UBS Cricket Club: News

UBS vs New Milford CC - Semifinals

UBS lose to New Milford in the semis. Bhavyen top scored with 46 but UBS finished 60 runs short in their run chase of 215.

UBS vs Norwalk CC - Quarterfinals

UBS advance to semifinals against New Milford CC after a bizzare turn of events on a slow turner. Bhavyen top scored with 44 and Santi turned in a MoM performance picking up 4 wickets.

UBS make BCC SWEAT in tight finish

Bridgeport CC 182/9 (Raza Khan 36 , Akash 5-33, Santhosh 3-26) beat UBS CC 181 (Bhavyen 46, Pragnesh 27, Andre Wilson 4-30 ) by 1 wicket

Scorecard

By Amit Bhagat

On a perfect fall day UBS Skipper won the toss & elected to bat. Bhavyen & Achal opened the innings & from the word Go Achal showed his intentions of going after the Blabber mouth Steve Pitter by lofting him for a Big one over the long off boundary. Even though this show of Tit for Tat didn’t last that long with Achal Ducking on a few of Pitter’s well targeted Bouncers but the Partnership flourished quickly to some 30 odd runs; with Bhavi settling down yet again to see the new ball off. Pitter finally sent Achal's stumps reeling to Stamford just as it seemed that Achal had finally achieved his obsessive desire to cement his opening spot.

UBS wickets fell in a hurry in between with Illa taking a stroll to the center and hurrying right back as ordered by his honey (Do I need to mention names!). The batsmen also showed a lot of courage by smacking a few boundaries. The best ones came in the form of a Sumptuous Cover Drive from Santhosh & a Square cut from Bhavi. The score card at the end of 16 over read 85 for 4.

The crucial partnership of 60+ was between Bhavi & Pragnesh (27) which came at the perfect time and they took the score to 135 before Pragi sacrificed his wicket for Bhavi; thinking that it was Bhavi’s day for a Century. Thapar came in and hit a few lusty shots for a quick-fire 20 but failed to build a strong partnership. Unfortunately Bhavi too didn’t last long after that, again falling short of a half-century, and UBS were reeling at 174/7. Karthik and the lower order tried to consolidate but failed to do so & UBS were bowled out for 181 in 38 overs. The lower order batsmen disappointed the team with their performance & maturity level, which didn’t go well towards the finish of the game.

Nevertheless, 181 was a good score to defend, given the size of the field & the wicket being slow. The UBS Lions came roaring into the field & the showdown began with the 1st Ball Thapar bowled. Akash Bowled with “Venom & Aggression” & stared at every batsman who came in his contact. He almost rattled them all on his own taking 5 wickets & gave away almost nothing & created Havoc in the BCC dug-out. Akash and Raza had a "healthy discussion" about cricket which left Raj M (the umpire) wondering whether he would have been better off with a beer in his hand.

Santhosh, recuperating from an injury, stormed back into action taking 3 wickets and mauled the pride of some Nasty/Cocky athletes of National/Regional acclaim representing BCC. What made my day was that not only he kept his word by getting Steve Pitter OUT but the way he embarrassed him before & after nailing him in front of a boisterous Bridgeport Crowd. On the other end, Jay M too seemed to be under Santi's spell and forgot how to take any wickets at all.

But it wasn’t destined to be UBS’s Day. BCC were 175 for 9 in the 32nd over and Full Marks to them for scoring the much needed 6 runs at that point. The game could’ve gone either way but BCC squeaked through largely helped by Raza Khan’s 36 and Pitter’s 32.

The Sledging was at it’s Best by the 2 Legends of both clubs & the game went in the favor of BCC but I’m sure they will remember UBS for a long time not for the food that they served after the game but for The Fire that they dealt with for almost 3 hours of their innings. Kudos to all the UBS Blue Lions for giving BCC a run for their Money!!!!!!!!! Way to go Guys…..No Regrets even after the Loss!!!!!

At the end, the huge crowd was entertained to an exhilarating game and if they were paid customers, their every penny would have been well spent.

First championship of 2008 season: UBS win Hatters Trophy

UBS CC 231/6 (Bhavyen 91, Achal 46, Nikhel 35*) beat Danbury CC 131 () by 100 runs

Scorecard

By Akhil Thapar

Bhavyen Trivedi starred with a well compiled 91, Achal Yadav played another fluent opening inning of 46 and Nikhel Thapar capped a superb batting performance with a blazing 35, as UBS' cricketers surged to what would be an unassailable 231 in their second tournament final this year.

After dominating the group stages of the Hatters Tournament with three relatively easy wins, it was another crushingly professional performance from UBS CC. On last Sunday UBS bowled Danbury out for 97 at New Haven en route to a 153 run win, and though the margin today was less emphatic, their impact was identical. Bhavyen and Achal signaled UBS’ intent with a century stand in the first 23 overs of the innings, and though they did suffer a mid-innings wobble when four wickets fell for 44 runs, Nikhel Thapar prevented any meltdown with a blazing 35 not out from 18 balls and well supported by Tariq who scored a quick 15 off 8 balls.

UBS’ total of 231 for 6 was arguably 20 runs short of the previous weekend, but it never came close to being challenged. Danbury were a flaky unit when their turn came to bat and Akash bowled exceedingly well to put pressure from the outset. Ranga, who opened the inning, top-scored with a battling 26, but the experienced pair of Atif Zafar and Mikey Verma mustered only a few runs between them, while Ricky Khetarpal, the other remaining threat of this line-up, holed out to long on off Paras’ bowling.

At 62 for 4 in the 18th over, Danbury's challenge was effectively over, but Paras and Tariq ensured that there would be no unlikely revival. Operating with a tidy line and good variation, they nibbled away at the middle/lower-middle order and tempted a variety of indiscretions. Prominent among them was a low return catch held on by Tariq off his own bowling to dismiss a shocked looking Atif. The last wicket partnership between Syed Tanvir and ------ delayed the inevitable before Nikhel held onto a skier to land UBS their first championship of the 2008 season.

Bhayen's innings was cool, collected and a joy to watch. He batted well within himself, grinding his way through the gears to finish nine short of what would have been a well deserved century. When he went for his shots they came off handsomely, in particular two consecutive blasted fours off Manoj, but he was equally happy to time the ball to the boundary, never better exemplified by a back-foot steer past point in an over.

Shakeel, in a continuation of his display from the last game against UBS, once again proved to be Danbury's star with the ball. In tandem with Syed Tanvir, they bowled well to keep the pressure up on Achal and Bhavyen and keep the scoring rate in check. Tanvir broke the partnership as Achal was beaten by a big offcutter and bowled off the inside-edge. Shakeel added a crucial second one over later when Akash looped an easy catch to Atif at long on. Bobby ran himself out for 7 while taking on Mikey’s tracer-like arm at mid-wicket and Manu Mama was well c&b by Ricky to give Danbury some hope of restricting UBS.

That mini-collapse, however, was as troublesome as UBS’ day would get. From Bhavyen and Achal's early stand to Nikhel’s late inning blitz, everything else they attempted came off with spectacular success. In a gesture of sportsmanship, UBS captain Nikhel asked Akash (who stood in as captain for all three regular games and did a fantastic job) to accept the Hatters Trophy on the team’s behalf.

A round of applause to Danbury CC and Adeel Syed for hosting the Hatters tournament and the delicious chicken biryani served at the end of the game. A quick roundup of the individual awards follows.

Series MVP - Bhavyen Trivedi
Best Batsman - Achal Yadav
Best Fielder - Akash Joshi
Best Bowler - Ricky Khetarpal (Danbury CC)

UBS thrash Danbury to cement playoff spot

UBS CC 250 (Bhavyen 48, Pragnesh 42) beat Danbury CC 97 (Amit B 4-13, Nikhel 3-18) by 153 runs

Scorecard

By Jay Mendiratta

UBS CC were at home ground once again, with the opposition taking the form of Danbury CC. Captain of UBS CC Nikhel Thapar won the toss and rightly elected to bat first on a warm sunny day.

