Nisar's Hurriance Pushes Us Through

Match Report: Friday 25th May 2007

Took some time coming but Nisar and Ahmed's hurricane innings were too much for our opponents to take and got us our 3rd win. A good solid batting display by Sameer Bhai and Rizwan handled the foundation of the innings well and finally Bilal took us to the finish line.

Earlier we started our bowling with Anees Bhai and Waqar and both maintained pressure with occasional boundaries being hit on them. Rizwan let go off a few difficult chances otherwise the pressure would have been on them from start. We were playing with 10 fielders on the small ground and wanted wickets from start, to prevent the batsmen from settling in.

Although there were some close calls but we didn't find wickets till the 10th over, when Sameer Bhai came and got our first wicket. The opener mis hit the ball and it went up in the air and Rizwan took a nice high catch. He took a wicket in the same over when he bold the batsmen. First time in the match our bowling took the initiative.

Wicky make good and quick bowling changes never allowing the batsmen to settle in. He brought himself and Anees Bhai back and took a wicket as well with a clean bold.

Nisar couldn't find his magic touch with his tight spin bowling today and was hit out of the ground on more than one occassions. Guess he was saving his magic for later.

Our last 5 overs saw 77 runs as the batsmen especially their opener who batted till the end made the most of the small ground and took his chances.

We required 221 runs in 20 overs. And with the small ground we always backed ourselves to get them. The captain's strategy worked when he sent in Nisar and Rizwan as opener. And as they say the best strategy is the one that works out. And work it did since Nisar cut lose and Rizwan played his usual anchor sheet role. The opener partnership got us 74 runs in 6.3 overs.

Rizwan got out caught behind while trying to run the ball to fine leg, didn't look comfortable against spin but still managed to score 15 off 17 balls with 1 boundary. Just what was required from him. In came Sameer Bhai next and anchored the innings from the 6th over till the 17th over. It was an exceptional innings from him since he played exactly as the situation required. Initially he worked with Nisar, then Ahmed and then took charge when Bilal arrived at the crease. At all times he played as the situation required and when he left, he left the scoring rate from 11 runs per over to 7 runs per over. Making it very easy for the remaining batsmen to take us to the finish line. For me his innings was the best.

Nisar's magic clearly put us on the front foot and because of his innings the match never looked out of reach for us. He scored 62 off 29 balls with 4 sixes and 5 boundaries. A good thing about his innings was that he didn't play foolish or false shots and when he did hit he hit it with full heart and timing. He battled not the bowling but also heat and never looked like tiring. This kind of energy was required from both the openers and has brought fresh air in the camp.

Ahmed came in when Nisar went and played a beautiful innings which was a mix of restraint, energy, stamina and powerful hitting. It was a lethal combination and it kept the required run rate fixed at 11 runs per over.

In first 10 overs we finally broke the 100 runs in mark and did that in style. We made 110 runs in the first 10 overs and therefore required 11 runs per over in the remaining 10. Ahmed finally hit out and was caught on the boundary with the score on 140 runs.

Wicky came in next hit a boundary on the leg side, but was out trying to hit the ball out of the planet. At that time due to falling of almost back to back wickets of Ahmed and Wicky, pressure was tilted on us. Bilal came in next. And reversed the role with Sameer Bhai. Bilal tried to operate in singles and didn't try to hit the ball in the air. Sameer Bhai then took the attack to the other team. They got a good partnership of 50 runs and Sameer Bhai also hit 20 runs in a single over. Finally with 25 runs required of around 3 overs he hit out and was out caught on the boundary. At that time sensible batting was required which was provided by Bilal who didn't take any risk and dealt in chiefly singles and doubles. Finally in the last over 4 runs were required. With the field in and hitting out a sensible shot, Bilal hit a six when 2 runs were required from 4 balls. We won the match in style with 3 balls and 5 wickets to spare.

Great work guys especially our batting which came good and held their nerves together and played according to the situation.

My Performance
This week I tried to bowl with a new action for more speed. The first over went good and the batsmen didn't look in a mood to punish. Bowled a few balls on the leg as well and they were not able to connect. At that time both the openers were playing and seemed to set. I got the speed, but wasn't able to jerk my wrist that much so the bounce was not there.

