MCA Youth Camp Ends with Victory for Players over Coaches

MCA’s summer youth camp concluded on Friday, 14 September, with a two-innings match between the Players and their Coaches and Parents at Lyon Oaks. In fading light an anxious umpire (whose decision making had already been called into question several times) ended play with the match apparently drawn, but consultation of the playing conditions revealed that, in such an event, the team with the first-innings lead would be declared the winner. The Coaches and Parents had scored an aggregate of 85 runs in two innings when bad light stopped play, but Shreyas Bolar’s power-hitting had earlier taken the Players to 55 in eight overs, while the Coaches and Parents had been able to muster only a modest 42/6 in their first innings, so the Players were duly declared victorious. Highlights for the Players included: the spectacular yorking of Coach Gordon Makin by the Players’ Captain Sarosh Irani, a dismissal that brought whoops of delight from the entire field as the Coaches and Parents’ opening batsman played all around the delivery; excellent batting and bowling from the diminutive Vidvath Vasudevan and Amit; good work behind the stumps from Sameer Yelamarthi; enthusiastic and economical spells from Tejas Bolar, Vishrudh Vasudevan, Tejas Bolar, and Atharwa Kale; fine efforts with ball and bat from Smit and Dikshant; and some good bowling from the injured Advath, who came on to assist an increasingly bedraggled Coaches and Parents’ attack. In the field MCA Joint Head Coach Vasanth Krishnaswami let his side down at least twice, blaming his drops on the poor light, while fellow Joint Head Coach Shyam Mayasandra’s run-out also contributed to the defeat. Coach Chamila Kannangara seemed to prefer advice to action, and it was left to the Parents to shore up their side’s efforts, both with bat and ball. Had Ashutosh Kale not been no-balled twice for over-stepping after appearing to take wickets (not the only dubious decisions from MCA’s Information Director, whose eyesight and competence were repeatedly questioned by Coach Gordon Makin), the story might have been different, as Parents Vasu, Bal, Narine, Ardeshir, and Venkat also worked hard to remedy deficiencies in the performance of the Coaches.

Once the bad light had curtailed the cricket, players, coaches, and parents gathered in the middle to celebrate the end of the camp. Coaches were thanked for their efforts over the summer and players congratulated for their accomplishments and evident skills. MCA hopes to offer indoor coaching and match sessions starting in October.

Although the umpire’s decision to abandon play because of bad light was almost universally criticized on Friday, the picture above suggests that the light at Lyon Oaks was, indeed, rather poor as camp concluded.

Motown-MCA Lose Narrowly to Canton

The final chapter in Motown-MCA’s “nearly” story for the regular league season was written on Saturday, when a depleted team lost to Canton C.C. on their home ground by eleven runs, despite bowling the opposition out for 154. For Motown-MCA, who lost the toss and were asked to field, Khayam Hashmi took 3/26, MCA Joint Head Coach Vasanth Krishnaswami took 3/30, and MPCC’s Apu took 2/19, while Rahul top-scored for the opposition with 36; MCA’s Gordon Makin took two catches behind the stumps. The away team must have been delighted to have restricted the opposition to such a low score on one of Michigan’s smallest grounds, but, despite fighting knocks from Jashwanth (35) and Hari (42), batting at nos 3 and 4, respectively, Motown-MCA’s ten men could not quite get over the line. Vijay Patel, opening, was the only other Motown-MCA batsman to reach double figures, scoring 19. For Canton Vishal and Rahul both took three wickets.

Notwithstanding the disappointments of the regular season, Motown-MCA enter the second stage of the tournament with a chance to advance from the Silver Group, where they will play matches against two other teams from the bottom half of the table, with one of the three progressing to the semi-finals.

Canton, 154 all out, defeated Motown-MCA, 143 all out, by eleven runs.

Motown-MCA Lose Narrowly to Troy

On 23 June at Bloomer Park Motown-MCA restricted Troy to 215 runs off 37.2 overs (Pawan 3/26, Mani 2/39; Prajwal 58, Tejas 32), but fell twelve runs short in a run chase that ended in the 37^th over (Shyam 49, Mani 40).

Although Troy lost Jagminder early, the second-wicket stand of 93 between Prajwal and Ankur (28) ensured that Motown-MCA labored in the field, despite economical bowling from new-ball bowlers Anurag and Rohit, and first-change Khayam, making his first appearance for the team. Although wickets fell regularly after that stand, double figure scores from Harinder (20), Srinivas (10), and ninth man Tejas (32) provided Troy’s bowlers with a defendable total. The Motown-MCA spinners all bowled some tight overs, with Pawan’s 3/26 in eight overs (including a wicket maiden and a maiden) the pick of them. Among the fielding highlights was Ani’s direct hit to run out the dangerous Harinder.

