Sarasota Tour September 7/8

Chucky - 8.0
Looked a little out of sorts on day 1, but managed to make an unbeaten fifty. Looked more solid on Day 2 but with worse returns. The 40 odd on day two bot his tour average to a 100. Two consecutive sixes off of Donny on day 1 were memorable. Was one of the few to field the entirety of both days.

Dalip - 9.0
Day 1 brought the ideal mix of the old and new Dalip. Along with the big hitting we are used to, Dalip also showed patience to look for the bad balls. An excellent 100 not out for the long time Titan. Dalip and Chucky have made their cases for retaining the opening spots very strongly. Only blemish on the field was a ball going under him.

DK - 3.0
The rust showed, in batting, bowling and fitness. Responded to the task of going in at number 3 with a lot of heart, but him having been away from the game for a while showed through. Same was true for bowling, where while he bowled a couple of good deliveries, the performance was not up to his usual standards. Fitness is a major concern going forward.

Rakesh - 7.5
Batted with characteristic flair and played some beautiful shots through the off side. Continued from where Dalip and Chuck had left off. Bowled well and was unlucky not to get the in form opposing batsmen out, as there were at least 4 close calls and chances on his bowling.

Phani - 4.5
After a bit of a build up, Phani's Titans debut was a bit of a damp squib. Had issues controlling his line while bowling on both days, but showed promise with the ability to move the ball off the pitch. Got his opportunity with the bat on Day 2, but threw it away with a return catch. Took a great catch at backward point and was active in the field both days.

Walt - 8.0
Was on song whenever he came on to bowl. The most consistent bowler on tour for Titans, and the only one who bowled well on both days. Went for only 3 an over on the second day, though failed to pick up a wicket. Fitness is a major concern as his absence on the field led to undesirable field setups. 

Tanmay - 6.0
Started off by getting the danger man Robbie out early. Bowled well, but not up to his usual standards. As the leader of the attack on Day 1, there was a lot more expected of him.

Sandeep - 5.0
Bowled well in the opportunity presented to him. Shows potential of developing into a bowling all rounder. Looses a point for dropping Chris off Rakesh's bowling and then being out of position 2 deliveries later. Showed great dedication in the field and is a good addition to the side.

Akash - 7.0
Had trouble with the ball on day 1, while bowling and fielding, but was decent. Turned it on with the ball on day 2 bowling to settled batsmen. Stifled the batting with some consistent bowling, maintaining line and length in accordance with the field. Batted decently to extend the Titans innings.

Bunny - 2.0
Failed with the bat and the ball. Got out through an inside edge playing away from the body, and had trouble finding the right line with the ball. Was solid in the field, but overall a far cry from the team's best allrounder tag that he earned last season.

Avinash - 2.5
Could not get going with the bat in the opportunity he was given. Was pretty solid in the field.

Prateek - 7.5
Keeping was decent, but not up to his standards on day 1. Limited number of resources available hindered field placements on Day 1. Batted well to bring the team back from under 30 for 3 to set a target of 174 with a composed 58 not out. 

Paul - 5.5
Batted with purpose to get a start, but did not follow through and got out looking to up the run rate. Bowling was decent as he picked up 3 wickets, but was not able to force the issue with the set batsmen. Performed well with the ball despite a long break, but again, the rust showed and not up to his standards with the bat or ball.

Rheeshie - 3.5
Got a start with the bat and built a partnership to get closer to an ideal score. Was below par behind the stumps as he had a couple of drops and let a few byes through. Was not helped by the bowlers, bowling inconsistent lines.

Mohit - 2.5
Was all over the place with the one over he bowled after showing promise in the nets. Took a good catch int he infield and fielded well in the outfield. Needs work in the nets to improve the standard of bowling.

Atif - 6.5
Bowled all the right lines, but did not come away with the returns that were expected. Was unable to break the game winning partnership for the opposition. Had early returns with the ball, but overall more incisiveness is expected.

Titans Vs Pt St Lucie (20/20)

Chucky - 8.0

Marked return to form with a handsome innings of 40. Should have continued to make more and got out stumped right after hitting a 4. Took two good catches including a blinder at cover which could easily end up being the catch of the season.

Roy - 9.0

Showed signs of his destructive self with the bat making a quickfire 29 including at least one incredible hit for six. Got out bowled as he was trying to "catch the ball gone" by looking up while playing the shot. Bowled well to pick up 4 wickets in his 3 overs to fill in for some average bowling from the spinners. Also took a good catch running gracefully along the boundary.

Dalip - 4.0

Made 16 quick runs and then got out stumped after completely missing a ball that was in his slot. Followed that up with an insipid display in the field. More/better is expected from a long time Titan big bat.

