Volume 1 April 15, 2011 Issue 22

AFTER 28 YEARS AND 6 ATTEMPTS…

Editorial – SCCA’S 2011 SEASON STARTED!

INDIA’S DHON IT!

COMETH THE HOUR COMETH THE MAN!

INTERESTING RULES OF THE GAME

SCCA LEAGUE 2011!

SCCA LEAGUE 2011 – SCHEDULE FOR APRIL!

IPL4 – THE TEST OF APPETITE!

IPL4 - SCHEDULE!

ADULTERATION IN REVIEW SYSTEM!

HIDDEN TALENT!
EDITORIAL

SCCA’s 2011 SEASON STARTED!

Despite all apprehensions about the readiness of the pitches at Woodley
Park, SCCA started their 2011 season League matches as scheduled on
Saturday, April 2, 2011. Yes, the grounds man was hired just a few
days prior to the start of the league. The outfield had, in some grounds,
ankle high grass and in others enough to retard the smooth traveling of
the ball to the boundary. Perhaps the SCCA thought that ‘something is better than
nothing’ and wanted to start the league on the scheduled date. But, at the same
time, they forgot that ‘nothing is better than nonsense’. Here are some of the
written comments by a couple of teams who played on the first day (April 2, 2011) at
Woodley:

“Pitch and outfield were nothing like we have seen at Woodley in the past. Pitch
had many uneven spots and the outfield was like playing in a flower garden. Citrus
won the toss and chose to bat on an unpredictable pitch”

“Vijayta won the toss and elected to bat in this season opener on a soft and uneven
wicket and to top it off on a soggy outfield.”

“The wicket looked hard and flat but there was a tinge of green and the outfield,
although recently cut, was still a little long and damp. It was hard work batting in
the opening session.”

“On a cool crisp day Vijayta and Hollywood showed that their bats were chilling
too. It was all about bowling and fielding on a 2 paced wicket.”

Our interview with other teams that played at Woodley grounds on the first two
weeks of the season (16 games) revealed that the pitch was slow and had uneven
bounce. The ball was not coming on to the bat thus restricting the stroke makers
from playing the shots.

With the two nets available for practice being what they are, players did not have
much practice. The unprepared wickets added to the misery of the batsmen.
Needless to mention the effect of inadequate and/or no practice has on the bowlers
as well. No team or a bowler is an exception to this. In Division I, in the three
matches played so far, 112 wides were bowled besides the no balls.

In Division II, in the six matches played so far, 204 wides were bowled besides the
no balls. A team that practices regularly at Woodley nets bowled 17 wides and 11
wides in their first two matches. This could be attributed to the poor conditions,
particularly at the bowlers’ run up area at these nets prevents them from getting
any rhythm going.

Reducing the league from 50 to 45-over game seems to have no bearing as every
team is playing more number of overs than the allotted 45-overs with the excessive
number of wides and no balls being bowled in virtually every game.

SCCA seems to have got their priorities mixed up in that they hurriedly fixed the
roof at the two pavilion stands in Wong and Marder fields. The priority should
have been to fix the practice nets (badly needed prior to the season started) and to
prepare the wickets prior to the league started. It is understood that they have no
control over some delays in fixing the existing nets. An alternative could have been
thought of, such as getting the nets between Marder and Wong fields ready for
practice by rolling the practice area and putting a coir mat, as a temporary
measure. We only hope that within the next two weeks the wickets and the outfield
at all the four grounds will be worthy of playing good cricket.
 INDIA’s DHON IT!
Dr. V.V. Giri

India produced a clinical and confident run chase under lights to beat Sri Lanka by six wickets and lift the
trophy for the second time.

The ecstatic crowd clapped and cheered every run and, when captain M.S.Dhoni lifted the trophy, this
incredible country of more than one billion people applauded and had probably never known such a joyous
occasion in their life!

They didn't even mind that Sachin Tendulkar failed to complete his fairytale 100th international century in the
Final on his home ground.

Tendulkar made just 18 but he was still given a lap on honour on his team-mates' shoulders.
India's heroes were Gautam Gambhir and Dhoni himself, who compiled a superb fourth-wicket stand of 109.

Gambhir was out for 97 but Dhoni steered his team across the winning line with a super cool innings of 91 not
out. He finished the match in grand style by depositing a six into the crowd.
Dhoni and his team dealt with the suffocating sense of expectation with the assurance of a team who are used to
winning in all formats of the game.

They are the world's No.1 ranked Test team now.

Muttiah Muralitharan also failed to make an impact in his final match for Sri Lanka and finished with 0-39 from
his eight overs. One could see the pain in his eyes and it was a bad decision to play him instead of Mendis.

Sri Lanka's total of 274-6 was based around an elegant century by Mahela Jayawardene, who did not play a
single violent shot, yet reached three figures from just 84 balls. Poor Indian bowling and field setting helped
him to achieve this.

His strokes included cuts and he scored majority of his runs in the third man region. Surprisingly, Dhoni didn’t
have a deep third man for him most of the times.

Jayawardene became the sixth man to score a century in a World Cup Final - and the first to finish on the losing
side.

India even overcame controversy and confusion at the toss which both captains believed they had won.

The coin landed heads side up and Kumar Sangakkara insisted he had called 'heads' but Dhoni was convinced
he heard 'tails.'

Match referee Jeff Crowe claimed he could not hear because of the crowd noise - so he ordered a re-toss.

This time, Sangakkara won it and chose to bat. There would have been a huge row if Sri Lanka had won the
match - because Dhoni also wanted to bat.
So had Sangakkara pulled a fast one(?) one snippet for the prosecution: if Sangakkara had called heads the first
time around surely he would have made much more of a fuss when there was the suggestion of another toss?
He, like Dhoni, was very keen, to bat first. Instead, he was all equivocation. Being a lawyer, Sangakkara will
have an articulate defence, albeit a soft-spoken one, I suppose.

Steadily, Sri Lanka with their top-heavy batting line-up laid their foundations with Mahela Jayawardene to the
fore. Immediately he suggested he was in sublime form and more than equal to the occasion. Singles were
tapped from the middle of his bat. Then he began tapping the ball effortlessly to the boundary. There was never
a crude shot.

Sangakkara was caught behind off Yuvraj for 48 but Jayawardene's composure never wavered alongside handy
allies Thilan Samaraweera, Numan Kulasekera and Perera, who walloped 22 from nine balls at the end.

Sri Lanka caused mayhem in the final overs. In the batting power play, became mandatgory in the 46th over,
they cracked 63 runs in five overs. Zaheer Khan, who yielded six runs in his first five overs, gave away 54 in
his next five, 18 off his last over.

Virender Sehwag can shrink a target in no time, but he was lbw to Lasith Malinga's second ball. Arrogantly he
wasted one of India's reviews.

No matter; there was still Tendulkar. The man for whom this tournament seemed to be designed began in
sublime form, stroking boundaries off Kulasekera. But Malinga soon destroyed that fairytale. At the start of his
fourth over Tendulkar drove and edged and departed in an eerie silence.

On 30, Gambhir was dropped at long-off from the bowling of Suraj Randiv, one of the startling Sri Lanka
selections. Three days ago the lofty off-spinner was relaxing peacefully back at home. Now summoned as a
replacement for Mathews he was thrust into a World Cup final.

Gambhir and Virat Kohli had added 83 together when Dilshan, bowling his unassuming off-breaks, held a
brilliant return catch. Dhoni appeared. For a while it looked an odd decision. By the end it seemed like a stroke
of genius.

Ultimately, in the battle of the captains Mahendra Dhoni, after a dodgy start to the day, prevailed in a pulsating
climax to the tournament. There were suggestions that Dhoni had been hoodwinked at the toss by Kumar
Sangakkara, but it was the India captain who had the last laugh when the fireworks exploded into the night sky
of Mumbai.

Dhoni took the responsibility for winning the match with a brilliant innings of 91 from 79 balls. He has not been
in great form in this tournament so what did he do? He promoted himself to No 5 when the third wicket fell at
114 for 3, ahead of the man deemed to be the player of the tournament, Yuvraj Singh. The target of 275 seemed
a long way off.

Dhoni settled in leisurely fashion, or so it seemed, happy to pat the ball back in defence and to let Gautam
Gambhir do most of the scoring. But, imperceptibly, it was Dhoni who took charge.
Forget the fairytale finish that had Sachin Tendulkar or Muttiah Muralitharan contriving a tear-stained swan
song. The epitome of new India dominated the match. Dhoni is young enough to lead India to the next World
Cup when he will be quite a rich man.