UBS openers Bhavyen Trivedi and Satish Illa walked in looking confident and were aiming to give the team a good start. They started cautiously and after a couple of overs Satish Illa smacked a couple of boundaries to get the run rate up. Both the batsmen were rotating the strike pretty well and were running hard in between the wickets.

Satish Illa (27) got out by attempting a lazy shot to a straight ball which went on to hit the wickets. The inform Akash Joshi walked in and kept the runs flowing from the very first ball he faced. Again the running between the wickets was good and Akash Joshi also hit a couple of boundaries. On the other side Bhavyen was looking good without taking any chances. Just when the partnership was looking good between the two batsmen, Akash (38) tried to smack the ball for a six and he did connect it well but to his ill luck he found a man right on the boundary to catch the ball safely. After Akash's departure UBS lost two quick wickets in Achal and Santosh. Pragnesh Joshi and Bhavyen got some quick runs and then Bhavyen (48) was clean bowled by Atif Zafar, two short of what would have been a well deserved fifty. Captain of UBS Nikhel Thapar and Pragnesh showed some good temperament and hit some big shots all around the park. Within no time UBS reached the total of 250. Nikhel Thapar was not out 39 and Pragnesh Joshi scored a daring 42 when needed the most.

After lunch Akash Joshi opened the bowling attack and did well but could not get a wicket. On the other side Nikhel Thapar was raring to go, the first ball he bowled he made sure that he cleared the wickets and the batsman was seen walking back. The bowling attack was awesome. Fielders also did their bit and made sure no extras were given and catches were taken. Akash Joshi who relieved Pragnesh behind the wickets did a great job by taking couple of good catches of Jay M's bowling who ended with figures of 3.2 overs, 2 runs and 2 wickets. Akash Joshi was also quick enough to get the bails off the stumps when batsman was found to be outside the crease. The surprise story was that Amit Bhagat was bought into the bowling attack and he gobbled 4 quick wickets in 6 overs. In the end UBS won the game by getting Danbury all out for 97.
Man of the Match was Nikhel Thapar for his excellent all round performance of 38 not out and 3 wickets.

After the match Jay Mendiratta gave us an exclusive interview and said “he needs to concentrate more on his bowling or else Amit aka Singh is Kinng could take his place".

A quick shout-out to Karthik who was injured but still came in to support the team. Special thanks to Paras for his commitment towards the team who comes from Jersey City every weekend. He also did a good job with the bowling and got one wicket. Keep up the good work!

UBS vs Mad Dogs CC

Mad Dogs CC 201 beat UBS CC 142 by 59 runs

By John P Moore (Mad Dogs CC)

Harrison won the toss on a hot day at MDP and, to populat acclaim, elected to bat. Lawrence and Ehsan put on a steady 46 for the first wicket inside the first 10 overs, Ehsan striking 4 nice boundaries on his way to a debut 19 (26 balls) before guiding a short ball to slip. Santhanam survived an early caught and bowled chance (off a full toss, a surprise thatŠ..) but had settled in and was batting steadily when he was caught in two minds and popped a catch to mid-on (17, 22 balls, 1 x 6, 1 x 4) with the score on 83 in the 16th over. Taiwo supported Lawrence as the latter started to bat more aggressively, but then slogged a high catch to leave for 10 (18 balls).

The major stand of the innings then took place between an ever more confident Lawrence and Thornton, who played himself in before scoring freely. An important 62 was put on in only 8 overs, during which Lawrence reached yet another Mad Dogs 50 (off 64 balls) before being in flight and bowled for 75 (84 balls, 2 x 6, 7 x 4), a welcome return to form for the veteran batsman. Thornton soon fell, playing an unworthy shot across the line to be bowled for 21 (23 balls, 1 x 6, 1 x 4). With the closing overs now at hand, wickets fell rapidly as the later order did their best to score quickly but sacrificed their wickets while doing so. Banerjee chipped a return catch (1, 8 balls); Harrison played back to a full-length ball and was bowled (2, 5 balls); Moore lobbed a catch to mid-off (4, 8 balls), and Smith was pinned LBW by a slow off-break (2, 4 balls). Whelan survived, however, playing some meaty shots to shepherd the total to 201 for 9 off 35 overs, ending with 11 not out (10 balls, 1 x 4), with Major on 1 not out (5 balls).

Santhanam and Smith proved to be a contrasting but highly complementary opening partnership of rickety old bones and youthful rhythm and pace. Santanham was treated roughly for his first few loosening balls, but then rammed a lovely in-ducker through Amit's drive, and soon bowled Shashi and Suyog in similar style as he got decent swing off an increasingly steady off-stump line. At the other end, Smith bowed quicker than he ever has for the Dogs, combined with accuracy and bounce to prove quite a handful. Disconcerted at first by Shallender's habit of walking down the track to him, he got his revenge by whistling a bouncer past the advancing batsman, who nicked a sharp, high catch to keeper Whelan, who clung on well.

Moore replaced Santhanam and immediately demolished the UBS middle order with a triple-wicket maiden; a very slow but somewhat elevated ball pinned Pavan LBW as he mowed for the trees and missed; the next ball beat Prakar in flight and knocked down the middle stump as the batsman flailed in vain; and a quicker arm ball from round the wicket bowled the left-handed Paras comprehensively.

With UBS at 45 for 7 and the game all but over, Harrison called off the front-line bowlers to let the irregulars have a go (although Ehsan, in his first bowl for the club delivered some steady medium pace). Accordingly, and helped by copious wides and no balls, Akhil and Tariq rapidly added 94 for the 8th wicket, mostly off Ehsan, Major, Thornton and Taiwo, almost getting their side back into the game. Harrison therefore decided to tighten it up at one end, coming on himself to bowl a well controlled, containing spell that kept the required run rate at levels the Dogs felt OK about. Still, the stand continued, as the two UBS batsmen were well set and scoring fairly freely. Harrison finally broke through by nailing Tariq LBW for 34 (an over after an even better shout was unaccountably turned down, perhaps because it might have burrowed beneath middle stump). Moore was then brought back on to bowl from the far end, delivering yorkers and arm balls to help keep it tight. The last three wickets fell in a hurry with two regular bowlers now on (UBS were batting 12). Harrison bowled Hirender all ends up with a quicker ball, then Akhil fell for an excellent 46, top-edging Moore to the mid-wicket fence where Thornton held a high catch with cool judgment. The last wicket also fell to Moore, giving him his second 5-wicket haul of the season against UBS, when Amit drove a waist high catch to Lawrence at deep mid-off. The final UBS total of 142 for 11 from 29.4 overs left the Dogs well-deserved winners by 59 runs.

Inspired UBS rattles West Haven

UBS CC 133 (Akash 38, Pragnesh 26*, Nikhel 21, Madhu 3-24) beat West Haven CC 111 (Raj A 21*, Karthik 3-10, Jai M 3-22) by 22 runs

Scorecard

By Santosh SRK

UBS CC took on West Haven CC in the much-awaited clash of the SCTCA 40 overs league. The weather provided great conditions for cricket and there was an air of excitement building up to the game coupled with the fact that the encounters between these two teams have always lived up to its billing.

For a change, Nikhil lost the toss and UBS was put into bat by West Haven skipper Prasad. It was a surprising decision considering that West Haven were noted to be better defenders than chasers. Maybe it had to do with their recent record defending or chances of rain later in the day but UBS was quite happy about going out and setting a target in near-perfect batting conditions.

Bhavyen and Karthik opened the innings for UBS and Vinod struck early for WH having Karthik bowled off his pads. Akash came in at number 3 and along with Bhavyen, kept the scorebard ticking with one’s and two’s. Bhavyen, who seemed to curb his aggression, did a good job trying to see off the new ball and gave strike to the in-form Akash who managed to find the gaps with ease and take the score to 40/1 at the end of 10 overs. With UBS recovering from the early jolt, Raj.A was back for his second spell and he induced Bhavyen into a drive and had him caught behind for 6. Achal was in next and started off in his typical style trying to get his eye in before opening up. It was not to be Achal’s day, as he soon found himself holing out to mid-off while trying to break the shackles and was back in the hut without troubling the scorers. Satish walked in next to join Akash, who, by now was striking the ball sweetly. Just when it looked like he was set for a big score, he ended up swatting a short ball uppishly to covers, where Krishna, pulled off a blinder of a catch to put an abrupt end to Akash’s innings. Akash scored a useful 38, his knock comprising of 2 boundaries. Santhosh was the new batsman in and joined forces with Satish to try and resurrect UBS’ innings. Santhosh paid the price for trying an expansive cut shot against a ball that was too close to cut and the accurate Jignesh had him caught sharply at widish slip for 3.

