June 28, 2014

You Rockerzzz!!!!

With Ramzan coming up in the next two days, we decided to end the season with this one last match.

Thank you one and all for the wonderful season. Hope to be back with more enthusiasm next time when we meet after 2 months

Team A: Misbah(c), Mehran, Vicky, Rehan, Shaimir, Iqbal, Affan
Team B: Tanzeel(c), Sumit, Imtiaz, Afzal, Tausif, Kashif, Afsal & Suraj

The only match: Team A chased down the 113 target set up by Team B. team B was not at all at a good position to reach 100 runs when Tausif joined Imtiaz at the crease. Only 2 wickets were left after that. Tausif and Imtiaz ensured they not only cross 100+ runs but also a respectable total with some clean hitting towards the end of the inning. It was a 15 over match and anything below 120 would seem under par. but the momentum was with team B as they scored around 50 runs in the last 5 overs.

Vicky started off very well for Team A. Even though wickets fell on regular basis team A ensured their run rate never fell below 8. In doing so they were able to reach the target in the 12th over aided by Iqbal's 3 sixes in an over off Suraj. A little fun and harakiri towards the end saw 3 wickets fell in Kashif's over but all was over for team B by then

Season ended on a high with both the teams happy in the end and their spirits high with fun they had. We missed a lot of regular players today in the field but they were always present in the heart. A few pics from the ground and short speech by some.

Misbah: Thanks to each one you for the wonderful experience. This (Rockerzzz) was the best thing I had in Bangalore. (Misbah is leaving Bangalore for good. this could probably be his last match for Rockerzzz)

Kashif (one of the pillars of Rockerzz, the boss also had few, err actually lot to say): It was great season for me in Rockerzzz better than any league in the world IPL, EPL, etc etc. Personally I would like to thank each and everyone of u for making this season a memorable one. There are people who travel from far just be a part of the team. Hats off for ur commitment. All the bachelors who I know inspite sleeping late at night come early in the morning i know how tough it will be. Thanks bros for the amount of respect and love u all have given to me. Best part is people doing night shift and coming to play and thanks to all married one also because we only know how difficult it is to balance family and game. Thanks my friend in life and fellow like Naushd for bringing such intensity to the game. Let all of us make a pledge we will continue to rock like this and be back with a bang in next season. Thanx all!!!

June 21, 2014

Team A: Farooq(c), Mehran, Vicky, Imtiaz, Reyaz, Jafar, Rehan, Shaimir, Kashif & Afsal (the other one)  
Team B: Tanzeel(c), Tausif, Rakib, Iqbal, Misbah, Afaque, Sajid, Afsal, Jihad & Suraj

1st match: Team A set the target of 95 to win in 12 overs and Team B chased it quite comfortably in 10.2 overs. It was the comeback match for Afsal and he did very well with the bat, scored bulk of the runs for his team, But the vital performance was from Misbah. When team A was going on well and threatened to take the score to 120+ he came on to bowl, took some quick wickets and halted Team A's scoring rate. Misbah also scored some valuable runs while chasing and undoubtedly he was the man of the match

2nd match: This time team B needed 106 in 12 overs. We had to shift to Oxford ground when some unexpected corporate tournament organizers came and shoved us off.  The ground changed but not the result for team A. Even though they did score more than 100+ runs they failed to couldn't stop the marauding Afsal. Team A was in a good position after 4 overs in which Team B scored only 29 runs, it was the time when Afsal decided to take the matters into his own hand scored another 29 runs in the next 2 overs (20 coming from Shaimir's overs). Team A did bowl some good overs after that. Afsal's injury also added some spice into the match and that led the match to the final over. Team B required 12 runs in the last 2 overs, Farooq was bowling exceptionally well, he gave only 3 off his first 5 balls, but something went wrong and he got hit for a six off his final ball that meant Team B would require only 3 off the final six balls which they did it comfortably.