Tendulkar could only contribute the briefest of cameos in his home town, 18 in 14 balls. As for Muralitharan,
initially he was treated with respect, but towards the end Dhoni punched him through the covers with awesome
power.

By old standards, Murali was bowling donkey drops and with his body creaking, he could not muster any more
venom. Towards the end he held out his hands in exasperation at the wet ball, at the mis-fields, but the true
cause of his despair was the realisation that he was impotent to stem the Indian tide. Sangakkara did not even
turn to him when the position was dire.

Meanwhile, Dhoni alongside Gambhir, the artisan within the India team, paced the chase with few frills. They
added a crucial 109 together for the fourth wicket after Gambhir was bowled by Thisara Perera three short of
his century.

Out came Yuvraj, so much later than expected, but it was Dhoni, the most chilled man in Mumbai, who led his
side to victory in a masterful innings. He finished it with a six.

It may be that Sri Lanka tried to be too clever by half. They shuffled their side dramatically, making four
changes from the semi-final, only one of them forced after Angelo Mathews's injury.

Ajantha Mendis, the unorthodox spinner, was omitted on the false basis that the Indians play him rather well. In
this tournament Mendis has been bowling extremely well, but that was not deemed to be sufficiently relevant.

Both sides made several blunders in this final. Dhoni’s decision to drop Aswin again is still a mystery. But
Dhoni with his pulsating knock covered up all the short falls.

A team of 11 Indian demigods - sometimes known here as cricketers - sent the nation into rapturous celebration
by winning the World Cup and proving “WE ARE THE WORLD”

About the Author: "Dr. V.V. Giri, a Michigan based Cricket Player, Coach & Journalist, is an avid follower and servant of the
Game of Cricket. He is a highly talented off-spin bowler and an opening batsman. Dr. Giri was in the state squad for Tamil Nadu
and has played Senior Division League in Chennai for a record number of years. He was the Cricket Secretary for the famous
"Madras Cricket Club" in Chennai. Prior to settling down in U.S.A., he has played cricket in U.K. and Australia. He also toured
several countries - U.S.A., Canada and many Far East countries with Teams from India to foster the game of cricket.

Dr. Giri has a Ph. D in Pharmaceutical Technology and has been involved in Research and Development of Drugs for many years.
He is also a visiting faculty in many Universities in India. Dr. Giri is a great articulator."
 COMETH THE HOUR COMETH THE MAN!
Prakash Krishnagiri

India beat Sri Lanka in the Finals of the ICC World Cup 2011 on April 2, 2011. The Indians all over the world
erupted in Joy. From the President of India to the daily wager on the street, all were united in their wish.
Everyone wanted India to win this World Cup and the 15 men in Blue just did that.

Sport is an amazing activity that bridges caste, creed and enmity of all kinds and puts a big smile, fills hearts
with abundance of Joy and leaves life long memories. In a Country of more than a billion, Cricket was just a
culture in 1983 when Kapil’s Devils lifted India’s first ever World Cup title. Their victory in 1983 gave birth
to ‘Cricket - The Religion’, in India. The game became more popular in India over the last 28 years, more so,
after the first IPL T-20 tournament, and justifiably the euphoria this time was extra-ordinary.

The celebrations were unprecedented. Probably the Indian Independence was the only other BIG event that
caused countrywide celebration of greater magnitude than this. The decibel levels on the streets were soaring as
the night progressed. Many parties saw the rising of the Sun in the East and still continued. The Politicians,
Bollywood Stars, Ex-Cricketers and Cricket Fans were on the streets, embracing each other and celebrating the
moment.

The game started with confusion on who won the toss. Dhoni flipped the coin and it was ‘Heads’. Dhoni
initially said that he would bat. Then came, the confusion on what call Kumar Sangakkara made. The match-
referee was not clear on what he heard. Dhoni’s initial reaction indicates that Dhoni heard Kumar Sangakkara
calling it ‘Tails’. Kumar would have known what he called and this confusion should have been sorted out by
the two captains amicably. Instead, they went for a re-toss. What a way to start the Final!

On a day when both Captains surprised each other with their team combinations, none of which dictated the
course of the game, it boiled down to the one who would lead the team from the front with his performance.
Fortunately for India, Dhoni the batsman was present in the Field on the day when it matters the most.

Dhoni’s batting form has not been that great in the last 12 months. But, whenever he has promoted himself, up
the order, he has done extremely well. He has a good record as a Batsman in the Big games, be it the ODIs, IPL
or Champions League. His decision to take the pressure, head-on, considering his form, was indeed a
courageous one.

Dhoni has lot of experience keeping wickets for Murali and playing him in the nets when both these men were
playing together for the Chennai Super Kings. He put that experience in full use and never let Murali dominate
the proceedings. Dhoni was assured and calm and let his emotion only on one occasion during the finishing
stages of the game. A good knock from Dhoni was long overdue and he could not have wished for a better day
than this to get into his form.

No captain has ever lifted a World Cup without making a special performance as Player in atleast one of the
Games. For India, Kapil Dev hit that famous 175 in the 1983 World Cup. Dhoni who had a dismal World Cup
till the Finals, ensured that the tradition of the World Cup was kept.
He played a very sensible knock under tremendous pressure. His shots were precise and powerful. He took a
little time to settle down and to gauge the pace of the wicket. Unlike his previous outings, he picked many
singles in the initial phase of this innings. The Boundaries and Sixers were coming at the right time, releasing
the pressure. Before the Lankans could notice, Dhoni had reached his fifty and only when the match was over,
many realized that Dhoni had made 91 in just 79 Balls.

It was truly a special innings from Dhoni. Whether this is enough to silence the critics or not is immaterial now
as the World Cup victory overshadows everything. The critics now are more than happy for winning the World
Cup and all of Dhoni’s selection errors and poor batting performances will be ignored.

The Indians are the World Cup Champions now and that is all it matters. Indians are the only team in the world
that has won the 20 Overs, 50 Overs and 60 Overs World Cup Championship. Only West Indies can equal this
record if they manage to win a 20 Overs and 50 Overs World Cup in the Future.

This is the time to enjoy and celebrate. The men in blue have given the Indians a nice gift for Ugadi. Let us
cherish this moment.

INTERESTING RULES OF THE GAME

Courtesy Thilak Wijedasa

1. If a player returns without permission and touches the ball!

The penalty is 5 runs to the batting side. The ball is dead. Additional runs completed plus the run in progress
is added. The ball does not count in the over.

2. Deliberate short runs!

When the ball is dead in form the batsman, it is unfair. It is the 1st and the final warning, which apply for
the full innings. Disallow all runs other than penalty runs.

3. Timed out!
After a fall of a wicket or retirement of a batsman, the next batsman must be ready to receive the next ball
within 3 minutes.

4. Deliberate attempt to distract the striker!

First time call 'Dead ball" First and final warning. Neither batsman is out. The ball does not count in the
over.

5. Practice on the pitch or rest of the square during a match!

Penalty - 30 minutes of playing time, he cannot ball. If it was during an over take the bowler out.

Mr. Thilak Wijedasa is a former International Umpire and one of the senior Umpires of the Sri Lanka Board
of Cricket.
 SCCA LEAGUE 2011!
Staff Reporter

DIVISION-I
VIJAYTA BEAT PASADENA
UNBEATEN CENTURY BY RAVI TIMBAWALA
SCCA 2011 Cricket Season started as scheduled on Saturday, April 2, 2011. In these two weekends three
Division-I games were played. Vijayta, the reigning Champions of Division-I comfortably beat Pasadena by a
margin of 175 runs. Pasadena who was in the play-off last year could not field a better
team this as some of their key players moved over to the other club. They are presently
re-building the team.

Ravi Timbawala, continued his last year’s form by scoring an unbeaten century (106 not
out) in his first match this season. His century, combined with Hammad Shahid’s
unbeaten 50 helped Vijayta to pile up280 runs for the loss of 8 wickets. Mehul Dave
and Timil Patel scored 20 runs each for Vijayta. For Pasadena Khalid Noor 3 for 47
Ravi Timbawala
and Ali Khan 2 for 51 bowled well.

ANAND PANCHAL GETS SEASON’S FIRST 5 WICKET HAUL

Pasadena was skittled out for a meager 105 runs. Thanks to some fine bowling by Anand
Panchal, who took 5 for 26 in the first match of this season. He was ably supported in the
bowling department by Timil Patel with his 2 for 23 runs. At the end of the games this is
what the winning team has said:

Vijayta Summary: Vijayta won the toss and elected to bat in this season opener on a soft
and uneven wicket and to top it off on a soggy outfield.
Anand Panchal

Ravi Timbawala starts off the season with an unbeaten 106 of 110 balls. His century was composed of 10 (4's)
and 2 (6's) and Vijayta managed to pile up 280 runs for the loss of 8 wickets. Hammad Shahid helped the cause
with an unbeaten 50 as well in 43 balls.

