When I woke up this morning the signs were there for a great day’s cricket. After a week of storms and the Singapore meteorologist telling up there was going to be typhoon tail storms from China hitting over the weekend, it was great to see in the paper that these had blown away. Clearly the meteorologist had not been at Dempsey Fields.
I arrived late but was met by black clouds and 21 players standing out in the middle. The umpires didn’t like the water on the ground! Having convinced the umpires that the water on the ground was fine, it then began to rain, or rather sprinkle and threaten to rain. So it was a deferred decision until 8.30.
Now we could have thought that an abandoned game would give us 5 points and push us up the ladder but that sort of thinking isn’t in the Champs’ psyche. We are a bit like the “300”, never retreat, never call a draw, never surrender and go down fighting. Maybe we should practice not being like the 300, because I’m not really into this dying thing!
However, the umpires decided that the game would be reduced to 25 overs per side – how we lost 10 overs in a half hour delay was a bit unclear. After the dilemma of choice last weekend it was reassuring that the captain returned to usual form by losing the toss. “I would have batted first anyway” he said. So bat it was.
And bat they did. Homi and particularly Ashwin got us off to a flying start, scoring 30 off the first 5 overs before Homi was caught. In strode Geoff, confident after strong batting performances over the past few games (a sure sign!). The next over he was back in the pavilion having scored 3. “3” he cried, “will I avoid kit packing?” “It was only 2” calls out Lorraine.
Ashwin and Chiro then proceeded to put on 18 before Ashwin fell to the first of 2 dodgy decisions of the day. LBW on the outside of the roll playing a ball that if he had left it was a wide! Ashwin, looking good, gone for 29.
Feroze joined Chiro in the middle and they proceeded to add 32 for the next partnership before Chiro fell to the second dodgy decision, a snick (more like a clunk) onto the pads given out LBW. Even their opening bowler down on the boundary shook his head. Chiro had found some form too, out for 23.
A 56 partnership between Feroze and Tony Waters put us in great shape at 141 off 21.3 overs which brought the gun blazing Munib to the crease. Averaging over 40 this season, Geoff’s only comment was “had Munib left himself too late in the batting order”. Perhaps he had but 1 ball later he was back, bowled going for the tonk (Geoff didn’t know whether to commiserate with Munib or punch the air for joy at avoiding kit packing duties). The next 3 wickets went to runouts as the team tried to grab every run before the umpires declared over 1 ball short in the last over. Finishing score 162, very defendable on the soggy Dempsey ground.
Captain Munib didn’t give his “Just have fun” speech. He was far more serious and determined today. In fact there weren’t the usual laughs as we went out to bowl. We smelt a win. Both openers, Lawrence and Vishal opened solidly and looked threatening. And we didn’t have to wait long before Lawrence in his second over took the first wicket with a catch to Tony and the SCC captain was gone.
We had to wait until over 9 before Ashwin picked up his first wicket, a juggling catch to Disco at first slip. 47 after 9 was keeping us on track. Next over Munib trapped the batsman LBW, a beautiful ball, before putting one down just before drinks off his own bowling. The batsman works with Disco, so he wasn’t keen to see the catch go down. Fortunately Munib redeemed himself after drinks with the batsman facing one 1 more ball before he took a fine 3rd slips catch for Ashwin’s second. End of the first over after drinks and the SCC were 4/66. The number 3 batsman troubled us all day scoring 60 until Disco took out his middle stump with a well flighted ball. 5/119 after 21. SCC needed 44 off 4.
Lawrence and Disco were down to bowl the last 4 overs. An interesting combination - opening bowler and slow 3rd change. Although each of the next 2 overs were reasonable tight 1 lose ball in each left the equation at 22 off 2 overs. Still the pressure was on SCC. SCC’s number 7 was playing in his first game for the SCC Jaguars. He’d scored 5 singles from the first 6 balls he faced. He faced up to the first ball and smashed it straight down the ground for 6, then another 6, two singles and another six. 20 off the over, leaving 2 to be scored for an unlikely SCC victory.
Disco came on to bowl and his first thoughts were “don’t bowl any wides!” The first ball was a repeat of the early wicket ball and the SCC batsman was gone LBW. A great start – was the impossible possible? Next ball a single into the gap and then another single off the 3rd ball delivered victory to SCC and another loss to the Champs.
The team took the loss pretty hard, the Skip even harder. He had strategically played the game well, but the win slipped through our fingers. We had been in control for 23 overs. Cricket can be such a harsh game.
I blame Clarky – calling us the Chumps all season has put the hex on us!
This is now twice this season that SCC has snatched victory from an ANZA side. Is Dempsey a hoodoo ground for ANZACC?
At least ANZACC had one victory for the morning. Disco and Geoff’s boys rolled up fresh from the Under 10s Howzat Cricket Sixes Competition, where they had played in the ANZACC sponsored team, with gold medals around their necks and proceeded to present an extra medal to the ANZACC President. At least that’s one bit of silverware (gold) for the ANZACC cabinet this season.
Results: 25 overs a side game
ANZA batting first scored 9/162. Feroze 44, Ashwin 29, Chiro 23, Tony W 17 (GF 2)
SCC scored 6/163 winning with 3 balls to spare. Disco 2/24 off 4.3, Ashwin 2/26
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