happy team B after winning the first match

Misbah and Tanzeel seen making the winning run 

Team B after winning the 2nd match

winning team selfie

Shaimir congratulating the winning team

June 14, 2014

Team A: Farooq(c), Mehran, Imtiaz, Sumit, Faisal, Reyaz, Buland, two other guys names of which are unknown to me 
Team B: Shaimir(c), Tausif, Vicky, Rakib, Tanzeel, Iqbal, Misbah, Affaque, Bhawesh

1st match: Team A scored 74, Team B chased it down in the 11th over. Team A showed some fight, bowling a very tight line and taking wickets at regular intervals and they needed 40+ in the last 6 overs but Bhawesh and Tanzeel took their team to finishing line without any further hiccups. Kudos to Shaimir for this was the first victory as a captain

2nd match: This time Team B needed 84 to win. They were cruising at one stage at 40 for no loss, Vicky and Iqbal were playing a handsome inning together. But then with some exceptional bowling including tight line length by Team A's bowler along with some inspiring captaincy of Farooq Team B started to panic. They needed 29 off 4 overs, then 22 off 3 overs when Buland's over produced 2 wkts and only 4 runs. the next over by Mehran got only 1 run with the loss of 2 wickets. The equation came down to 17 runs in the last over. Tanzeel and Bhawesh were on the crease while Farooq was to bowl the last over. Equation was 3 balls 11 runs, a boundary was required but it went dot, the next ball went straight to a boundary but with the help of some sharp fielding, Team A stopped the boundary and Tanzeel and Bhawesh could only take 2 runs. The match got over then and there even though the last ball was hit was six by Tanzeel and Team B lost by 2 runs

Team B

June 7, 2014

Team A: Farooq(c), Junaed, Sajid, Mehran, Affaque, Tanzeel, Sumit, Faisal, Reyaz 
Team B: Tausif(c), Rehan, Vicky, Rakib, Shaimir, Imtiaz, Iqbal, Misbah 

1st match: Team A scored 99 in 12 overs, Team B achieved the victory and chased the target in the 11th over. 
Highlights of the match: The chase was well planned by Vicky and Junaed. They batted well and always looked at ease to overhaul the target and they did it comfortably

2nd match: Team A set up a target of 125 in 12 overs. Team B fell short by 17 runs
Highlights of the match: Mehran the guy who got hit for 5 sixes not 7 days ago was again in discussions but this time he had lot of positives to back him up. He played a vital role in scripting the victory of Team A. Scoring around 4 sixes, taking couple of wickets and a wonderful catch to dismiss opposition captain will definitely give him huge points to get away with Man of the match award. Surely, cricket is a great leveler. The foundation for team A's huge score was laid by the brilliant start given by Sajid (21 off 7, including 3 sixes). During Team B's chase none of the batsman showed the determination to chase 125, once their best batsman of the season Vicky got out cheaply Team B was sure to lose, but Shaimir thought otherwise and scored some brisk runs to take his team near the target. But his wicket ended up the bright chase 

A wonderful day had a wonderful whether to start with. Seen here are 3 of the players of Rockerzzz, Sumit, Mehran and Shaimir. They share some light moment with sun rising behind them

May 31, 2014

Team A: Farooq(c), Rehan, Sajid, Affaque, Vicky, Ameen, Sumit. Suraj, Imtiaz, Buland 
Team B: Tausif(c), Rakib, Shaimir, Kashif, Tanzeel, Iqbal, Faisal, Affan, Mehran 

1st match: Team A scored 129 in 12 overs, Team B failed to chase it and were bowled out for less than 55 runs.
2nd match: Team A set up a target of 141 in 12 overs. Team B fell short by 18 runs
Highlights from the match: Team A showcased some power hitting by Sumit, Vikcy, Farooq which took them to a mammoth total 140 (the highest ever for Rockerzzz in an innings). Shaimir showed some tooth in the chase but a brilliant over by Buland broke their spirit, he gave only 1 run in that over. At one time Team B was 86/3 in 7 overs but once Shaimir got out no one took the challenge and they fall short by a few runs which could have been a wonderful chase.

