Main Umpire: Dave Kumar Leg Umpire: Satbir
Report: Wolfpack move to Semi-Finals!!
Sunday morning turned out cool and sunny, in stark contrast to the wet rain that
had plagued Raleigh for the entire week. The Quarter Final game (#2) between
Virginia Tech CC and the Cricket Club @ NCSU had been re-scheduled thanks to the
wet field conditions and further forecast for rain on Saturday. As it turned
out, Sunday was perfect for cricket. After much struggling, a second umpire for
the game was arranged when Satbir, of the ANZACS, graciously agreed to fill-in
for GHCC at the very last hour.
The game commenced at 11:45 a.m. with NCSU electing to bat first. The thought
was to pile on the runs and put the visitors under pressure on an unfamiliar
wicket. But, it seemed the Hokies had plans of their own. Both openers were back
in the pavilion by the 3rd over with some sharp wicket keeping by Shamika (Vishwas
(stumped) -1, Amit (Caught behind) – 5). The scoring slowed down further as
Krishnakanth and Sushil tried to steady the innings along with Vinay. But both
were dismissed cheaply (Tot: 4/48 off 11.2). Vinay then found support in Vamsee
as together they stemmed the fall of wickets and slowly steadied the innings
back on course. Some extremely sensible batting from both the batsmen saw the
score climb steadily to 132 after 25 overs (partnership of 84 off 82 balls).
Vamsee managed to get his 50 (51 off 46) with a boundary, before he nicked one
back to the keeper, ending a much-needed partnership for the 5th wicket. The
Hokies had tried desperately to recover their i!
nitial impetus with bowling changes and frequent field alterations, all to no
avail. Vinay then went on to get his highest score of the season with a
brilliant knock of 61 off 79 balls. Cameos by Abhishek (15 off 11) and Nikhil (8
off 4) in the last 5 overs saw the score settle at a respectable 8/167 at the
end of the allotted 30 overs. Ashwin and Kunal claimed the bulk of the Pack
batsmen, with 4 and 3 wickets respectively.
The Pack took the field after lunch and were soon rewarded with 2 quick wickets
in the very second over, as Krishnakanth had Kunal caught at gully off a skier
and Srikanth adjudged Leg-before off the final delivery (2/14 off 2). But Azhar
remained defiant at the crease, determined to stick it through. Two solid
partnerships followed as Amal and Aditya supported Azhar to add 89 runs to the
total. Azhar then top-edged a quicker one from Nihar, to Nagendra at the
boundary backward of point, to end a formidable innings just one run short of
his 50 (49 off 62 balls). The renowned Wolfpack fielding was starkly lacking as
numerous chances for run-outs, stumpings and catches were not converted,
affording the visitors some valuable breathing space. Aditya, Shamika and Miten
put in their bit, but were unable to stick it through as the Hokies tail faced a
recovering Pack bowling/fielding attack. Vamsee’s sharp catch of Aditya at short
third-man seemed to set the tone for the recovery f!
or the Pack. The Hokies soon felt the loss of their eleventh bat as they were
bundled out 31 runs short of the target despite some brave stands by their
batsmen. Krishnakanth came away with 4 wickets, conceding only 11 runs of his 4
overs, while Nihar followed with 3 scalps for 23 runs off his 5.4 overs.
The umpires and the contestants made it a truly enjoyable game played in the
spirit of cricket. The umpires also nominated Vamsee as the Man-of-the-Match for
his part in stabilizing the Wolfpack batting, sharp catching on the field and
some tight bowling that played a crucial role in ensuring a Wolfpack victory.
Thanks to the Hokies for a well fought game and we wish them all the best for
their next season.
Go Pack!