Troy looked to blunt Motown-MCA’s big-hitting opening batsman, MCA Joint Head Coach Shyam Mayasandra, by opening with spin from both ends, but it was the other opening batsman, Gordon Makin, who fell to Sathish Ketkar in the first over, trying to glance a ball that he should have played straight. Anurag and Shyam rebuilt effectively, although Anurag was left to rue the shot that broke their 54-run partnership, with him on 16, and when Shyam fell one short of his fifty with the score on 81, bowled by Tejas, Motown-MCA’s biggest hope for an easy victory was gone. Mani’s excellent 40, captain Sathish’s 15, and 24 and 17 from the new men Khayam and Apurva, respectively, were not quite enough. Murali, injured taking a catch and batting no. 11, was left stranded on 2 not out when Pawan was narrowly run out for the tenth wicket.

Troy C. C. beat Motown-MCA by twelve runs.
Motown-MCA had no match over the weekend of 30 June / 31 July.

Motown-MCA Fixture Postponed: Batting Line-up Too Explosive?

The Motown-MCA fixture  against Canton C. C., due to be played on Saturday 16 June, was postponed by order of the Canton Fire Marshall, after it was realized that a fireworks display had been scheduled for the Canton ground on the same day as the MichCA 40-0vers match. Motown-MCA’s advance guard arrived at the ground at 9.45 today, only to find a truck full of highly-explosive fireworks in the outfield, together with a dozen men charged with setting up the display, which is part of Canton Liberty Fest 2012.  There were apologies for the double booking, but nothing could be done.  Motown-MCA repaired to a local restaurant for a buffet lunch and then headed home, some looking forward to today’s Euro 2012 matches on TV, others to an afternoon visit to the Lyon Oaks nets.  Rumors that the Fire Marshall had described Motown-MCA’s batting line-up as “too explosive to bat near a truck-load of industrial-strength fireworks” have yet to be confirmed.

Motown-MCA Lose to Toledo in 40-overs League

Motown-MCA put in a much better performance in the field on Saturday, taking some excellent catches and generally fielding well, but still lost by one wicket to a rather depleted Toledo side, for whom late-arriving batsman and man-of-the-match Arjun Ajbani scored an unbeaten 93 to see the Ohioans to victory. The outstanding performers for Motown-MCA, the home side at the Canton ground, were MCA’s Anurag Yerabati, who scored an excellent 30 and produced a very fine spell with the ball (7-0-28-4) and senior man Hari, whose beautifully crafted 82, scored after hardly touching a bat for months, was a reminder that “class is permanent”. Jashwanth Reddy took an exceptionally fine diving catch in the gully to dismiss Toledo’s Santosh Patel for one off the bowling of Murali, while Toledo’s other opener, Nayan Patel, fell to an athletic catch by wicket-keeper Gordon Makin, diving down the leg side to take a swirling edge off Sravan one-handed. However, the young wicket keeper was left to rue a chance spurned behind the wicket, given off spinner Mani by Arjun Ajbani before he had scored.

Motown-MCA began optimistically, batting against only eight men for the first fourteen overs of their innings (the ninth man arrived in the fifteenth over, and Ajbani arrived only in time to bat five-down), knowing, moreover, that Toledo had been penalized for late arrival by having four overs docked from their own batting innings. However, opener Gordon Makin, scorer of an unbeaten 61 last week, was reminded of the cruelties of the game when Chirag Bhandari yorked him for one with the score on thirteen. Murali and Mani both played some nice shots, but will regret finding fielders, and it was left to Anurag and Hari to make sure that Motown-MCA had a competitive score. Anurag, whose frustration at falling to the very effective slow bowling of Philip Allen (5/39) was understandable, showed once again what an improved and mature batsman he is now, playing a variety of shots and batting sensibly in partnership with Hari, whose offside play was particularly impressive. Apart from them, Mani’s 10 was the only Motown-MCA score in double figures, as the lower order fell cheaply, leaving MCA Joint Head Coach Vasanth Krishnaswami stranded on five not out and the final score a rather disappointing 195.

