WJCC Vs Whitfords Week 2

As of around midday today WJCC notched up their first win of the season against raining champions.
The team batted very well with most top batsmen getting starts with both Michael and matt getting starts but then given out with quite dubious decisions for 20 odd each. Daniel played well for his 20 or so batting at number 3 but most importantly stayed out there with star performer Rassi who scored a good 55 before being dismissed.
The most encouraging part of the batting was that there were partnerships all the way through the match leaving one batsmen who is always well set in the middle.
Nearing the end the game became very close as they bowled and fielder very well with a few maiden overs and slowly but surely the pressure was moved back onto us. We lost a few quick wickets with people trying to up the run rate in the last 6 overs or so and as Stefan got bowled it was my turn to bat with somewhat a larger amount of pressure on my performance.
As i headed out we needed 9 runs off 14 balls and when ever you see that on TV you pretty much know that the batting side is going to win, but in our grade its a lot different as we are neither that good at hitting the ball or in some cases that quick between the stumps.
As i was walking out there i decided that our team has played too well to lose this game as we put in 150% both in the field but batting as well so i decided that i would push my back as far as it would go and further to get a win out of the game. My original idea was because i'm not a huge hitter of the cricket ball i would try to give Ash most of the strike and just run very hard between the wickets.
The first 2 balls i faced i crunched both but straight into the fielders so that brought the needed rate 9 off 12 balls.
Ash was now facing and he hit the ball for two tows which were both usually only singles but with any sport if you run hard and put pressure on you can make the other team back off a bit or make mistakes. Ash then just tapped the ball onto the onside straight to the fielder but as i was backing up a hell of a long way i ended up making it very easy.
This left me on strike with the target a more comfortable 4 off 9 balls. Although i knew that the game was not won yet and stranger things have happened and since i was playing Australians i was half expecting them to end up bowling under arm the cheating bastards. But back to the story after my first 2 balls i did sort of understand the pitch i was playing on and was quite comfortable as the bowler i was facing wasn't that express but to be completely honest i prefer quick bowlers over slow ones. The bowler bowled one on a good length that i ended up just having to try to drive but couldn't get it properly and ended up going down to mid off instead of through the covers for a dot ball.
Its 4 off 8 balls now and i have 2 balls left on the over i faced up for another ball and the bowler ended up drifting just onto the stumps and just over pitching about a foot to allow me to get on the front foot comfortably and drive it to the right of mid on. I didn't hit it very hard or out of the middle of the bat but i still managed to get a fair bit of it and past the diving fielder and straight away, i took off looking for at least 2 runs maybe even 3 on the arm of the fielder as it was a long boundary down there maybe 65m or so i ran the first one hard and just as i turned for the second i heard applause and cheering from the sideline as the whole team was on the boundary encouraging us on. it turned out that i timed the ball better than i expected and it had rolled over for four bringing up my first runs of the day, the season as well as my first four of the season and most importantly the winning runs for the team. After congratulating each other Ash and I had to face another over and a ball because we still have to complete our 56 overs even though we have already won.
So with the match won, i just decided to go out have some fun and some batting practice and being a fast bowler myself i know that i was to expect a short ball and sure enough one came which i tried to flick over the top but i missed by a bit.
The last over was fun as Ash put on a few more runs with 2's coming off the first 5 balls and a single off the last which was also a no ball so i managed to get to face one ball for the last over.
My idea was to slog the ball over cow corner to where my team were but he was a good bowler, usually bowling line and length outside off stumps so i decided to move across my stumps to sty to reduce the angle. but as he bowled it and i shaped up for the big shot he bowled a yorker which i could only defend for no run.
Leaving me 4 not out and Ash 30 odd not out and the team ended up 196/6 off 56 overs in reply to their scored of 178.
So today was a good day for both myself and the team as well as my back as it pulled up alright after the game and running and turning.

WJCC Vs Whitfords Week 1

This morning marked the start of the regular season of the 56 over form of the game.

