What was billed as a match of some importance and drama, eventually turned out to be a damp squib. The Fifth years and the Rest of HS’s cricket match may have been described by many a word… but compelling isn’t one of them.
It was one of the longest matches ever scheduled with the duration being 20 overs each, instead of the 10 or 12 overs which were the norm during the tourney last year. The finalists of the previous year won the toss and chose to bat. Nityanshu and Sukruth faced the new ball pair of Ashwin and Libin. Ashwin’s first over was sent for 16 runs, three boundaries being struck, all by Nityanshu. All three flew over the shortish square boundary which was targeted all night long. However, Libin dragged it back with an over for the ages, with aggressive short stuff which caused the batsmen to take evasive action. Trying to go for a glory hit, Nityanshu went downtown, only to be caught by Suraj at long off. Tejaswini came onto bowl and although she went for plenty, managed to castle Sukruth with a full and straight delivery that crashed into his middle stump.
Enter the man who played the most defining and entertaining innings of the match- Monish.
Monish attacked from the outset. It was reminiscent of the village blacksmith like cricket of Ian Botham. Monish played with gay abandon, caring not about the risks, about which he was completely justified – he cleared the fence an astonishing 8 times! None of his partners offered him anything which could be classified as support. Aishwarya was caught at mid-on off Nishant, trying to go for an ambitious pull, Biyas somehow managed to flatten his own stumps and Haridhar was caught at square leg both off Libin. Monish valiantly stemmed the rot for a while in typical cavalier fashion, fighting fire with fire. Santosh, who had joined him at the crease gave him some decent support for a couple of overs as Monish sent the bowlers, particularly Irene (off whom he smashed 5 sixes in a single over!) on a leather hunt. However, this spell of entertainment was interrupted by Deva who produced a delivery that Santosh missed completely- his leg stump went for a walk. A couple of overs later, Deva put an end to Monish’s fine effort with a yorker that removed his middle stump. Monish’s 75 was the only innings of some note in the 5th years’ effort which lasted for quite a while longer as the women in their team managed to survive for 5 overs – a remarkable achievement. The innings drew to a close on the penultimate ball of the 17th, with Isabel being caught at short leg. Libin was the pick of the bowlers producing an unplayable spell of 2-1-1-3, while the others such as Deva, Nishant and Tejaswini all chipped in with a couple of wickets each, Irene taking one as well.
The Rest of HS could not have hoped for a better start. Despite accurate bowling by Nityanshu, Santosh, Biyas and Mohnish, the opening pair of Suraj and Athul more than acquitted themselves. A stable partnership developed with Athul dominating the proceedings. Sooraj for his part, trundled the score along, without being too flashy or getting bogged down by the weight of expectations. The run rate picked up soon after- with a barrage of shots from Athul. Targeting the cow corner, Athul sent 4 sixes over the shortest boundary, while Sooraj managed one six which was memorable- his hoick went all the way over the longest boundary and for six over long on. While the experienced trio mentioned above suffered little, and were economical, it was clear that the sting that they possessed was quickly neutralized while the girls- Mounika and Aishwarya were spanked for runs left and right. The Rest of HS raced to 74/0 before Sooraj was caught at long off. The very next over, Athul was castled for 41, leaving the HS at 80/2. Belief was beginning to mount and with Irene’s and Ashwin’s dismissal, the score was 98/4 – the match in the balance. It was anyone’s game and a thrilling ending was in sight. But, Libin and Nishant put paid to any lingering hopes of the fourth years with an unbeaten 38 run stand for the 5th wicket. A couple of boundaries helped ease any nerves and after that, it was textbook rotation of strike between the pair who showed plenty of common sense and sound judgement, preferring to play balls by merit rather than look for glory shots all the time. There was a chance which was dropped, but otherwise, it was a professional job completed by the pair, who took a no chance, no risk, no nonsense approach on their way to chasing the target down with plenty to spare.
It was a clinical win for the Rest of HS and ensures that the top prize will remain out of reach of the present final years for now. Never a compelling contest, the game did have some good moments to savour, but overall- a straightforward no nonsense win. No hullabaloos. For that alone, the Rest of HS deserve applause… as they hardly laid a foot wrong in the match. Now the action shifts to a different sport-football. I am hoping to see more nerve wracking, goal fest encounters. Let’s hope it doesn’t disappoint! Ciao for now.
Report by Y.N. Simha
Article 19 