Titans would want to get off to a good start. They would want to get through the initial half hour so that they can capitalize later.

Sehwag and Trescothick stride on to the middle. Wasim Akram is ready with the ball in hand. Sehwag takes strike.

Akram bowls the first ball down the leg side. Alec Stewart gathers it well. Simon Taufel signals wide. First runs on the board for the Titans. The next ball pitches on leg and misses off squaring Sehwag up completely. Sehwag flashes wildly to the next two balls which are in the corridor of uncertainty. The last ball of the over pitches outside off. Sehwag decided to let this one go. But unfortunately the ball swings in sharply and hits him plumb on the pad. There is a loud appeal. The umpire raises the finger. Viru departs.

What a fantastic over that was from the clever king of swing, Akram, setting the batsman up with outswingers and slipping in an inswinger to get his man. Rahul Dravid is next in but he will be off strike. The burly West Indian paceman Ambrose gets ready to bowl now. The first ball is a loosener, short and wide and is cut away to the deep point boundary by Trescothick. The fourth ball of the over rises sharply from short of good length and almost takes out Dravid. As the ball whizzes past his face, he must have smelt leather and got reminded of the worst music genre for batsmen, chin music! 

A few beautiful cover drives and flicks later, in the fifth over, Rahul Dravid tries to off drive a good length outswinger from Akram but nicks it straight to first slip. Akram is elated. The Riders rejoice. Early wickets are what the fielding team hopes for and they have got two big ones!

The greatest batsman of the world marches on to the middle. This legend of the game has scored 99 centuries in all forms of the game and is on the verge of setting yet another mammoth record which would be virtually impossible for anyone to reach at least for a decade. There is a deafening roar from the crowd. He looks up to the sky seeking blessings from God and his late father as he takes guard.

In the next over, Trescothick pulls the next ball from Ambrose to mid wicket and executes a lovely drive through the covers. But Ambrose has the last laugh as Trescothick cuts the last ball of the sixth over straight to Hashim Amla at point.

This brings the South African limited overs captain AB de Villiers to the crease. The score is 29-3 after 6 overs. After losing three quick wickets it is now time for the Titans to consolidate.

The duo of Sachin and AB take responsibility and accumulate runs by rotating the strike by pushing for singles and two's. In the 26th and 28th overs Sachin and AB get to their fifties respectively. The highlights of the partnership are a couple of exquisite shots - Sachin hitting an Akram inswinger straight down the ground with the full face of the bat and AB getting down the pitch and splendidly lofting a Murali doosra over the cover boundary. The score is 140-3 in 30 overs.

Ravi Shastri remarks that if the Titans manage to score a good total on the board it will be difficult to chase for the Riders. As we listen to this earth shattering fact, in the 31st over AB late cuts a Kumble delivery to third man but two balls later while trying to slog sweep Jumbo over cow corner, he gets a leading edge. The swirling ball is safely pouched by Sourav Ganguly.

Eoin Morgan, the stylish English all rounder is in next. For the next few overs, Murali, Kumble and Aravinda de Silva spin a web around the Titans batsmen. Even the master blaster Sachin is kept on a tight leash as the oldish ball starts turning and gripping on the dry cracked surface.

In the 39th over, Morgan tries to break the shackles by going for his trademark reverse sweep. However, the ball goes straight to third man and is caught well; a very clever piece of captaincy by Akram there. Adam Gilchrist now joins Sachin out in the middle.

The score is just 174-5 in 40 overs. The Titans are in a spot of bother here. The time for the final assault is coming close but they have lost a flurry of wickets and are not building any sort of momentum. Their only consolation is that the little master is still there undefeated on 71.

de Silva has been very impressive till now. He has complemented the other spinners well with his tantalizing off spinners. He bowls his last over in the 43rd over. But the Riders captain does not realize that the dangerous Gilly has already got his eye in. Gilly smashes Aravinda for two towering sixes, one over mid wicket and the other towards long off, the last one eluding the fully stretched Graeme Hick by only a few centimeters spoiling his otherwise decent figures.  The score is 195 for 5.

