Two washouts in a row

As I said in my previous post, I started my season late. So when I received the letter of posting for the month of August, I was very happy. There were four games for which I had been posted. But I had to regret one of the game as there were two games on the same weekend. But I still had three games for the month.

On August 21, it was game between BSNL Chennai Telephones v Dorairaj. It was a Division 4 game. It was to be played in CLRI grounds. It was the same ground where I did my first game for TNCA. It was way back in July 2009. It rained heavily on August 20 night. In the morning when I woke up, my mom asked me if there will be any game that day. I told her that irrespective of whether the game happens or not, I will have to go to the ground, as umpires are the final decision makers. Until unless the assessment of the ground is made on that day, we could not decide if the game would be played or not. So even before I went to the ground, it was doubtful if we will have a game or not.

I reached the ground around 08:40 AM. The mat was not on the pitch. I could see lot of puddles of water on the ground. One of the team member from BSNL approached me and asked if there would be any game today. I gave him the politically correct answer, which was, "I have to wait till my colleague arrives and then we will make an assessment". Everyone was very sure that there was no scope for game but then there were certain procedures that had to be adopted. Such decisions could not be made by one umpire. It is always a joint decision. I saw that the scorer had arrived. He was so sure that the game would not happen that he brought only the score sheet. In fact everyone there were hoping that the game would not happen. It was a festival day (Krishna Jayanti). People wanted to retire to their home and celebrate the festival.

While I was waiting for my colleague to arrive, the scorer and myself were discussing the dismal performance of Indian team in the tour of England. My colleague Mr. Iyyapan arrived at around 09:00 AM. He was the same guy with whom I umpired in my first game, on the same ground. He went straight to the pitch. I rushed to accompany him. We saw that the pitch was wet. On one of the ends, the bowlers run up had puddle of water. There were lot of pockets of puddle on the boundary. So first inspection was done and the ground condition was definitely not suitable for us to start the game at 09:30 AM. Since it was not raining, we had to go by the assumption that the conditions could still improve and see the possibility of having a game. As per the rules, we can call off a game only when we are sure that there is no possibility of having a game for at least 3.5 hours duration. This means that if we see that the conditions are improving, then we had to wait till 1:45 PM to call the game off.

As the players saw us walking towards the boundary, they were eager to know what was our assessment. They were very sure that there will not be any game. But to their disappointment, we said that we will take that call only after our next inspection which was due at 10:30 AM. Deep in my heart I knew that there is no game possible, as the Sun was still not shining and there was no scope for the conditions to improve. But at the same time, deep in my heart, I wanted the game to happen. I had not travelled from Bangalore to Chennai to call off the game I was supposed to umpire. But the possibility were as dark as the clouds that I could see in the sky. Rather the possibilities were dark because the clouds in the sky were dark. I know my statements were not impressive :).

So the PCT (Playing control team) sat together. You must be wondering what is that. Apart from the two teams who are competing we have a third team on the ground, that is called PCT which comprises of umpires, scorers and referee, basically people who are responsible for conducting the game. Here the PCT was only two umpires and the scorer. So we had to spend more than an hour before the next inspection. I thought that it was good time to just browse through the playing conditions once again. In the meantime, I was also engaged in the discussion that were on different topics ranging from Anna Hazare's anti-corruption crusade to India's dismal performance in England. The other two were veterans with respect to their participation in TNCA leagues, so they were recalling certain incidents from their past. It was interesting to listen.

Meanwhile, the time passed and it was 10:30 AM, our next milestone for inspection. After this inspection, without throwing any surprise, we decided to call off the game. The assessment that we had to make here was, whether there was any improvement in the conditions after our previous inspection. Also we had to asses if there will be any sufficient improvement in the conditions during the course of the day to start the game at least by 1:45 PM. The answers to both the questions were "No". Let me take this opportunity to explain you why we decided to call off the game. We as an umpires can decide to call of the game when we find that the condition of the ground, weather or light are dangerous or unreasonable for the play to take place. We call it dangerous if the conditions pose risk to safety of any player or umpire. We call it unreasonable if although posing no risk to safety, it will not be sensible to play. Here obviously, with wet ground and pitch, it was definitely not sensible to play. Moreover, while running on this ground, there is definitely possibility of players or umpires slipping and getting injured. So we (umpires) made our observations in the score sheet and called the game off. So my second game of the season had to be called off. The irony was that I was also one of the decision makers call it off :(.