This game we were playing Whitfords, who knocked us out last year, in the semi-final. So we were out for revenge and hopefully a better result than last week. The main difference this year is that we are playing turf (like you see on the TV, but not that good) instead of astro-turf like usual. This meant playing cricket takes a whole different approach. For one you have to wear spikes when bowling to stop yourself sliding across the cress and if you fall over its painful trust me. Also unlike astro-turf, turf can have uneven bounce that can fool the batsmen but at the same time when the ball hits the ground it loses some of it pace more than it does on concrete. So overall it works out pretty even to both sides but you have to change the way you bowl and the way you bat and set your fields etc.

So back to the game...

Turns out we were bowling first, i didn't mind either way as i looked like it was going to be a clear day and the only weather was a strong breeze pushing across the pitch. I opened the bowling, hesitantly as the pitch was very soft underfoot once you got past the rock hard cap and i didn't trust my spikes completely. I bowled well in my first spell without reward with both batsmen playing themselves in and building a platform. After my first 5 overs i had gone for just around 17 or so runs which was good. Unfortunately the batsmen continued their slow scoring with one of our first chances just dropping short of myself at short cover by about 5cm or less.

Finally we made a breakthrough with a good caught and bowled from Matt that got our heads up again, and with cricket you get one wicket, you usually get 2 as they normally fall in pairs.

The next breakthrough came when Michael bowled the inform batsmen. Only a few overs later the next wicket came with help from yours truley. Bowled by Mickey once again, the ball was pushed firmly through the covers slightly in the air. To the amaze of my team and most of all myself i managed to get down low and dive to the left and hang on, to the ball that was only a foot off the ground at the most and to my left.

The next wicket came shortly after when Michael picked up his 3rd wicket and by then it was time for the second drinks break and a well deserved rest. The team was in a good position especially after Whitfords managed to get such a good start.

The last session was an eventful one, as i became a ball magnet which i didn't really want at all. The last session saw me drop a relatively easy catch that i should and would have taken any other day to my left. The last session also brought 2 wickets for our leg spinner Ras who bowled well, especially to Koby who was aiming to tee-off.

As the game came close to the end, around 15 overs to go. I was brought back into bowl my second and final spell, my aim in this spell was not to try to take wickets although that would be nice to but to slow the scoring down and try to build pressure so the batsmen would make a mistake. I was in my third over of my spell when i accidently pulled on too short while i was trying to bowl a cutter. The batsmen saw this mistake and pulled it straight out of the middle of the bat, but straight to the square leg fieldsmen which took a good catch, which brought up my first wicket of the season. That was the last ball of my over so i didn't get to bowl to the new batsmen being Mehul.

So my next over, captain and i had a plan for Mehul because he is a very quick bowler and likes to bowl a fair few bouncers, but the thing about cricket is that cricketers have long memories and if you dish it out, your going to get it back. So first ball he faced i bowled a bouncer which wasn't the greatest but it did its job as it tempted him into the pull which he just popped up for a simple catch to Ras. So he got a first ball duck which i found very amusing and will give him shit in maths of course.

After my last over i finished with figures of 2-24 off 9 overs which i was very pleased about.

Unfortunately i was still a ball magnet to my disgust as i dropped another catch on the boundry but i knew i wasn't going to catch it, as it was hit quite loopy shot that i had ran into to try to stop from long on. At the time i thought it would drop before it got to me but it was a floater and i ended up in the annoying no mans land, where you either have to go 150% or pull out and look like a tool.

Being the amazing natural agile athlete i am :P i decided to do the first option which proved to be a not so good option. Because i ended up being probably a good meter short of the ball and i decided stuff this i'm going to dive. In the end i managed to get a hand to it but it bobbled out as i ended up crashing to the ground at a many hundreds kms rolling quite hardly on my shoulder and making my whites anything but.

That was probably only with 3 overs to go and Whitfords ended their innings at 178-7 after 56 which was alot less than we expected them to score so a big hand to our side as we all bowled well and fielded well except for me.

Unfortunately being the luckiest person in the world i of course came away from the game with one rather bad injury. It occured either in my second spell of bowling or while i was trying to take the diving catch, I think i have either pulled a muscle or torn the cartilage between my ribs on my left side of my back. So this afternoon i had been on painkillers and a heat pack on my back but unfortunately it didn't help. So if it doesn't get better either by tomorrow morning or tuesday i think i might go to the physio and see what he can do.

So with that news i'll see how i feel about playing indoor on firday because i can hardly walk at the moment let alone run etc, but hopefully i will recover quickly.

