Arun Kattungal was determined today and the Terminators really wanted a big innings from him. He was calm and composed today and there was a good opening partner for him in Deric. Though the asking rate was huge, they never panicked and continued to milk the bowlers. Shajahan was clearly under pressure even before the first ball was bowled. Arun greeted him with a big six showing no respect what so ever. He sent another one over the fence in the same over not allowing Shajahan to settle down. Pappan later joined Arun and they continued to fight it out in the middle. They were waiting for the 4th bowler to come and things were wrapped up by a few lusty blows from Pappan with more than an over to spare. Match very well played – Terminators.

To me the star of the day is clearly Arun Kattungal. Batting was easy in the second innings, but it was very hot and humid too. He batted through out the second innings and played his part to perfection. Daredevils were definitely not at their best. They missed too many catches and they really need to improve their running between the wickets as well. They now have to come up with a better show tomorrow and win the match against Kings 11 in a huge margin, their last chance.
May the best team win.

Tharun

Even from a distance, the men in blue and white adorned the usually not so eye-catching Kalamassery ground. As we walked close to the field I could already feel the vibe of excitement from the players. There were Sokri, Ashish, John and Dias getting the pitch ready, Jeevan tweting around already with the live updates and both the teams finalizing their game plan.

As soon as we settled down, Anoop Antony got his weapons out – lemons, knives, vessels, bottles and a huge can of water. Rakesh, the man with muscles, started with the art of squeezing lemons and the girls joined in. (Which by the way, was a waste of efforts, since 12 full bottles of awesome lime juice meant originally for the tired players, was gobbled down by a veeery tired Dias who had to hold a pen and keep writing the score all through both the innings. How pathetic!! ) All we wanted was for the match to start, when we would see what the Kings XI and Terminators were made of.

And once the game started I could see it was not just another game for the players. The fight for the Blessen-George cup meant to them, a pay-off for all the sweat they had put in for the last one month, with rigorous practice sessions, before and after their normal 8 hours’ shift. It was evident that glory was not the only factor they were after. The genuine passion and fire in their minds for the game that they had kept alive, from school days probably, was coming out with a bang.

From an initial breakdown of losing 3 wickets including that of the dreaded VC, Kattu, in the first 2 overs, when the Terminators came back with the excellent performance of Sujith TV, what we witnessed was the foundation of a score which was unimaginable initially. I was personally shocked to see the aggressive batsman in the normally soft-spoken and gentle Sujith. With the superb support from Sujith Sr., Sajith and the rest of the gang, the score went to a whooping 83, despite the “thunderballs” from Kannan, Prasanth, Vineesh and team.

As a viewer with just-average cricket knowledge, either team could take this match at this point, for me. I wanted to see how the Kings were going to retaliate under the captaincy of Chakky, who despite his age (:D) was the fittest of the lot. With the rounds and rounds of warm-up jogs and exercise he was already radiating energy and strength, not just to his team mates, but to the audience as well.

The sight of Chakky (with all his accessories) and the macho Fahad go out to the field to open with utmost confidence, was in itself a welcome treat to the Kings team. And they sure didn’t disappoint the viewers and went ahead to give a much needed fantastic start, which did the trick to boost the confidence of the team as well as the supporters. At 30 runs by the end of the 5^th over, winning the match did not seem a far-off dream to the Kings. However, with excellent bowling from Arun Jolly. when Deepak and Kannan who followed the opening pair failed to work their magic, there came a twist. With 4 wickets taken one after the other, Biju swept across the Kings team like a hurricane making 84 an unttainable goal. At this point it became almost crystal clear to everyone there what the fate of the Kings would be.

And then came the unexpected of the lot. All geared up from the cheers and slogans of his fans, Shekhar, the warrior, decided to give a huge hit, which once again lit up hopes in the Kings. At 2 balls left and 2 runs to win, I could hear my heart beats and feel my palm go cold and I’m damn sure that was the state of everyone else over there. When Girish decided to give a great shot, go for a double and end the misery, I could see Chakky come back from the dead. I’m sure anybody would have wanted to be part of the winning team right then, when we saw the ecstatic Kings rush to the ground to let others know THEY DID IT.

As much as the Terminators felt bad about feeling the game slip out of their hands in the last minute, I could see the determination in the eyes of each of them, to avenge this loss in the next game. And with an excellent captain like Sujith Mohan, I know they are going to make a come-back.

Thank you guys for the splendid treat! I can’t wait to be back there at Lords Kalamassery tomorrow morning to view yet another breath-taking match between the Terminators and the “ever-so-confident and brilliant” Daredevils.

Poornam T10 kiiii jaiiii!!!

Radhika

It was a wonderful game, no doubt in that. There was pressure in the air till the last moment and there were quite a few occasions where a few heartbeats skipped. It was one game whose destiny was undecided till the last ball of the game. It was one game to be proud of, both teams invariably. The winners have reason to celebrate and the losers(I hate to call them losers) have reason to mourn.

Batting first, Sujith and team Terminators made an easily defend-able 83 runs in 12 overs. Ant then started the chase. At one point, after Biju chettan’s over, when sehkar and vijeesh came, we did wonder that this would end up as a wild goose chase. But fate had different plans for the day.