When Toledo were 49/5 the home team probably thought that an early end to the match and escape from the intense heat and humidity were in sight. Sravan’s swing (5-0-28-3) and Anurag’s variety and accuracy looked as if they would guarantee a victory, and when Rohan Kapkar fell for 30 to Anurag, well caught by Pradeep in the outfield, with the score on 109, thoughts were still on an early victory. Anurag dismissed both Viral Thaker and Rakesh Patel, having earlier disposed of the dangerous Devin Patel, lbw for 8, but the late-arriving Arjun Ajbani could not be dislodged, offering just the one, crucial, chance behind before he had scored. He batted patiently, in careful partnership with last man Philip Allen, until the penultimate over allotted to Toledo, bowled by the previously economical Hari. Three fine sixes off four balls tied the score, and winning runs were then scored off the last ball of the 35^th over.

Motown-MCA 195 all out in 32.5 overs (Hari 82, Anurag 30; Philip Allen 5/39) lost by one wicket to Toledo (196/8 in 35 overs; Arjun 93 n.o, Rohan 30; Anurag 4/28, Sravan 3/28).

Motown-MCA Lose First 40-overs Match of Season to Lions; Two M-MCA Men Score Half Centuries

On Saturday, in the first match of this season’s Michigan Cricket Association 40-overs competition, the combined Motown C.C. and MCA team went down heavily to last year’s champions, Lions C.C., at the Lyon Oaks cricket ground. Half centuries for two batsmen from the home team, who lost only three wickets in their reply to Lions’ 311/4, provided some comfort, although dropped catches had earlier helped to boost the Lions’ total.

Lions, led by Shahid Malik, last year’s tournament MVP and best bowler, won the toss and elected to bat, with Nitesh and Tanvir providing the foundation for the team’s big total in a first-wicket stand of 88.  That partnership ended when Tanvir was caught on exactly 50 by stand-in captain Mani (replacing the injured Sathish Thandapani), off the bowling of Anurag Yerabati, who had recently recorded his own second career half-century for Great Lakes Cricket Academy against Holland C. C. in the GLCC 40-overs tournament. Anurag also dismissed the dangerous Zahid Butt for 6, while Mani had Farooq Malik well caught by Pawan Canchi, diving at short midwicket, for 21. Nitesh, however, was not to be dislodged, carrying his bat for a powerful 111, which turned out to be the almost exactly the winning margin for Lions. A quick fire 63 not out from Adnan (three sixes, six fours), batting at no 6, ensured that Motown-MCA suffered in the field during the final ten overs, when over a hundred runs were added to the total for no loss. MCA’s Rohit Mogalayapalli, who took the new ball with Murali, was the most economical bowler, giving up only 16 runs in four overs and finding an excellent line and length after his first over. Sravan, coming on as third-change, bowled seven containing overs, giving up only 37 runs (given the Lions’ powerful line-up, very respectable figures). Anurag, who bowled the only maiden in the innings, took 2/70 in eight overs, while Mani took 2/73, also in eight overs. Pawan Canchi’s off spin provided three solid overs, and new man Jashwanth Reddy turned his arm for two overs. However, Motown-MCA’s bowlers might feel a little aggrieved at the apparently inflated figures the score sheet recorded because a problem that has dogged the team all season was much in evidence on Saturday as the Lions went after the bowling: some half a dozen chances went down in the field, several of which might, if taken, have turned the game in the hosts’ favor. If the catches offered in the deep by the big hitters had been taken, Lions might have been compelled to bat more cautiously in the second half of their innings, while catches dropped closer to the bat, including one behind the wicket, would have certainly raised team morale.

At the innings break the Motown-MCA acting captain instructed his team to bat out the forty overs, feeling that a serious run chase was probably beyond a line-up short of truly big hitters. MCA Joint Head Coach Shyam Mayasandra and wicket-keeper Gordon Makin opened the innings, and immediately announced their intentions with a series of singles. Mayasandra was unlucky to take a top edge to the forehead when on six, and retired briefly (although refusing all suggestions of a trip to a local hospital); he returned at the fall of the second wicket, on 24, eager to punish the bowling, hitting 37 (one six), before trying to chip leg-spinner Mansoor into no-man’s-land only to find mid-on. Praveen and Jashwanth had gone quickly (to Ali and Mansour, respectively), but Gordon Makin made it clear that he intended to stay, scoring most of his runs with ground shots, supported by some quick running. He and Mani tested the field repeatedly, resulting in three threes for Gordon, and a run four and a run five for Mani. As Lions searched for bowlers who could take the necessary wickets, Gordon and Mani were able to speed up their scoring (Sanjeev’s two maidens and Milinder’s opening over, also a maiden, had contributed to earlier containment). The stand-in captain opened his own account with a maximum off Mansour’s final over, while the younger batsmen lifted Tanvir over midwicket for his first six at Lyon Oaks. Gordon Makin’s maiden fifty in a MichCA league match was greeted with applause by his team mates, but he might well have taken as much pleasure from ending the innings unbeaten, carrying his bat for 61. Mani brought up his fifty with some clever hitting and energetic running in the final over, closing the match on 58 not out.