In the next over, Kumble surprisingly gives the ball some air. Gilly pounces on that opportunity and lofts the ball over the long on fence. It is a delight to watch the best Indian leg spinner of our era bowl against Sachin but Sachin wins the battle this time as he square cuts and paddle sweeps Jumbo for a couple of boundaries to reach the nervous nineties.

Gilly's arrival has provided the much needed impetus to the innings. With the score now on 230-5 of 47 overs it looks like the Titans could cross the 250 mark easily. But could there be a twist in the tale?

In the 48th over Akram removes Gilly with a toe crunching reverse swinging yorker. Zulu comes and gets going immediately as he hits a couple of scorching drives through the covers. In between all this, Sachin has been away from the strike for two overs. The crowds are getting impatient!

In the second ball of the penultimate over, an Ambrose in cutter traps Sachin on the pads. There is a deafening appeal by the entire Riders team. Umpire Daryl Harper raises the dreaded finger. Sachin does not seem to be satisfied and calls for a review. The replays show that the impact was just outside the line of off stump. Thank God for DRS!

In the third last ball of the penultimate over, Tendulkar carves a very full ball from Ambrose through point to reach 93. Just two blows away from the landmark now!! He takes a single of the next ball to reach 94. Zulu takes a single of the last ball to take strike in the last over.

Its the final over of the innings. Klusener is on strike. What should he do? Should he try to hit boundaries (which is the primary objective for any batsman at this stage of the innings) or should he give strike to Sachin to achieve something as marvellous as this (the 100th ton - no need to mention - is it?). But Akram gets his line wrong and sprays the first two balls down the leg side in an attempt to bowl perfect yorkers. Zulu manages to get a feather touch to both of them and they speed away to the fine leg boundary.

All the eyes of cricket lovers throughout the world and also their fingers (for Facebook & Twitter updates), media attention (criticism!) and the ceaseless hopes of Indian fans rest on Klusener hands. If somehow Sachin doesn't get to the landmark because of Klusener farming the strike it will be almost as huge a blow as the infamous 1999 World Cup loss!

The next ball... Zulu gets a single.. (phew!). Now it rests upon Sachin himself. 3 balls, 6 runs to go. As Akram sees Sachin shuffling towards off, Akram delivers a yorker wide of off stump. Sachin misses! The whole world gasps with disbelief.. 6 runs required.. 2 balls to go..

The field is up now.. The next ball, a yorker, Sachin digs it out in the gap between the two cover fielders. It is a sight (actually sometimes quite funny) to see the little master scamper between the wickets like a hare.. They complete a couple. Its 4 runs off the last ball (supremely dramatic isn't it?).. It has been a long wait for cricket fans for this moment.. Can he do it today?

The last ball of the innings.. the ball is full.. very full.. Sachin plays a very brave shot.. the paddle down fine leg.. the ball hits the middle of the bat and goes to the boundary...

Elation! Excitement! Euphoria!

Sachin Tendulkar becomes the first batsman in world cricket to score a hundred hundreds.. The crowds go wild.. Sachin waves to the crowd, kisses his helmet and looks upto the heavens with deep contentment.. The entire nation catches fever.. cricket fever.. the whole cricketing fraternity bows!! Twitter experiences server overload! Facebook takes 1 minute to open in 2 mbps speed internet!!

Meanwhile, lets not forget to mention that there was a match going on as well.. The Titans amass 265-6 in the 50 allotted overs. It promises to be a very exciting second innings as well.. A page is already turned in history today.. What will transpire next? Will the Riders be able to achieve the target? Join me next time to find out!! 

Signing off,

Regards,
Fictional Cricket Blogger

ODI Extravanganza commences - "The Teams"

Hi Cricket Lovers,

The time has come for announcing my first two fictional ODI teams to the worldwide cricketing fraternity for the forthcoming ODI Extravaganza. The first team is one containing one of my favorite cricketers. They might not be the best in the business but they are my favorites and they automatically book their places in any team of mine. The second team is one suggested by one of my good friend/brother/well wisher and I simply could not disappoint him.

Invincible Titans

Virender Sehwag - This rampaging Indian opener has a single philosophy "See the ball, hit the ball". He thrives not only on docile subcontinent pitches but dominates even in swinging conditions overseas. On his day he can decimate any bowling attack.

