Bond thrills as New Zealand 'A' enter final
There was the desperate feeling in the pit of the stomach when New Zealand 'A' were shot out for a paltry 129 in the first innings of their semi-final clash against Indian Railways in the MRF Buchi Babu Tournament
Staff Reporter
26-Aug-2001
There was the desperate feeling in the pit of the stomach when New
Zealand 'A' were shot out for a paltry 129 in the first innings of
their semi-final clash against Indian Railways in the MRF Buchi Babu
Tournament. Playing some top flight cricket that included aggressive
batting sustained over a period of time and quick bowling that put the
batsmen on the back foot, New Zealand 'A' enjoyed the sweet taste of
success when they, to use a cliché, derailed Indian Railways, beating
them by 23 runs. The Kiwi's now face the Cricket Association of Bengal
XI in the final of the MRF Buchi Babu Tournament.
The wicket at the MA Chidambaram Stadium is one that cricket experts
over the years have found to read. Typically it is a track that has a
bit in it for the fast bowlers early on, but slows down quickly and
takes turn fairly early. New Zealand 'A' showed today that the role a
wicket plays can be overcome with positive cricket. Lou Vincent
creamed the Railways bowling to all parts in his run a ball 102, and
gave his bowlers something to play with. One must remember that
Vincent made a century in the last match he played too. Playing the
spinners and pacemen with ease, Vincent spread the field in a hurry.
Beginning the day on 216/6, with an overall lead of just 66, New
Zealand 'A' had but a small chance of forcing a result in the match.
Vincent, overnight on 57 struck nine boundaries in his century and in
the company of Kyle Mills (37) took New Zealand 'A' to 318/8 declared
off just 62 overs. This left Indian Railways with a target of 169.
For New Zealand 'A' to win, they needed at least one stunning
performance. In the event there were two! If Vincent's ton won praise,
then Shane Bond's sensational bowling analysis of 14.3-2-45-7 deserves
a lot more. Bowling in temperatures over thirty five degrees
centigrade, Bond produced a spell of genuinely hostile bowling. More
than anything, it was the sheer pace of Bond that knocked the wind out
of Indian Railways. Constantly pitching the ball just short of a
length and outside the off, the Canterbury mediumpacer scythed through
the Railways batting line-up.
After removing the Railway openers with just 9 on the board, Bond
cooled off for a while, as the Railways middle order batsmen offered
some resistance. When Brooke Walker ran out Murli Kartik (30) with the
score on 49, the beginning of the end was signaled. Soon after, Bond
ran thorough the innings, picking the last five wickets to fall.
Bond's 7/45 skittled Railways out for 145, handing the visiting side
victory by 23 runs.
Cricket Association of Bengal beat Jolly Rovers Cricket Club
comprehensively by 125 runs to enter the final of the MRF Buchi Babu
Invitational Tournament. In the match played at IIT Chemplast Grounds
in Chennai, on Sunday, Jolly Rovers were bundled out for just 96 runs
chasing a target of 222.
Resuming on their overnight score of seven for the loss of two
wickets, CAB XI found themselves in deep trouble after losing five
more wickets in the morning to be reduced to 28/7 off 23.4 overs. The
wickets included that of Rohan Gavaskar (0), Souvik Mukherjee (1), AP
Chakraborty (10), Laxmi Ratan Shukla (1) and Saikat Mukherjee (8).
Sanjib Sanyal and Utpal Chaterjee added 87 runs for the eighth wicket
to rescue the faltering CAB XI innings. Sanyal was run out after
making 44 runs with the help of three fours. Utpal Chaterjee went to
complete his half-century (50, 102 balls, 4 fours) and was the ninth
batsman to be dismissed. CAB XI second innings did not last long as
they were bowled out for 133 off 63 overs. Divakar Vasu was easily the
best bowler, finishing with the figures of 22-8-42-2.
Chasing the target of 222, Jolly Rovers batsmen threw their bat at
everything. Only opening batsman Sujit somasunder (26) and Ganesh
Kumar 29 made any valuable contribution with the bat. Jinju Joesph and
G Babu made 14 runs apiece. All the other batsmen failed to make to
double figures. Three run outs in the middle order did not help the
Jolly Rovers cause as they were bowled out for 96 off just 23.1 overs.
Shib Sankar Paul (2/22) and Saurasish Lahiri (2/23) were the pick of
the bowlers. CAB XI will meet New Zealand 'A' in the final.