League Cricket is no child's play

Awesome game guys

I would like to thank the entire team for playing their hearts out to win this first and very important game of the TCA league.

Although we won the game, we all realize it was a very narrow victory against one of the low ranked opposition in the league. The margin of victory tells me that playing in league format is no child's play and serious business.

We went into the game today with the best available 11 and won it. There is no room for emotion when it comes to team selection for the future games. I know our team is formed amongst a group friends who play cricket for recreation during the weekend. However, only the best performing, deserving players have to earn a place in the playing 11 for future league games for rest of this season. Although, I have a say in the team selection, I request for the formation of a separate team selection panel comprising of our own cheetahs players to review player performance after each game and also practice/warm ups on Sundays and provide their unbiased feedback to me prior to the team selection for upcoming games. I can do this myself, but would like to eliminate any possible bias by going for a panel based selection.

With the above mentioned approach, we can make sure the same player does not have to sit out each game and also make sure we have a good team of 11 players to compete at the highest level. A player who performs consistently bad for 3 games in succession does not merit a chance in the playing 11 at the expense of a more deserving 12th/13th man in our group. This includes every single individual in the team including the team captain myself. I hope we all agree on the rationale behind this approach and commit to delivering the best effort with a single-minded devotion to succeed by winning.

We have ventured in this league in a hurried fashion without proper consensus on an objective. Having set our foot in, there can be only one way going forward, perform to win or perish with humiliation.

I have a better picture about the league intensity after being run close by a low ranked team. It is only going to be tougher as we progress through the next few games and there is clearly no room for fun factor. There is nothing wrong in having fun by winning games. However, we cannot afford to look funny by getting trashed by other league teams.

When I saw the players in our dug out during the tense last over of the game, I could read only one thing in everyone of our eyes and minds, win the game!

We are all mature group of individuals who are professionals and good friends. This is the same group (a majority) that delivered an awesome stage show performance via SWARAM.

Why did we not ask each and everyone of our friends to go on the stage and sing a song, during the performance? We knew very well who could get the job done for us. On the same lines, we need to take pride in winning these league games, as a team. Whether we are part of the playing 11 or not. I personally take immense pride in watching our team win, even if I am not playing a particular game and watching from the sidelines. Thats because I want our near and dear friends who formed this team to be part of the winning team and not get beaten by a group some strangers. During todays game, we not only had the signed up players in the Cheetahs dug out, but we also had spouses of some players and other members of our group who have not signed up for the league, showing great enthusiasm by volunteering to perform scoring duties and cheering the team.

At the end of this league season, I would like to see only one thing. Cheetahs walk out proud with chest high and not bogged down being humiliated. In order for that to happen, we all need to understand our roles and responsibilities very clearly and contribute to the team's success.

Lets be clear. There should be clear demarcation between league cricket and our weekend cricket for recreation. We should all pledge to continue our recreation cricket in the right spirit along with the fun element, no matter what the events and outcome of the league are. If some of my dear friends/players drop out of playing cricket altogether because of some tough decisions on certain occasions, I will think of it as an unfortunate outcome of this league sign up. But it is we who asked for it.

PS: If any of you disagree with my viewpoints, do not hesitate to contact me via email. I don't mind talk to you over the phone to clarify my thought process behind this content.

Winning Formula

Only three weeks since we first aired our aspirations to play in the league cricket format and here it comes, Chennai Cheetahs are now part of TCA league (Tennis ball Cricket Association - Bay Area chapter).

Convincing a group of players who play recreational cricket during the weekends to participate in the league format itself is an accomplishment. However, that should not end up as our only accomplishment by the end of the league season. I am sure Cheetahs can go a long way in the league cricket format. A few key factors that go in favor of the Cheetahs right at the outset are:

1. A well knit group of friends, with lots of familiarity
2. Will to succeed
3. Attitude to accept feedback in the right spirit
4. No politics (Hopefully it will stay this way)

Excellent team camaraderie alone cannot produce winning results. Having observed our players play over an year time period, I feel we have players with decent cricketing skills to pull off a victory, coming together as a team.

Having skilled players alone does not guarantee a victory to any team. We all know that our own Indian team with Fab 4 or Fab 5 lost to a team like Bangladesh in a crucial world cup tie, costing us the tournament. Cricket, is a game where you can lose before you enter the field by not going in the right state of mind. Australians have preyed on mentally weak opponents, using trash talk and intimidation tactics.