Rheshiee - 7.0

Batted sensibly before his fitness got in the way. Retired out at 27 after putting in a lot of running in the middle. Did a decent job behind the stumps, except for a couple of occasions when he was surprised by the quicker deliveries by Roy and Tanmay.

Danny - 6.0

The third top order batsman to get out stumped after having just hit a four. The four was the only runs to his name. Bowled well by using the conditions, till the last over where he went for a few runs. 4 for 22 for 1 wicket were good returns and built the pressure early on when the opposition needed 8 an over.

Prateek - 6.0

Decent batting till the decision to go for a slog on the first ball of the last over. Kept the scoreboard moving with aggressive running, but the big strokes were missing. Keeping was decent and should have effected a couple of wickets but was slow getting up for the spinners. Effected a runout from the outfield with Tanmay's help.

Sahel - 3.0

Got out to the third ball he faced. Moved away from the ball to lose his off stump. Fielding was average by his high standards.

Deo - 3.5

Got out to a very smart stumping by the opposing keeper when walked down the track to flay a medium pacer. Bowling was patchy as he bowled some good deliveries but at the same time fed the batsmen some long hops.

Atif - 3.0

Ran hard to contribute a few runs during the death, was not able to pull out his big strokes at the same time though. Got punished at 11 an over which is definitely not up to the mark for one of our frontline bowlers. Had a couple of mishaps in the fielding which has become a trend.

Tanmay - 4.5

Made a few runs with aggressive running in the last over. Fielded well as usual. His bowling was off as he could not make the required adjustments. Still had decent return figures of 4-0-20-2 but a better batting attack could have taken him to task.

Paul - 8.0

Provided another great start for the bowling attack. Figures of 3-1-6-0 while bowling under the powerplay overs in a 20/20 games are just fantastic. Set up the pressure situation for the opposition for the later overs with that spell. Field placements seemed off towards the later part of the innings, but he did mange the resources well.

Titans Vs Westside Cavaliers (20/20)

Chucky - 5.5

Had some trouble getting going with the bat, but battled well to make 19 and put together a partnership when the team was in trouble. Had two drops to his name which is very unusual considering his high standards.

Roy - 4.0

Not a great first outing for the new Titan. Was not able to take advantage of the short boundaries and got out trying to hit one over the off side. Took a good catch out deep and was a good influence on the field, helping the team out with suggestions.

Dalip - 2.0

Not a good day for Dalip at one-down. Got out for a duck trying to cut one that was close to his body. Also had a couple of misfields as he could not bend down to stop the ball and elected to use his feet to stop it.

Rheeshie - 3.0

Failed with the bat as he got out fending one that bounced off a length. Was solid as usual in the field and moved quicker than some of the guys younger than him in the squad. Took a catch at cover to get the highest scorer of the game out.

Prateek - 7.0

Batted well to make 26, but should have finished the game instead of leaving it to the batsmen after him. Got out trying to hoick the ball from outside off to midwicket. Keeping was decent with a good catch and one missed chance.

Sahel - 6.0

Batted well to take the game from the middle stages to the finish. Rotated the strike well and picked up the quick runs as he is used to. Did have some unusual fielding blemish including a straightforward chance that he did not hold on to.

Danny - 6.0

Batted very well by taking the attack to the opposition and leaving them with no chance of a win. Finished the game with a 6. Had some trouble with his length while bowling and finished with an economy rate of 8.0. Fielding was a lso below par as he looked sluggish on the boundary.

Deo - 7.5

Excellent debut for the spinner for Titans. Bowled an almost unplayable spell and was unlucky to walk away with just 1 wicket(off a full toss, no less). Economy rate of just over 4 is golden in 20/20.

Paul - 8.5

Set up the win in the very first over by taking two wickets in two deliveries. Took another wicket later in the spell and also bowled a maiden later. Economy of 3.25 and 3 wickets is just remarkable. The captaincy was a little over imaginative, but good overall.

Tanmay - 7.5

Except for one horrendous over, bowled brilliantly. Picked up three wickets in the process, including hitting the stumps off his first ball. Took a good and well judged catch in the deep. bowled 4 overs for 26 runs, of which 20 came from one over.

Atif - 3.5

Not a great outing with the ball or in the field. Escorted balls to the boundary and had trouble bending down to stop the ball. Did pick up one wicket while bowling, but was unable to adjust his length to tie down the batsmen.

Titans Vs Sarasota - Day 2

Warren - 8
Bowled beautifully for no wickets. Had a good caught behind appeal turned down. Went for less than 4 an over. Throws from the boundary were excellent as usual. Finished the game off with a quick 20-odd including some big hits.

