Captains Corner for Finals by Rahul

Post date: Nov 14, 2009 12:16:33 AM

Finals FUCC vs WGCC, Sunday November 16th, 2014 - the day we will cherish for rest of our life. 

WGCC players arrived with very high confidence after winning the previous two games against us and they all seemed pretty pumped up over the social media and made it sound like this would be a cake walk for them but very little they knew what was in the store for them. 

Batting-

We decided to stick with the same opening pair, keeping in mind the performance from the previous game and most importantly hoping that Raj will break his jinx against WGCC. We all anxiously waited for the first over and as Raj confidently middled every ball and also scored two boundaries, i had a gut feeling he broke the shackles and will go long way. And so it began.. Raj killed Biv in his second over scoring two boundaries and one huge six!! That would have drowned Biv's confidence. Myself and Raj continued from there consistently getting 8-12 runs an over. It was a delight to watch Raj from the other end as he hit those massive 4's and 6's. We had a partnership of 120 runs before Raj got out for a brilliant 94 of just 56 balls. After i got out Sunil and Sunny E gave us a perfect finish, they scored 40 runs in last three overs. Specially Sunny E who scored 18 runs in the last over, his 26 runs of 10 balls was the deciding factor in the context of this game

Bowling-

Sukesh again was too good for WGCC batsman with his in-swingers, also bowled a maiden over to Sinu while chasing a mammoth total of 218, was just unbelievable. He ended his spell with just 16 runs beating the best by long margin. Navneeth bowled as per the plan and just took them by surprise with his pace and bouncers and picked two wickets in his first over that was a big set back to WGCC. Harish, suresh and sitta bowled well, they always kept the runrate below the required rate. But it was only in the end where we lost our momentum and let WGCC get so close to the target. My heart was in my mouth when they needed only 4 runs of the last ball but thanks to Biv for that shocking one hand flick of the wide ball for just two runs. But who cares if we won by just one run or 100 runs, the fact is that we WON and we are the CHAMPION!!!!  I will never forget that final moments of the game, the victory celebrations, that feeling of relief and joy for each other and for the team.

It was just an outstanding effort by the whole T-E-A-M. It's been a while since i had that team feeling, seriously!!  For most of us it's lot more than just a trophy, it is a feeling of achievement, it is the beginning of a new phase loaded with fun, trust and peace of mind while playing the game of cricket that we all love so much. I personally enjoyed every minute playing with you guys. Thanks for supporting me as a captain, i understand i may have made mistakes and may not have met everybody's expectations but i have tried my best and kept my communication open and transparent. I hope to continue playing with you guys in the future and i believe we all can stick together as a team for long time and win many more tournaments in the future.

Recognition

• • Raj  for solid batting performance and man of the match knock in the finals. He had also been lightning quick behind the stumps, I have not seen a better keeper than him for long time. 

  • Sunny K for consistent batting performing. They say wine gets better with age and that is so true. He is still playing like he is in his 20's. (i am talking about cricket btw). His contributions with bat was one of the main factors for FUCC to qualify for finals. 

  • Teji - The power hitter, proved his abilities as an opener. His knock of 65 against WGCC will be remembered for long time. 

  • Sunil - a very strong finisher, always got quick runs when the team needed. I have personally watched him play in Raleigh and he's got capabilities of playing big innings. Also, his fielding was commendable in the long on area.

  • Sunny E - appreciate all the dedication he showed during this tournament. Despite of his injuries he came out and supported the team by fielding two consecutive games. And who can forget his knock of 26 of 10 balls in the finals. He just nailed Gaba in the last over. Well done mate! That's the way to shut their mouth. 

  • Suresh - was very consistent with his left arm bowling, picked up wickets at very critical times. We all surely applaud his courage for bowling the last over in the finals. 

  • Sukesh- Top wicket taker of the tournament and has been the backbone of our bowling through out the series. His spell of 4-1-16-0 in the finals was just outstanding as every other bowler struggled on that day. In the context of that game it was as good as picking up three wickets and i consider it as a match winning performance. Apart from the finals his performance in the league games also has been great. 

  • Navneeth - Shane bond of FUCC- quick and aggressive. He just terrorized WGCC in the finals with his aggressive bouncers and picking two very important wickets of Rohan and Dipen in his first over. Funny part is Sinu constantly appealed for no-balls but the fact is he just could not handle his bouncers. Great job boy!!

  • Sitta - man with the golden arm, picked Mayur wicket in the finals, people who know Mayur know the value of his wicket. He also bowled economically when ever he was handed the ball. His dedication is beyond this world, always willing to do anything for the team.

  • Vinod - great addition to the team in terms of bowling, batting and fielding. His contributions with bowling was valuable in both the matches he played and of course who can forget those catches he took at long on area. 

  • Dennis - very handy bowler, bowled economically and also was there for the team when it was really needed. Thanks Bro!

  • Harish - oops i meant Sir Harish, (respect), provided variety to our bowling attack with this off-spin bowling, i believe he is the only bowler to pick 5 wicket haul in this tournament. But more than a bowler he has done a great job as Vice Captain, helped me with team selection, player availability, practice co-ordination and provided his valuable suggestions time and again. We had very good understanding between each other and that actually helped me a lot running this team smoothly. 

Love you All!!

GO FUCC!!!!!!!

~Rahul Mandewalkr