Kahlid Noor (3/47) and Ali Khan who scored 25 and took (2/51) had noteworthy performances for Pasadena.

Pasadena in its rebuilding year had a depleted roster compared to the one of last year and could muster up a low
score of only 105.
Anand Panchal had outstanding figures of 8.5 overs, 1 maiden and grabbed 5 for 26, while Timil bagged 2
wickets.

Man of the Match Ravi Timbawala for notching up the first hundred of SCCA in 2011.

VIJAYTA GAVE 16 EXTRAS (12 WIDES) AND PASADENA GAVE 23 EXTRAS (20 WIDES)

VIJAYTA BEAT HOLLYWOOD-1

Playing back to back cricket, Vijayta beat their arch rival Hollywood-1 in the second weekend of the season.
Hollywood-1, like South Africa in world cricket choked in the play-off final of Division-I in the last two years.
Both these years they played Vijayta in play-off finals and lost.

In their first league match of the season they lost the toss first and then the game. Vijayta batted first and were
all out for 163. Thanks to the contribution Hammad Shahid (22) and Rushid Pagtel (27). For Hollywood-I,
Piush Agram and Nitgesh Anandan bowled well, each capturing 3 wicket apiece.

In reply, Hollywood-I scored only 98 runs for the loss of eight wickets. Hollywood-1 lost the services of their
batsman/wicketkeeper Ritesh Kadu due to injury and one of their leading batsman,Thilan Indrasena due to
family emergency.

Mandeep Singh Dhillon was the only batsman who played well for Hollywood-1 scoring 62 runs of the team’s
total of 98. Mehul Dave, Vijayta captain bowled extremely well to capture 4 wickets. His figures at the end
were 5.1 overs, 1 maiden, 9 runs and 4 wickets. He was ably supported in this effort by Timil Patel with 2 for
41.

This is what both the teams have said at the end of the game:

Vijayta Summary: On a cool crisp day Vijayta and Hollywood showed that their bats were chilling too. It was
all about bowling and fielding on a 2 paced wicket.

Last year’s Playoff finalists battled it out. Sent into bat by Hollywood, Vijayta was reeling at 7 for 78. Piyush
Agram and Nitesh Anandan bowled tidy spells to grab 3 and 3 wickets respectively. Then came a crucial
partnership between Rushit Patel and Hammad Shahid who took the score to 147 and then the innings crumbled
to 163 in 41.1 overs.

Hollywood needed 164 to win, an easy target for their batting lineup despite not having Aditya due to an injury.
But skipper Mehul Dave had other plans when the ever dangerous Arjun Thyagarajan stepped in. Arjun was
totally in disarray at the crease while edging to the keeper. Mehul finished with figures of 5.1 Overs, 1 Maiden
and scalped 4 wickets for a paltry 9 runs. Mandeep Dhillon was the lone ranger scoring 62 of the 95 that
Hollywood put up. For a short while it looked like veteran Mandeep Singh Dhillon known as MSD to his
friends might take the game away from Vijayta hitting 4 huge sixes, but he ran out of partners and he just
couldn't sustain at the crease. Atleast MSD made the game a little bit interesting.
Man of the Match - Team Vijayta

Men of the Match shared by - Rushit Patel, Hammad Shahid and Mehul Dave.

Next up for Vijayta - Orange County on Saturday April 16th.

Hollywood1 Summary: Unforeseen Circumstances and bad batting led to a bad chase. Valiant innings from
Mandeep Dhillon was the only highlight for Hollywood's batting. However, positives in bowling was biggest
plus point in this game. Some excellent spells from Anup Desai, Rishabh Nanda, Piyush, Nikhil & Nitesh. Lots
of hard work ahead for Hollywood's depth players to step up to the plate. Go Hollywood !

HOLLYWOOD-1 GAVE 37 EXTRAS (23 WIDES AND 8 NO BALLS) AND VIJAYTA GAVE 4 EXTRAS 3
WIDES)

CSUF BEAT ORANGE COUNTY CC

In yet another Division-I match of the past weekend, CSUF beat Orange County CC by 65 runs.

Batting first CSUF was all out for 172 runs. Mohammad Sadiq and Ravi Singh scored 55 runs and 30 runs
respectively. Nagaraj Inamati captured two wickets conceding 31 runs. Orange County CC conceded 35
extras (25 wides).

In reply, OCCC was all out for 107 runs. Nagaraj Inamati was the only one who scored 34 runs. Viraj Sehgal
(3 for 13), Kunal Jethi (2 for 36) and Muhammad Sadiq (2 for 9) bowled well for the winners. CSUF conceded
25 extras, 19 wides and 1 no ball).

DIVISION-II
In all six games were played during this fortnight. Five teams played back to back – a game every week. The
results are:

COLTS BEAT INTERNATIONAL

International, who lost a few players due to attrition, last year was relegated to Division-II. They are in the
process of re-building this year.

Colts, playing their first game of the season beat International by 79 runs. Batting first, Colts piled up 209 for
the loss of 9 wickets in the allotted overs. Thanks to some fine batting by Vishal Vasvani who scored 66 runs,
Ajay Garyali (31), Kalyan Chakravarti (27), Vikram Kachru (24) and Hemanth Ala (21). For International,
Imran Mookhi (2 for 39) and Zafar Siddiqui (2 for 33) bowled well.
In reply, International was all out for 130 runs. Imran Mookhi (21) and Rashid Zia (20) batted well for
International. K. Saravanan and Ajay Garyali bowled well for Colts capturing 3 for 4 and 2 for 17 respectively.

COLTS RECORD THEIR 2ND WIN OF THE SEASON!

Playing for two consecutive weeks in a row, Colts recorded their second win by beating Victoria Cricket Club
by 5 wickets. Victoria batted first and was all out for 150 runs. Thanks to a fine knock by Arun Kumar
Sabarajan who scored 57 runs. Ajay Garyali and Vijay Trisal bowled well for Colts each capturing 3 and 2
wickets respectively.

In reply, Colts scored 154 runs for the loss of 5 wickets. Atul Raj scored a polished 58. Victoria conceded 43
extras (32 wides and 2 no balls) which was the second highest scorer for Colts. Sekhar Garuda of Victoria
captured 2 wickets conceding 27 runs.

VENTURA BEAT INLAND EMPIRE-1

All-round display by Gagandeep Singh Sabby
An all-round display by G.S. Sabby helped Ventura to convincingly beat Inland Empire-1. Batting first, Inland
Empire-I was all out for 104 runs. Despite 30 wides conceded by Ventura which became the top scorer for
Inland Empire-1 team, Ventura bowlers were able to get IE-1 all out for 104. In reply Ventura scored the
required runs for the loss of 5 wickets. Scores:

I.E.-1 105 all out (Gagandeep Sabby Singh 3 for 25, Jay Desai 2 for 1, Navin Jain 2 for 7) lost to
Ventura 105 for 5 (Muffidkhan Pathan 26, Gagandeep Singh Sabby 33 not out, Jay Verma 2 for 41)

CORINTHIANS BEAT SAN DIEGO-2

All-round display by Vishal Upadhyay in vain
All-round display by Vishal Upadhyay who scored 63 runs and took 3 for 22 could not save San Diego-2 from
losing to Corinthians. Batting first, San Diego-2 was all out for 182 runs. Thanks to some fine batting by
Vishal Upandhyay who scored a valuable 63 runs. He was ably supported by Jain Aneja (43 runs) and Jitendra
Barlinge (25 runs). Despite their regular practice, Corinthian bowlers conceded 17 wides) Vedant Raval (4 for
36) and Richard Blackledge (2 for 25) were the successful bowlers for Corinthians.

In reply Corinthians scored off the required runs for the loss of 6 wickets. Thanks to some excellent batting by
Theo Mavro (Dionisius Mavrokefalos) who remained unbeaten with 80 runs to his credit. He was ably
supported in this effort by Pramukh Subramanian who scored 20 runs. Vishal Upadhyay was the only
successful bowler with 3 for 22). San Diego bowled 33 wides which was the second highest score for
Corinthians.
 CORINTHIANS BEAT INLAND EMPIRE-1
Playing back to back game (two consecutive weekends), Corinthians defeated Inland Expire-1 by 13 runs.
Batting first Corinthians scored 193 for the loss of 9 wickets in the allotted overs.