My next game was on August 28, i.e. today. It was supposed to be played between Vepery CC and Gandhi CC. It was a division 5 game to be played in PSHS grounds. Last Wednesday, I got a call from TNCA that the venue was changed to St. Patrcik's school. I assumed that it would be because of the ground condition, it had been raining all the week and PSHS was not the best ground in terms of its ability to drain the water. I arrived yesterday morning from Bangalore. Unfortunately, I had to work from home and I was not very happy about that as lot of my planned work for yesterday were affected by this. Even in terms of work, it was not significant, but I could not leave my home, as it could be that I will be required to login at any time. In a way it was good that I had time to relax, which was a rarity in the past few weeks. Ok, coming back to this game. It had rained heavily the previous night i.e. Friday and I saw lots of water in the streets. When I was walking towards my home I already knew somehow what was in store for me with respect to the game. But I thought that if it did not rain the whole day on Saturday, i.e. yesterday, there could be a game possible. So I waited till the evening, there was no rain. So I was hopeful that I will have a game. I knew that the ground was in Adayar but I did not know how to reach this ground, so I thought that I will give a call to TNCA office for the directions. This was surprisingly one of the very few good decision (of course off field) that I made in the recent times :). I was informed that all the games this weekend were cancelled because of the inclement weather. Though I was happy about my decision to call, but I was disappointed that there was no game for me even this weekend.

After two games in a row being washed out, my tally for the season after two months still remain 1. In September I will not be able to umpire on two weekends, so by end of September as well, my tally is not going to see any marked improvement. If I had been living in Chennai, I would not have been this disappointed. The reason being that if I was in Chennai, I could easily do games on both Saturday and Sunday. But since I travel to Chennai from Bangalore, umpiring on Saturday is ruled out. That leaves me only with Sunday and that too if is washed out like this, then my effort of travelling goes waste. Anyway, somethings are not in my control and I do not need to worry much about it. Lot of time is left in the season and because of these washouts, anyway these games will be replayed in future. So I will have enough games :).

So dear friends, that is the story till today. I know I have to still complete my previous post. I think I will complete it in sometime next week. So keep reading.

Happy Ramzan and Happy Ganesh Chaturthi!

Season began for me, finally

The season began for me, finally on August 14. But the cricket season in Tamil Nadu had begun almost a month back. It was my first game of this season. I was anxious. It is the case for me in every game. But this was different. This season is very important for me. I really want to do well. This game had to give me that confidence. I always believe that fear of failure is a hindrance to success. Unfortunately these days I fear for failure. Thus a good start to the season was what I wanted.

This was a game between Comrades CC and Puraslavakkam CC. It was a Division 4 game. It was in St. Bede's 'A' ground. So far I had umpired only in St. Bede's 'B' ground. No big difference between the two. I mentioned here just for the sake of mentioning it :). My colleague for the day was S.N. Sukumar, a veteran in the field of umpiring.

The laws of cricket were changed slightly with effect from October 1, 2010. This being the IVth edition of 2000 code, will now apply in this season in TNCA leagues as well. One change was with respect to the toss, where the captain winning the toss has to convey his decision immediately. The toss happened at 9:20 AM. Ideally the toss should have happened between 9:00 AM and 9:15 AM for the game starting at 9:30 AM, but here we had to delay the toss. For the toss to happen we must have the team's nomination, which was delayed. This is quiet common in our league. Hence we had to go for the toss with a delay. The Comrades team won the toss and elected to field. The captain was a proud man. It seems this team has close to 100% record when it comes to winning the toss. The opponent captain was relieved that the fete of the game was not to be decided by the spin of the coin.

The game started at 09:30 AM (as scheduled). The game started from my partner's end. So I was deprived of calling 'Play' to start the match. Nothing significant about it, only that I like to do that. In the very first over, there was some action. The ball pitched and rose, hit the glove of the batsman and lobbed to the second slip, the fielder who was also the captain, dived full stretch and reached the ball but could not hold on to it. I like these kind of attempts. In spite of this brave effort, no wicket fell.

The next over was from my end. The bowler was a bit rusty to begin with and I felt that even I was a bit rusty. The ball went wide of the batsman, it was high, well above the waist height. My both hands rose to call wide, but the batsman touched the ball. Thankfully I did not call. Then I realized that it was above waist height as well, which meant that it qualified to be an unfair delivery. Immediately, I dropped one of my hand, and called it a No Ball. Then I cautioned the bowler. It was his first ball of the match and he had to be cautioned.

After the drama in the first two overs, the openers steadied the innings and reached 39 in 10 overs. In the 10th over, there was a loud appeal from the bowler and the fielders for LBW. In my opinion, the impact was at the leg and was going down the leg. The height was also a factor. So I said 'Not Out'. The bowler was not happy. So my first decision for the day and the season was made. In the 11th over, I was at square leg. The batsman stretched for the ball and missed the ball completely. In the process he dragged his foot outside the popping crease. The wicket-
keeper removed the bails. The batsman dragged his bat into the crease. There was an appeal to me. It was close, but in my opinion, the batsman was too late and thus I gave him "Out". Needless to say, the batsman was not happy. Just two balls later, the new batsman was completely beaten and was bowled by the bowler. So all of a sudden Purasalavakkam was 39/2.

It was 22nd over and there was no wicket that fell after the 11th over. So Comrades were desperate to get a wicket. There was a huge appeal to me for caught behind. I turned it down, as I did not hear any noise or saw any deflection. At this point of time I do not remember the incident exactly, so cannot give you any details. The very next over they got their man and finally a breakthrough.

