by Chandana Nayak - Daijiworld News Network USA
USA, Oct 27: The finals of “CricBay Playoffs 2006” was recently held at Thomas Russell Jr. High School in Milpitas, California. With over a hundred people in attendance, the Hattrickers beat Champs XI by 15 runs to take home the Platinum Trophy (http://www.cricbay.com/scoresheet.asp?matchid=542). The Playoffs were divided into two segments with the top 16 teams after the league matches contending for the Platinum Trophy and the other 16 playing for the Gold Trophy.
The winners and runners-up of the two segments
The closely contested game between Bay CC and XI Invincibles for the Gold Trophy, tied at 71 for 9. Eventually, Bay CC were declared the winners having lost fewer wickets than their rivals at the end of the 19th over (http://www.cricbay.com/scoresheet.asp?matchid=550). Members of CricBay expressed their happiness over the success of the first major tournament organized by the league since its formation early this year.
“CricBay has exceeded all our expectations and turned out to be very well-managed, striking the right balance between competition and fun. It has provided a forum for amateur cricket teams in the San Francisco Bay Area to play competitive games without having to worry about overheads like uniforms. Concepts like letting the teams choose the exact playing days and a democratic approach in deciding everything have contributed to CricBay's success. Any mention of CricBay will be incomplete without praising CricBay's website(http://www.cricbay.com). The website truly provides a snapshot of life in CricBay,” enthused Pawan Bhatia, Captain, Daakus Cricket Club.
Anil Rao, one of the pioneers of CricBay, with the trophies.
Similar sentiments were echoed by Rajesh Sundaram, Captain of the Champs XI. “CricBay has provided a fun, informal and at the same time competitive and spirited environment for playing cricket. We have enjoyed every moment of the season,” he said.
Besides cricket, there was other entertainment at the venue for the spectators and visitors such as raffle draws and gifts for the young ones. A dosa camp by Annapoorna Restaurant proved very appealing after an energetic game and enthusiastic cheering!
Kartik Ramaswamy of the Weekenders said, “CricBay has established itself in the Bay Area with some excellent coordination, great management, and cooperation from volunteers who have given their soul to the development of this gentleman's game. This is to be considered as one of the biggest cricketing communities in the history of Bay Area cricket.” Sponsors for the finals included Precious Dental Care, Far East National Bank, SportzCommunity.com and Saratoga Dental Group.
Sunil Shenoy with the "Award of Appreciation" for designing CricBay.com
The Fall Open kicked off on October 21, 2006 and will conclude in February, 2007. A total of 48 teams are participating in this tournament which is an increase of one-third since the Playoffs had 32 teams involved.
“….So far CricBay has stood up to its expectations and promises. Thanks to Cricbay for making my weekend a fun filled one!!”, says Aneel. K, Captain, Raiders. No doubt, a feeling shared by numerous cricket enthusiasts in this part of the world!
Individual Awards:
Platinum Pool:
Most Precious Player - Rohan Pai (Hattrickers)
Precious Batsman - Harish Balasubramaniam (Weekenders)
Precious Bowler - Manju Raja (Unknown XI CC)
Precious Fielder - Vikram Viswanathan (Unknown XI CC)
Gold Pool:
Most Precious Player - Mahesh (Googly XI)
Precious Batsman - Mahesh (Googly XI)
Precious Bowler - Mahesh (Googly XI)
Precious Fielder - Chirag Panchal (Spartans CC)
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