PS: I would appreciate no touching of the back tomorrow as it hurts alot CHEERS :-)

Opening Game Of the Season

After a long winter, this morning marked the start of the season, a hopefully successful season because i'm sick of getting to the semi finals and grand final and losing.

Today we opened our season with a One Day Game against Balcatta those who are not familiar, usually we play 56 overs (dont ask why 56 because i have no idea) each side which is spread over 2 weeks so one side bats one week and then bowls the next week unless you bowl them out quickly. This stops us from playing from 8am to 6pm instead we play only from 8-12 avoiding the intense heat as much as possible. Although its still bloody hard when its 44" like last year and your running around the ground throwing balls, but the good thing about being the opening bowler is in those conditions you can tell your captain that your not going to bowl.

Well since today was a one day game it was 30 overs each and we were playing at the show-grounds and we were aiming at a score around 120 which would be a winning score on the slow outfield.

Compared to previous years we didn't have our strongest side as we had lost a few good players over the break and gained a few that have never played cricket before (Its going to be a long season). But we also picked up a good player although he's a twat.

We batted first i think we won the toss, i wasn't concentrating much and we were off to a good start after 11 overs we were 66/2 but after that we had a major collapse. Your's truly was batting at number 6 with is a few spots higher than last year and i wasn't looking forward to batting.

My batting performance left a lot to be desired and it can only get better, i scored a modest 0 but within that time 2 of my companions had departed from the other end and i was feeling rather nervous. So by the time it was over and it was 6 down by then i decided after about 4 dot balls to get off the mark; because i go through a routine when batting which is; not to get out first ball (completed), scored a run (Failed).

I was facing a terrible bowler who just bowled pies that if we were in a better situation or near the end of the innings i would have tried to hit for boundaries, but since i was just getting my eye in i decided to try to just push the ball into a gap near mid wicket as there was a fielder out on the boundary. So i tried to go down and roll my wrists over this ball and end up being there to quickly and got a huge leading edge (which is just hitting the ball with the side of your bat not the face). This edge ended up going up in the air and thats the whole "DAM IT" moment as your jogging down to complete your run, but i thought it had just lobbed to the fielder but infact it just kept going and ended up going about 3/4 of the way to the boundary so 45m or so and ended up being caught by a great catch. I was rather annoyed because i hadn't meant to hit the ball in the air and since it came of the edge, if i actually tried to hit it hard i would have gone for 4 or 6 easy, but there all buts.

The highlights of the batting on our side was to see Steve hit a huge six that nearly cleared the white fence of the showgrounds.

So we had to defend 83 off 30 overs, possible, but very unlikely.

I bowled the first over wasn't the greatest over as it was more of a warm up over for the season. I bowled 3 overs overall troubling one batsmen in particular with some absolute jaffas if i say myself with some late swing and pace that left him prodding at most of them. I got an edge on my second over that was put down at first slip, a relatively easy chance for one of our best fielders. Dont know my figures but they were acceptable for the first game of the season.

As the game progressed we picked up a few wickets and the game was in the balance by around halfway but after drinks they got a partnership together and started making a few runs. They managed to get our 83 with 3 overs to spare, which is a good bowling performance for our small target.

The low lights of fielding were

The heat that was a bitch later in the day

Dropping a catch around half way that was smacked straight out of the middle to me at short cover where i just got my hands infront of my body just in time to protect my stomach and my man bits. I got my hands to it and nearly took it which would have been a pretty good catch as i had probably half a second to react.

Dropping another catch. Now this one was in the last over and i really wanted to go home and the ball was yet again smacked in my direction i had a little more time to react but it didn't help that someone had parked there red car right behind the ball as i picked it up really late and ended getting nothing on it except for my hip bone that took the full force of a leather ball going very fast.

So i'm going to have some nice bruises on my hands and hip for tomorrow from the first game.

Highlights:

giving the bowler that got me out, extreme trouble when i was bowling to him, where i was going to say "thats called a bat your holding, you use it to hit the ball" as he couldn't get anywhere near the ball.

Seeing Steve once again bowl a bouncer going at full pace so 100km + and seeing the batsmen wearing it straight on the shoulder and feeling the pain.

So hopefully next week is better and we can get a good result or i just get some runs or a few wickets