The second over was a little way ward since my first ball was hit for a boundary and I bowled a full toss as well, which got the inside edge and Rizwan missed to stop it as well and it went straight to the boundary. I changed my action back to the old and immediately got some bounce. I feel that I am able to use my wrist with the old action and get more speed with the new action. So in a dilemma now on what to do.

My last over was unlucky so I am not worrying about it that much. The opener was well set and was trying to hit out on every delivery. I didn't try to bowl any full delivery since it would have been easily dispatched by him without any risk. I decided to mix it up and bowl a little shot. An easy catch was dropped by Nisar and went for boundary as well. After that I was hit for a six and a boundary. I gave 15 runs in that over, and that too after bowling 3 good deliveries in the start.

I think I should work out how and where to bowl when the batsman is in the violent mode. In the last match in this ground I bowled full but was easily dispatched. I think I should work out on fast yorkers. Its a very difficult thing to do especially when you are bowling at the death and shouldn't rely at all on the fielders. Anyways, dear blog, lets see what happens, will try to keep you updated.

The Fightback

Match Report: 18th May 2007

If defeat has some sweetness I am sure that it would be the same that we feel in us at the moment. After the last two disasters it was very important for us to make a strong fightback and surely we did just that. Last time our bowling and fielding was nothing to write home about and this time it was very important for us to give a very good performance. And we did just that.

The day started in confusion about whether the match will take place or not, since in Kuwait nowadays the weather is very dusty and sometimes its so thick that the visibility is almost zero. The match did start though, although a couple hours of late.

Our bowling and fielding took 10 wickets today and packed the team for 159 runs. The special thing about it was that the other team was not a push over and it really felt good that for once we had an upper hand on the field and that too against a good all round team. As Anees Bhai says we kept our tail up ;) and restricted them to 159.

Junaid Bhai started with the first over and gave away 19 runs in it. The line was a bit incorrect and sometimes down the leg, I am sure he would improve on it. Anees Bhai bowled 4 on the trot and took 2 wickets for us. The captain decided to pursue with him since he was bowling a lethal line and length. As always I am a fan of watching a bold off his bowling. His second wicket came with a good and well judged catch on the boundary by Abdullah.

Wicky also bowled well and tried to stop the run flow and managed to do it to some extent.

I came in with the same idea of bowling wicket to wicket but this time was looking for a little more speed and bounce, which I finally manage to find it, thanks to a timely advice from my friend Mohsin for jerking my wrist with as much power as I can. I took 2 wickets one of them was a bold and one a caught behind. A bold is always special even if the batsman had decided to stay jammed in his crease and pull the ball. And oh yes bowled by first bouncer as well.

Anyways the pick of all bowlers was Nisar who took 4 wickets. His first over saw his first wicket when the batsman tried to hit him out of the ground only to whole it up in the air and Ahmed took a well judged and comfortable catch. It seemed to break the shackels for him and in his remaining overs he kept on looking for more wickets. He went on to take 3 more wickets which included a good catch from Rizwan. It is always difficult to take a catch on spin bowling. So well done Rizwan.

Abdullah bowled good off spin as well and took 2 wickets, with one wicket coming off a stumping from Rizwan. Hopefully this good performance by Rizwan will spark a new self belief in him and he would continue with the good work behind the wicket on spin bowlers as well.

A few words about our fielding. We took all the chances that we got and didn't give up any relief to the batsman. This just goes to show that if we take the chances that we get we can easily restrict the score to below average. A few fielders did horrible ground fielding, and they know who they are, so not necessary to mention the name. We are waiting for you to stop the ball. Khurram did well in the field and gave his 100%.

Our batting started miserably once again, with the Captain showing confidence in Ahmed to open with Nisar in the absence of Bilal. The idea possibly was to get some quick runs so as to put the fielding team on the back foot immediately. But that didn't work out and Ahmed was caught behind on the second ball he faced. Nisar also went early and he was clean bowled after hitting a strong boundary over the head of the point fielder.