Marcus Trescothick - Personal reasons might have forced this English opener to retire much earlier from international cricket than he would have preferred but when in form he was the one of the most attacking and flamboyant batsmen the world has ever seen.

Rahul Dravid - Although many people ridiculed this stylish Indian batsman in the earlier part of his ODI career, he thoroughly silenced his critics by scoring runs at will and at a very healthy strike rate to become one of the most successful ODI batsman of our era

Sachin Tendulkar - Widely regarded as the God of cricket, this legendary Indian batsman is known for single-handedly guiding his team to victories at home and overseas and revolutionizing and exponentially magnifying cricket following in the subcontinent

AB de Villiers - This stylish and aggressive South African cricketer has won the hearts of many by his stupendous fielding, exciting batting and exemplary behavior on and off the field. And of course, he is my favorite cricketer after all!!

Eoin Morgan - Originally from Ireland, this extremely unorthodox English cricketer is the architect of several unconventional shots. He is also excellent against the spinners with his sweeps and reverse sweeps.

Lance Klusener - Although he is unfortunately popular for snatching defeat from the jaws of victory in the 1999 semi finals against Australia, people tend to undermine his superhuman all round efforts in bringing South Africa to the brink of World Cup glory.

Adam Gilchrist - I first saw this Australian demolisher in the Hong Kong Super Sixes tournament. I instantly felt that this bloke would achieve greatness and he certainly did by becoming one of the best wicketkeeper batsmen of all time.

Shane Warne - Ask the several commentators why they said that this Australian leg spinner along with Murali could spin the ball on any surface. This Wizard of Oz bamboozled batsmen of several eras and is arguably the best leg spinner of all time.

Saqlain Mushtaq - This Pakistani off spinner is also one of the few underrated cricketers. The inventor of the doosra, he was one of the toughest bowlers to face during his times.

Dale Steyn - The No. 1 bowler of the world today. He rightly deserves the ranking and the worldwide adulation. He is one of the best exponents of the outswinger and when in full flow demands respect even from the best of batsmen

Glenn McGrath - This mean, tall lanky fast bowler from Australia frustrated opposition batsmen with his immaculate line and length, extra bounce from a good length and his sheer natural aggression. On the best fast bowlers of our times.

The Riders of the Storm

Saeed Anwar - One of the mercurial batsmen of the 1990s. This Pakistani opener used to reserve his best against India. His 194 against India in the 1996 World was the best ODI score for a long time until it was eclipsed by none other than Tendulkar

Saurav Ganguly - This aggressive and expressive Indian batsman was nicknamed "God of the Off Side" by Geoffrey Boycott. He is also responsible of galvanizing the Indian team and catapulting it to a top team from the disintegrated one suffering from match fixing allegations.

Hashim Amla - This extremely stylish batsman is the new Mr.Dependable of South African cricket. With a calm, peaceful demeanor and indefinite appetite for runs, this run machine has qualities to become one of the best ever.

Marvan Atapattu - This graceful Sri Lankan batsman was one of the most reliable batsmen of their 1996 world cup winning team. He is perhaps the most technically ecquipped batsman the island nation has ever produced.

Aravinda DeSilva - One of the most respected Sri Lankan cricketers, this legend was instrumental in guiding his team to 1996 World Cup glory with his impeccably reliable batting and his innocuous off spinners.

Graeme Hick - One of the highest run scorers in first class cricket, he could never replicate his success on the big stage. But he was nevertheless a very commanding batsman who was respected by all oppositions. 

Alec Stewart - One of the most successful English wicketkeepers of our era, he was a very gutsy cricketer and is a role model for budding young wicketkeepers in England.

Anil Kumble - An extremely dedicated and professional cricketer, he was arguably the best leg spinner in the world after Warne and of course he is only the second bowler in all time to take all 10 wickets in an innings.

Wasim Akram - His hat-trick in the 1992 World Cup is a part of cricketing folklore. He was a complete bowler with the perfect combination of swing, seam and pace. Along with Waqar Younis he terrorized gullible batsmen in the 90s.