While the home team ended the day disappointed with the loss, the batting and some solid bowling provided grounds for  hope that the successes of last season can be built upon this year.

Lions 311/4 in forty overs (Nitesh 111 not out, Adnan 63 not out, Tanvir 50) defeated Motown-MCA, 198/3 in forty overs (Gordon Makin 61 not out, Mani 58 not out, Shyam Mayasandra 37) by 113 runs.  Man-of -the-Match, as adjudged by umpire Dr V. V. Giri: Nitesh (111 not out, 2-0-15-0).

Motown-MCA in the Great Lakes Tournament

The joint Motown C.C. / MCA team, captained by Sathish Thandapani, has now played three of its four group matches in MichCA’s Great Lakes Tournament (T20). On 29 April, Motown-MCA played at Grand Rapids, where the home team set a challenging target of 174 after being put in (Billa with 41 not out and Rahul with 31 led the way for the home team, while Mani’s figures of 2-24 were best among the visiting bowlers’). In reply, the visitors came close, as opener Jay Nirban (40) and Mani, batting two down (also 40) led the run charge, but, in the end, the visitors paid for some rusty fielding that allowed Grand Rapids to score over 100 runs in the last ten overs, ending their innings on 158/9, to lose by 16 runs.

On 12 May Motown-MCA easily defeated Canton C. C. in Canton, bowling the opposition out for under 100, with Mani again starring with the ball, this time taking five wickets, while Jay Nirban led a successful run chase.

On 19 May, again at Canton, Motown-MCA went down to a strong Detroit Super Kings team, with DSK’s Prasanna dominating with the bat.

Motown-MCA’s last group fixture is scheduled for this weekend, against Wayne State C.C.

MCA XI Victorious in both NCCC Pool Matches, Advances to Semi-finals

Last weekend the MCA XI secured a berth in the National College Cricket Championship semi-finals with victories over teams from Oakland University and the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. The semi-final lineup has not yet been announced, but MCA, one of only two teams with maximum points in group play, is assured a berth.

MCA 135/6 in 20 overs (Yerabati 46, Makin 34; Akshat 3/21) beat OU, 132 a.o. in twenty overs, by three runs (Suri 53, Akshat 24, Shaki 3/27).

At Hartland on Saturday MCA captain Kishan Patel won the toss and chose to bat against OU. MCA regulars Ani Mayasandra, Anurag Yerabati, Pawan Canchi, and Gordon Makin were joined on the team by occasional MCA players Kishan Patel, Jay and Jeet Nirban, by two Chicagoans, Akhil Sridher and Ashish Ahuja, both of them regular tourists with MCA tournament teams, and by two local league players, who, according to tournament rules, were allowed to supplement the MCA youth players – Golam Afser and Shaki.

Gordon Makin and Jai Nirban opened the batting, and, although Jai fell early, quickly followed by Akhil Sridher, MCA were a solid 82/2 after 12 overs, with Makin and no 4 batsman Anurag Yerabati moving the score along well. Makin hit his second six square of the wicket at Hartland in successive matches (having previously never hit a single 6 in a MichCA match), while Yerabati’s three fours were equally welcome. But when Makin fell, bowled when trying to push the ball to midwicket, the MCA innings stalled, despite Yerabati’s anchoring. Ani Mayasandra added a quick 13 n.o. in the final overs, partnered by Arjun Ahuja (3 n.o.), but the final score of 135 was disappointing after a brisk start, Askhat’s 3/21 in 4 overs helping to apply the brakes. Nonetheless, the long grass at Hartland, covered by ample dew on Saturday morning, meant that MCA felt they could defend their relatively low score, and so it proved, although the finish was much tighter than Kishan Patel or MCA XI coach Shyam Mayasandra would have liked.

