J-Cup Final 5th VS 6th: Sharks vs Paddy Foley’s,
Sano 4, 29/7/2012 by Kris Bayne
It was, by now, incredibly hot. Tatebayashi hot. The Sano grounds had baked rock-hard over a week of extreme sun. The heat from below was equal to that from above. No birds flew now. Grounded crows hiding in the riverside reeds for relief expressed how hot it was – “Fack! Faack! Faaaaack!”. They’d soon have other reasons to feel aggrieved. There weren’t any mad dogs. Plenty of mad cricketers, only some of them Englishmen. Our Secretary/Selector/Skills Advisor/Scorer buzzed around like some manic soccer-mum, urging people to hydrate (in small sips) and shoving chilled sliced oranges in their faces at all opportunities. Heat does strange things to people… Both teams said silent prayers that their respective captain would win the toss and the other poor bastards would have to field bowl and first.
We were those poor bastards.
Game Two
Dave reminded us that we had just fixed up the same team for under 100 and we could do it again. But we had to stay on top of our game as he said, “If just one Sri Lankan gets his eye in he could make a hundred”. We had to hold our catches as we had done in Game One. Talk about foreshadowing…
The Boiling/Frying
Micro-wave Ovens 1-5
Paddy’s decided to mix up their batting order, by the looks of things, sending out their lesser-lights to take the heat. Vicky’s first ball disappeared past him on the way to the boundary. His second disappeared past the batsman on its way to his stumps. “Bye”, well, that was not the exact word but the sentiment was the same. Prashant took second over and, de ja vu, Charles took the catch offered. Paddys 2-6 and there was movement in the tent! Vicky was giving it his all and the next over was crucial. He enticed Chaminda forward, getting an edge that flew probably in the gap between ‘keeper and 1st slip. Being to his right Charles went for it but could not hold on and, considering what happened, that was a bit of a shame. To add insult to injury a couple more thick edges flew and the batsmen made them count as Sano 4 is probably the tiniest of them all. The bowlers kept at the batsmen but if the boundary was closer, the ground was also harder and anything through the field found the boundary. Sagar’s first over back did not replicate his Game One effort and he was dealt with severely. But after 5 overs we had kept them to 33.
Micro-wave Ovens 6-10
Sushant joined Sagar in the attack. Sagar came back well with an almost-maiden (a wide included) and in his second over Sushant got the batsman to top edge a hook and Charles made good ground take the catch. 3-46 after 8 overs. This brought the two best and most experienced sloggers in Paddys together, the charmed Chaminda and Sanjay, and it was here that the game changed. Any kind of ball, they just hit up and through and let the environment do the work. By Over 10 the score was 3-70, but as we grew more tired so they grew more confident.
Micro-wave Ovens 11-15
Even slightly miscued shots, and there were only a few, usually made the boundary. We spent a lot of time in the reeds at the river end and gave up on at least one ball. Dave tried a series of bowlers. Murad was unlucky as a ball cleared a slightly wrong-footed Navin. Kris tried the tactic of delivering ‘6’ balls, hoping that after the 3rd one the Devil would arise out to the pitch and carry the batsman off – it was certainly hot enough for him – but it didn’t work. The shellacking continued. No-one escaped. Over 15, 3-134.
Micro-wave Ovens 16-20
Try as each bowler could, almost every over ended up in double-digit runs made. But sometimes these situations show the truer nature of a man. In the space of one ball we had an apology for a full toss offered and it not accepted, the other batsman then more interested in joining the discussion than staying in his crease while a ball was in play and being quietly, legitimately and actually given run-out, but the appeal was withdrawn by our Captain (the batsman still didn’t even realize what had happened). Somewhere up in all this mayhem above, one of them passed the ton, which could well have been a duck. We was applauded anyway. The last few overs were the worst as each ball smacked into the greenery had to be found, bowled and more often than not found again. At the 18th over they were 176. Two overs later 212. Cricket, like life, is almost unfair sometimes.
Vicky 4 – 0 – 34 – 1
Prashant 4 – 0 – 38 – 1
Sagar 3 – 0 – 23 – 0
Sushant 3 – 0 – 20 – 1
Murad 2 – 0 – 29 – 0
Dave 3 – 0 – 46 – 0
Kris 1 – 0 – 19 – 0
The Battering
Coming off the field everyone was just totally, utterly, to-the-core-drained, of moisture and of perhaps even hope. Details not required, we had bloody had it and we had five minutes to send out our opening pair. If we were to challenge this huge total, and perhaps we were playing for pride alone, we needed a solid start. This would mean runs, but more importantly it would give Paddy’s a taste of the heat and our players a chance to charge their dead batteries.
Overs 1-5
Prashant opened with Kris. The odd couple. But the general idea was one sticks, the other hits. It was decided Prashant would do the hitting. He did. Kris saw off Amila’s first, taking a short ball to the square boundary for a couple. Over 2 went ten balls long, one of them struck mightily straight back over the umpire’s hat and halfway up the embankment. And so it went. Kris kept them out, got singles off the bat or sloppy ‘keeping. Meanwhile Prashant shelled the surrounding flora and fauna. Kris’ first fifteen balls faced yielded 5 runs. Prashant’s first fifteen brought ..6..6..446644., with no part of the field being spared. He was especially fierce straight down the ground. The second six off strike bowler Amila ended up in the river – “Faaaack!” said the crows. A new ball, straight out of the wrapper, was eventually summoned and it soon was dispatched for a brace of 4s into the reeds. The crows had had enough and faaacked off. It was glorious to behold at close range. 5 overs 0-52.