At this juncture, UBS was precariously placed at 71/5. Satish followed immediately, after being castled by Madhu with the score still reading 71. UBS skipper Nikhil found himself in the middle much earlier than he would have liked, much to the delight of Prasad, after he put UBS into bat. What transpired in the next few overs either side of the drinks break, was two in-form batsmen taking their time to settle in and then opening up gradually to take the attack to WH. Nikhil welcomed Raj.A, back for his final spell, by hitting a 4 and 6 down the ground. That set the momentum for the last 10 overs with the in-form Pragnesh joining the party with some free flowing drives. Nikhil was unlucky to be adjudged leg before to a flighted delivery after he had made a long stride forward and he was gone after a crucial knock of 21 runs. The unhealthy trend of losing wickets in pairs continued for UBS with Shashi needlessly run out immediately after Nikhil’s wicket. Amit.B walked in next and curbed his natural instincts to hit over the top and supported Pragnesh well, by smartly rotating the strike. The two of them took the score past 125 in what was a crucial partnership for UBS. Amit scored 8 before he was wrapped on the pads and Jay ran himself out soon after, which meant that the UBS innings finally folded for 133. Pragnesh scored a valuable 26* and held the lower order together.

UBS were hoping to make a bigger total but chasing 133, as it turned to be, was not going to be a cakewalk for WH. Fully aware that early wickets were the key, Nikhil and Karthik started the proceedings for UBS and kept a tight line and length giving nothing away to the WH openers. With not much on the board, Karthik got one to swing back into Gautam, to hit the top of off-stump. Bhanu and Prasad found scoring difficult but were keen on seeing off the new ball and not lose any more wickets. But it was not to be, as WH lost Bhanu and Krishna in quick succession and were reeling at 20/3. Prasad seemed determined to keep his wicket intact and bat through, by seeing off Nikhil who was bowling an extended spell to try and make some more dents into WH’s batting lineup. Prasad kept the strike for the most part and protected the new batsmen, while scoring off any loose balls that came his way. After seeing the opening bowlers off, WH was coasting along cautiously fully aware that if they batted on for 40 overs, they would win the game. Karthik was brought back into the attack and the gamble paid off right away, when he had Prasad slash a good length ball to gully, where Santhosh displaying good reflex in latching on to a sharp catch. The wicket later turned out to be turning point of the game with WH trying to bat around Prasad and inch towards the target.

With two new batsmen at the crease, UBS went for the kill. The players had a spring in their steps, as was displayed by a great catch by Jay diving in front of his body and some excellent ground fielding by Satish. Achal and Karthik held on to good catches in the deep, with Bhavyen and Nikhil also making brave attempts to half-chances provided by the WH batsmen. Just when Nikhil was running out of bowling options to attack, Jay and Amit cleaned up the lower order with some disciplined spin bowling. Raj.A created some jitters with some lusty hits but UBS knew they were only one wicket away from a tremendous victory. UBS held their nerves and kept doing the right things for the most part and Vinod holed out to Nikhil at deep wicket which signalled the end of WH’s innings, who fell short by 22 runs, thereby prompting wild celebrations among the UBS players after a hard fought victory. Karthik bowled a terrific spell giving away just 10 runs in his 8 overs and picking up 3 wickets. Kudos to Paras and Akhil for performing the 12th man and scoring duties respectively and supporting the rest of the the players.

The key to Sunday’s win was some disciplined bowling with some terrific support from the fielders taking all their catches. Credit to the UBS lions for showing a lot of character and putting their hands up to be counted when it mattered. It was a tremendous team effort. The players and guests were treated to a delicious meal after the game, thanks to our resident chef Amit.

UBS decode the Waterbury jinx in push towards playoffs

UBS CC 148/6 (Akash 48, Nikhel 23*, Punter 3-19) beat United CC 147 (Donovan C 46, Shashi 3-30, Akash 2-18) by 4 wickets

Scorecard

By Bhavyen Trivedi

After a close encounter with the up-surging St Johns Club just 7 days earlier, UBS were matched up against a perennially strong United Cricket Club. United has especially given UBS nightmares when the games have been played in Waterbury. No matter how big a score UBS posted, United was able to chase it down with little trouble. Of course, some wayward UBS bowling and shoddy fielding had also been a contributing factor in those loses. Keeping all those factors in mind, the two teams took on each other in Waterbury with a playoff spot looming on the horizon.

    As a result of numerous failures with the toss in the friendly games, it took Thapar several days of practice with a “two–headed” coin to finally figure out that calling heads was the only viable option. Hence he has been doing that in every league game and winning every toss. UBS decided to put United into bat owing to the fact that United has chased well against UBS this year. Before UBS took the field, the skipper stressed the importance of winning the game and putting forth quality bowling and fielding efforts. But the fact that the game was played at “City Mills PARK” was quite evident in some of the fielding efforts by Achal, Santosh and Akash.
    United started the proceedings with openers Kumar and Mulla. They played the initial spell of overs quite cautiously in the face of some tidy bowling by Thapar and Karthik. The initial breakthrough came when Thapar had Mulla caught behind on a dubious call by the umpire on an obvious bump ball. But this catch was just one of several spectacular catches that the UBS keeper Pragnesh took on this day. Kumar was caught brilliantly (or rather desperately) with one hand by Achal at gully. But alas, the first few overs were gone and Thapar was gassed as usual. In came Akash and Shashi to continue the tight bowling efforts where not even one boundary was scored yet. Michael Keen and Virrapen were at the crease for United and UBS knew that these were the two men who could take the game away from them. Shashi had no plans of letting the partnership flourish and had Virrapen caught by Akash at mid off. Surprisingly, Thapar took all the credit for placing a fielder there for exactly that shot by Virrapen, but everyone knew that a fielder had been stationed in that spot from the very first ball of the game. It wasn’t as brilliant as Bhavyen’s idea of keeping a deep cover for Keen from the first ball he faced which forced him to cut out his usual lofted drive over cover and made him fish for deliveries outside off. It eventually led to his downfall when he fished at one outside off only to nick it and have it brilliant caught by Pragnesh.
    With the two main batsmen for United back in the shed, it was time for UBS to tighten the screws and wrap up the innings. United’s keeper Jason fell cheaply to Akash and now a target of under 100 was looking possible. But Punter and Donovan put on a good partnership consisting of quick singles and some lusty hitting at the opportune times. Seeing Donovan bat against Jay was like Déjà vu all over again as balls were flying all over the place. Jay got the dubious honor of scoring back to back fifties (with the ball of course). Donovan and Punter worked well together to get the score over 100 when the latter fell to a smart appeal by Pragnesh behind the stumps. Raj joined Donovan and kept the score ticking and brought it to some respectability. After Donovon fell, the tail could not hold up and United’s innings was wrapped up for 147. Considering that the game was played on a fast outfield with short boundaries and dubious umpiring, restricting the total to 147 was an acceptable effort by UBS. Excellent keeping by Pragnesh and tight bowling by the 4 seamers Akash, Thapar, Karthik and Shashi were the highlights of the first half. Now it was upto the batsmen to see the team to victory.
    UBS sent in Bhavyen and Karthik to open the innings, but disaster struck when Bhavyen was bowled and Karthik was caught behind pretty quickly in the first few overs. United felt like they had a firm grip on the game now. Achal and Akash were at the crease now and began the rebuilding process by blocking most of the deliveries offered to them. They knew that once the new ball bowlers were through, United had very few backup options. In the first 10 overs UBS score line showed 11 runs at the loss of 2 wickets. The same rate continued to about the 17th over when a bowling change brought a wicket for United when Achal feathered a faint edge back to the keeper. It seemed like an inopportune time to lose a wicket but it got worse when Satish fell soon after while mistiming a pull to square leg. Akash was rendered helpless as wickets were falling at the other end.
    But that was about to change as Santosh with his cool temperament and solid technique went in to stabilize the innings. The bowling standards were deteriorating for United and hence the runs were flowing at a pretty steady rate. Akash helped the rate along with a couple of meaty sixes over midwicket and square leg. He was quickly closing in on his first 50 of the season as well as closing in on the winning target of 148. With about 60 runs needed to win, a hesitation on a quick single led to Akash’s downfall and he fell 2 runs short of his half century. After Akash made his way back to the pavilion, an appointment for a consultation with Dr. Phil was quickly set up by Achal because this is the second straight game that Akash has lost his wicket on an ill-advised run call.
    Thapar went in next to try and complete the chase as he has done 3 out of the last 4 games. He started off with quick singles and doubles to frustrate the bowlers but did not miss an opportunity to pepper the fence with a few hits. He and Santosh quickly brought the required runs down to 10. United’s skipper played his last remaining trump card by bringing himself and Punter back into the attack and it paid off as Santosh fell edging one back to the keeper off Punter. He had done a brilliant job stabilizing the innings when wickets had fallen in the middle. United felt like they had got a foot in the door now and a couple of quick wickets would have done the trick for them. Pragnesh now joined Thapar and without any further hiccups brought the team across the finish line. For some reason after the game, Thapar was under the impression that he was the Man of the Match even though Akash had made a brilliant 48 and had also taken several key wickets. Must be one of the perks of being the skipper.