Fearless attitude is key to victory in any sport. One should not worry about the results and strive to produce high quality performance in the field all the time. Results will follow automatically. Our team has decent batting, a good bowling unit and some really good, sharp fielders. The only thing, we lack is experience playing in big league games. Personally, I have played a lot of cricket during my childhood days. Opened bowling for my school. Got hit for a 6 followed by a boundary by a national level U-15 player during the first 2 balls of the finals game in a district inter school tournament. That incident did not stop me from playing cricket. I have progressively learnt a lot of things, by playing game with the right frame of mind. Each of us can have bad days, but the remaining members should compensate realizing the situation and make sure non performance by one player on a particular day does not really impact the result of the game.

I would like to share a few tips to play good quality cricket. Not all games will necessarily produce a winning result. At the same time, we will never go down without a fight. We need to stick to some very basic discipline in all the departments of the game.

Batting:

• Our players have the tendency to throw away wickets. We all need to value our wicket as much as the runs we score. If a handful of us make the same mistake, we have a collapse on hand.
• 2 or 3 quick wickets to bad bowling can make even a bad bowling unit look good and boost them with confidence and put more pressure on the next batsman in line.
• Bad balls should be punished, even if it is the first ball of the match.
• Try to play by getting behind the line of the ball all the time. Stay away from cross batted shots, unless we are into the slog overs or we have a specific fielding area to target.
• Never go for a premeditated shot. Play each and every ball to its merit. Never decide to slog on the leg side before the bowler starts his run up!
• If you are a well set batsman, try to capitalize on the time spent at the crease and extend the innings as much as possible. Not all the 11 players need to bat during the game :)
• It is OK to leave balls that are too wide outside the off stump, unless they are short pitched and within striking range. Avoid slashing at wide deliveries away from your body and get caught in the slips or point region. You don't want to get out to a wide delivery. We not only lose a wicket, but the extra run too!
• Rotate the strike. It is not always easy to get in the grove right after we get to the crease. Rotating the strike relieves the pressure on the slow scoring batsman and also provides opportunity for the non-striker. In case of left right combination, this should be mandatory as it disrupts bowlers rhythm.
• 1s and 2s are also runs! not all hits have to reach the boundary. Slog only the really bad balls and if the ball is in the slot to be hit.

Running between wickets:

• Run outs are costly. We should look forward to having 0 run outs in every game.
• Never predetermine the number of runs after hitting the ball. Run according to the situation. Always try to face the fielder while completing the run. GROUND your bat.
• Always look at the fielder and the ball position prior to calling for the run. Starting for a run when the ball is in the fielders hands always ends in a disaster.
• Never try to put pressure on the fielder by running when the ball is in the fielders hands. This only puts pressure on the batsman or non-striker!
• Call it loud. If the ball is behind you, have the non striker call it.
• It is OK to run when the ball is hit a few yards away from the fielder in the gap, and the fielder is getting to it.

Bowling:

• Never think about the reputation of a batsman. People may say, the batsman is the Tendulkar of the bay area. Even Tendulkar respects a good ball. Why not bowl a good ball with a decent line and length?
• Decide on line and length of the delivery prior to starting the run up. Never make a decision about the delivery while you are on the run, clarity of mind is very important to land the delivery in the right area.
• Pace does not intimidate batsmen in tennis ball cricket. Use your energy wisely!
• Just short of length deliveries are fine if you have fielders in catching positions.
• Try to bowl full and straight during the slog overs. Sloggers are bound to get bowled with such deliveries
• Stick to an off side line slightly outside the off stump in the good length area. Easier said than done. However, try to get it there.
• Bowl to the field. Have a say on the field placements. You know where you are going to bowl!

Fielding:

• Be alert. Anticipate the shot from the batsman. That way you have a yard or 2 advantage over the batsman.
• Walk towards the batsman, never worry about misfield while making a rush for pick and throw. Most of the time the batsman think the ball is in your hand and don't make a run!
• Back up the throw on the other side of the wicket keeper or bowler. Without proper back up, fielders cannot be confident with quick throw at the stumps for run outs.
• Dropping catches are OK. It is not a crime. However, try not to stare and gaze at the rest of fielders to look at their reaction. Quickly pick up the dropped ball and throw it to the keeper or bowler, you can always effect a run out if the batsman was watching you drop the ball while the non-striker went for the run!
• It is OK to bowl a wide to effect a stumping, in case a batsman walks out to hit you!