Curtly Ambrose - A member of the last pair of intimidating pacemen from the Caribbean, this West Indian fast bowler commanded respect and fear from all opposition batsmen.

Muttiah Muralitharan - "As wily as a fox", he could spin the ball a mile with an equally effective doosra. He is the highest test wicket taker ever and anybody who comes close to that record will already be a legend which clearly speaks volumes about the talent and ability of the man.

So guys, brace yourself to witnessing these two magnificent teams battle it out in the middle and setting the grounds on fire with exceptional display of cricketing skills.

Stay tuned!

Regards,
Fictional Cricket Blogger

50-50 vs 20-20 - A Perspective

Hi Friends,

It is a well documented fact that T20 cricket has overshadowed all forms of the game of cricket! With the advent of the IPL, World T20, Champions League T20 and even the new kid on the block (the Big Bash in Australia), ODI's and Test cricket seem to have taken a back seat in the minds and lives of cricket fans!

I was having a casual discussion with one of my good pals about the game. I said Test cricket is the purest form of the game and obviously should always remain and flourish; T20 cricket is the in thing today, the short duration, short bursts of excitement and adrenaline, big hits, unorthodox and flamboyant shots and not to forget the cheerleaders (one of the several reasons perhaps why fielders in the deep drop catches so frequently)!

But what about ODI cricket? Do people still have the patience to watch the full 50 overs with the same level of intensity and excitement as they would for a T20 match? Graeme Swann, the English off spinner, thinks this format of the game should be scrapped. There are many supporters of this philosophy which might even have included me before this discussion.

However, there have also been revolutionary and innovative suggestions to re-ignite the increasing loss of interest among the spectators. Many people including the master blaster Sachin were quite interested in the concept of dividing the 50 overs into 2 innings of 25 overs for each side; the Australian Cricket Board even implemented this concept in their domestic tournament for one season, but it eventually died out.

Perhaps, one of the main reasons for this is that the division of the match into four innings of 25 overs basically converts it into two T20 matches emphasizing the modern paradigm of the shortest form of the game dominating the elder brother, the boring and lengthy 50-50.

However, my friend made a very enlightening revelation with an observation from his own perspective. He asked me the format of the game we grew up watching? The format of the game which our parents introduced us to when we were perhaps watching the game for the first time on our television sets? The format in which we cheered Sachin hitting a straight drive to McGrath in the 1996 World Cup? Did we have T20 cricket then? Did we want a 20-20 over match at that time? Weren't we just as excited (if not more) to watch the game as it was?

I reflected within myself for a while. The answers to all the questions were in the affirmative. When we think about it, T20 cricket is more like a flash in the pan. I am by no means diminishing players who are specialists in this format. But more often than not, big hitters with negligible technique do seem to gain popularity in T20 cricket. This is particularly evident as most T20 specialists fail to make an impact in the other formats, especially in Test Cricket.

One of the most essential qualities required in the longer formats are patience and the desire to build an innings. In ODI's spectators get an opportunity to see captains planning and masterminding the dismissal of the opposition batsmen, batsmen settling down and building an innings, bowlers out thinking batsmen by employing cunning plots.. after all isn't life all about growing slowly, learning from your mistakes.. experiencing and adapting to change gradually? These attributes of life can be experienced in nowhere else but 50-50 cricket.. certainly not in T20 cricket where everything happens so quickly that you never get a chance to absorb the game and quench your thirst for good intense cricket..

Some of the readers of this post might think that this post is irrelevant to my primary theme of Fictional Cricket. But I felt it was very pertinent for my blog.. The reason for this is that although my blog is fictional, it is about cricket nevertheless and cricket does have only three mainstream formats till now (excluding Hong Kong Super Sixes, gully cricket and perhaps a new fictional format - who knows?). Moreover there is an ODI fictional cricket match on the cards casting some of my favorite ODI cricketers (and some teams suggested by my well wishers - popular demand).

Thank you all. Brace yourself for more entertaining and exciting fictional matches and more..

Yours sincerely,
Fictional Cricket Blogger

Post Match Analysis - Clash of the Titans

These are excerpts from a post match analysis from the commentary box after the first match "Clash of the Titans" between the Predators and Warriors which the Warriors won by a small margin.