Thanks to some fine batting by Andrew Price (47 runs), David Pieters (36 not out) and Theo Mavro (30 runs).
For Inland Empire-1, the bowling honors were shared by Bhaskar Bhakta (3 for 47), Yash Dosh (2 for 28),
Vimal Patel (2 for 28) and Ronak Patel (2 for 28).

In reply, Inland Empire gave a good fight but was all out for 180 runs. Akshay Jariwala scored a polished 62.
He was ably supported in batting by Gauarav Patel (40 runs) and Viren Patel (20 runs). For Corinthians,
Richard Blackledge, David Pieters and Theo Mavro got 2 wickets apiece.

At the end of the game, this is what Corinthians said:

Corinthians Summary: Corinthians lost the toss, again, and were asked to bat. The wicket looked hard and flat
but there was a tinge of green and the outfield, although recently cut, was still a little long and damp. It was
hard work batting in the opening session. The IE openers did a great job bowling wicket to wicket and even the
good shots from the Corinthian batsmen were only gaining them one run at a time on the slow outfield. At
drinks Corinthians were 45/3. Theo grafted hard for his 30 runs, hitting a couple of nice boundaries including a
big six but at 62/6 after 25 overs things were not looking good. Mark Punshon came to the crease at number 6
and was joined shortly after by Andy Price at 8. The two put on a lifeline of an innings scoring 59 runs before
Mark fell for 19. The big man Andy Price continued his aggressive strokeplay and was joined by the equally
hard hitting Dave Pieters. Andy fell for a well-earned 47. Vedant joined the party at number 10 and he and Dave
piled on the runs scoring 40 in 6 overs. Vedant fell for 13 and Dave was left not out on 36 which included a
reverse swept 4 off the last ball.

IE got off to a good start with the bat on a wicket that had become a very nice track. The outfield had dried out
and the IE openers were taking control, playing some very nice shots. Dave Pieters struck in the 10th over to
dislodge Viren and followed up with a rocket of a yorker to ball Ronak in the same over. It took some sharp
fielding by Dave O'Connor to displace Ashwin and then Theo struck in the same over to have Vimal caught.
Vedant and Theo were bowling well in tandem to keep the run rate down and when Vedant claimed number 6
Yash to a catch by Abbas the score was 61/6 in 21 overs and the game was swinging Corinthians was. A couple
of catches went down and sloppy fielding lead to missed run out chances. Akshay started plundering the
Corinthians bowling. The game was swinging back to IE and the sideline crowd were getting rowdy. Richard
brought himself back on and managed to get Akshay caught behind by keeper Mark Punshon. The rowdy crowd
became less rowdy. The score was 158/6 with 16 overs to go, IE chasing 193 to win. Momentum was back with
Corinthians. Theo came back to get his second wicket and Richard hit the wickets to remove number 10
batsman Dhaval. A brave last wicket stand of 18 wasn't enough to see IE home with Abbas claiming the last
wicket - a skier caught by Andy at mid off.

A hard fought game which twisted and turned to the very end. Good luck to Inland Empire for the rest of the
season.
 ALLROUND DISPLAY
BY G.S. SANDHU & PRABHJOT HELPS
VENTURA BEAT INTERNATIONAL
Ventura playing their second game of the league beat International by 121 runs. All-round displays by
Gurpreet Singh Sandhu and Prabhjot Singh helped Ventura to convincingly beat International which has a few
veterans in the team. Imran Habib, Zafar Siddiqui, former U.S.A. player Rashid Zia, by their performance can
even today change the game in their favor.

RASHID ZIA’S FIRST 5 WICKET HAUL IN VAIN!

Rashid Zia who played USA team in the ICC tournament mainly as a batsman now bowled
his off spinners and took his first five wickets for the season. He captured 5 wickets
conceding 45 runs. His team bowled 24 no balls in the match. Ventura batted first and
amassed a total of 264 runs (thanks to 24 no balls and 4 overs extra batting). Gurpreet Singh
Sandhu and Prabhjot Singh had a partnership going and helped their club to get 264. G.S.
Sandhu contributed 54 runs, Prabhjot Singh contributed 59 runs. They were ably supported
in this effort by Muffidkhan Pathan (31 runs), Uvesh Shaikh (29) and Amarjeet Sekhon (27
runs). For Internationals , Rashid Zia fot 5 for 45, and Saquib Shoaib 2 for30 bowled well. Rashid Zia

In reply International had a good start from their veteran opening paid of Imran Habib and Zafar Siddiqui and
they carried the score to 62 for no loss and scared the opponents. After the fall of the first wickets, the
momentum changed. Wickets started falling at regular thereafter. Zafar Siddiqui scored 34 runs, Imran Habib
scored 24 runs and Syed Junaid scored 25 runs. International was all out for 143.

DIVISION-III:
In all seven games were played in the first two weeks of the 2011 SCCA League season.

CITRUS BEAT UNIVERSITY

Citrus CC won the season opener comfortably against University CC. Batting first Citrus scored 218 for the
loss of 7 wickets in the allotted overs. In response, University C C was all out for 138 runs. Scores: Citrus
218 for 7 (Shakeel Ahmed 63, Hererra Patel 48, Faheem Wasti 22, Ashish Malhotra 21, Shailesh Calib 4 for
45,) beat University CC 138 all out (Ravi Mannaya 22, Noel Jiwanlal 26, Ashish Malhotra 4 for 24, Faheem
Khan 3 for 24).

University CC conceded 36 extras (32 wides) and Citrus CC conceded 22 extras (20 wides). At the end of the
game this is what Citrus said:
Citrus Summary: First game of the season for Citrus at Woodley, on a cloudy morning. Pitch and outfield
were nothing like we have seen Woodley in the past. Pitch had many uneven spots and the outfield was like
playing in a flower garden. Citrus won the toss and choose to bat on a unpredictable pitch. We lost two quixk
wickets of Kartik and Salman and we were in bit of a challange from University. Their bowling attack was good
and they put the ball in right places with lot of help from the pitch. Shakeel , however, one of the openers
looked very solid and played a great innings, making his first 50 in adult league and remained not out making a
total of 63. Citrus did lose important wkts at regular intervals, mostly due to uneven bounce of the pitch, but
with the strong batting line we have, we were never concerend. Fahim Wasti, Shakeel and later Herrera making
quick 49 , all partcipated to take the score to 218/7. A total which was less satisfying but very competitive
considering the pitch condition.

University had steady start but had difficulty facing our dual pace and swing attack of Salman and Abhi. Few
important and simple catches were dropped of Salman's bowling which is uncommon when Citrus team is
fielding. First breakthrough was by Abhi and a great diving catch by Kartik behind wickets. After the openers
were back in the shed, next two batsmen showed some determination and scored quite a few boundries in a
hurry, however, Fahim Khan's slingy action quick bowling spoiled their party. He took quick couple of wickets.
Shakeel got important wkt of one of the hard hitters when, Abhi took a brilliant catch at the boundary. Then
comes the experienced Ashish (Bobby), who cleaned up the tail and bagged four wickets at the end. Citrus
team showed remarkable improvement in fielding in the last of the second half of the game and took some
stunning catches. Shakeel was the star of the day and at 16 years of age has shown the maturity of an
experienced opening batsman. This was our first game against University team. A wonderful group of players.
They appreciated young Shakeel's innings as much as we did. They were wonderful hosts and Santosh was
there to help each and every one who needed it. Goodluck to University CC for their upcoming games. I am
sure they are very capable of taking the game away from any of the teams in Div 3.

WESTWOOD LOST TO DECCAN

Westwood CC lost their season opener to Deccan by 9 wickets. Westwood batted first and scored 67 for the
loss of 9 wickets. In reply Deccan scored the required runs for the loss one wicket. Scores: Westwood 67 for 9
(Faisal Quadri 33, Nishal Patel 2 for 11, Clifton Gonsalves 2 for 26, Sandesh Sandol 2 for 4) lost to Deccan CC
68 for 1 (Manan Choksi 26 not out, Surabh Shekhar 21 not out). Deccan conceded 24 extras (15 wides) of
Westwood’s total of 67 for 9.