In the absence of Bilal and Sameer Bhai we played two new players Abdullah and Masood. Both came on pitch and gave some sort of stability. Abdullah played well and confidently, Masood also was playing well but didn't look very comfortable and finally was out stumped. Abdullah continued in the same fashion and was joined in by Waqar. As the score was not that much therefore a good partnership was needed at that time. But as the law of averages goes, Waqar was out caught behind while trying to sweep. Rizwan came in next and played well along with Abdullah in an extreme pressure situation. That was a very critical partnership for us and both of them played exceptionally well, while keeping the required rate in check. The good thing about their batting was that they took minimum risk and kept the required scoring rate (which was fluctuating between 7-9) in check. Finally Rizwan got too tired and tried to go for a suicidal run and was run out. At that time the required runs were in 20s and as hind sight, it would have better if both Abdullah and Rizwan would have gone and finished the match for us. Abu Bakar came in next and after scoring a few runs was out caught. I came in and that time 10 runs were required off 7 balls.

Abdullah faced the first ball of the last over and was out caught on the boundary. I faced the next ball and was out caught on the boundary as well. I got a half volley but probably didn't how and where to hit that powerfully, so I chose a location which was the easiest but it went straight to the fielder. Anees Bhai faced the next ball and was out bowled on the first ball. Junaid Bhai came in next and we got a boundary off a fine edge and hence brought the runs required to 5 runs from 2 balls. In the next 2 balls we got 2 more runs and hence lost the match by just 2 runs. We were not all out so that was something which was good for us.

It was a good show from all of us and we did give a fighting performance. The score was not that much and it was expected from our batting to deliver today, but that was not to be. Hopefully we all can sit and do self analysis, since self analysis is the only way we can improve ourselves. And once we start doing that then sky is the limit.

And the tale of destruction continues...

May 11th 2007

If our performance can be summarized into one word the word would be shameful. Last week our batting let us down and now it was our bowling and fielding.

Yes the ground was small, yes every batsman got 3-4 chances because of dropped catches or poor umpiring, yes the ball was smaller and harder to control, yes the umpiring was very poor, but still a 300+ score ! Thats shameful.

Since the ground was small therefore the run flow could have only been stopped by good wicket to wicket line and length, good fielding and most of all catching of at least easy chances, since taking wickets was the only form of stopping the run flow. But that was not to be today.

And to top it all off we started off with 9 people on the field as Anees came late and our new member of the team Abu Bakar gave proof of his dedication by not showing up at the last moment. At least he should have let us know so that we might have made other arrangements. Amir Bhai as well couldn't make it today, but he had let us know about it earlier.

I was made the fielding captain and had a few ideas on how to go about things. I bowled the first over and with a easy, high, well judged (and I must say brave as well, since some of us, don't even think about taking these catches) catch from Nisar got us the first wicket in the first over. Since Wicky was injured, therefore he couldn't bowl and was wicket keeping so Ahmed bowled the second over. In my last blog I had written that he can be tried in the first 2 overs. And I am sorry I wrote that. He was unable to find length and control and gave away huge number of runs alongwith 5 boundaries.

My third over saw three boundaries, but one of the boundaries was from a edge and I wasn't that bothered from the boundaries being hit on me. The only thing that was bothering me was the size of the ball. After the 3rd over Wicky had enough of my fielding captainship and asked to give the ball to Sameer Bhai rather than Anees Bhai who had arrived in the last over. Same flurry of boundaries continued since again Sameer Bhai, most probably due to the size of the ball, wasn't able to find line and length and bowled some full tosses which were duly cashed on to the fullest by the batsmen.

Nisar came in next and bowled very well. Both the batsmen were unable to read him but they wanted to hit him, and that caused them to balloon the ball up in the air. Twice in two balls the ball went to Ahmed for a easy catch and twice it was dropped. Ahmed's ground fielding was excellent both in the last and this match but his catching was horrible and hence was one of the factors of the 300+ score. Rizwan also a dropped a difficult chance of his bowling, as it was an inside edge. I am sure Rizwan will work out the chinks in his wicket keeping armor. He did a good stumping/runout as well, off Nisar's bowling. I think Nisar should have at least got 2-3 wickets, but due to poor fielding wasn't able to do so.

Strangely enough Wicky, who had earlier stated, was so injured that he wasn't even able to throw the ball, came back from injury and started to bowl! If he was fit enough he could have bowled in the first 2 overs. Anyways, despite our hopes, he too wasn't able to control the run flow with 2 sixes and a boundary in his first over. I think he bowled well but full tosses are a crime which must be punished by boundaries, which duly were.

Sameer Bhai was not able to find wickets for us this time around and suffered from bowling down the leg, bowling full tosses and bowling short. Which were free hits for the batsmen.