Harsha Bhogle (host): Welcome to "Beyond the Match" for the post match analysis. Accompanying me is young "old man" from New Zealand Danny Morrison.

Danny: Thanks Harsha, FCBlogger (Fictional Cricket Blogger - that is me) told me he cant stop waiting for me to enter the commentary box in any match when he finds out I am in the commentary panel. I feel great he has invited me to co-host "Beyond the Match".

Harsha: Oh cool. But he told me that Danny is a blabbermouth who tries extra hard to sound funny and fails always. Funny, now I find out he thinks different about you.. Silly me..

Danny (giving a very threatening expression which fades away quite quickly): Oh well.. If it had not been for the obscene amount of money he is paying me I would have quit immediately.. (awkward silence for 55.776 seconds).. Now getting back to the match.. What a spectacle it was, wasn't it?

Harsha: Yes it was something never seen before.. Cricketers from different eras in the pinnacle of their form clashing horns out in the middle.. I felt really good to see very underrated but outstanding cricketers from Zimbabwe Andy Flower and Neil Johnson out there.. FCBlogger has sprung a surprise hasn't he?

Danny: Yeah yeah enough about that insolent.. (sighs).. What about Robin Singh who along with Jadeja have won many a match for India when they were not a 1st ranked team by any means right? By the way lets finish fast.. My beer is getting cold.. (wink)

Harsha: Ok, so lets get down to the ground where Sanjay Manjrekar has Zulu (Lance Klusener) out there with him

Sanjay: Hi Lance, so how did you feel playing in a match in which your team does not need 1 run off 4 balls and screwing it up big time?

Zulu: Boy, that was rude.. If one day I catch this FCBlogger I will sue him.. How can he give you such obnoxious lines man, that also for your first interview? By the way, it feels good that we won.. I feel good when I win.. do you?

Sanjay: I guess so.. better ask Arun Lal.. he has answer to everything under the sun.. actually some things over the sun also.. you know what I mean..

Zulu: No!

Sanjay: OK I will explain. for now, back to Mr. Bhogle, hey Harsh by the way.. why did you do MBA if you wanted to be a cricket commentator?

Harsha: Thats none of your business, Mr. Stylish Slow Batsman.. Danny left coz his tea was getting cold.. or was it something else, can't remember.. Now, Ravi Shastri has joined me.. looking good in the suit Ravi..

Ravi: A Six foot handsome guy wearing a suit does look good Harsha.. It was a pleasure witnessing an exhilarating match.. AB de Villiers did play a gem of a knock.. paced his innings perfectly..

Harsha: Yeah yeah whatever.. Laxman Sivaramakrishnan is pestering me since 2 minutes by making inexplicable noises in the microphone.. wonder who he has caught hold off?

Laxman: Yeah finally.. I have Marcus Trescothick with me.. So Marcus how was it playing an international match after such a long hiatus.. FCBlogger keeps telling me how much he missed those days when you played for England and the combination of your delectable drives and the murderous pulls.. 

Trescothick: Yeah feels great to come back and play an international match.. But I feel good playing for Somerset too.. It was a pleasure to meet all the players.. Thanks..

Laxman: Back to you, Harsha..

Harsha: Thanks Laxman for sparing me by not making that noise again.. Ravi do you think Test Cricket is losing "popularity" because of the influx of T20 cricket?

Ravi: No man, I talked to Test Cricket.. she has kept "popularity" in her cupboard.. so no chance of losing it.. Curse FCBlogger for asking me to crack a PJ for the first time in my life.. No but seriously Test Cricket is the pinnacle and FCBlogger does plan to include exciting test matches in the menu..

Harsha: Talking about the menu, it reminds me.. by what time does the 0.5 star hotel in which we are staying (FCBlogger: 5 star hotels are much beyond my budget) serve dinner.. its already 10 PM and I'm starving.. 

Ravi: Oh I already had my dinner Harsha.. you better hurry..

Harsha (Cursing FCBlogger with words beyond the scope of this blog): See you next time folks after the match.. Hey cab driver.. wait.. nooooooooooooo....