ALL-ROUND DISPLAY BY TARUN SANDHU

HELPS USC BEAT BRITAMER
Tarun Sandhu’s all-round display (45 not out and 3 for 38) helped his team to beat Britamer. Batting first USC
piled up 273 for the loss of 9 wickets in the allotted overs. Thanks to some fine batting performance by Tarun
Tyagi 89, Mishal Patel 75, Tarun Sandhu 45, and Gurpreet Singh Sandhu 21. Sohail Khan (3 for 52) and Amir
Ramjha (2 for 28) were the successful bowlers for Britamer. Britamer, in reply, scored 230 for the loss of 8
wickets in the allotted overs and lost the game. Ahmed Umar (43), Amir Azmi (40) and Yasir Iqbal (35 not
out) batted well for Britamer. Tarun Sandhu (3 for 38) and Jeet Poonatger (2 for 41) were the successful
bowlers for USC.

Britamer conceded 29 extras (18 wides) and USC conceded 23 extras (16 wides).

ALI QUAZI’S 5 FOR 14

HELPS FRIENDS CC TO BEAT WESTWOOD CC
Friends CC started their season with a win over Westwood CC. Thanks to some fine bowling by Ali Quazi who
bowled 8 overs, 2 of which were maiden and captured 5 wickets conceding only 14 runs. None of the
Westwood batsmen excepting Hrishikesh Bhadanga who scored 32 of the team’s total of 70 runs were able to
face the bowling. Westwood was all out for a poor total of 70 and Friends CC scored the required runs for the
loss of 2 wickets. Asif Abbaa Ali scored 37 runs for the winners and Raj Saha got 2 for 36 for the losers. This
is what the winning team had to say at the end of the game:

Friends Summary: Friends started off their 2011 season with a bang! After winning the toss and choosing to
field first the fast bowlers applied pressure from both ends with Ali striking early with a wicket in his 1st over.
Asif then clean bowled the new batsman in the 3rd over and after a superb catch by Sumair off Ali's bowling in
the 4th over Westwood were in deep trouble. Sumair full body dive to hold onto a stunner one-handed catch as
he landed on the pitch catching the ball just a few millimeters off ground. That proved to be a turning point for
Westwood as none of their batsmen were able to counter the relentless pressure from Friends. Friends bowled
mostly at good length hardly giving anything away as 7 of 10 Westwood wickets came in the form LBW or
Bowled.

Westwood tail-enders offered some resistance but lost their cool at crucial moments to be bowled out in the
23rd over posting 71 to win. Ali missed getting his 6th wicket in his beautiful straight spell of 8 overs but had
his 1st 5-for in the 1st game of the season!! The rest of Friends bowlers didn't let down their team and claimed
the tail with 1 each.

Friends didn't waste much time as they chased down a small total. With their debutant Asif Abba Ali dropped
on a difficult chance early on, he made the opposition pay with a quick fire 37 to turn the game decidedly in
Friends favor. Asim played his usual hit and miss with a magnificent huge six over long on but got out on 9.
With just 19 more runs to get after their 2nd wicket fell in the 9th over, Friends cruised home in the 13th over
with 7 wickets in hand.

It was a nice convincing win for Friends in Div. III who were playing with four uncapped players. From the
looks of it they appear to be a balanced side with some exciting players, it should be a fun season with plenty of
entertainment ahead!
 ALL-ROUND DISPLAY BY TARUN TYAGI IN VAIN
UNITED CC BEAT USC
United CC which was relegated to Division III this year won their first game of the season by defeating USC by
35 runs. All-round display by Tarun Tyagi of USC who took 4 wickets and scored a polished 89 runs could not
save his club from defeat. Tarun Tyagi has been in good form this season and had scored well in their first
game as well. Batting first United was all out for 213 runs. Thanks to some fine batting by Pinaki Patel who
scored 47 runs. He was ably supported by some good knocks from Anurag Sahni (28 runs), and Rajamani
Swaminathan (20 runs). But it was their tail - Babar Hashim (29 runs) and Praveen Chava (32 not out) - with
their good knock helped the team to score a match-winning total of 213. Tarun Tyagi (4 for 40 and Dushyant
Sharfma (3 for 30) bowled well for USC.

RAMESH SRINIVASAN’S 5 FOR 41

HELPS UNITED’S WIN
USC in their chase of 214 runs lost some quick wickets. It was Tarun Tyagi who
single-handedly put up a fight and caused some concerns to the opponents. As India’s
captain M.S. Dhoni looks up to Yuvraj Singh as his lucky man to break partnerships,
United’s skipper Srinivasan looked up to Ramesh. Whenever he threw the ball to
Ramesh, Ramesh obliged by getting a wicket or two in this match and finished with 5
for 41. At the second water break, USC was 98 for the loss of six wickets. Immediately
thereafter, USC lost Tarun Tyagi and the team folded up for 178 runs. Ramesh
Srinivasan was ably supported in the bowling department by Shankar Sukumaran and
Praveen Chava who got 3 wickets and 2 wickets respectively. Ramesh Srinivasan

USC conceded 27 extras (19 wides) and United conceded 23 extras (13 wides).

CITRUS CC BEAT L.A.BENGALS CC

UNBEATEN CENTURY BY SHIVA VASHIST
Shiva Vashist of Citrus CC scored the first century of the season in Division III when he scored an unbeaten
121 against L.A.Bengals. Citrus won by a margin of 99 runs. Batting first Citrus amassed a total of 279 for the
loss of 6 wickets. Thanks to some fine batting from Shiva Vashist 121 not out, Shakeel Ahmed (30 runs),
Kartik Patel (22 runs) Faheen Wasti (22 runs), and Salman Ahmed (21 runs). Malhar Gholikar (2 for 39) was
the only successful bowler for Bengals.
 SALMAN AHMED’S 5 FOR 24
HELPS CITRUS’s WIN
In reply, L.A.Bengals scored 180 for 9. Rasheed Tanvir Chowdhury (44 runs) Md. Asif
Islam (35 runs), Viraj Sehgal (22 runs), and Farhadur Reza (22 runs) batted well for L.A.
Bengals. Salman Ahmed bowled extremely well to get his first Five wicket haul . He
conceded only 24 runs. He was ably supported by Faheen Khan (2 for 29).

L.A. Bengals conceded 33 extras (25 wides) and Citrus conceded 29 extras (24 wides)

At the end of the game this is what Citrus said: Salman Ahmed

Citrus Summary: On a cool and partly cloudy day, Highland ground was a pleasant surprise. Congratulations
to Ken and his team who have done a great job transforming this ground to a true cricket ground. Bengals won
the toss and chose to field first. Shakeel and Kartik opened. Shakeel showed once again his maturity as an
opening batsman. He played some convincing strokes while keeping focus on staying at the wicket. Kartik’
however , played aggressively from the get go and lost his wicket after making an important early contribution
to the innings. Here comes Shiva, a splendid batsman, a fun to watch and for many to learn how to bat and build
your innings. He was dropped while at 15 but thereafter, there was no stopping him. He punished every bowler,
especially spinners. He was 121 not out. Citrus Valley had a decent total of 279 at the end.

La Bengals‘s batting was week. No batsman really looked skilled enough to face Salman’s pace and swing
bowling. He cleverly mixed slower balls with pace and took 5 wickets/24 runs. Faheem, was the other
successful bowler. Both teams gave quite a few extras . Fielding for La Bengals was poor. Citrus however, were
crisp in their fielding. Highlights of the day were, Shiva ‘s unbeaten 121, Salman ‘s 5 wkt haul and a
spectacular catch by Shakeel at the boundary to dismiss Nadeem, who hit some nice shots during his brief stay
at the wkt. We have been playing with La Bengals now for two years. This was their weaker team. Good to see
many new young faces in the team, but they need practice. Mahmud Bahi, as always has been a wonderful host
and great organizer for LA Bengals. They are lucky to have him manage the team. Good luck to La Bengals for
the rest of the season.

PS. Highland outfield is very good; pitch will need some additional work but during summer this ground should
be as good as Woodley grounds.

UNIVERSITY CC BEAT BRITAMER CC

BY 8 WICKETS
University CC and Britamer CC, both playing their second game of the league within this fortnight. Britamer
batte d first and scored a decent 146 runs for the loss of 9 wickets. Sohail Khan scored 24 runs while others
contributed a few runs here and there. Manoj Arora bowled well for University for his 4 for 27. He was ably
supported by Shailesh Calib who got two wickets and conceded 36 runs.
In reply, University scored the required runs for the loss of two wickets and thus registered their first victory of
the season. University started their chase badly by losing two quick wickets and thereafter the unbeaten
partnership between Navjot Singh (86 not out) and Ravi Mannaya (39 not out) helped the team to a
comfortable win.