Wicket keeper:

• Keeper should expect the throw at hip height from fielders if he has a major role in a run out.
• Keeper can provide tips to the bowler. Point crease position of the batsman to the bowler and advise on field placements.
• More tips needed here...

Overall:

• No target is too low for a quick win or too high beyond our reach.
• Lets approach each game with a positive frame of mind.

As simple as these instructions may sound, sticking to some these basics, could very well make the difference between our team ending up on the winning or losing side.

Wish you all the best for a very good cricketing season!

P.S. Please do not hesitate to point any errors in the instructions, or add some I may have missed. Lets do this as a team!

Cheetah's in resounding win

Cheetah's produced a near perfect performance in their first friendly game of the season against a local team last weekend.

Phone buzzed at 7 am on Saturday morning with confirmation for the game, as no one was sure if play was possible with rain lasting for a few days prior to the game day and more overnight rain the previous night. Despite some puddles in the outfield, pitch was considered playable and game started ON time at 8.30 am. Cheetah's went into the game with full strength squad with just one import (Karthik). Cheetah's lost the toss, after Guruji called it incorrectly, and were asked to bowl first. Although players were concerned about the wet conditions in the outfield, it did not deter them from producing a good fielding performance. There were only 2 dropped catches in the game, which is about 5-6 less than the Cheetah's running average for dropped catches:)

Guruji and Ram opened the bowling and a couple of short deliveries were dispatched to deep fine leg area for 4-6 runs. Praveen, Mica, Selva, and Karthik bowled remaining overs till the 10th over break. Cheetah's had leaked 42 runs during the first 10 overs. Some questionable field tactics with exposed leg side field during the first 3-4 overs of the game cost an extra 10 runs during the first 10 overs. Karthik produced a tidy spell and good bowling at death by remaining bowlers meant Sunnyvale team could only set a target of 78 from 20 overs.

Cheetah's could not take the target lightly, as they are known for batting collapses in the past. However, a good stable top order line up ensured only 2 wickets were lost in the first 10 overs, even though only 35 runs were scored by then. A good game plan was in place with incremental targets set for 13th, 15th and the 17th over. Mica produced a well paced innings along with Praveen to take Cheetah's closer to the finish line.

Arvi got out trying to hit out a short delivery on the off side, however the ball stopped on him resulting in a simple catch to mid off. Ram and Selva rotated the strike beautifully to make sure no particular end got stagnated, despite a relatively low run rate of 3-4/over. Defending some short deliveries for the sake of preserving wickets, was the only questionable tactic from a batting stand point. Risky runs to rotate the strike meant, there was a high probability for Ram's dismissal as 'Run out' and it did. Mica and Praveen got in and accelerated the score steadily; Karthik walked in after Mica's run out and all he had to do was score a few boundaries to take Cheetah's almost to the finishing line and got out trying one too many big shots. Ben tried to go for a heroic shot to bring a fancy finish to the game, however, he was bowled the swinging across a straight delivery. Losing some unwanted wickets is another area Cheetah's need to think about for future games. Running between the wickets need some improvement as well.

Target was reached in the 18th over and Cheetah's went home victorious.

Some notable fielding performance by Cheetah's: Ben's quick throw from fine leg area resulting in Vijay's run out was a crucial. Vijay could have stayed a little longer and taken their score past 90. Nikhil, Guruji, and Karthik grabbed any lobbed opportunity presented to them. Sreejan's keeping performance was good, despite a few dropped catches. If Cheetah's had batted first, they would have sent a pinch hitter like Ben, Satish, or Nikhil up the order to take the score past 100.

Having beaten, not exactly a Minnow, but one of the lesser known teams in the bay area, Cheetah's cannot fly high with this victory and definitely have room for improvement in respective departments. Cheetah's have to play against better bowling attacks to test their true batting strength. This victory is however a good morale booster to this highly enthusiastic and deserving group of players.

Hope to have another friendly in the next few weeks. Go Cheetah's Go!