Bilal also bowled well with some variety in his bowling, he managed to bring confusion in the minds of the batsmen. Sure he was hit for boundaries as well, but I will not blame him for that since at least he made the batsmen take the risk and did not give them any free hits.

About my bowling, before coming in this match I had made up my mind of bowling fast and had also worked on my action. I practiced as well before the match was able to find bounce and speed, and was very confident today. But the size of the ball made me change my strategy and yet again I opted to bowl slow line and length deliveries with variety. In my first over I found some swing as well, but wasn't able to control it. In my third over I gave only 7 runs and was asked to bowl the last over. My last over saw 2 dropped catches and that too from my favourite fielders Nisar and Bilal. Nisar's catch was pretty easy but Bilal's chance was a little difficult. He tried to hold on a difficult chance but couldn't make it. In my last over I was hit for 4 boundaries (2 fours and 2 sixes I think). I think I was bowling the same deliveries to a set batsmen, who cashed on it as much as he can. As a hindsight I should have bowled some varieties.

Anees Bhai bowled just one over and that too 19th over. He was brought in pretty late. And he took a wicket and the batsmen were not able to find boundaries from his bowling. I think Anees Bhai should be treated as our attack bowler and bringing him so low down the bowling order, shouldn't be repeated.

In the field, Junaid Bhai, improved his fielding efforts. Khurram didn't get a lot of fielding chances and whenever the ball went to him gave his best.

In the end a few words about Wicky and captainship. Someone very wise told me once, if you are in charge, you will get 3 kinds of personnel. One group will follow your orders once they know what your orders are, one group will never follow you, and one group wants to follow you but couldn't. The best leader is the one who brings out the best in everyone and make him deliver for the team.

To sum it up, when the going is tough and our bowling is being treated as in effective, the best thing a captain can do is get involved with the bowlers and fielders and talk to them on particular line and length. Sometimes a few lines like, forget about the previous balls, concentrate on the off stump, bend your back and fire the ball in, can be a moral booster for the bowler, since at times when you are being hit for boundaries, you lose self belief and don't know what to do and that needs to re-instated and can be done effectively, only by the captain.

Anyways its Wicky's team, he has made great efforts in bringing the team together, and he knows best on how to go about things. Its fun for playing for the team, anyways. The captain would have to figure out whether we are happy with the state of things as is or want to improve on this. And for improvement extra efforts are needed.

A few words about our batting, which faced a huge task. Bilal didn't bother the scorers and himself too much and was clean bowled in the second over. Nisar and Sameer Bhai tried to set things in motion, but weren't able to. Sameer Bhai either blocked the ball or hit lovely boundaries. Didn't bother to run very much. The ball was bigger and hence more difficult to find the middle of the bat. Nisar played well as well but was not able to break lose as the situation demanded. Only Wicky and Ahmed broke really lose and we were able to see some lovely boundaries and sixes. Wicky was injured mid way and Ahmed came in, started off confidently and hit his Afridi like HUGE sixes and boundaries. In the end he holed up one in the air and was caught on the boundary. Wicky came back again and called him for running. Rizwan played in his own style of singles and doubles. Tried to hit but was not able to. Anyways he did try. Wicky played well and we saw some delightful boundaries and sixes from him. Towards the end, the fielders didn't bother to catch the ball as well and Wicky made the most out of it. But in the end the score was too much to bear. Hats off to Ahmed for running for Wicky. I have rarely seen him show so much dedication for himself while running. Hopefully he would be able to work more on his stamina and we can see a big score from him.

In the end a few words about abusing on the field. Guys this should be controlled and next time MuST not be repeated. Also arrangements should be made properly. We were a player short and had to bowl with a smaller ball and bat with a bigger one. This gave an unfair advantage to the other team. Also discipline demands that such players are not invited again, who don't appear after confirmation. Since we are a new team, therefore we cannot afford to give such chances to the other team.

Friday the 4th of May - Daastaan-e-Destruction

If ever there was doubt in our minds about the words demolition and complete destruction, I think they were removed today. Since we were outclassed in every department and fairly and squarely beaten.

We won the toss and were happy to bat first, but that was the furthest that our happiness went today. We got 11 runs from the first over but mainly due to extras. In the second over Bilal was clean bowled attempting what seemed to be a golf like swing of his bat.