University conceded 29 extras (17 wides and 7 no balls) and Britamer conceded 14 extras (13 wides).

DIVISION-IV:
In all six matches were played in Division IV of 2011 SCCA League. The results are as follows:

SOUTH BAY beat ANAHEIM. Scores: South Bay all out for 199 (Abbas Ali Damani 24, Surinderpal ingh 22,
Lakhwinder Singh 59, Cinesh Fernando 5 for 35, Rakesh Mehta 3 for 45) beat Anaheim all out for 179 (Hiran
‘kasi’ Pelawatta 64, Peshan Wedanarchchi 42, Zafar Majid 27, Sumit Sharma 5 for 33, Srinderpal Singh 3 for
43).

CAL-BEL beat SOUTH BAY. Scores: CAL-BEL all out for 190 (Francis Sutherland 32, Jason Broaster 53,
Earmond Wade 31, Vimal Desai 3 for 15, Kiran Kumar Singh 3 for 0, Rashmi Timbawala 3 for 0) beat SOUTH
BAY all out for 96 (Amit Pael 28, Hazzat Anthony 4 for 15, Clarence McKay 2 for 10, Melford Tillett 2 for
15).

PASADENA-2 beat HOLLYWOOD-3; Scores: Hollywood-3 all out for 87( Parijat Bhide 3 for 22, Amir
Bickiya 2 for 16, Sunil Meno 2 for 22, Mahmood Khan 2 for 11) lost to Pasadena-2
88 for 2 (Mohammad Khalid 28, Piyush Agram 4 for 28, Kishore Narsai 2 for 26).

PASADENA-2 Lost to BnB. Scores: Pasadena-2 all out for 129 ( Sunil Menon 24, Manish Bhatt 2 for 14,
Randeep Arora 2 for 41, Hitendra Patel 2 for 31) lost to BnB 130 for 8 (Randeep Arora 36, Parijat Bhide 3 for
25, Amir Bickiya 2 for 24).

BRIT DOM. Beat CAL-BEL Scores: BritDom all out for 157 (Prashanth Venkatesan 83, Nick Kapadia 35,
Brian Wesby 4 for 24, Norman Bood 2 for 23, Jason Broaster 2 or 32,) beat CAL-BEL ALL OUT FOR 142
(Brian Wesby 24, Melford Tillett 23, Praveen David 3 for 21, Prashanth Venkatesan 3 for 27, Travine Felsinger
2 for 29).

BRIT DOM. Lost to SANTA BARBARA. Scores: BRIT DOM all out for 131 (Nick Kapadia 26, Trevine
Felsinger 20, Mohammad Hamza 4 for 23, Amir Murad 2 for 22) lost to SANTA BARBARA 132 FOR 7 (Ranil
DeSilva 42, Priyankara Kalu 31, Travine Felsinger 5 for 32)

INLAND EMPIRE-2 beat SANTA BARBARA. Scores: INLAND EMPIRE-2 200 for 7 (Dhaval Desai 54,
Janak Pagel 54, Ritesh Patel, 38, Mehboob Alsam 3 for 51, Humayoun Butt 2 for 24) beat SANTA BARBARA
79 for 9 (Ishan Pael 3 for 21, Janak Patel 3 for18).
DIVISION-V:
A total of seven games were played during the fortnight in 2011 SCCA LEAGUE Division-V.

Following is the list of winners so far:

COUGARS - WON 2 GAMES

REGAL - WON 2 GAMES
EAGLES - WON 1 GAME
DOLPHIN - WON 1 GAME
PACIFICA – WON 1 GAME

Teams that lost the games are: Redlands, Kabi, Casuals, Youth and Hollywood-2 (lost both the games).

SCCA LEAGUE 2011 - SCHEDULE FOR APRIL!

Courtesy of WWW.SCCACRICKET.ORG

Division Date HomeTeam AwayTeam Ground Umpire 1 Umpire 2

Div I Sat 4/16/2011 Cosmos San Diego1 Severn Britdom Britdom
Div I Sat 4/16/2011 Orange County Vijayta Wright International International
Div I Sat 4/16/2011 Hollywood1 Pasadena1 Wong Regals Regals
Div II Sat 4/16/2011 Corinthians Victoria Marder Britamer Britamer
Div II Sat 4/16/2011 Inland Empire1 Colts Smith Murphy Cougars Cougars
Div IV Sat 4/16/2011 Pasadena2 South Bay Carson USC USC
Div V Sat 4/16/2011 Hollywood4 Casuals Marina Vista Friends Friends
Div V Sat 4/16/2011 Redlands Youth Highland Bengals Bengals
Div II Sun 4/17/2011 San Diego2 Hollywood2 Canyonside Caribbean Caribbean
Div III Sun 4/17/2011 Friends Citrus Carson Anaheim Anaheim
Div III Sun 4/17/2011 Britamer Westwood Wright Ventura Ventura
Div III Sun 4/17/2011 University United Wong Corinthians Corinthians
Div IV Sun 4/17/2011 Santa Barbara Cal-Bel Marder Hollywood5 Hollywood5
Div IV Sun 4/17/2011 BnB Inland Empire2 Smith Murphy Colts Colts
Div V Sun 4/17/2011 Cougars Kabir Highland Inland Empire1 Inland Empire1
Div V Sun 4/17/2011 Pacifica Dolphins Marina Vista Pegasus Pegasus
Div V Sun 4/17/2011 Pioneer Eagles Severn Southbay Southbay
Div I Sat 4/23/2011 Pasadena1 Pegasus Severn Hollywood4 Hollywood4
Div I Sat 4/23/2011 Orange County San Diego1 Wright Casuals Casuals
Div I Sat 4/23/2011 CSUF Caribbean Smith Murphy San Diego2 San Diego2
Div II Sat 4/23/2011 Ventura Victoria Wong Westwood Westwood
Div III Sat 4/23/2011 Bengals United Highland Regals Regals
Div IV Sat 4/23/2011 Pasadena2 BritDom Carson Friends Friends
Div IV Sat 4/23/2011 Hollywood3 Inland Empire2 Marina Vista Dolphins Dolphins
Div V Sat 4/23/2011 Pioneer Kabir Marder Citrus Citrus
Div II Sun 4/24/2011 Century Colts Marder Eagles Eagles
Div III Sun 4/24/2011 Westwood Citrus Smith Murphy San Diego1 San Diego1
Div III Sun 4/24/2011 Deccan Britamer Carson BnB BnB
Div III Sun 4/24/2011 University USC Severn Britdom Britdom
Div IV Sun 4/24/2011 South Bay Santa Barbara Wong Corinthians Corinthians
Div V Sun 4/24/2011 Redlands Regal Highland Inland Empire2 Inland Empire2
Div V Sun 4/24/2011 Hollywood4 Youth Marina Vista Cosmos Cosmos
Div V Sun 4/24/2011 Casuals Dolphins Wright Ventura Ventura
Div II Sat 4/30/2011 Hollywood2 Inland Empire1 Severn Britamer Britamer
Div II Sat 4/30/2011 International San Diego2 Wright Vijayta Vijayta
Div IV Sat 4/30/2011 BritDom Anaheim Wong Westwood Westwood
Div IV Sat 4/30/2011 South Bay Inland Empire2 Marder Victoria Victoria
Div IV Sat 4/30/2011 BnB Santa Barbara Smith Murphy University University
Div V Sat 4/30/2011 Redlands Kabir Highland Deccan Deccan
Div V Sat 4/30/2011 Hollywood4 Regal Marina Vista USC USC
 IPL4 – THE TEST OF APPETITE!
Prakash Krishnagiri

With Team India lifting the ICC World Cup on 2nd of April 2011, the focus and attention shifted immediately to
IPL4. The players were hardly given time to enjoy their victory. But for a Tea-Party with the President of
India, the Indian Players never had a lavish party from the BCCI or even a party by their respective State
Associations.

The Players themselves hardly had a day or two to spend with their near and dear, as they flew off to play
against each other in the IPL. The stakes in the IPL is so high, that the BCCI and the State Associations of the
10 franchisees just could not think of anything else.

Almost all the players got some kind of cash rewards from their State Governments. Poor Sreesanth and
Ashwin were unfortunate not to get any such call from their respective States of Kerala and Tamil Nadu. I
guess, with the two states on the election path, they could not make any such announcements at this time.

With whole of India basking in World Cup Victory and every cricket loving Indian walking with his head high,
the feeling was short lived due to the start of IPL 4 within a week after the World Cup finals. Most of the
players from the World Cup winning squad are pitted against each other in the IPL.