Overs 6-10
Prashant went into his shell a little here – for four balls – and in the interim Kris knocked around a couple. Once refreshed Prashant launched stage two, reaching his 50 in 22 balls. While the boundaries did not come as frequently the pair kept the scoreboard going and it was obvious that Paddys started to feel what we had endured. Kris clipped one to the fine leg boundary, but as we approached halfway, it was clear that a clean hitter to accompany Prashant would be needed if we were to reel in the big total. We very gratefully went to short drinks, and at least the score was in good shape. 10 overs 0-92.
Overs 11-15
Our prospects took a nose-drive when soon after resumption Prashant got the bottom edge of a withering cut shot onto his stumps and he was gone for a thumping 75 (39 balls). The Paddys were delirious (we know how they felt for different reasons). Mick joined Kris and if they could add a run for each birthday we would win this, no problem! Mick looked up for the birthday challenge as he banged his first ball for 4 and added another for good measure two balls later. But he went caught going for one more (9). Vicky had entered today will a sore sports-related back injury so his hitting was a problem, not so much his running. Kris, on the other hand, needs to be aware that the 52 against his name is neither runs nor KPH as his jab and call to a shot to mid-on saw him run-out a tad short at the bowler’s end (this time) for a bloody-minded 12. Charles, who had valiantly battled leg cramps while ‘keeping, entered and briefly entertained, slamming 44.4. (guess where?) before departing (over two games that is 12 balls, 4sX5, 6sX1, .X5). Vicky swung for a few singles, caught for 3. We lost 5-27 rapidly. 15 overs 5-124. The fat lady started tuning up, but just sat down exhausted at the thought.
Overs 16-20
In the 16th Tommy, after teasing the mid-on unmercifully with catches that he just could not hold, got horribly mixed up and was run out without scoring. Sagar’s stay was so quick and so very shiny that I missed it completely, not even realizing he had come and gone (or should that be gone and come back – the disgraceful duck buck had been passed). BUT, we still had some shimmy in the tail. Dave, sufficiently cooled off, but with murderous intent, came to the wicket to join the always solid Sushant. With a lot to get in 4 overs a win was unlikely but, harking back to Dave’s words a while back, they decided to go for it. Paddy’s either had to or decided to give some lesser bowlers a trundle. Dave spanked them to all parts. With good support from Sushant, who chimed in with a lovely boundary, Dave dispensed with his customary settling in and added 4X4, 2X6 and chucked in some ones and twos. The pair added 40-odd in about 4 overs to get us up to a very respectable T20 score of 166, but we still fell short by quite a few. 20 overs 7-166.
K. Bayne Run Out 12 (32 balls 1×4 0x6)
P. Kale Played On (Bowled) b. Thila 75 (39 6 6)
M. Lay c. Udaya b. Amila 9 (5 2)
V. Sancheti c. Paddy b. Udaya 3 (5)
C. Steinhardt c. Paddy b. Amila 12 (6 3)
M. Tomiyama Run Out 0 (4)
S. Waghunde c. Paddy b. Udaya 0 (1)
D. Lollback N.O. 34 (14 4 2)
S. Lumb N.O. 6 (10 1)
K. Murad DNB
N. Jinasena DNB
Let’s put this day into perspective (i.e. let me get much more spin on this than the shite I call my bowling). We had Paddy’s down and out in Game One. Coming into the 14th Over they were 9-74. Three late hits won them the game. It was only our short-lived attempt at an improbable outcome, combined with some far-too-cavalier later batting that caused our batting downfall. The Game Two toss loss hurt (it’s a call of chance, but Paddy players later admitted to me that they were so relieved not to field (some may have wept quietly, but manfully). It was faaacking brutal to field first in that game. That we still had them on the ropes and if not for a catch missed would have had them in more strife.
Here is a 10th Over stat comparison: Paddy’s Game One 5-68, us 5-55; Game Two Paddy’s 3-70, us 0-92. Well, no good thinking of what could have been. In Game Two, we were caned, utterly lathi-ed, in Overs 11-20. Despite us being in an understandably very sorry state, what did we do? This season we have collapsed in far lesser circumstances. This time, faced with 213 @ over 10 runs an over, we batted our 20 overs for 166. A winning total in almost any T20 game and an especially good effort considering.
Despite the losses, we were the far superior bowling and fielding unit. We got them out or certainly got key edges that could have. Batting, we largely got ourselves out and we would have been better off not know about other games. I think the umpiring decisions were evenly split. We played some wonderful cricket. Vicky’s effort in G1, all bowlers contributing wickets, Charles’ work behind the stumps all day (pads, gloves all day get very heavy), the field catching and effort in horrid conditions, and Prashant’s belief, focus and sheer attack in G2 was magnificent. (Oh, how I wish my balls would spin this way. I’d get wickets, or get a gig on a late-night Japanese variety show, I’d reckon!)
Tatebayashi has served up some of the hottest cricket days this reporter has ever played in in over 40 years of cricket. They often coincide with total Sharks meltdowns. (See previous reports “Sano Feast On Toasted, Roasted Shark”; “Insane In Sano”; “Sharks Put In A Stinker In A Stinker”.) This day took the cake and it was burnt to a crisp. Still, it was hot for everyone, and no matter the circumstances we just have to get on with it. We lost. We could have won. Both. We didn’t. We learn. Our Japan Cup is done for 2012. The record books will show two losses but there is more to that than what numbers show. We want to take that spirit into the last games of the JCL. The sun will rise again. Just not so bloody hot, please?
