FIRST 5-fer EVER!!!

New cricket season... Lots of hope... Lots of anticipation...

Here begins the 2008 season for our team... Quite a few of our players opted out due to reasons varying from injury to sick kids to angry wives to pursuing MBA's... So, 6 out of the 11 from our last game were not playing today... A relatively new-look team was fielded...

Our first game was scheduled for 6th April, but rain-gods decided to make us wait longer to get the wheels rolling... Luckily, skippy could get everything in place to reschedule the game for the immediate weekend and our first game for the season was scheduled for 04/13... This was a road game (abt 2 hrs away from home) and it is not ideal to start the season with a 2 hr journey and with a totally new-look side... But we decided to focus on the positive aspect of the game...

One +ve for this game though was that everyone reached on time... One distinctive feature of our team is that we work according to IST, always 30 minutes behind the clock... But, today, we all arrived on time and started driving at 8.45 sharp... Crazy driving ensured that we reach the ground on time...

It turned out to be a wonderful day for cricket... Weather was sunny and warm with mercury clocking upper 60's to lower 70's... Green outfield and a nice even pitch made it even more inviting...

Skippy lost the toss (Dhoni anyone?) and we were forced to bowl... Since, we may need a couple of new ball bowlers during the season, skippy had entrusted the responsibility of opening the bowling from one end on my shoulders (literally)...

I took my run-up and i was stunned to see the opening batsman... He had batted at number 11 in the previous game... This was ridiculous!!! No 11 in the last game and opener in this one? In this shock, I bowled 2 wides first up... First legitimate delivery and he was caught at mid-on... Superb catch by a veteran team-mate... Soon, i got into my groove... Last ball of the over, I got another batsman out caught behind...

Soon, I got into a groove and next 3 overs were superb... There was 1 catch drop (tough one though) and the batsmen played and missed so many times that everyone lost track of the number... Banana-swingers frustrated the batsmen to no end... At the other end, the other opening bowler was keeping it very tight...

Soon, the batsmen too got into a rhythm... Initial movement was gone and the pitch became easier to bat on... We dropped a few catches (i dropped 2 of em) and soon, the batting team reached 80 odd for 2 in 20 odd overs...

After the break, we regrouped and started choking every run out of the field... Bowling slower and slower by every delivery, skippy and a debutant offie literally strangled the batting team... And, the batsmen complemented by committing the mistakes... Soon, they start losing important wickets...

Their key batsmen committed hara-kiri and our stand-in-keeper did an awesome job of taking 3 catches and 1 stumping... I was then brought back to finish my quota...

For the first time, I could control the line and length and got the remaining 3 batsmen clean bowled in less than 2 overs... My first ever 5-fer after 2 years of league cricket... The batting team was all out for 112, 85 of which were made in the partnership for the 3rd wicket...

As our skippy puts it "we played according to the target"... Chasing 113 off 35 overs, we got to an awesome (?) start of 16/3 off 9 overs... Then skippy and keeper saved the day for us with a smart partnership of 90 odd runs... Keeper got out after a safe 25 odd... Skippy stayed till the end to round a good day...

So, nice start to a new season... Skippy get the MoM for 46 runs with the bat and bowling figures of 7-1-16-4 with one awesome caught-and-bowled... I get to keep the match ball for my 5-fer... It will get a place of honor in my showcase...

On the way back, hot veggie burger with spicy fries at Foodruckers (recommended by wifey) made it a day worth remembering for a long long time...

Till our next game (04/20), cheers and ciao!!! Wish us luck!!!