PS: Imtiaz broke a wicket on his own bowling. Mehran had an off day on the field, his run up was pathetic, he couldn't drop the ball on right areas and got hit for 33 runs by Sumit in an over (which included 5 sixes). He promises to be back on track. Rockerzz got a new dozens of headley balls...

May 24, 2014

Team A: Farooq(c), Reyaz, Rehan, Misbah, Sajid, Affaque, Vicky, Ameen, Sumit
Team B: Tausif(c), Buland, Junaed, Rakib, Kashif, Imtiaz, Tanzeel, Iqbal, Faisal

1st match: Team A set the target of 90 in 12 overs which Team B failed to achieve. They lost the match by 6 runs
Highlights of the match: Team B struggled throughout the innings. None of their batsman really could connect the ball well, boundaries were scarce, wickets were falling at regular intervals. They were never in the game until Tausif joined Junaed on the crease when equations were 40 off 4 overs.....boundaries had dried up, not able to hit that far, these two decided to run hard. Converting singles to doubles, these two reduced the equation to 24 off 2 overs and then to 14 off 6 balls. Tausif got out in the last over which made the chase difficult. The final result was Team B losing the match by 6 runs

2nd match: Team B started to chase 139, the target set by Team A. They could manage only 93
Team A's score was the highest score ever scored by a team from Rockerzzz. They went berserk from the word go, hitting all the bowlers out of the park. The openers (Vicky and Sajid) made a good foundation, with 50 runs of unbeaten stand. Farooq and Reyaz made a decent contribution in the middle but the highlight of the innings was the scintillating performance of Rehan towards the end. He scored 26 runs off Buland's last over of the innings which catapulted them to 138 runs.
Team B's engine took the reverse gear from the beginning of the inning. They never really looked to the chase the monstrous target of 139 in 12 overs. They started very poorly and were soon 17/4. Rakib and Buland tried to do some damage control. They took ones and twos, scored boundaries and kept the scoreboard ticking. Buland tried to cover up for his poor last over by hitting 18 runs of Rehan's over apart from which there was nothing worth mentioning. Rakib was the lone performer, he bowled well and took a few wickets, scored some runs for his team which saved them from the shame of losing very heavily.

PS: Faisal and Tanzeel have decided to take a break and practice in Decathlon's net and won't be back until they find some form back. However, Kashif the senior player from Rockerzzz have asked them to re-consider their decision, gave them a pep talk and finally convince them to find form on the pitch on the day of match not away from it.
Rehan after hitting 3 sixes and 2 fours in a over confessed that he won't be able to sleep for 2 days and let the happiness sink in first.
Tausif would want to workout more in the gym because there were multiple instances on the ground when he got hurt when others bumped into him. So, expect more muscles coming up next
Sumit, finally found form and decided he will now get a new bat for himself

May 17, 2014

Team A: Farooq (c), Afsal, Misbah, Affaque, Tanzeel, Faisal, Sumit, Suraj, Rehan, Imtiaz, Faiz, 
Team B: Tausif (c), Shaimir, Rakib, Kashif, Iqbal, Vicky, Buland, Reyaz, Ehtesham, Mehran

1st match: Team A struggled to score 67 with more than 25 runs coming in the last 3 overs, team B chased the target in 11th over. 
2nd match: Team A put up a target of 98 in 12 overs. Team B lost wickets but continued to be in the hunt when the equation was 27 off 24 balls with only Reyaz as a recognized batsmen on the crease. Reyaz hit the ball so hard but not hard enough, it went high up in the air and Rehan took a beauty at the boundary falling down and inches away from the ropes, well there wasn't a rope anyway and that created a confusion and the both the teams had a long discussion on whether it was a six or a catch. It was very difficult to decide but finally the captains, umpire and the concerned fielder decided that Reyaz was out and with that the hope of chasing the target faded off.
Another highlight of the match was the split over hattrick by Buland. He bowled exceptionally well, his slower balls were difficlut to pick by Team A's batsman. Vicky a new addition to the team is making his own mark, batting beautifully in both the matches. He is slowly gaining respect as a opener of his tea,. Reyaz, cool person of his team lost his temper when given out (doubtful one) when he argued it to be a six.