Regards,

Fictional Cricket Blogger

Fictional Cricket Match 1 - Clash of the Titans

Hi Cricket Lovers,

Welcome to the first match between the Warriors and Predators. This match is going to be played at none other than the “Home of Cricket” Lords in England! This is certainly going to be legen (wait for it as i rub my hands and scratch my forehead – and thinking about a certain Barney Stinson in How I Met Your Mother) dary entertainment.

It is slightly overcast today. The pitch looks wet. There should be movement for the bowlers early on but the ball should come on to the bat after the early spell. The commentators suggest that the team winning the toss should bowl first (My father does not care what the commentators say and gives a frustrated look when I tune on to pre match shows with blabbering commentators with such immense interest).

The captains are getting ready for the toss with Ramiz Raja. Gilchrist calls heads and heads it is! Gilchrist says he will bat first. Ramiz (who was one of the commentators who had suggested that the toss winning team bowl) appears startled as he asks Gilly for the reason behind the decision. Gilchrist says that he is firm believer in the traditional philosophy – “Win the toss, bat first, post some runs on the scoreboard first”. Warne beams childishly as he walks towards Ramiz and shamelessly says Gilly is his best pal after all!!

The umpires come out to the middle joined soon by the Predators. The Predators look energetic and excited as ever and would look to start well. The Warriors openers come out to the middle with a huge roar. This could be because of the more number of English players in the Warriors team and obviously the stylish flamboyant opener Marcus Trescothick. Trescothick has been in good form recently but has a bad habit of feeling outside the off stump during the early part of the innings. Gilly, however, does not have to worry about that, when he gets going he is one of the most dangerous batsmen of all time and still he is so modest about himself. That is the best part about this guy. Irfan Pathan has the ball in hand. He would really enjoy the conditions, especially the ball which comes back sharply into the right handed batsmen which flummoxes them completely.

The crowd goes wild as Pathan steams towards the crease to bowl the first bowl of the match. It lands full on middle and bends outwards towards the slips. Gilly defends it with the full face of the bat. After bowling three similar kind of deliveries Irfan drifts on to Gilly’s pads. He lofts it over the infield and into the boundary ropes for a two bounce four. Irfan shakes his head. He knows he cannot get away with it if he bowls such a line to this legendary Australian batsman.

The next over is to be bowled by the master of line and length and one of the best fast bowlers ever Glenn “Pigeon” McGrath. Trescothick drives the third and fourth balls through the covers for two beautiful boundaries. Trescothick takes a single off the last ball.

In the fourth over McGrath pitches it short. Trescothick goes for the pull but gets a leading edge. The ball flies towards third man where Niel Johnson takes a simple catch. The Predators celebrate. Strike One.

Now Ross Taylor comes out to the middle. This man knows only two gears. First gear in which he almost only defends and fourth gear in which crowds in the cow corner have to wear helmets and he belts balls down there almost everytime. Pathan pitches the ball full in his third over and Taylor nonchalantly deposits it into the stands straight back down the bowlers head! Is he using the second/third gear today?? Predators beware!!

The Predators bring Pollock, the South African miser, into the attack. He bowls an unplayable delivery to Taylor in the fifth ball but Taylor nicks it as he was unfortunately in good form. This brings the South African rock star cum pin up boy AB de Villiers (and my favorite player, there will be more on that later, sorry) into the middle. Pollock surprisingly pitches short and AB pulls it over midwicket for six (and this is not because he is my favorite player, it happened guys!!).

The Predators captain now decides to bring the best leg spinner ever into the attack (by the way, that is himself). The field is up. Gilly swipes the first two balls into the midwicket stand. After getting hit for two sixes by someone as dangerous as Gilly, any bowler starts losing it thinking how he is going to make mincemeat out of him. But surprisingly there is an evil gleam in Warney’s eyes. He is a supremely shrewd, witty customer and he knows what he is doing. He gives his third ball even more air. Gilly dances down the wicket plotting to deposit it for another maximum. But alas it was the wrong one. Andy Flower makes no mistake and takes the bail off. “Better luck next time kiddo” says Warney as Gilchrist starts the long journey back towards the pavilion.

