NJ Sluggers - DIV B Champions 2021 |
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| Susindran Thangaraju (susindran_t@yahoo.com) | ||||||
| 09/28/2021 | ||||||
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On September 25, 2021, Sluggers and Sunrisers cricket clubs faced off at Weston Road in the Division B final of the Millennium Cricket League. The fact that the final was played between these two teams at all was testament to the competitiveness and evenness of the competition: Sluggers finished the regular season in 5th with ten wins and four losses; Sunrisers finished tenth with 7 wins and 6 losses. Sluggers had reached the final via a 6 wicket win over Sparks, a 4 wicket win over Stumpers, and a 201 run rout of Lions in the semi final. Sunrisers combined postseason wins against Dominators and The Shield. Their semi final a week earlier had been a thrilling 6 run win in which their opponent’s top batsman was left stranded at the non-striker’s end on 98 not out as wickets fell at the other end. Sluggers batted first and opened the innings with Ramandeep Jaj and Aditya Mohan. The fact that the first ball of the game was a no-ball, followed by a six on the free hit, perhaps set the tone for what was to come. The opening pair amassed runs at a hurried pace, barely giving up a chance on the way to a 154 run partnership. Raman continued playing shots around the ground until falling tragically short of what would have been a memorable century, being clean bowled by Vikram Bolleni on 98. After falling for 97 in the semi final, Raman has twice in the space of a week had a glimpse of glory only to have it taken from him at the last moment. Despite cameos by Deepak Jay Gopinath and Karthik Sonti, Sunrisers was able to effectively clean up the tail, taking 5-20 in the last 22 balls. Nevertheless, 255 would be an imposing target to reach in a shortened 38 overs and Sluggers had one hand on the trophy going into the second innings. Sunrisers knew they had to attack to chase a challenging but not impossible target score. Their innings began with setbacks, however, as by the fourth over both openers were gone for single figures. Similarly, Deepak Kaintura and Ronald Rexson Edison Joseph both had promising starts but could not continue to a high score. After a lower-middle order collapse, it seemed that all hope was lost until Santhosh Sangidi and Surendra Marthala combined for a late 33 run partnership, though by then only the most optimistic of Sunrisers fans would have backed them to reach the almost 200 still needed to secure the trophy. Congratulations to Sluggers, Division B champions 2021. Tough luck to Sunrisers, a worthy finalist. As we end another cricket season, Sluggers rise to Division A and will need to step up their game to achieve similar success against stronger opponents next year. Sunrisers have the winter to ponder what could have been, and hone their skills for another crack at the trophy in ’22. Thank you to everyone for another great season. Prepared by : Julian Dean |
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