It will be interesting to see how IPL4 fairs this season after a count of 3 successful seasons. The off-field
troubles for Lalit Modi, controversies involving some franchisees and the reshuffling of the Governing council
of the IPL; have all brought in some bitterness. In more ways than one a dent has been made to the brand value
of IPL. The IPL4, sans party and Lalit Modi, has truly brought the focus back on Cricket. This is good news
for the public who love the game of Cricket.

This IPL does not feature Dada, the Prince of Kolkata. Adam Gilchrist who captained Deccan Charges in the
last 3 IPLs is leading Kings XI Punjab and Sangakkara who captained Kings XI Punjab is leading Deccan
Charges. We have Harbhajan and Andrew Symonds playing for the same side. Kings XI Punjab and Delhi
Daredevils have hardly any star power except their Captains Sehwag and Adam Gilchrist. Very strange team
selections from many of the Franchisees have left us with a sense of suspense on what to expect from their
Teams.

Only 2 teams, Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings have maintained their core team from the last 3
seasons. The rest of them have gone through a major reshuffle and may have to reinvent the winning formula.
The two new franchisees Pune Warriors and Kochi Tuskers need to make their Investment worthwhile. From
what we have seen so far, Pune Warriors are right on the button. They seem to have the right balance and have
started off impressively. The controversy stricken Kochi Tuskers need to really pull-up their socks and put
some wins on the board.

Despite their loss to Chennai Super Kings in the opening encounter, Kolkata Knight Riders have been pretty
impressive so far. The Mumbai Indians, Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals have all been their usual
self. The real disappointment has been the Delhi Daredevils. It is still very early stage of the Tournament with
plenty of games to go. It would take some time for teams to understand each other and strike a winning chord.
It is refreshing to see some outstanding fielding in display. The ground fielding of all the teams has been
exceptional. The catching has been slightly inconsistent though with some teams dropping simple ones and
grabbing unbelievable half-chances.

To add some spice to IPL4, the Sri Lankan Cricket Board has issued a statement requesting Sri Lankan Players,
who are selected to represent Sri Lanka for their upcoming England tour, to be present in Sri Lanka by 5th of
May to take part in the preparations. This has just ignited once again the Country vs Club issue. If the Sri
Lankan Cricketers pull out of IPL, the combinations of the teams will change and so will their chances of
winning the cup.

The Indian Cricket Fans are not used to club culture and are just getting used to it, thanks to IPL. The
reshuffling of teams has resulted in Franchisees like Kings XI Punjab and Royal Challengers Bangalore missing
out on their local Superstars. Kings XI Punjab missing out on Yuvraj Singh and Royal Challengers Bangalore
losing out Rahul Dravid, Robin Uttappa and Manish Pandey. Deccan Charges have also missed out on their
local stars Laxman and Ambati Rayudu, thereby having hardly any local name to boost off. This certainly does
not help in building a fan base. Neither does it allow the fans to stick to loyalty.

At a time, when the Indian Team has won the ICC World Cup, it will be a great dilemma for the Indian fans to
express loyalty in its fullness and cheer only for their local franchisee. Dhoni, Sachin Tendulkar, Yuvraj Singh,
Sehwag, Zaheer and Harbhajan will be cheered wherever they play in India under any franchisee.

The biggest challenge for the Brand IPL today is IPL itself. IPL4 has to become successful to make sure the
Brand Value is restored fully and enhanced a bit, if possible.

The crowd turn-out has been slightly on the lower side in most of the grounds. IPL4 needs a new hero or an
underdog to put in great performances. This will help them immensely in drawing more crowds to the stadium.

The first real question now is; are the Indian cricket fans getting an over-dose of cricket?

It is indeed a big test for the Cricket Crazy Indians. Do they have the appetite?
 IPL4 – SCHEDULE!
Date IST Details Venue
08-Apr-11 20:00 Chennai Super Kings vs Kolkata Knight Riders Chennai
09-Apr-11 16:00 Deccan Chargers vs Rajasthan Royals Hyderabad
09-Apr-11 20:00 Kochi Tuskers Kerala vs Royal Challengers Bangalore Kochi
10-Apr-11 16:00 Delhi Daredevils vs Mumbai Indians Delhi
10-Apr-11 20:00 Pune Warriors vs Kings XI Punjab Navi Mumbai
11-Apr-11 20:00 Kolkata Knight Riders vs Deccan Chargers Kolkata
12-Apr-11 16:00 Rajasthan Royals vs Delhi Daredevils Jaipur
12-Apr-11 20:00 Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Mumbai Indians Bangalore
13-Apr-11 16:00 Kings XI Punjab vs Chennai Super Kings Mohali
13-Apr-11 20:00 Pune Warriors vs Kochi Tuskers Kerala Navi Mumbai
14-Apr-11 20:00 Deccan Chargers vs Royal Challengers Bangalore th Hyderabad
15-Apr-11 16:00 Rajasthan Royals vs Kolkata Knight Riders th Jaipur
15-Apr-11 20:00 Mumbai Indians vs Kochi Tuskers Kerala th Hyderabad
16-Apr-11 16:00 Chennai Super Kings vs Royal Challengers Bangalore Chennai
16-Apr-11 20:00 Deccan Chargers vs Kings XI Punjab Hyderabad
17-Apr-11 16:00 Pune Warriors vs Delhi Daredevils Navi Mumbai
17-Apr-11 20:00 Kolkata Knight Riders vs Rajasthan Royals Kolkata
18-Apr-11 20:00 Kochi Tuskers Kerala vs Chennai Super Kings Kochi
19-Apr-11 16:00 Delhi Daredevils vs Deccan Chargers Delhi
19-Apr-11 20:00 Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Rajasthan Royals Bangalore
20-Apr-11 16:00 Mumbai Indians vs Pune Warriors Mumbai
20-Apr-11 20:00 Kolkata Knight Riders vs Kochi Tuskers Kerala Kolkata
21-Apr-11 20:00 Kings XI Punjab vs Rajasthan Royals Mohali
22-Apr-11 16:00 Kolkata Knight Riders vs Royal Challengers Bangalore Kolkata
22-Apr-11 20:00 Mumbai Indians vs Chennai Super Kings Mumbai
23-Apr-11 20:00 Delhi Daredevils vs Kings XI Punjab Delhi
24-Apr-11 16:00 Deccan Chargers vs Mumbai Indians Hyderabad
24-Apr-11 20:00 Rajasthan Royals vs Kochi Tuskers Kerala Jaipur
25-Apr-11 20:00 Chennai Super Kings vs Pune Warriors Chennai
26-Apr-11 20:00 Delhi Daredevils vs Royal Challengers Bangalore Delhi
27-Apr-11 16:00 Pune Warriors vs Chennai Super Kings Navi Mumbai
27-Apr-11 20:00 Kochi Tuskers Kerala vs Deccan Chargers Kochi
28-Apr-11 20:00 Delhi Daredevils vs Kolkata Knight Riders Delhi
29-Apr-11 16:00 Rajasthan Royals vs Mumbai Indians Jaipur
29-Apr-11 20:00 Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Pune Warriors Bangalore
 30-Apr-11 16:00 Kochi Tuskers Kerala vs Delhi Daredevils Kochi
30-Apr-11 20:00 Kolkata Knight Riders vs Kings XI Punjab Kolkata
01-May-11 16:00 Rajasthan Royals vs Pune Warriors Jaipur
01-May-11 20:00 Chennai Super Kings vs Deccan Chargers Chennai
02-May-11 16:00 Mumbai Indians vs Kings XI Punjab Mumbai
02-May-11 20:00 Delhi Daredevils vs Kochi Tuskers Kerala Delhi
03-May-11 20:00 Deccan Chargers vs Kolkata Knight Riders Hyderabad
04-May-11 16:00 Chennai Super Kings vs Rajasthan Royals Chennai
04-May-11 20:00 Pune Warriors vs Mumbai Indians Navi Mumbai
05-May-11 16:00 Kochi Tuskers Kerala vs Kolkata Knight Riders Kochi
05-May-11 20:00 Deccan Chargers vs Delhi Daredevils Hyderabad
06-May-11 20:00 Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Kings XI Punjab Bangalore
07-May-11 16:00 Kolkata Knight Riders vs Chennai Super Kings Kolkata
07-May-11 20:00 Mumbai Indians vs Delhi Daredevils Mumbai
08-May-11 16:00 Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Kochi Tuskers Kerala Bangalore
08-May-11 20:00 Kings XI Punjab vs Pune Warriors Mohali
09-May-11 20:00 Rajasthan Royals vs Chennai Super Kings Jaipur
10-May-11 16:00 Deccan Chargers vs Pune Warriors Hyderabad
10-May-11 20:00 Kings XI Punjab vs Mumbai Indians Mohali
11-May-11 20:00 Rajasthan Royals vs Royal Challengers Bangalore Jaipur
12-May-11 20:00 Chennai Super Kings vs Delhi Daredevils Chennai
13-May-11 20:00 Kochi Tuskers Kerala vs Kings XI Punjab Indore
14-May-11 16:00 Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Kolkata Knight Riders Bangalore
14-May-11 20:00 Mumbai Indians vs Deccan Chargers Mumbai
15-May-11 20:00 Kings XI Punjab vs Delhi Daredevils Dharmasala
15-May-11 20:00 Kochi Tuskers Kerala vs Rajasthan Royals Indore
16-May-11 20:00 Pune Warriors vs Deccan Chargers Navi Mumbai
17-May-11 20:00 Kings XI Punjab vs Royal Challengers Bangalore Dharmasala
18-May-11 20:00 Chennai Super Kings vs Kochi Tuskers Kerala Chennai
19-May-11 20:00 Pune Warriors vs Kolkata Knight Riders Navi Mumbai
20-May-11 20:00 Mumbai Indians vs Rajasthan Royals Mumbai
21-May-11 16:00 Kings XI Punjab vs Deccan Chargers Dharmasala
21-May-11 20:00 Delhi Daredevils vs Pune Warriors Delhi
22-May-11 16:00 Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Chennai Super Kings Bangalore
22-May-11 20:00 Kolkata Knight Riders vs Mumbai Indians Kolkata
24-May-11 20:00 TBC vs TBC, Qualifier 1 Mumbai
25-May-11 20:00 TBC vs TBC, Eliminator Mumbai
27-May-11 20:00 TBC vs TBC, Qualifier 2 Chennai
28-May-11 20:00 TBC vs TBC, Final Chennai
 ADULTERATION IN REVIEW SYSTEM!
Courtesy Giricket