Paul - 4
Bowling well downhill after a decent first over. Went for over 6 an over when the opposition scored around 4 an over. Picked up one wicket. Was a little slow in the field at times. His feild placements were excellent and forced the opposition to adopt a gameplan that suited us.

Gowtham - 8
8 overs, 22 runs, 1 wicket(Gosai, their best bat) and 2 maidens. Gowtham had a great day bowling. Bowled a consistent and nagging line and length and generated some outward movement that consistently troubled the batsmen. Got a wicket in his first over.

Atif - 7.5
Bowler of the match with 3 for 22. Get the crucial wickets of Ryan(game's top scorrer), Om and Jerry, three of their better batsmen. Was able to use a relatively newer ball and the wind direction opposite to his preference very well. Looses a point and a half for dropping three catches. He did take a sharp chance at slip.

Danny - 8
Bowled very well to pick up 3/27 in his 7.2 overs. Should have had 4 wickets, but a caught behind appeal was turned down. Bowled within himself and used the conditions very well. Danny has turned out to be quite a find for the team. Fielding was much better that Day 1.

Rishi - 5
Started off well with Chucky and made sure there was a good platform to launch from. Lost his wicket playing across the line to a spinner and getting jucged LBW. Was a little slow in the feild, but is a good pair of eyes to have around to see the flaws in the field settings.

Chucky - 8
Continued his good run of form with another 50. It wasnt chanceless, but included some stylish strokes. Dropped a couple of half chances that many on the team would not even have gotten to. Overall a good performance from our premier batsman.

Prateek - 7
Keeping was good, had a quick stumping and a caught behind. Kept the batsmen in check by covering the "drop and run" quick singles. Batting was ok. 20-odd runs were well constructed, but should have finished the job with Chucky. Got out to a soft dismissal playing a ball straight to a fielder.

Dave - 6
Dropped a catch in the outfield, but made up for it by running out a batsman with his quick thinking.

Umair - 4
Slower in the feild than the dy before, could have had a catch or a run out on the same delivery, but got neither.

Akhil - 4
A couple of good stops, followed by a dropped high catch.

Krishna - 7
Came in to field for Atif and had an impact in the short period he was in for by getting a runout via quick thinking and a good throw. One of the best fielders in the squad.

Titans A Vs Sarasota

Warren - 9
Played a dominating innings of 69 while the next highest score on the team was 10 runs. Did everything he could as a batsman (did not bowl or field) to try to win the game for the A side. Hit some of the biggest sixes hit by a Titan in a long time.

Dave - 8
8 overs, 29 runs for 2 wickets are excellent figures, especially when coming off a long layoff and when the opposition has scored at 6.7 an over. Batted steadily to make only 10 runs, but it was the support he gave to Warren by staying out there that was important.

Umair - 5
The new(ly married) skipper had a lot to deal with as a captain and did moderately well in rallying his troops. There is a lot of learning to be done in that regard. Made a single digit score, when as the leader of the team, he should have looked to put his head down. Fielded with a pep in his step and set the example for the juniors on the fielding side.

Avinash - 4
Avi opened with Umair and played well before getting out in single digits. Avinash looks a lot like an opening batsman, but tends to play a loose shot every so often. The glovework was sloppy and some of the spinners were not happy with missed stumping opportunities.

Danny - 3.5
Went at 5 an over and picked up one wicket. Batting was a dissapointment as Danny got out to a cross batted stroke. Danny uncharacteristically dropped two catches in the deep. He did take a good catch at slip, but that came a bit too late to stop the damage. Gets half a point extra for giving a batsman a bloody nose.

Uvin - 4.5
Uvin's fielding was sloppy, including not going for a catch that was clearly there and not that high. The batting was a better story with Uvin making 4 runs (That was more than Danny, Krishna, Ryan, Dilly and Gowtham). Good to see some runs off the bat for Uvin.

Krishna - 6
Krishna was not his usual self in the field, including some misfields and missed runout opportunities. Batting was ok with 3 runs to his name. Bowled very well to a wicket at 3 an over for his 4 overs. Chris from Sarasota gave Krishna the Honorary Man of the Match trophy.

Ryan - 4
Similar story to Krishna. He did dive around to stop some runs, but also dropped a straightforward shance to get the centurion Chris out early. Scored a duck.

Dilly - 4
Batting was the usual story for Dilly, more style and less substance. Start off things by taking a very good catch running backwards. Dropped an easier chance of Gosai later int he innings.

G Raja - 5.5
Followed up an excellent spell of 8-0-26-1 with an inept batting performance scoring just 1 run and getting out to an unnecessarily uppish stroke. Bowled a very good opening spell and recieved a lot of praise for his line and length.