Johan Botha comes in next; perhaps the Warriors think that some stability is needed in the middle. But Saqlain Mushtaq, the next bowler and the inventor of the famous doosra,  induces a leading edge from Botha as he tried to tuck the ball towards the leg side for a single. After 8 overs the score reads 54-4. The Predators are on top now. For the next 5-6 overs the batsmen try to repair the damage with a cautious approach the only highlight being the trademark reverse sweep by the unorthodox Morgan to a Saqlain delivery in the 13th over.

After 14 overs the score is 90-4. In the 15th over, Eoin Morgan hits a shot which might not enter a coaching manual even in the year 2030. The ball from Neil Johnson is full and just outside off stump, Morgan turns his wrist almost magically and turning the bat face towards third man helps the ball towards third man. Mind boggling indeed!! But in the same over he perishes trying a comparatively orthodox shot towards midwicket and is caught in the deep.

On comes Lance Klusener to join AB perhaps still in his second gear (some criticize him for being too slow to get going which is true sometimes). But Klusener seems in a different mood as he trashes two innocuous balls from Robin Singh towards the cover boundary like a tracer bullet (sorry Ravi Shastri, I can be a copy cat sometimes – actually almost every time, ahem).

In the next over AB decides to shift gears (I dozed off, in my dream I was perhaps driving a car, or maybe AB was). He deposits Warney over the midwicket boundary and a beautiful flowing drive through the covers. Klusener and AB murder Gayle (a surprising choice for the 18th over) by slogging him all over Lords.

In the last over Klusener departs as the wily Pigeon hits the blockhole and uproots his middle stump. But in the last ball the young Keiswetter out thinks McGrath and paddle sweeps a definite yorker down to fine leg. The total is 175-6. They really went after the Predator bowlers in the last five overs. AB stays unbeaten on 80 (my favorite player -don’t forget).

Will the Warriors total be sufficient? Who knows? (Actually I know but alas, you cant ask me.. OK if you insist the Warriors lose, just kidding, ha ha, read on fellows).

The chase begins. The Warriors stride out to the center. And finally the deadly duo comes out to the middle, Sehwag the second double centurion in ODI after the best batsman in the world (Sachin Tendulkar – for non cricket fans – OK you might ask why Sachin is not there in my T20 teams. I offered him but he refused. He said he did not like T20 much though he feels proud to captain Mumbai Indians in IPL. He also has a life and family guys,  come on. He will be back for the ODI and Tests). Sanath Jayasuriya needs no introduction. He is a master blaster who revolutionized the batting style in the first 15 overs in ODIs.

Lasith Malinga (the bowler who can bowl a yorker even in his sleep after the opposition batsmen have mixed sleeping pills into his late night tea) greedily watches Jayasuriya’s toes (which are behind his new terrified Nike shoes) waiting to bowl a yorker right at his toes (well, wasn’t that obvious?). However he gets a couple of deliveries off radar and Jayasuriya whips them towards short mid wicket.

In the second over, the number 1 bowler in the world today, the supremely stylish fast bowler from South Africa, Dale Steyn bowls a couple of beauties to Sehwag who nods in appreciation. But the last ball is wide and Sehwag dispatches it with disdain towards the cover boundary (yes! I did not repeat the tracer bullet cliche again).

In the 4th over Jayasuriya missed an inswinger from Steyn and is bowled. This brings Chris Gayle to the stage, sending shivers down bowlers spine (really Sanjay Manjrekar says he saw the shiver – some shining thing – go behind Klusener’s neck). Gayle nonchalantly smashes his third ball over mid on for his first six. The Gayle storm lasts briefly till the end of another over (in which he plunders 15 runs of poor Malinga and gets yorked off the last ball). Neil Johnson (one of the most underrated all round cricketers from Zimbabwe) comes on to the middle and he and Sehwag steady the ship from a slightly dangerous 50-3 in the 6th over to a much better launchpad of 120-3 in the 15th over.