Oakland struggled against the hostile pace of opening bowler and Man-of-the-Match Shaki, whose three wickets cost 26 runs, while first-change bowler Arjun Ahuja tied down the students in his first three overs, ending with 3/27. Gulam Afser’s off-spinners turned and deceived, bringing him 1/15 in three overs, but, despite wickets falling regularly, OU were never quite out of it. Suri held things together with a sterling 53, supported by Akshat’s 24, and as OU’s batsmen sped up towards the end, the prospect of victory came within sight. Having been 64/4 after 14 overs, OU raced to 105/5 at the end of 17, and MCA had reason to be nervous. But Shaki returned to pin the batsmen down, and, despite some worrying extras in the final overs, MCA contained OU sufficiently to run out the last batsman on the last ball of the match and win by three runs.

MCA 225/5 in 20 overs (Ajbani 125, A. Mayasandra 37*, Makin 31) beat UM Ann Arbor XI, 119 a.o. in 15 overs (K. Patel 4/25) by 106 runs

At Lyon Oaks on Sunday MCA XI overwhelmed the well-oiled University of Michigan XI. A fifth schoolboy was added to the team for Sunday’s match, as fourteen-year-old Arnav Sridher, who was to take two wickets, joined Akhil Sridher, Arjun Ahuja, Ani Mayasandra, and Gordon Makin. With Shaki and Pawan Canchi both unavailable, and Jay Nirban rested, John Titus and young GTCC batsman Arjun Ajbani were called into the side too and it was Ajbani’s stunning century that took the game away from the students.

Once again, Kishan Patel won the toss and elected to bat, and although John Titus, recently recovered from injury, fell early taking a risky single, and Arjun Ahuja soon followed to an excellent diving catch at short extra cover, opener Gordon Makin’s 31 gave MCA a platform which Arjbani was to exploit spectacularly. Makin hit his second six in two days, pulling the UM opening bowler over midwicket, but this unexpected bonus was soon forgotten as Arjbani destroyed the Ann Arborites. He fell, holing out at long on as he attempted to hit a sixth successive six in an over off a shell-shocked Raghunath Katragada, only for Ani Mayasandra to take apart the death bowling, hitting a quick 37 not out that included a straight six.

UM’s reply had to be no-holds-barred from the very beginning, which predictably, led to early wickets, and disconsolate batsmen returned to the field shelter at regular intervals as the MCA attack, led by Kishan Patel (4/25), and very ably supported in the field, most notably by Gulam Afser, who took three fine catches, put the University team out of its misery. However, a semi-final re-match is not out of the question, and the students will surely be out for blood next time.

USA U-15s Lose to Bermuda Despite 65 from MCA Batsman

Today, in their third match in the ICC U-15 Americas North Tournament, the USA lost by 24 runs to Bermuda, despite a battling 65 off 66 balls from MCA’s Gordon Makin.  Batting at no 6., Makin top-scored in the match as the USA chased 214, but ran out of partners among the recognized batsmen and was bowled by a ball that kept low with the score on 180.  The last two wickets fell for  nine runs, and the USA came up short.

Bermuda, after winning the toss and electing to bat, had made a cautious start, but their middle order was able to push the score along from the solid platform created early  (Rawlins 39, Bean-Wilson 30, Bell 37, Gibbons-Wade 23 n.o. all making contributions), taking their final score to 213/7 in 40 overs.  The USA, batting second for the first time in the tournament, started quickly, but lost wickets at regular intervals, with only the partnership between Makin and CCA’s Vibhav Atlekar (26) reaching more than 50. Opener Jason Gobin (North East Region) was the USA’s third-highest scorer with 22.  Among the American bowlers, who had to face difficult conditions this morning because of winds that reached 60 kph at times, particularly noteworthy are: CCA’s Rutvij Bhise’s 2/30; skipper Dave Parikh’s 8 overs for just 16 runs (also from CCA); and twelve-year-old Vivek Narayan’s figures of 6-1-31 (Atlantic Region). Man-of-the-match Christion Gibbons-Wade was the Bermudans’ best bowler with 5/35.

MCA’s Rohit Mogalayapalli also played for the USA today: he bowled one over; caught Bermdua’s Bell off Bhise and had a share in the run-out of Bean-Wilson (two key dismissals that kept the USA in the match); and scored five runs, batting at no 7 and unluckily run out when he slipped trying to get back into his crease.

As in the USA’s first match against Bermuda, there were moments of controversy today.  For most of Bermuda’s innings the umpires were compelled by the wind to dispense with the bails; in the 38th over the entire USA team were convinced that Bhise had a wicket when a ball appeared to brush the stumps, but the batsman stood his ground and the umpires gave four byes instead.  When the Americans batted, Jason Gobin’s dismissal also generated frustration and disappointment at the crease and on the boundary, after an initial  decision of  “not out” was reversed although the Americans were convinced that the ball had not carried to the Bermudan wicket keeper.