Most importantly it was a farewell for Ehtesham (one of the founders of the team). He is leaving Kolkata for the best (call of duty). He didn't score much in his last match, well even Don Bradman scored a naught in his last match. We will miss you Ehtesham.

Farooq (right side with his hand gesture) explains Suraj how not to take a catch

A happy team

The team after hard and happy day

Buland and his team after the split over hattrick

Tried a team selfie and I would consider it to be a fail

Farooq and Faisal taking guard in the final overs of the innings

May 10, 2014

Team A: Tanzeel (c), Affaque Ameen, Faiz, Muzammil, Rehan, Faisal, Vicky,
Team B: Shaimir (c), Farooq, Tausif, Arafat, Saif, Iqbal, Imtiaz, Suraj
1st match: Team B 78 in 10 overs, Team A 74 in 10 overs. Team A was steadily moving towards target when they needed 18 off 24 balls when they self destroyed themselves losing 4 wickets in 2 overs and 2 runs
2nd match: Team B set the target of 58 in 12 overs and Team A chased it in 11th over.

Many regulars missed the game because of office pressure and interviews. Well, quite a few new names in both the squad, yeah almost 6 of them (brother and his friends of Tanzeel)

PS - The teams decided on playing on 11th May, Sunday also but somehow players backed out and the game was cancelled.

May 3, 2014

No matches today.... Vacations, offices, tiredness prompted everyone available to take an unfortunate decision to cancel today's match.

April 26, 2014

Something incredible happened...yes I will tell you but you need to keep patience...Before that I would like to tell you that I would be using this group as a blog with the details of our matches each week... I have already started this last week (19-April-2014).... Anyways here comes the update for this week...(one thing to note, I will write these in third person)
Team A : Tausif (c), Rakib, Ehtesham, Sajid, Tanzeel, Buland, Misbah, Anil, Kashif, Shaimir, Affan Ahmed
Team B: Farooq, Reyaz, Affaque, Imtiaz, Faisal, Faiz, Afsal, Saroosh, Rehan, Sumit 
1st match (12 overs): Team B: 92, Team A: 60 in 8.1 overs; Team A needed 33 off 23 deliveries and some 4 wkts left when we had to abandon the game as some tournament was supposed to start in Chandragupta Maurya ground and then we need to shift to Oxford ground
2nd match (12 overs): Team B: 82, Team A: 83; Team A won with 21 balls to spare
Highlights: Good cameo by Affaque and Reyaz towards the end of the game, Affi hits 2 sixes to take the team to 82 from 62 in 10 overs. Team A started brilliantly socring 44 in 4 overs.. Quickfire by Tanzeel took the team to 30 in first 2 overs. The first wicket partnership between Tanzeel and Kashif gave a brilliant platform to start the chase with

April 19, 2014

Team A: Farooq, Reyaz, Sajid, Tanzeel, Buland, Suraj, Shaimir, Ameen, Faiz, Rehan, 
Team B: Tausif, Misbah, Afsal, Rakib, Imtiaz, Afaque, Kashif, Iqbal, Ehtesham, 
1st match (12 overs): Team A: 98, Team B: 77; Team A won by 20 runs
2nd match (12 overs): Team A: 94, Team B:95; Team B won with 7 balls to spare
No individual performance to talk about

12th April - match at Oxford ground

We set the target of 127 in 15 overs... conditions were tough but we batted well.... we bowled well in the start of our innings..took wickets in regular intervals but couldn't stop the flow of runs...we had more than 8 bowlers in our line up...captain had a difficult time in choosing the bowlers but he did well.... somethings went out of the control...run ups..mis-catches...mis-fields due to distraction.... 64 off 7 overs could have been defended but we faltered and lost in the last overs.... the pics displayed here was taken before the start of the match ...ppl in the photo are discussing the plans... yes we are not too serious in the discussion....all laugh and play