Cricket-Newcomers 777 win Eden Island Shield |15 May 2009

Winning the toss, Vijay’s captain Aravind chose to bat on a pretty hard pitch at Freedom Square. Vijay never looked settled as wickets kept tumbling at regular intervals, with only Mukesh (41 runs) and Aravind (31 runs) making significant contributions. Vijay’s innings ended with 145 on the board in their allotted 30 overs.

777’s bowling performance spoke for itself as they did well to restrict Vijay to only 145 runs. Captain Suranga (two wickets from six overs), vice-captain Krishna (two wickets from six overs) and debutant Rajesh (three wickets from six overs) were the pick of their bowlers.

Left with a total of 145 to chase down in 30 overs, 777 sent in openers Krishna and Shiva.
Many cricket followers would agree that when an opener manages to last an entire innings undefeated, it generally means victory is certain. That’s exactly what happened as Krishna refused to give his wicket away to the Vijay bowlers and scored an undefeated 63.

He was well partnered by Sandesh (at number 3), who scored 27 not out. And between them, they made sure victory was secured for their team.

Eventually, the winning runs were scored in the 24th over, with six overs to spare and seven wickets in hand. With 63 runs and the two prized scalps of Jeevan Palani and Dhiraj, the man-of-the-match award went to Krishna Naidoo.

A combination of good captaincy, disciplined preparation and good execution proved to be 777’s secret of success. And all this for a team who are playing in only their first tournament.