Achal carries UBS into Hatters final

UBS CC 141/4 (Achal 45, Akash 30*) beat Danbury CC 140/7 (V Patel 43) by 6 wickets

Scorecard

By Akhil Thapar

With a place in the finals of the Hatter’s Cup all but assured, UBS took on Danbury CC in their final regular game on Saturday, July 19.

Danbury won the toss and decided to bat first. Atif blasted his way to a quickfire 22 before Akash, who bowled an exceptional line and length, had him caught at point by Bhavyen. Pavan was instrumental with the ball. Just as Danbury appeared to be building partnerships he pegged them back with his offbreaks. Khurram holed out to point and Shak skied one towards mid-off where Achal displayed his oft-hidden athletic abilities, pulling off a spectacular one-handed catch.

For Danbury, V Patel played exceptionally to top score with 43 and it was left to UBS’ partnership-breaker Bhavyen to bowl him out. Akash was the most effective of the bowlers and also the most economical - showing the ability to bowl consistent and dominant spells. Paras and Murali (a new find of Achal) were also among the wickets. Saral and Osama added a useful 37 runs for the eighth wicket to take the score to 140 before a sudden thunderstorm drove both teams off the field.

Chasing 140 in 30 overs wasn't going to be easy on the slightly two-paced surface and the wet outfield. UBS were hobbled by Bhavyen’s wicket with the score reading 18 but the 73-run stand between Achal (45 runs, 3 fours) and Saad (27 runs, 1 four) provided the impetus. Another mini-collapse with Saad, Achal and Nabeel losing their wickets in the space of 22 runs put them in a spot but Akash (24 runs, 3 fours) and Taseen (10) put on 28 in a harum-scarum final leg to drive UBS to victory with 2 overs to spare. Danbury's sloppy fielding didn't help but the batsmen ensured they didn't lose their head after Achal had been run out coz of a communication breakdown during a misfield.

Achal imposed himself on the match, smashing a scintillating 45 to earn his second consecutive Man of the Match and setting the stage for an easy win. UBS now await the results from the other matches to find out their opponents for the final.

Strong batting display by UBS sets up thrilling win

By Nikhel Thapar

UBS CC 271 all out (Bhavyen 52, Achal 43, Nikhel 33) beat St John’s CC 217 all out (T Whittick 44, G McKnight 4-46) by 54 runs

Scorecard

Bhavyen struck a dominating 52 off -- balls, including 6 fours and 2 sixes, well supported by a strong batting display, to lay the foundation for UBS CC’s 54 run victory against an improved St John’s team in Stamford. A fighting 44 from T Whittick and Rahul Francois gave St John’s confidence chasing 271 but with a steep required rate of 6.7 runs per over, UBS continued to chip away wickets and held onto critical catches to complete a comfortable win.

UBS skipper, Nikhel, chose to bat on a pitch which promised to be a batting paradise. Bhavyen (52) scored at even keel with Achal Yadav (43), with 6 fours and 1 six, in a 76-run partnership for the third wicket after which Nikhel (33) proceeded to tear into the St John’s attack with Santhosh (12) assisting him in a quick-fire 53 run fifth-wicket stand. Some late heroics by Pragnesh (32), who hit 5 fours off -- balls, and Akhil (18) pushed the score to a commanding 271. Gerald McKnight, with 4 for 46, was the top wicket-taker for St John’s while G Steadman conceded only 35 runs for his 3 wickets.

Akash was unlucky to go wicket-less in his opening spell with 3 catches dropped on his bowling and that saw the St John openers reach 58 before Shashi B struck the opening blow for UBS. He was quite accurate with his slower ones and was creating chances. In the middle overs UBS were running out of bowling options with Santhosh nursing a shoulder injury. Karthik one of the regulars was missing and another veteran lost his spirit at home and had to leave the game in the middle to go find it. The skipper was trying his best to juggle his resources and Achal and Satish were pressed into service . Jai M was keeping things steady at one end. The skipper had no option but to ask Akash to take up the keeping responsibilities after his spell to allow Pragnesh to bowl. Akash did a good job behind the stumps, teaming up with his skipper to record the run out of Mark Vernon (31), who had survived several close calls against Akash earlier.

St John’s were sniffing for a victory after Whittick and Rahul shared a 49 run partnership but fell away when both batsmen were dismissed with the score on 204. Whittick was bowled by Jay M, after being goaded to hit another six, while Rahul was caught superbly by Satish Illa off Pragnesh. The UBS bowlers ran through the tail, with Pragnesh and Nikhel taking two wickets apiece, as St John’s slumped to 217 all out. The middle innings fireworks from T Whittick, who blasted 44, gave St John’s hope, but not the match.

Man of the Match was Pragnesh for his all-round performance which included 32 runs, kept wickets beautifully on a long hot day and 2 vital wickets. For UBS, Akash(1), Shashi(2) and Jay M(2) were the others among the wickets but extras continued to be a source of concern for UBS with as many as 31 wides and no-balls being bowled in just 35.2 overs. With a bye next week, I am sure the bowlers will work to correct this aspect of their game in the practice matches. Another aspect to improve on is batsmen putting a bigger price on their wicket and continuing to build on their innings once settled.

A shout-out to Paras, the 12th man, for his work on the field including a well judged catch at deep square leg and Hitender for scoring the game. Kudos to the entire team for their effort in the field. Keep the hunger alive for the next half of the season.

UBS cruise to victory against Cheetah CC in Hatter's Tourney

By Shashikanth Bethi

UBS won the toss and elected to bat first, Achal and Bhavyen opened the innings for UBS, we got a very good start as Achal and Bhavyen started playing shots after seeing of the M Sial bowling and scored a 100 runs partnership in no time. While it was looking and thought both would stay till the end of the innings Bhavyen was out trying to hit a big shot, then Amit walked in and was looking good playing straight and took his time to settle and after hitting couple of good shots along with Achal who completed his half century and runs where flowing and UBS was in good position with 9 wickets in hand. Amit got out trying to increase the momentum and Achal followed him, Achal played an important and brilliant knock then Bobby and Akhil with fresh legs were brilliant between the wickets and one shot to be remembered is Bobby’s six of M Sial’s bowling. UBS at the end of the innings were 199 with loss of 3 wickets. Now it was time for the Cheetahs’ to chase 200 in 35 overs. M Sial walked along with other batsmen to chase the target. They started off good; hitting a couple of boundaries in Akash’s first over and the runs started to flow easily with sial hitting the ball to each corner of the ground. Cheetahs were 38 in jus 5 overs and then Thapar struck with a wonderful catch by Achal at the boundary line and then wickets started to fall at regular intervals. Achal took 4 catches in the innings and Shashi and Pawan took 3 and 2 wickets respectively and another brilliant catch at the boundary by Shailender. UBS was at the verge of winning with a 100 runs margin but the 9th wicket partnership took some time and stayed at the wicket frustrating the UBS bowlers but there was some practice for bowlers who didn’t get achance to bowl and then Bobby took a catch of Nikhel’s bowling to claim the last wicket for UBS. Achal won the Man of the Match award for a brilliant 64 and 4 catches to his name.

