Captain Report - MCCC - Sunday Team 2007.

Sunday Captain Report for the year 2007.

With the introduction of a league team on Saturday, most of the players from the Sunday team of 2006 made a switch, resulting in a vacuum in the core squad. Being a Captain during this transition phase was a challenge and an opportunity.

I have to give due credit to Jim Patel, Steve O’ Neil and Majid and Imran for their support during throughout the season. In the early part of the season, we were trying to get some structure created in the team, batting orders were being revised etc. With all the talent that was housed in the Sunday squad, I was able to try out different strategies, depending on the opposition, the toss and of course the conditions on the day.

Andy ‘Angry’ Allan was my trump card in the season and he delivered match after match, mostly with his pace and even on rare occasions, with some leg spin. Tush Wadhwa as my vice-captain was of great help on and off the field. Whenever I had a problem, Tush was always there to sort it out. Tush and Andy had great opening spells and would end up destroying the top order of the opposition under 10 overs. This really helped the other bowlers to build an attack and most of the times, we were on top of the game by the 15th over.

Sayeed Imran was the find of the season, for me. He started out as a keeper and worked very hard at his batting. Once he hit some form with the bat, it was literally a golden phase for him with the bat. Khalim had a good season with the bat and the ball. He was always there to spank the early boundaries and get the team score rolling. Ryan Lang came good as a lower order bat and made some very invaluable contributions in a number of games. The Patel bowlers (father and son) were another key contributors to the Sunday team.

Thanks to excellent performances from Steve O’Neil, Majid, Jadid Khan, Steve Herat. Graham Pinkney, the Cummins brothers, Gerry, Vivek, Brian Clifford, Hemant Patel, Raj and the ’20-20’ Craig Harper. Special credit is due to Craig’s six hitting ability.

As a team we always played to win and we won 14 out of the 16 matches. This surely matches the history of the Sunday team. As a skip, I tried my best to give every team member the best possible opportunity to enjoy the game, in their various roles and it gives me great satisfaction to look at their achievements, at the end of it all. Thank you all for the spirit and the passion you had for the game and for giving it your very best, even in very trying circumstances.

As a captain, I am extremely proud of our achievements and the effort each of you put in. Hope the spirit of the Sunday team stays the same in the years to come. Bring it On!

Satish Viswanathan.