In 28th over, there was a big shout from closing in fielder for an LBW, but immediately to my relief, the bowler said that the batsman had hit the bowl. Actually, the bowler blocked my view and I could not really see what happened. Anyway, since I was in doubt, I would have given 'Not Out'. Thankfully it did not come to my decision :). The drinks was taken at the end of 30 overs. Comrades were doing excellent in terms of over rate, but only that they were not able to take wickets. On the last ball of 34th over, there was another appeal for LBW. In this case the ball pitched outside the leg and the impact was on the leg. But as soon as the ball pitches outside leg, we (umpires) do not have to worry. It is 'Not Out'. After that, the Purasalavakkam lost patience and the wickets started falling in regular intervals but it was too late for the Comrades and the game still went into the 50th over and the last wicket fell on the first ball of that over. The score was 261. Time was 1250. The innings ended 10 minutes before the scheduled time. So the game would end at least 10 minutes before the scheduled time :).

The highlight of the innings was that the captain of the Purasalavakkam, Ravindran scored a century. The opening bowler Hari took 5 wickets.

The second innings started at 1335 after the lunch break. This time the game started from my end, hence I had the opportunity to call 'Play'. Just 20 minutes into the game the captain of fielding side was injured and wanted to leave the field. Now the substitute who comes in his place cannot captain the side, so we checked who among the nominated player would be deputising. Once confirmed, we went ahead with the game.

Just in the 7th over of the innings, I had lapse of concentration and another instance of my rustiness was evident. It was the last ball of the over. The ball was short pitched and went above the shoulder height of the batsman. As per our league rules, one for the over is allowed. I was a bit confused if I had to call a No ball or not. Then I just ended up warning the bowler. That warning was unnecessary as it was the last ball of the over. It created some sort of confusion in the player's mind. But the damage was already done.

First wicket fell in the 8th over, the next one fell in the 10th. After one hour, at first drinks the Comrades were 37/2 in 13 overs. Purasalavakkam were 2 overs short. In the 15th over, the non-striker who was also the opening batsman, came to me and asked if he could retire as he was feeling feverish. I told him that he could, but his return would be with the consent of the opposing captain. Since we cannot judge his illness, we had no say in his return. This would not to come under the wholly acceptable reasons. I consulted with my colleague as well. Even he said the same thing. So the batsman decided to stay back. Sometimes we have to take such hard stance. In the very next over, he was dismissed and he would be a relieved man.

In the 18th over, I was standing at square leg. The batsman was captain of the Comrades. He played away from the body, there was a sound that I could hear, obviously I could not see what hit what. But I could judge that the batsman was playing away from the body and his bat was in air, so the sound could be only bat hitting the ball. Needless to say, there was an appeal and the umpire at bowler's end gave him out. The batsman stood at his place in disbelief. I did not understand why. Sometimes the players do this. But it does not make any sense when it is very obvious that the batsman was out.

After that 18th over dismissal, no wicket fell for a while. In the 23rd over there was a bowling change. The batsman went for full blooded sweep from outside the off stump. The ball turned viciously towards the batsman and brushed his pad and was neatly collected by the wicket-keeper. There was a huge appeal from the bowler, keeper and the slip fielder. I turned it down. In my opinion, it did not touch the bat. Now it was turn for the bowler to gaze in disbelief. When the second drinks was taken, the score was 92/4 in 26 overs. So Purasalavakkam was now 4 overs short.

In the 33rd over there were two appeals for LBW. Both met the same result. First one, I turned down, as the impact was outside the off stump and the batsman was offering a shot. The other one was turned down as well, as in my opinion, the ball was going down the leg. The first decision resulted in disappointment. Second one was accepted gracefully. Impact outside off stump is always difficult for the fielders to digest. In most of the cases, the players are not clear about the law.

35th over of Comrades's innings was the highlight of the day. The ball was short pitched, the batsman, top scorer of the innings, went for the pull, the bowl took the top edge of the bat and went high in the sky towards the short fine-leg. The only fielder who could go for that catch was the wicket-keeper and rightly so, he did. He had to cover a lot of distance. By the time, the ball came down, it looked highly impossible for the keeper to reach the ball. But at this point of time, something happened, that I have never seen in this league. The keeper dived full stretch and importantly, even held on to that catch. It was a stunner and called for applause even from the opponents and he did get that as well. Even I could not stop myself from clapping for that effort.

The innings of Comrades finally folded in 36th over and the final score was 140 all out. Purasalwakkam had won the game by 121 runs. The luck that favoured Comrades in the toss did not continue till the end. For me, more importantly, the game ended at 1626, more than 45 minutes before the scheduled finish time. It is always a nice feeling when the game ends a bit early than scheduled :). Thankfully on that day I did not have to travel back to Bangalore. So I did not have to rush back to home. But on days when I have to travel back, early finish does come handy. But today also it was useful as my sisters were waiting at home to tie Rakhi, on the occasion of Rakshabandhan. Now at least they did not have to wait long.

Finally I am able to finish this. I will try to keep the updates regular. Also I will make an attempt to make this interesting read. Any sort of feedback is welcome.

Scoreboard:http://www.tnca.in/LiveSite/DisplayScorecard.aspx?matchCode=8161&TrophyCode=11