UBS hold their nerves in a HIGH VOLTAGE Clash against Eagles

By Amit Bhagat

Even in today’s Digital world, the Significance of Antique Grand Father clocks stand firm; so long their pendulum keeps swinging in either direction, Same was the fate of both UBS & EAGLES; on this gloomy day as the entire day could be characterized; the event of a perfect see-saw.

The UBS skipper won the toss…AGAIN & decided to field.

The conditions were perfect for seam bowling & the decision was rewarded pretty quickly as Mahmood Sial tried to withdraw from a stroke which made him look like an ordinary Batsman…..but oh..well, it was too late & a sharp catch was taken by the EVER DANGEROUS Illa at the 1st slip of Thapar’s bowling.

Bobby at the other end looked pretty composed & stole singles at will; Next batsman tried to rotate the strike but was neatly caught by Shashi at backward Short Square Leg of Kartik’s Bowling. In came the Skipper `KHALLID` & he quickly started rotating the strike with some sharp singles & doubles by neatly timing the ball in the gaps, followed by a couple of lofted boundaries in between the placed fielders; he is indeed one of the best batsman in the league with his calm/gentle yet very smart & alert approach.

At this point the UBS skipper had signaled his throat slashing gesture & went off the field to get some massage & Sun screen lotion from Paris Hilton.(Obviously in his dreams)

Young Dhaval took the field in lieu with the skipper who happens to be only 3 months YOUNGER than the UBS SkipperJ.Dhaval ran like a brand new ASTON MARTIN & showed GOOD HUSTLEJ all over the park, his efforts are indeed appreciated.

The stand in Captain took charge & brought Shashi by changing Kartik’s end, the decision paid off in The very over as Khalid(Who was looking set; to smack a BIG SCORE) gave an easy catch to Santhosh in the Short covers region. Shafi walked in, only to be amused by the Nonsense of the fielders in the 30 yards circle & fell cheaply with the feeling of being a scapegoat of Achal’s bowling; taken abruptly by Bhavyen at the Covers.

In a matter of 1 & Half hour, EAGLES were 55 for 5 in 13 overs. Bobby had been quite at the other end all along but had now started taking chances with the infamousJ Asif Jafari and between the 2 came the most meaningful partnership of EAGLES.

NHECC were all out @ 135 at the end of 34.1 overs.

Jay & Santhosh bowled very well in tandem but the initial blood was drawn by Thapar & Kartik. Achal & Shashi did their JOB by extracting the un-imagined wickets. Young Divyeash bowled excellent line (Except some wides, which has to improve) & eventually got the prized wicket of Bobby in the 30th over.

No one had ever dreaded the next half of the game ever…. in their lives, UBS sent Bhavyen.t & Amit.B to fetch the game for them.

1st ball Amit.B faced; thought was meant for a SIX over covers but while slashing hard on it, he realized that a chest height catch was sharply taken at the 1st slip; the next batsman also slashed the ball & gave a lousy catch to the point fielder. Shashi walked in to make matters worse & was dismissed instantaneously; caught behind & the NHECC were already celebrating their 1st HAT-TRICK of the season.

UBS looked in total disarray of score reading 3 DOWN for 0 (Zero)

An embarrassing UBS Defeat looked imminent at this point & everyone felt the jolt of a total collapse, the feeling among the Ubs players was being against the wall & nowhere to escape.

Bhavyen hung in there for his 13 valuable runs & was joined by Achal, the duo added some 20 odd runs before Achal edged one past the keeper but only to be grabbed, the snick was heard all the way to Down Town New Haven but Achal stood his ground until the umpire officially raised his finger.

Bhavyen was unlucky to be given LBW while the R.H Bowler came around the wickets.

Next batsman was the Stylish Satish Illa & they (Kartik & Illa) kept the score board ticking before Kartik fell to the Leggie at deep Mid-Wicket.The UBS Score card read 65/6.

Satish illa looked in good touch & was now joined by Santosh. Both batsmen played sensibly & took the score to 90+ before Santosh was cleaned up by Sharat of Eagles.

It was only due to these 2 Batsmen that UBS could reach into the 90’s…both showed excellent temperament with Defense & Attack. Santosh played some gorgeous shots in the covers region & Satish Illa showed the Stainless steel WILL to see the team all the way to the end.

The last hiccup was Santosh` wicket & that brought The skipper Thapar to the crease & he played his classic style of Awesome Attack, Weird Defense, awkward sweep and restless Running between the wickets and safely brought UBS HOME. Full marks/Credit goes to the skipper who did his job & has taken the team out of trouble with his Batting 4 times in a row… now; in the last 4 weeks.

The man of the Match was indeed Satish Illa who scored 23* NOT OUT of 54 Balls but did not blink even once & was involved in 3 Major partnerships in this hard fought victory.

A word of special Mention also goes to Krunal Patel for Dropping Divyeash & Dhaval @ the home field/helping with the mat etc; before going for the umpiring to Bridgeport.

Thanks a lot guys, really appreciate it.

Way to go UBS!!!!!!!

Bhavyen's 70 drives UBS to victory in Hatter's opener

By Akhil Thapar

A depleted UBS lineup took on Cheshire CC in the opening game of the Hatter's tournament in Danbury on Saturday. Only Bhavyen, Akash and Akhil represented UBS while the rest were assembled from NMCC and Danbury CC.

With showers imminent and a thick outfield, Akash surprisingly won the toss and decided to bat. Bhavyen played some amazing shots including 3 fours and a six over point of the third ball of the match. The decision to bat proved to be a wise one with Bhavyen(70) and Akash(28) playing well and putting on 65 runs in the first 14 overs before Akash was bowled. Bhavyen was joined by Prakar(30) and the two kept the scorebard chugging along with singles and the occasional boundary. After a few interruptions due to rain, UBS posted 155 on the board for the loss of 4 wickets.

Cheshire began disastrously with Kayur claiming a wicket in his second over. The UBS bowling attack which included Akash, Atif (from Danbury CC), Mirza bhai and Taseen (from NMCC) plus Bhavyen stifled the Cheshire batsmen and picked up wickets at regular intervals. Cheshire eventually folded for 100 all out with Mirza bhai (2 wkts), Taseen (4 wkts), Akash (1) and Bhavyen claiming 2 wickets. For UBS, the bowlers restricted themselves to just 10 extras in 25 odd overs. Bhavyen took a stunning catch at cover point while Akash held onto three catches including a one-handed stunner to dismiss the last batsman. Bhavyen was adjudged Man of the match.

On behalf of UBS CC, I would like to thank everybody from NMCC and Danbury CC who helped UBS field a complete team. Also, thanks to Danbury CC for hosting and the refreshments after the game.

UBS lose to WHCC in TUCC trophy final

UBS lost to WHCC in the finals of the TUCC trophy finals. WHCC, captained by Bhanu, won the toss and decided to bat. UBS bowlers atarted well and had WHCC in trouble at 70/7 before the last three wickets put on 133 runs. Vinod and Sai contributed with the bat.

In reply, UBS started off disastrously losing Satish with the score at 11. Baby and Pragnesh too fell cheaply. Only Bobby, Shashi and Akash put up a fight and UBS were still in the game at the halfway mark. However, Akash, who was looking in ominous touch, was run out in a comedy of errors with Shashi holding his ground and Akash arriving at his end for a quick single. Raj M bowled well to clean up the lower batsmen and with Hitender getting run out in another yes/no/yes situation, UBS finally lost to WHCC this season.