Over-by-over report from Ray Ramrattan of Cosmos C.C. (Winnipeg).

Match pictures, by Ray Ramrattan of Cosmos C.C. can be accessed from this page, login may be required.

Scoresheet.

Peter Della Penna’s Match Report from DreamCricket 

Motown-MCA Lose First Playoff Match to GDCC

On Saturday at Lyon Oaks, against top team Greater Detroit, Motown-MCA, in their first play-off match (shortened to 35 overs because the field was to be used later in the day by the Michigan Rush soccer tournament),  struggled to 103 all out, with the Mayasandra father-and-son combination contributing almost half the runs.  They then fought hard to defend the modest total, but finally lost by seven wickets. Had the spilled catches stuck, the home team might have been able to apply some pressure when GDCC batted, but it was clear that, on the day, the visitors’ batting and bowling were both superior.

Motown-MCA Captain Sathish Thandapani won the toss and, despite the early start (again, because of the soccer tournament), chose to bat without any hesitation. His team had a somewhat unfamiliar look, with two youth regulars, Rohit Mogalayapalli and Gordon Makin, away on international duty – they had flown out of Detroit Metro early that morning on their way to Winnipeg, Manitoba, to play for the USA U-15 team in the ICC Americas North Tournament. Into the team came Kishan Patel and Jeeth Nirban, with Gordon’s younger brother Neil Makin also making another appearance.

Shyam and Ani Mayasandra opened the batting, and father and son played cautiously against GDCC’s openers Chandan Sood and Taimoor Ahmed (2 wickets), who both bowled an excellent line and length. Indeed, the same could be said of everyone in GDCC’s bowling lineup – medium-pacer Maqsood Hussein, slow-left-armer Keyur Patel (2 wickets), slow-but-dangerous Avinash Komireddy (2 wickets), and medium-pacer Rohan Wanchoo all posed problems for the Motown-MCA batsmen, and the fact that Man-of-the-Match Wanchoo came on as fourth-change, returning figures of 7-3-8-3, is eloquent testimony to the strength of GDCC’s bowling.  By the time Shyam Mayasandra was out for 19, caught off Keyur, there was a platform for Motown-MCA, but only his son Ani (Man-of-the-Match for Michigan Premier C. C. in the MichCA 20-overs league last week – his second such award of the season), was able to take much advantage before he fell to Avinash for 24. No other Motown-MCA batsman reached double figures, with only Anurag Yerabati, Rohan’s first victim, caught Siva, offering any prolonged resistance for his 8. The league’s top batsman, Maniramprasad, was unable to assert himself on the day, falling to Avinash (for 2), while Muralidharan, fresh from his summer in India, continues to search for form with the bat. Kishan Patel was unfortunate to be run out for 5, his aggression suggesting a possible route to recovery for Motown-MCA; Vijay Patel stayed a while, but soon became Rohan’s second victim, and the Captain fell, also to Rohan, while trying to push along the score; Chamila Kannangara ended the innings 4 not out, as Taimoor Ahmed returned to york both Vasanth Krishnaswami and Jeeth Nirban. Neil Makin did not bat (but fielded for the entire GDCC innings).

With no scoreboard pressure, GDCC were in a comfortable position as they opened their innings, and Suri Bala made ample use of that position, carrying his bat for 46. Murali, who took the new ball with Kishan, picked up Siva for 6, Anurag (who put in another good spell) had Vijay Matta caught by Mani, and then returned the favor by catching Keyur off Mani, but Babu steadied the ship with 20 not out, and GDCC completed their victory when Suri pulled Neil Makin’s first ball of the season for 4.

Such an outcome always looked likely, although the chances that went down in the field could have given Motown-MCA hope, and might have applied at least some pressure to GDCC’s experienced batsmen. Of the spills, one stood out as a moment that could, indeed, have changed the match: when the score was in the 20s, twelve-year-old Neil Makin, fielding at cover, got two hands to a shot from Suri but couldn’t hold on as he landed, after running back and diving for the ball. It would have been a fine catch for an adult fielder, and if the youngest player in the match had taken it to dismiss GDCC’s opener the morale boost to the team would have been huge. But it was not to be. Neil got up and kicked his cap (à la Graeme Swann). His gesture summed up Motown-MCA’s day.

Now the team must regroup for its second playoff match – a “must-win” fixture against Oakland University CC at Lyon Oaks on Saturday.