Sameer Bhai was promoted up the order so that he has less pressure and more balls, but luck didn't favour him and he was caught behind on the very first ball, as he tried to cut the ball violently. Waqar came in next and steadied the ship along with Nisar. Nisar hit 2 sixes in 2 balls, but a lethal line and length by all the bowlers didn't allow them to cut lose and from 6th to 9th overs the scoring rate was below par. Waqar in trying to rotate the strike was clean bowled. After Waqar, the flood gates opened and I don't know why we even bothered going in the middle. Probably just for a good walk.

Ahmed came in next but apart from his trade mark big six didn't manage to cut lose as well. In the end Rizwan was left all alone and we only managed to score 103 runs and only faced around 15 overs.

We took the field with a glimmer of hope that if we can be out for 103 they can be as well. But that glimmer didn't last long as we saw the Big Daddies bashing the ball in all corners. A positive full faced pull for boundary off Wicky's fast bowling continued the rot. Rarely have we seen a new ball being treated this way. Anyways we went through the motions and tried to enjoy the already lost game and have fun watching the Big Daddies bat.

Rarely we saw a bad shot and there was so much power in their shots that it was fun watching them. Highlight obviously was the over of Junaid Bhai, when only 2 runs were required and the whole field was in. Anees Bhai's dropped catch prevented Junaid Bhai from getting his first ever wicket.

Bilal & Ahmed fielded well.

The tournament is more less over for us and we managed to win 2 out of 5 games. Actually the final outcome wasn't as bad as shown from the 2/5 tally. We did have 2 very close games, which we should have won.

Obviously it was the first tournament for us and there were lot of experimentations, trial and errors, and waiting for players to come in form. I remember the patheticness of our fielding and field placings initially which was all cured during the tournament. Some of the findings of this tournament, I have listed below. This is only my point of view, so if you disagree place a comment for all to read.

Batting
I think with this tournament we have identified our main men. Nisar, Rizwan, Waqar and Sameer Bhai are and can be four of our most reliable batsmen. I think this should be our batting order in the next tournament or friendly match as well. They seem to not only enjoy their batting but also know the value of scoring runs and staying in the wicket. Rarely I have seen them throw their wickets away.

Bilal is doing good for us as well, but needs to work on his shot selection, shot development, stamina and the ability to occupy the crease. I am sure if he does a little bit planning and practice he would come out good.

Ahmed is the Afridi of the team, if he goes on he can get us quick runs, if not then not. I think rather than having a fixed number, he should be utilized whenever some quick runs are required. And especially when the ball is old and fielders are tired.

Amir Bhai is still in the grey area and haven't come good for us as yet.

Remaining team i.e. me, Junaid Bhai, Khurram and Anees Bhai need to work on not losing their wicket and scoring runs in singles and doubles.

Bowling
Anees and Wicky are doing good as our first 2 bowlers, since they are the fastest, but they are not finding wickets. I think with some intelligent and attacking field placing and bowling we might be able to get wickets at the start. They need to work out on their bowling as well, so that they get us at least 1-2 wickets in the first 2-3 overs.

Sameer Bhai is bowling good and getting us wickets, so he just needs to work on more variety and form.

I and Ahmed are the other 2 options. I started off with attack bowling but one bad match and my role is changed now. I look to stop runs and wait for batsmen to make the mistake. Ahmed needs to be tried in the first 2 overs, since this is the only option that is available to us but we haven't tried uptil now. He might get us wickets at the start, but he just needs to work on his run up and action, I am sure he would develop in a reliable attack bowler.

Remaining options in bowling are Junaid Bhai, Bilal and Nisar. They need to develop more control in their bowling and stop boundaries. Their target should be not to give even a single boundary in their over.

Fielding
aaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhh. The less said the better. But lets identify our better fielders and what more can we do to stop this rot.

Bilal is a good and reliable fielder at the moment and rarely I have seen him mis fielding. Junaid Bhai is the worst, rarely I have seen him stopping one. I think Bilal is one of the best if not the best in our team.

Remaining, including me, needs to work on their fielding. I think it would be a good idea, if on Thursdays or anyother weekday, we can have just simple fielding practice, for about an hour. This would develop our fitness levels as well.

In the end it feels good playing for the team, but losing sucks. Hopefully the harder we work, better we would get.