Thanks to United CC for hosting the final, umpiring and providing awesome refreshements and food at the end of the game. Special thanks to Suresh bhai and his family for sponsoring the trophy and his support throughout the tourney.

UBS notch 2nd win in SCTCA league against Cheshire

By Bhavyen Trivedi

    On the back of a tough and close fought loss to New Milford, UBS was determined to release a lot its frustrations on a Cheshire team which is often underestimated by its opponents and has a reputation of slaying giants such as Norwalk, West Haven and Bridgeport. Such an upset would have severely damaged UBS’ chances of advancing to the playoffs. The two tough tasks for UBS before the game was to- a) find a way to win the toss and, b) find a way to make liquid Gatorade out of powdered Gatorade. Not surprisingly, UBS failed in both those adventures.
    Cheshire without hesitation decided to bat first and put on a decent score to defend. They sent in their skipper Piyu along with Nirav to open the proceedings. UBS started with Thapar and Karthik who quite contrary to the norm were very economical and stingy with the extras. Cheshire batsmen were content to see off the new ball and take the odd ones or twos (right from the pages of the rahul dravid playbook). They were also helped by some shoddy fielding by …………. Well they know who they are. Excuses such as, “I cannot bend down, by the time I bend the ball is by me” were offered for each such occurrence. Put 2 and 2 together and you will figure out who they were.
    Karthik struck the initial blow by having Nirav pop a catch to Achal at short cover. Thapar had kept a lid on the scoring but after his customary quota of 2 overs (quite inadequate for a strike bowler) he had indicated he was through by making his patented throat slashing gesture. Akash was brought in as first change and kept the noose tight by firing a couple of stingy overs. The runs had dried up but wickets were not falling and hence thapar decided to give the spinners an early go with the ball. Jay was introduced from one end, but started out poorly because the batsmen had had plenty of time to settle down and whack that intial over from Jay. That over was the only dark mark on Jay’s day. Bhavyen was brought in from the other end but was very ineffective and gave up a couple of extras and a boundary in one over. He would have accounted for Saeed’s wicket if not for a howler by the square leg umpire who turned down an obvious stumping appeal. Seeing that the spin was having no effect on the batsmen, Thapar brought back the pace bowlers in the form of Krunal and Akash. Krunal was a little wayward but got the breakthrough his skipper needed by having Saeed pop a simple catch to Thapar at mid on who made it look infinitely more difficult by acting like he lost the ball in the sun and adding a nautanki dive after the catch was comfortably secured within his two hands. And the Oscar for the leading role in a Drama or tragedy goes to………….
    Piyu was determined to stay at the crease as long as possible and was doing so by blocking out the good balls and taking singles and doubles on the others. Pretty soon the pacers were proving to be ineffective too and the scoring was looking quite easy. Jay was brought back in the attack to see if he could create some inroads and he did just that as he has Shafqat hit a full toss right down the throat of Bhavyen at deep square leg. A legitimate dive ensued to drive home the point that the catch was not as easy as it looked. Achal was brought on at the other end and bowled tidily while also grabbing a wicket on an easy long hop that was hit right at Jay who gobbled it up cleanly. But Piyu was hard to dismiss on the other end and kept picking up the runs to make sure he reached his 50. He batted until the 33rd over and bought the Cheshire total to a hefty position. He fell trying to hit Thapar out of the park only to see his furniture rearranged behind him. Jay followed it up with a couple of quick wickets but the tail wagged for Cheshire and brought the total to a respectable 164. Jay finally finished the innings with 5 wickets as he had one of the tailenders sky a top edge to Achal at short mid wicket. The final total was helped along by 37 extras bowled by the bowlers.
    UBS had to reach a target of 165 in order to keep their playoff hopes alive. Another game, another opening combination was used as Bhavyen opened the batting with Karthik this time after Amit had played a sublime innings against New Milford just 7 days ago. They started off cautiously as Cheshire kept a tight line and length. Disaster struck for UBS when Bhavyen was caught at cover playing an uppish cover drive. Karthik followed suit by playing all around a straight one and with a flash UBS were down 2 wickets with nothing substantial on the board. Shashi and Achal tried to settle the nerves but the Cheshire bowlers were on fire and struck again by dismissing Achal cheaply. UBS was truly behind the eight ball now. Satish who was short of runs for the last few matches went in next and began the rebuilding process with Shashi. They kept the good ones out and punished the loose ones for some much needed boudaries. With rain clouds forming in the horizon, UBS had to get to a total of 88 in 20 overs to stay ahead of the Cheshire’s scoring rate and earn a win in case of a rainout. They had comfortably achieved that and were cruising along when disaster struck and Satish edged a wide one to gully and fell for a well made 23. The game had suddenly taken a turn here and the pressure was mounting. Thapar decided to go in himself and take control of the situation owing to the fact that the team was struggling and he had been in good form for the last few weeks. He continued his good form by taking quick singles and doubles and putting the odd bad ball to the fence. The Thapar – Shashi partnership was flourishing and the target was getting smaller and smaller. Just then, Shashi lost his wicket and was caught behind for a well made 21. Shashi played an important part in settling everybody’s nerves after the early loss of wickets. Akash joined thapar and as expected the two jack rabbits were running all over the place. The scoreboard was ticking along nicely and only 35 runs were now needed for victory. But thapar had other plans as he hit a long hop right down the throat of the only fielder placed deep on the leg side. He could have hit it anywhere from Kashmir to Kerala but managed to find the lone man standing on the boundary. Let’s not even lower our aptitudes by discussing the excuse that was used to justify his downfall after making his way back to the pavilion.
    With 35 runs now needed, the last 3 wickets now had the task of bringing the game home. Divyesh joined Akash in the middle and the two used their minds sensibly by cutting out unnecessary shots and just taking the singles on offer. Wait a minute, I might have spoken too soon because with 20 runs needed, Akash gave a glimpse of his Chaudhary abilities again by going for a half sweep half paddle to fineleg, connecting on neither only to see the bails whipped off by a sure handed Cheshire keeper. Just like thapar, we should not indulge in the details of the excuse given by Akash. Paras was next to join Divyesh and without any hiccups the pair managed to bring the team home to a much needed victory. UBS got valuable contributions from the middle and late order while batting in managing to stay off the list of upsets sprung by Cheshire.

Achal and Nikhel contribute in inter-league win over Hartford rivals

By Achal Yadav

Achal Yadav and Nikhel Thapar represented the SCTCA interleague team and played against the Hartford team. SCTCA team managed to score 155, with highest contribution from Nikhel of 30 runs coming at a vital stage. Achal managed 8 runs.155 runs on the board was not a solid total to defend and needed some excellent bowling and fielding. The Hartford team were cruising towards a win when Nikhel took an amazing catch at mid wicket and tilted the game to SCTCA's side. Next partnership was also looking solid when Achal got the batsman run out with a direct hit and got SCTCA back in the winning postion. SCTCA team ended up winnning the game. Excellent captaincy throughout the game By Prasad S from WHCC.

Captain's Report (continued)

Warriors Innings
We get a 15 minute break. This being my first match as captain, I dont quite have an idea of whoz good at what. Before the beginning of the match, I kind of asked everyone their strengths. Krunal markets Dhaval to me as a good opener & I take his word. Meanwhile, I ask Vasif ( the 12th guy ) to open. Re-grouping all team members, I advise against complacency and insist on the fact that 3.5 rpo isn't a big ask, as long as we just stand there 30 overs.

Vasif has a ROB ( Rush Of Blood ) And perishes in the first over and we are 4 for1 at the end of first over. Abhishek Bhattacharya goes in 1 down to steady the ship. He & Dhaval chug along nicely & suddenly, against the run of play. Dhaval (17)gets an superb delivery ( think it was the incutter ) and we are 30 for 2 at the end of 5 overs.
Since Kashinath didn't get to do too much ni the bowling department, I send him in. Abhishek, meanwhile looks settled and hits a superb inside shot over covers for 4. Somehow, he manages to lose his wicket trying to guide the ball thru the gully area (out for 7). In goes Divyesh and he along with Kashi smoothen the ruffled feathers. Taking time to guage the pitch and picking singles. Once his eye is in, Divyesh goes after the bowling, Kashi plays the sheet anchor role. Divyesh, chases a juicy wide ball & throws away his wicket(for 22) but by now, the writing is on the wall. Pawan walks in to bat & by the first drinks break, UBS warriors are 85 – 4 off 15 overs. So 20 runs required in 15 overs with 6 wickets in hand.