Walt - 4
Bowled well, but came in for some stick from the batsmen. Unlucky not to get more wickets as he had multiple drops on his bowling and a couple of missed stumpings. Batting was a single digit effort and more is expected from a player quickly becoming a regular performer for the A-team.

Akhil - 3
Batting was nothing to write home a bout and dissapointing considering the time he has spent learning the game. Had a bad day with the ball too. Went for almost 8 an over and did not pick up a wicket in he 8 overs. Needs to work on his control before working on his variations.

Batting...what batting?

Another classy Titans "top order" collapse. You'd think this team was all West Indian the way we have no desire to stick at the crease...lol. Another tired tale of "if only we had 40 more on the board."

Let's start from the top down...team leaders/ veterans first.

Paul - 3.0 (0 batting, 2.0 fielding, 0 bowling, 1.0 discretionary)
Failed in both departments when the team needed him the most.

Tanmay - 7.0 (1.0 batting, 2.5 fielding, 2.5 bowling, 1.0 discretionary)
Batting a bit and bowled well but it was too little too late.

Tiki - 3.5 (0 batting, 2.5 fielding,0 bowling, 1.0 discretionary)
Looked good batting but another senseless run-out. Expensive one over.

Wazza - 6.0 (0 batting, 2.5 fielding, 2.5 bowling, 1.0 discretionary)
Did not bother the scorers much but bowled beautifully.

Chuck - 5.0 (0 batting, 2.0 fielding, n/a bowling, 3.0 discretionary)
Another unforgettably bad day for Chuck and another duck.

Dalip - 8.0 (2.0 batting, 2.0 fielding, n/a bowling, 4.0 discretionary)
Quickfire 30 runs...but not enough.

Umair - 6.5 (0 batting, 2.5 fielding, n/a bowling, 4.0 discretionary)
No real contribution...batting was needed badly.

Bala - 5.5 (0 batting, 2.5 fielding, 2.0 bowling, 1.0 discretionary)
Batting was poor, fielding was good, bowling was decent.

Gowtham - 6.5 (0 batting, 2.5 fielding, n/a bowling, 4.0 discretionary)
Getting better every game in the field but batting needs to show up.

Vedere - 6.0 (0 batting, 2.0 fielding, n/a bowling, 4.0 discretionary)
No real contribution...wasted another batting opportunity.

Reddy - 5.5 (0 batting, 2.5 fielding, 2.0 bowling, 1.0 discretionary)
Much improved fielder and player...all round. Did not show it with the bat this week though.

7-6-1 and at least it was a winning season. We beat all the bad teams and lost to the good ones...we were the middle of the pack team.

Battered and curried by India United.

Well that was another ass kicking of the A+ variety. Totally out played in each area of the game. They were clinical.

Let's start from the top down...team leaders/ veterans first.

Paul - 6.0 (2.0 batting, 2.0 fielding, 1.0 bowling, 1.0 discretionary)
Batted well for the team to rebuild and start the acceleration, but did not carry on to 50+. Fielding was ok. Bowling was economical but no wickets...AGAIN.

Tanmay - 4.0 (0 batting, 2.0 fielding, 1.0 bowling, 1.0 discretionary)
Batting was a disappointment.. Bowling was off the mark a bit. Not a good day.

Coach - 2.5 (0 batting, 1.5 fielding, 0 bowling, 1.0 discretionary)
Not a good day.

Tiki - 8.5 (2.0 batting, 2.5 fielding, n/a bowling, 4.0 discretionary)
Good batting but needed to carry on...senseless run-out.

Wazza - 3.5 (0 batting, 2.5 fielding, 0 bowling, 1.0 discretionary)
Did not bother the scorers except for almost 8 an over in the bowling column with no wickets. Bad day at the office.

Chuck - 5.0 (0 batting, 2.0 fielding, n/a bowling, 3.0 discretionary)
Another unforgettably bad day for Chuck.

Dalip - 6.5 (0.5 batting, 2.0 fielding, n/a bowling, 4.0 discretionary)
Not much impact since he was gone in the 3rd over.

Sahel - 6.5 (1.5 batting, 1.0 fielding, n/a bowling, 4.0 discretionary)
13* but dropped a sitter at midwicket.

Bala - 6.5 (0 batting, 2.5 fielding, n/a bowling, 4.0 discretionary)
Batting was poor, fielding was good. Did not bowl.

Gowtham - 6.5 (0 batting, 2.5 fielding, n/a bowling, 4.0 discretionary)
Getting better every game.

Vedere - 6.0 (0 batting, 2.0 fielding, n/a bowling, 4.0 discretionary)
Ground fielding was slow...batting poor, needs to play like he's 15 run around and have some fun.

7-5-1 and now it's win next week and maybe we're in...and we are no longer in control of our own playoff destiny.