What a mess!! ICC now looks like a clown with the modified UDRS in the recently concluded World Cup in
the sub-continent.

The Umpires review System was a great success in test matches. Even the UDRS haters like Sachin and Dhoni
were benefitted by this and have accepted it ICC too enjoyed great support and announced the implementation
of the Review System for the WC.

Every player, spectator felt umpiring in cricket was becoming near fool proof with the Review System, until the
ICC tampered with it in this WC. I don’t know why they should meddle (or call it alter, modify, innovate) with
it. When it was going on perfectly well in test matches, I really do not understand why they should make
changes and confuse every one. I think in this WC also, they should have continued the same as in tests.

All the countries agreed to use this as they were getting uniform justice without the varied human errors. They
preferred to leave it to the technology which, if not hundred percent perfect, at least, uniform to all teams and
consistent with the program made earlier.

In the test series, if the batsman or the bowling captain felt the umpire could be wrong - that is, when they felt
the decision made through the naked eyes could not be correct, they requested for the referrals. The on field
umpires, in turn, ask the third umpire who is also equally qualified to view it in slow motion in different angles
and also use the ‘hawk eye’ / ‘snicko meter’s help and give the verdict.

Once again I repeat, we do not know whether the technology is fully correct or not. But we all know for sure
that it is consistent and uniform for all teams. The third umpire after going viewing the video film gives the
verdict.

On field umpire, either changes his decision or negative the appeal according to the third umpire’s decision and
signals the sides. Batsman was happy, the bowling captain was also happy and everyone is happy.

Now, according to the modifications, in the case of a LBW decision, the third umpire after viewing the re-plays
and slow motion acts conveys the existing factors to the on field umpire.
The third umpire is not allowed to use the hawk eye option of what would have happened after the impact. He
just mentions the area where the ball pitched. That is the line & length, whether there was a contact with the bat
and the ‘no ball’ aspect.

The on field umpire then takes these factors into consideration and makes a decision. The question of whether
the ball would have hit the stumps is still being decided by the on field umpire. The real technology help is not
utilized in this modified review system. It is again the umpire’s call and again continues to have the same
problems faced earlier. The advantage of using slow motions, hawk eye and different angle cameras are not
taken in to consideration.

In this WC we noticed many LBW decisions go on the wrong way even after reviewing through technology.
After the UDRS decision, we were shown the hawk eye results which contradicted the umpires decision.
We witnessed some horrible decisions of using 2.5 meters distance (of point of impact) inconsistently. Some
batsmen were given not out when the point of impact was beyond the said distance but, some were given out for
the same reason.

This is absurd. When you have the technology, go with it fully. Do not allow human error as much as possible.
There was no necessity for ICC to spoil the existing Review System technology and procedures.

If this adulteration continues, players will lose faith in UDRS and will opine against the system which again
will take us back to square one.
 HIDDEN TALENT!
Courtesy Giricket

Yes, IPL is a great success, especially for the spectators. This colorful T20 tournament is further decorated with
cheer leaders, band music, fireworks, unique strategic time outs and the spicy super overs.

More importantly, the best thing that happened through IPL was the great exposure provided to the young
Indian talents. Over the years, IPL brought out many young cricketers and they should be grateful to IPL for the
recognition they received. Ashwin, Naman Ojah, Manoj Tiwary, T. Suman, Bisla to name a few.

It is now one week completed with IPL 4. Already we have seen some surprises in team’s performances. The
spectators have the real dilemma. Except for a few teams, most teams are looking different. There is no ‘son of
the soil’ attachment this time.

Sachin captains the Mumbai team and Sehwag is for Delhi. That’s all. Laxman who played for Hyderabad is
now playing for Kochi, Dravid for Rajastan, Gambir for Kolkatta and to the shock of every one, no Dada this
time. The fans are very confused, whom to support.

Nobody could understand the team composition and the ideas of the Franchises. Some owners have messed up
with team composition and spoiled their chances. Only Chennai and Mumbai retained the maximum of four
players and have built the team around them. These two teams look solid.

The worst affected are the Delhi side. They have only Sehwag and Warner from last three years. They lost
Vettori, deVilliers, Dilshan, Collingwood, Nannes, Karthik, and many lively cricketers. Their replacements
were not that impressive.

The IPL 4 has already unearthed some exciting talents. The best among them all is Paul Valthaty. The stunning
century he scored against the mighty CSK shocked every IPL follower. Of course, Paul is not new to high level
cricket. We have heard about him since 2001.

Valthaty was selected way back in 2001 for India under19. He couldn’t perform due to an eye injury he
sustained. He is a product of Dilip Vengsarkar academy in Mumbai. Somehow Mumbai Ranji team evaded him
right from the beginning.

What is special about this 27 year old cricketer? His batting is something worth discussing. His biggest plus
point is the extra time he has to play his shots. My observation of this batsman’s success is his ‘body balance’.
His height is just perfect for his technique.

He has very little initial shuffling which is okay with limited overs games. The back lift is gorgeous, just perfect
for a full drive as well as for a defensive gliding. He is side on all the time and takes the ball under his eyes.
The main reason for his extra time is, he has a ‘still head’ while receiving the ball and is able to watch the ball
carefully and predict its line and length much earlier.

Now comes his negatives points. His shot selection is not very good and, in my opinion, that was the reason for
this lad unable to go higher. He tries to play shots from the beginning and gets in to trouble soon.
Even for a great batsman like Tendulkar, initially the ball looks like a marble and when he spends some time, it
gets bigger to the original size and he sights it like a foot-ball when he is well set.

True, in T20 format and limited over games you can’t spend too much time to sight the ball well and you have
to go after it from the beginning. But you must learn to rotate the strike with ones and twos initially before you
start the assault. Some batsmen like Gilchrist, Hayden and Jayasurya use the crease and make some
predetermined movements to have a go from the beginning.

Valthaty must learn to do that and try to be consistent. His hand /eye coordination is excellent like our Sehwag
and surely once his confidence level increases, he will be a great force to reckon with. He has terrific hidden
talent and this IPL 4 is the place for him to go very high in his cricketing career.

I like his bowling too. He bowls a gentle medium pace and he has many shrewd variations in his armory. His
main weapon is, his ability to bowl the split finger slower one which is certainly a wicket taking delivery.

I am also impressed with Monish Mishra. He too can really go after the bowling. He hasn’t had big scores to
start with as he comes much lower in the batting order. I am sure he will get to go up the order and produce
some nice knocks.

It is just a week since IPL4 has started. I am sure by the end, this tournament will unearth many ‘hidden talents’.