With wickets and hand and 56 runs to get off the last five overs, the match is perfectly balanced but slightly in favor of the Predators. Now Sehwag sweeps Johan Botha for a six. However Botha has the last laugh as Sehwag holes out to deep fine leg while trying to go for another slog sweep. Klusener takes out the slightly rusty Andy Flower next with his dibbly dobblies.  In the next over there is a misunderstanding between Shaun Pollock and the well set Neil Johnson resulting in an unnecessary run out (Geoff Boycott says – Even my mum could have run better between the wickets!). Suddenly it is 140-3 in 17.4 overs. It seems like the Predators are staring down the barrel (this is where I imagine a barrel stuck in a hill slope at 30 degrees downwards and something called Predators staring down the barrel, wow! How off the topic, my stupid mind!). Anyways, coming back to the supposedly tense situation. The equation reads 36 runs to get off 14 deliveries with 4 wickets in hand (now don’t ask whose hand, its a metaphor for God’s sake).

Dale Steyn who has been economical till now bowls the penultimate over. Irfan Pathan who was not incisive with the ball today (due to lack of right handers when he was bowling perhaps) comes out all guns blazing and hits consecutive sixes and a boundary in the over and damaging Steyn’s figures (not his physical figure, really) and his already poor reputation as a death bowler (dont compare this metaphor with something like death metal please – although power metal is great – sorry again).

Now its 20 runs to get off the last over. It seems impossible especially against a bowler like Malinga. But Pollock (he is a bowling all rounder but is also a very dangerous batsman – once he had to get 36 off last over against New Zealand and hit 5 consecutive sixes except for the last ball – sad!) manages to hit a couple of Malinga’s very full (but not yorker length deliveries) straight over the bowlers head raising hopes in the Predators camp. However he is unpleasantly mesmerized by a slower ball (another of Malinga’s weapons) and is caught by AB. Thus now it is 8 off 2 balls. Warne manages to scrape a single.

Its 7 off 1 ball. A six would tie the scores resulting in a super over. The atmosphere is very tense now (“Atmosphere” gives a horrible terrifying scream challenging my statement asking me for the hypothesis for saying that it was tense when it was just a cold evening in London, OK sorry). Its Pathan on strike for the last ball of the match. Malinga bowls another “almost” yorker. Pathan drives it straight down the ground. Long on and Long off chase the ball in vain and its a boundary.

But alas! Its not enough. The Warriors triumph. Agony for the Predators. Though one team is happy and the other disappointed, they shake hands. After all its the spirit of cricket that matters (by the way Cricket is not dead, its just a metaphor again, but you knew that already didn’t you).

Thank You for being a part of this and witnessing the match! I will be on for more later! 

Bye!

Regards,

Fictional Cricket Blogger

Fictional Cricket - Taking Guard

Hi Everybody,

 

This is technically my first blog. I wanted to come up with an innovative idea for my first ever blog. My blog is based on “Imaginary Cricket”. I have compiled a list of my favorite international cricket players and have carefully categorized them into two teams. The players are not from a particular generation but I have selected them on the basis of the form in which they were at the peak of their careers and the amount of fun which I have had watching them play.

These teams will be competing in imaginary nail biting cricket matches in different venues throughout the world. The teams cannot be changed. However, every match will have a hero. After every match a poll will be made available with a random list of players where interested reader can nominate a player. The next match’s hero will be the players getting maximum votes. This and many other interesting events can be planned. I am starting off with T20 teams because T20 is the in thing today. However Test and ODI teams will be announced soon.  Here are the lineups of the two teams:

TEAMS

Imaginary T20 Warriors

• Marcus Trescothick
• Adam Gilchrist (captain)
• Ross Taylor
• AB de Villiers
• Eoin Morgan
• Lance Klusener
• Craig Keiswetter (wicketkeeper)
• Johan Botha
• Daniel Vettori
• Lasith Malinga
• Dale Steyn

Imaginary T20 Predators

• Sanath Jayasuriya
• Virender Sehwag
• Chris Gayle
• Neil Johnson
• Robin Singh
• Shaun Pollock
• Andy Flower (wicketkeeper)
• Saqlain Mushtaq
• Shane Warne (captain)
• Irfan Pathan
• Glenn McGrath

The next post will have the first match between these teams. Stay Tuned!!

Thanks,

Fictional Cricket Blogger