Trying to finish off the innings, Pawan falls(for 4) & I walk in with just some 10 odd runs to win. Kashi falls(for 17), again trying to finish off the innings with a big shot and in comes Hetul. De-ja vu !!! It was with him 4 weeks ago, against this very team on this very ground wherein I was in a pressure cooker situation with Hetul at the other end, against the Cheshires itself that we made sure UBS won with a last wicket partnership, in that Surinder plaha tourney. This time, things were much easier & we see thru UBS Warriors without any further hiccups in 18.4 overs & with 5 wickets to spare.

Good Factors:
1) I liked the way we fought back & kept getting wickets, despite Cheshire scoring between 6-8 runs per over. This is, by far, Cheshire's LOWEST SCORE EVER, in friendlies at least.

2) Given the fact that there were 7 people for Cheshire's main team, we did a good job.

3) Ground fielding was encourageable.

Areas of Improvement:
1) It was a competition within a competition.. a not-so-good competition of who bowls more extras than each other. We bowled 29. Cheshire bettered us with 38. I would like to see my team to make a conscious note of this & improve on this front. Things will only get tougher from here on. So, no excuses from here on.

2) Also, the opening batsmen & the middle order MUST go in with a mind frame of trying to bat all the allotted 30/35 overs, else we will always be hard-pressed for a comfortable win.

3) Catching needs to Improve. PERIOD. There are no 2 ways @ it. We dropped 2 easy ones else we cud have had Cheshire for under 70.

4) All our fielders, especially the close-in ones, should be very, very VOCAL in their support for the bowler. Keep encouraging your team and your bowler loud enough for BOTH batsman to hear. I remember only 4-5 guys including me doing the shouting.

Until the next chapter, Adios !

P.S. : I wanted to make sure that since this was a practice game, everybody gets a chance to so something i.e. either batting or bowling or both. The only exception was Rohan…. Rohan, let that not be a deterrent in you coming for the next practice game. I assure you, you surely fit in "our scheme of things."

Captain's Report - UBS Warriors defeat Cheshire CC

By Nikhil Mahajan

"I don't give up, man." was what he told me ! And am I glad, he didn't !!! 60% chances of Thunderstorms on Sunday June 22 with showers in the morning, was the friggin' forecast. That was enough to dampen anyone's spirits. But not our Mr President's !!!

All week long, Amit really tried hard to schedule the first game for UBS Warriors. Until then, my stand was to play the saturday's game against our 'best foes' West Haven, as I could play only either on Saturday OR on Sunday, but not both. On late Friday evening, Cheshire captain Piyu confirmed Sunday's game with Amit and I pulled out of Saturday's game.

Latter part of Saturday went in calling people and confirming their schedules. Later that night, at Amit's place, I got to see what it takes to have a car full of cricketing amenities i.e. the mat, the tarpaulin, the nails/hammers et al. I was raring to go. On a very overcast sunday morning, I had 11 confirmed people for the game. No Maybe's anywhere.

I along with 2 of my new friends, Sachin Bhogte & Kasinath, reached the ground at 10.15 for the 11.30 game start. Soon, the new Londoners (Divyesh,Krunal,Hetul & Dhaval) trickled in ; the pitch was rolled, the mat hammered in tight. Pawan picked Shashi from NM & a minute later came in Abhishek & Rohan. All 11 of us were raring to go by 11.15am.

11.15 am. No one from Cheshire in sight. It was such nice fun sitting there on the ground twiddling fingers. I recommend it to everyone whenever you are bored to death.
11.30 am. One guy drops in. Informs of an accident on I-91. Krunal gets 'wild' and claims that there are never any accidents on I-91. My friend frustration was round the corner J
11.45 am. Piyu comes in & talks @ the accident. With him, he brings my most dreaded friend.. i.e. the rain. We cover the pitch from the sharp shower and the thunder in the background is ominous by it's rumble. We keep the covers on, only to remove them 5 minutes later.
NOON. Finally, looks like most of Cheshire guys come in and the hint of rain again comes back, flattering to deceive.
12.15 pm. Keeping the threat of a rain shortened match in mind, me and Piyu decide on a 30-over game. I lose the toss and as expected, Cheshire elect to bat. Onto the field, finally.

Cheshire innings

Krunal strikes in the first over, claiming Piyu, caught by Divyesh at first slip. A short stoppage in play. Vasif & Khurram walk in the field at around 12.35pm and it's decided that both teams will have a 11-tofield, 12-to-bat setup, with Vasif playing from our side. I tell Vasif to come back after 1 hour, as our 11 had already taken the field. Apparently, Krunal's concentration has gone with the wind to the far end of the ground and he goes for many runs in his 2nd and his 3rd over. Divyesh meanwhile bowls a tight line and length from the other end & the 2nd wicket falls.

Cheshire behave as though nothing's happened. Keep tonking our bowlers intermittently. RPO shoots to over 8 RPO. TO change the pace of play a bit, I bring in left arm chinaman, Sachin Bhogte ( one of my sr. friends from the tennis circuit). The Cheshire script remains un-changed for the next 4 overs, courtesy a dropped catch at square-leg off Sachin's bowling & another one at mid-on of Divyesh';s bowling... They motor along at 7 rpo. Divyesh strikes again in his 5th over on the trot & shows signs of tiring. Cheshire : 3 down for 40 odd..

Divyesh is replaced by Shashi, who, in his first ball, clean bowls the 'chucker' from Cheshire ( forgot his name ). Sachin finds his rhythm after 2 overs and starts bowling brilliantly. Pace at one end and spin at the other abrupts Cheshire's rhythm. They are 50 in 6 overs but have lost 4 wickets in the process.

What runs as a parallel process to all this is a steady flow of extras i.e. be it in the form of occasional 5 wides down the legside or on the off side. Sachin gets his first wicket & I decide to bowl all his overs out at one go. Sashi picks up Raja Bhai & Ehsaan, taking his tally to 3 wickets. By the end of the 15th Overs, Cheshire are very well up the run-rate but fast running out of batsman. It's 85-7 at the end of 15. I smell blood and go in for the kill.

With a '12-to-bat' setup, I bring in Pawan to bowl and almost scream when he bowls a line no-ball first ball ( for a spinner ) but somehow control myself. He strikes gold in the same over, getting his first wicket off a fulltoss which the batsman misses & is bowled... and for a few runs more, Cheshire r 8 down for 90. What follows thereafter was a procession of sorts. Krunal gets another one from the other end.2 more wickets to go ( since it's 12 to bat) , with 100 on board. Pawan, by this time, was having enough of it and gets 2 wickets in his last over. Maybe, he was in a hurry & all he wanted to was mop his brow ! ;-) . The Cheshire innings's "Khatam Kahani" at 105. 106 to win in 30 overs ! EXTRAS given by us: 29

Captain’s knock from Thapar propels UBS to TUCC Trophy finals

By Bhavyen Trivedi

Another meeting between UBS and West Haven, this time in the TUCC trophy, was all set to be a close encounter with UBS needing to clinch the match to advance to the finals. West Haven generously decided to host the match on a hot, humid sunny afternoon.
After continuing his nautanki all week about not being able to play the West Haven game because he had to go to the airport, Thapar surprisingly showed up before everyone else on the field. I guess Baby was right when he says that Thapar never signs up for games but always ends up playing anyway. Akash, even with the help of Satish, kept the UBS tradition of losing the toss alive.

