“I have a dream ….”
By Nafis Ahmad
At the beginning of the season, Fazal Alam, the Commonwealth Cricket Club First XI (CCC) captain, was caught saying the words: “I have a dream that we would win this year’s championship.” The words were prophetic, but were really meant to inspire the team towards better performance. The prophecy came true on Sunday, September 24th, when a highly composed CCC vanquished Caricom to claim the MSCL 2006 trophy.
CCC batted first as Caricom invited them to bat after winning the toss. The gambit seemed to have worked as CCC failed to repeat the performance of the week past, and both their openers were back at the score of 30. The pious pair of Ali Rana and Fazal Alam began to build the innings but the 63 run third wicket partnership was broken when Fazal (19) missed a full toss and was adjudged LBW. The real connoisseur of the game would have noticed that the bulk of the scoring so far was done by the more sedate Ali Rana, and it was an early indication that he was going to have a special day with the bat.
Ali continued the good work while batsmen came and went, and it wasn’t until Vijay joined him that a late order revival was engineered. Vijay played an exceptional innings of grace and determination, scoring 39 crucial runs on as many crucial balls. Meanwhile, Ali piled on the runs with consummate ease and was headed towards a century, but was undone by wrong shot selection, as he spooned one to the mid wicket boundary. It was a soft dismissal for a heady innings – composure early on, acceleration via good running between the wickets, and exquisite timing at the end. The innings was all the more memorable, as he was fasting that day, and hadn’t had a drink or bite since day break!!
The heroics of Ali (76) and Vijay (39) were supported by addition of valuable runs from the late order, especially Mark Wright (16*) with some lusty blows at the very end. CCC finished up at a defendable 219 for 9 in the allotted 40 overs.
If the weatherman was to be taken seriously, the second innings was always going to be a tricky affair. Two storm systems collided in the afternoon creating stormy conditions with high winds and chances of downpour. CCC took the field under dark skies, but shrewd use of the bowlers, based upon the direction of the wind, saw Caricom gasping for air early in their innings. Sai bowled smartly, as he faced the wind, but shrewdly swung the ball away from the batsmen and soon had both the openers smartly caught by Vijay at midoff. On the other end, Mohan, the gaunt pacer, was bowling thunderbolts with wind behind him. He placed the ball in the right areas and swung the ball into the batsmen, viciously. He accounted for the dangerous Simon, with a peach of a delivery that left the batsman slightly, taking the faintest of edges into the eagerly awaiting gloves of Mark Wright. Soon Caricom were four down for 31, with both the opening bowlers claiming 2 wickets each, and completing splendid opening spells. Caricom middle order showed some spine, especially Perkins (52*), who played flawlessly and remained unbeaten. The rest of the wickets folded on regular intervals, with Mahesh and Qasim bowling very well, and taking 2 wickets each. Mahesh bowled the most economical spell giving away just 15 runs in 8 overs. Mohan came back for another spell and bowled Elvis, to complete a splendid victory for CCC.
There were many notable performances that day, and the truth is that it was a very balanced performance by CCC to win the finals. Ali Rana should be singled out for his valiant 76, and Vijay should be mentioned in the same vein for a scintillating supporting role. The opening bowlers were very penetrative, and the spinners finished the remainder. It has been a recurring theme with the team this year, as the tournament was not dominated by one or two players, but the team performance has been consistent with most people chipping in where it mattered. The team spirit remained high throughout the tournament, and the author would be remiss if Vasif Shaikh, the CCC twelfth man, is not mentioned as the embodiment of the CCC team spirit.
The dream of Fazal holding the MSCL trophy certainly materialized; the golden glow of autumn sun on the cheerful, celebrating faces of CCC members, will be a cherished dreamlike image, warming us up, as we would look back to remember that triumphant, resplendent September evening on the cold winter days!!
PS: We would like to thank all of
the supporters, family members, friends, Second XI members, and curious on
lookers, who came to the ground and supported us, in the final and throughout
the season. We would also like to thank MSCL for the organization of the final,
the league trophy and the sumptuous