Worth the watch, but when we analyze it, all those stuffs that went wrong for the terminators is a shame.
The toss was crucial. There was dew in the grass, and the ball was new. Obviously, the dampened ball didn’t pitch out well. The bounce was low and the balls didn’t come to the bat. I guess that is what killed the first few batsmen of the terminators.

I would forget and forgive everything but the bowling performance of the terminators. It showed a complete lack of strategy. The first over from sajith should have made them realize that he is gonna be costly. Not in the runs taken by the other team.. But by the runs gone as extras. Thats when the 10th over came. If Sujith(C) had come over and taken the ball, the game would have been completely different. Aaah. Perhaps I am a terminators fan. I was dissappointed.

I wonder why the hell Sujith(C) went to the boundary line when his men were playing in the middle!! Mean, he is the captain and he is the one who can motivate the team!! sheesh!!

The blamings apart, I loved the innings of Sujith TV, Sujith(Captain), Chakki and Sekhar. The first 3 can be purposefully ignored. I don’t think its a big deal to play free, in the beginning when there is nothing much to worry about. But Sekhar’s innings was totally different. He came in when the ship was sinking, when Biju chettan had just claimed 3 wickets in an over. There he stood. Stood as strong as anyone could stand, deep rooted. Vijeesh too, came into the picture and formed the most crutial partnership of the game. It was a pleasure to watch you guys play. Bravo!

On the bowling perspective, Biju chettan was GOD. Every delivery was close to perfection. Loved Jolly’s deliveries too.. But I guess to the end, he was pretty much strained, as we could hear groans with deliveries thrown. There is no “one name” to praise in the King’s team. Every ball was a ball worth facing. The most important factor being, they didn’t give out much extras. I should pen down Kannan’s name here in particular. His deliveries did bring rounds of applause.

In the end, we have Biju chettan as the man of the Match, and Sekhar’s who as a keeper, took the great diving catch of Pappan, named as the best catch of the match.

What more to say!! Loved every minute of it. Thank you Appru for the cool drinks. Tomorrow it is glucose, I guess.. And Dias for keeping the score card. You guys rock!

Even though we were updating using twitter, I am not satisfied. We tried to make maximum utilization of the mobiles available. But then, when you type without looking at the screen.. naturally made many blunders as spelling mistakes “dey” for “few”, “call” for “ball” and much more. So, tomorrow it will be my lapie and bsnl evdo card to give you better updates, faster.

–Jeevs

Everyone wonder why Ajin couldn’t hold on to a
simple catch!!. After all, Ajin was the best fielder of the side. He used to
dive at the catches goying beyond him. He was able to pull of almost
impossible catches. But that is pressure can do to you. Let me try and put you on the shoes of players at such moments.
Scene 1 : Imagine you’re fielding at long-off in a friendly game at your own
ground. The batsmen stroll a single. You field the ball without fuss and
throw it. It’s a routine drill for you.

Scene 2 : Imagine you’re doing the above on your first match of T10. There
are other players, spectators cheering for you, watching you and you want to
do it absolutely right. You keep your eyes on the ball and ensure that you
don’t fumble, and promptly return the ball to the bowler. You feel some
nerves but nothing that you can’t handle.

Scene 3 : Now, one of the heat moments of the match playing in front of 50
people. The noise in the the ground is high. You can hear the people in the
stands behind you shout as they realize the ball is coming their way. The
batsmen are pressing for a non-existent second run to put pressure on you.
But you hold your nerve, pick the ball cleanly, throw it back and heave a
sigh of relief.

Scene 4 : It’s the last ball of a final between two teams. The opposition needs
two runs to win the game. The ball is hit in your direction. They’re running
hard and you need to pounce, collect it cleanly and make a solid and accurate
return to ensure a run-out. All of this happens in no more than a few
seconds, but they seem to last forever. One slip-up could cost your team the
match, and with it the trophy. It may even cost you your place in the side.
You could be a veritable pariah to the watching spectators..

Nothing is fundamentally different between those four scenarios – except for
the degree of pressure involved. The ground remained the same, so did the
power with which the shot was hit, and the weight of the ball. But there’s a
huge difference between fielding in a friendly and in an tournament match,
especially when a match, trophy is at stake.

That is what pressure can do for you. That is what we have got in store for you. Four pressure games. The one who hold their nerves during such pressure situations is gonna lift the T10 Cup!!. Who will have that final smile on their face… Watch out.. The T10 is back!!!

It’s the Executive Cup T10 Series – Gear Up for a Thrilling Season.

Fans can brace themselves for an entertaining season of cricket.

Daredevils,Terminators and Kings X1 touring at Kalamasery on 9h, 10th 11th and 12th,
March and will play against each other at three different venues (The
Lord’s Kalamasery, Sydney Cricket Ground, Kalamasery, Perth Kalamasseri and The EdenGardens, Kalamasery).

Once the series gets underway at 7.30 AM on March 9, all fans are sure
to get hooked to the cricket match scores. Things are always not
feasible and sometimes even the most die hard fan will have to miss out
on catching with the live action on the ground. So the next best option
for them is to catch up with the cricket news here.

Just come down and watch!