West Haven decided to bat first and overwhelmed the UBS bowling attack by setting a stiff target of 203 after 35 overs. Prabhat and Arpit were sent to open the innings while Nik and Akash shared the new ball, bowling some excellent line and length but for many close decisions that went in favor of the batsmen. They also mixed in a few loose deliveries which were quickly dispatched to the boundary. The batsmen were moving along at a brisk rate and looked settled in for a big knock when Thapar got a break through by getting Arpit to sky a catch to mid-off where Shashi took it comfortably.
Vikrant went in next and hung around with Prabhat to keep the scorecard flying along. Runs were flowing regularly hence Nikhel brought in Mikey (Camma..fellas) Verma in to bowl. He started off with a couple of deliveries that landed where the pitch ends and the grass starts and ended up where the first slip ends and the second slip starts. He tried to correct the line of the ball but the batsmen hit the ball where the field ends and the parking lot starts. Mikey did settle in after that start to bowl a couple of tight overs.

Prabhat was going great guns and it felt like the only way he would get out was through a runout and that’s exactly what happened when they tried a tight run towards square leg. He fell for a well made 36.

Manu mama went in next and began typically by nudging a few around for runs but did not miss on an opportunity to smack Achal to the boundary when a loose delivery was offered. Knowing Achal, he blamed the fielder for misfielding when the ball was nowhere close to the fielder. Conveniently ignoring the fact as to why the ball was allowed to be hit that far anyway. Raajniti at its best from the master.

The runs were flowing fast and furious hence Thapar brought himself into the attack and quickly struck by getting Manu mama to sky one to Bhavyen at deep cover. Achal was brought back and got Jignesh’s wicket at a crucial stage. Thapar repeated his act by getting Raj M to fly out to Bhavyen at deep cover again. Akash dropped a catch off Achal’s bowling the very next over. Dropping a catch off Achal’s bowling is a fate worse than death because he will torment you and torture you for the rest of your life. Achal bowled an excellent spell but for the last over where the WH batsmen put pressure on the bowler and the fielders to pillage some much needed runs.

Bhanu the stand-in skipper was at the wicket now and was trying to maximize the score because the overs were running out. Bhavyen, amid a lackadaisical display of fielding, held on to two pretty good catches in the outfield and bowled an excellent last over which also saw two wickets fall including a stumping of Bhanu who had decided to dance down the wicket and hit a six but unfortunately for him saw his furniture re-arranged by a quick handed Satish (Bob Harley) Illa behind the stumps. That’s twice in two contests that Bhavyen has sent Bhanu packing.

For UBS, extras continued to be source of concern with almost 50+ runs being scored off wides, byes etc. Satish did a good job behind the stumps after some early morning jitters.

The UBS run chase got off to a nervous start with Bhavyen being dropped at slips off the very first ball. However, Bhavyen and Akash steadied their nerves and calmly pushed the score to 71 in 10 overs by taking the quick ones and twos and hitting the loose ones to the fence. Bhavyen was bowled around his legs by Jignesh. Satish went in next, fresh from his practice in Hartford and he was looking set for a big one. Running between wickets was always going to be an issue with Akash and Satish because one is a jack rabbit and the other one is a tortoise. Akash got the short end of the stick this time as Satish hit one straight back to the bowler who alertly threw down the stumps at the bowlers end and caught Akash short while backing up. Satish fell quickly after trying to hit one over point by instead hit it straight down the fielders throat.

Next man in was Shailender who along with Achal batted, as if to save a test on the fifth day at the WACA. Shailender missed about a dozen chops outside off but was fluent with his flicks behind square. The scorecard at the end of 20 overs read 90 runs with another 114 needed in 15 overs. Shailender had to retire hurt due to back spasms. Mikey went in next and along with Achal began to accelerate the score with well placed singles and doubles. Just when Achal looked set for a big one he got a nasty dipper from Jignesh which crashed into Achal’s stumps before he could get his 9’10’’ frame down to defend it.

Thapar came in next and along with Mikey began to consolidate by keeping the score card ticking and also dispatching the odd misplaced delivery. With 10 overs left UBS needed about 80 runs. The next couple of overs were heavily punished by Thapar including tall drives straight over long off and covers. The required rate had come down to 30 off 36 balls. But Thapar did not want to wait that long and decided to finish it off in the next couple of overs with several lofted drives and cuts. It was merely academic from then on as even the fall of a couple of wickets did not stop UBS and they coasted to victory with 2 overs to spare and 3 wickets in hand. After the game winning six, Thapar (56*) quickly collapsed to the ground to mesmerize the audience and drive home his candidacy for this year’s Oscar for the best actor.

Jai Singh’s composed 41 pushes NMCC past UBS

By Akhil Thapar

A composed 41 by Jai Singh was instrumental in leading NMCC to a 2-wicket victory against UBS CC on a rain punctuated day in New Milford. Chasing a modest 148, NMCC got contributions from most of their batsmen while extras from UBS bowlers eased the pressure on New Milford’s batsmen in the hard fought run chase.

The damage to UBS's chances, however, had been inflicted in the first half of the innings, when their middle order was unable to forge significant partnerships after Bhavyen Trivedi and Amit Bhagat provided an explosive start to the team. Poor shot selection accounted for a few while others were made to look silly; at last the lack of practice was evident.

Coming off their confident victory against Norwalk, UBS were looking to build some early momentum in the league stage. Nikhel won the toss and decided to bat first. For the first 8 overs, the decision was rewarded with Amit B bludgeoning his way to a quick-fire 28 at more than a run a ball. Bhavyen was happy to rotate the strike and admire Amit drive Rana Imran out of the attack. With runs leaking quicker than the falling rain, Jay brought himself on and delivered by grabbing a tough c&b to see off Amit. Karthik and Satish soon followed Amit back to the pavilion, bowled by Tasin Muti.

Pragnesh looked to provide Bhavyen some support and the two batsmen compiled a watchful 23 run partnership to steady the innings after the quick departure of Karthik and Satish. Pragnesh was unlucky to be given run out just as the partnership was beginning to blossom and this started another slide with Akash, Achal and Baby falling cheaply to Taseen Muti and Bhavyen departing after a watchful 24.

The captain walked in with the score reading 91/8 and UBS staring at an embarrassing blowout. With Chirag giving him good company at the other end, Nikhel tried to get UBS out of the enormous hole they had dug themselves in. The two batted for 12+ overs, pushing the UBS score to a respectable 147 after the middle order had squandered a solid start when the team was in a position to post a 175+ score. However, Nikhel, who had come in at No. 9, had run out of specialist batting partners and struggled to single-handedly keep the strike. After striking 41 invaluable runs, which included 5 fours and a six, Nikhel got runout trying to secure the strike with tail-enders at the other end. In an already rain reduced match, UBS were unable to bat out 38 overs.

The weather gods too did not cooperate with UBS. After batting in a light to heavy drizzle, UBS took the field on a comfortable sunny afternoon. Nikhel and Karthik opened the bowling and were guilty of too many loose deliveries or extras, which saw NMCC reach 42/1 in just 8 overs. With the introduction of Jay M at one end, Nikhel rotated the bowlers at the other end and was successful in getting wickets at regular intervals, giving UBS a sniff of victory. UBS redeemed itself somewhat in the fielding department, producing a spirited fight back which saw them knock off 8 NMCC wickets and with Jai Singh’s departure, a UBS win looked possible. Jay M bowled a tight spell, but some erratic bowling at the other end kept relieving the pressure and NMCC reached the target with 5 overs to spare.

This is the second time in three weeks that UBS has been somewhat screwed by the weather. But the blame lay squarely with our batsmen who failed to apply themselves according to the match situation. In a lineup which bats 9 deep, it is unacceptable that the team not even play out the alloted quota of overs and only 3 batsmen score in double figures. Apart from Nikhel’s rescue effort at the end and a gutsy performance by Chirag, UBS could have been blown out of the game. In the end it was not an embarrassing loss, with the team fighting hard to almost bowl out NMCC. Only Jai Singh’s composed innings saw NMCC squeak by UBS.

The result could have been different had UBS kept a couple of wickets in hand and bowled with more discipline. Some important decisions lie in front of the team captain and senior players to put UBS back on the winning track to avoid the embarrassment of the Twenty20 stage from repeating itself. UBS has too good a team to have lost two out of three of its opening games. Mistakes, like those on Sunday, will not help UBS’ cause.