GCF World Twenty20 Championship XIV - everything thread

[Bollonich]

@CricketTalk We are to face The Sarian, Ko-oren up next. A great performance from the players at the tournament, something all of us to be proud of.

@LukasAlvaro Oh shit! People are actually happy? We are to face Ko-oren in the quarterfinals and people are happy. Seriously WTF.

@HectorJuanez This has been a tournament for all of our players as all of them shone. Looking forward to years of success.

@CricketTalk Robert Hale overtake Merritt as the best batsman for us with an average of 52.50 and strike rate of 176.47. A true T20 Player!

[Gruenberg]

Match report posted on the GruenCric website.

Gruenberg advance despite top order failings

Gruenberg may still be in doubt over their best eleven, and certainly over the shape of their continually misfiring top order, but a combination of middle order bailouts and wicket taking bowlers have seen them through the knockout stage of the GCF World T20, already improving markedly on their ill-fated* performance at the previous tournament. They now face Fodhla, a team coached by a Catholic priest, a situation that Gruenbergers find disgusting (they have nothing against Christians but are strongly intolerant of the use of “head coaches”) leading to a possible grudge match at the National Centre of Excellence Oval.

Another flat pitch awaits them there, meaning that Transportflowmap Renkauer, the fast bowler whose promise is starting to be delivered on, and Quouodan Skejjibox, who emerged as the team’s leading spinner during the ODI Trophy on home soil, will once more be to the fore, but in wicket taking roles rather than containing ones. They have shared 19 between them across the 6 matches of the group stage, and whatever criticisms can be made of Funvorgius Ventreltraxibung as a batsman (qv.), he has certainly been willing as a captain to back his bowlers with aggressive fields, frequently keeping in a slip for Skejjibox, and using Renkauer in one over bursts.

The batting has to date been led by Chthchibvuel Thchthaarheq, who has excelled with 265 runs, and Hraff’ Tumcoweiss, whose 140 runs have come at a strike rate of 175. But both bat in the middle order: the four players tried as opener have produced just 1 30+ score between them in 6 matches, while Ventreltraxibung’s slide down the order has failed to mask his deficiencies as an international batsman. Callbacks to Yurkk Zovarifnay, the “specialist captain” who led Gruenberg to their only global white ball title, ignore that Zovarifnay was capable of scoring quickly, if not with the grandiloquence of Benny Enchante or Eightyseven Otterbiscuits; Ventreltraxibung’s strike rate by contrast is under 100.

The patchy form of young guns Ettexinor Broimbles and Zambuimmi Hengtridan Jr. has not helped. Broimbles has frequently come to the crease with the innings off to a slow start or having lost early wickets, and his attempts at acceleration can perhaps be forgiven. But Hengtridan has flailed both in the middle order and as opener, and while Ystipug Contemnible has managed little of the note with the bat, his slick keeping assures him of keeping the gloves. Spakjutwazz Depraxinong has not been trusted with regular overs by Ventreltraxibung, who disdains part-timers (and has options from Broimbles and Thchthaarheq when he does dain) leaving.

Among the bowlers, Jett Tyrkkekkekklukkekklukekk is out of favour, having conceded 90 runs off his 7 overs to date. So too is Zejixaq Effervescentpyjamas, who is yet to feature despite the search for a reliable third seamer. Brigveger Grovan has, in truth, been more important as a batsman than a bowler, while iiPiqup Fizbin would be called a poor man’s iiPriyuff Uglaxx if both of them weren’t already Gelziens and thus mired in poverty anyway ayy lmao. Tumcoweiss rebounded strongly from being dropped and has taken 9 wickets, but it’s not clear what his best role is, containing early on with the harder ball, or an attacking option alongside Skejjibox.

It means the team picture for the NCE Oval is a confused one. Like when you take a panoramic of a dog and it ends up having three heads.

* Gruenbergers are strong believers in fate. Early versions of the Decision Review System featured augurs determining the probable trajectory of LBW shouts based on the entrails of birds.

[Ko-oren]

Exciting moments on the Ko-orenite blogosphere (hello, first time seeing that word in a decade!) as some of the biggest sporting blogs - and of course the colourful personalities behind them - are united under one roof! For the blogs, it's a way to professionalise their trade and it provides room for collaborations. For the company behind it... well, as always, that's a story about advertising space. Some early moves were made by the crew behind Training Grounds (the groundhoppers) who needed a way to put their travel costs under business expenses. They needed a way to make money off of their material, or else their hobby would quickly become a very, very expensive one. They started working together with a few opinionated Fantasy players. Fantasy football? Not per se... Fantasy football, rugby, cricket... hell, if you could put a virtual amount of money on it, they'd play it. Third division Audioslavian Jenga? Semi-professional Rushmori cornhole? They're in. And they started generating some page views... but lacked some of the presentation that the Training Grounds crew had started to perfect.

And then, earlier this year, Lunaro Tsukida, crown prince of the Ko-orenite sports blog scene, announced he'd also be working with them. Tsukida has even made his way into regular print media and secured a brief stint in a hip daily AOCAF coverage TV show - but, true to Tsukida's MO, never showed his face. And yet, he's become a household name - so when he announced he was in, that immediately catapulted all of them, and the organisation backing them, into the spotlight. And so, hereby we present the five (sport) story tellers that we might soon see much, much more of:

Training Grounds: the one that started it all


Lunaro Tsukida's Numbers' Game: the famous one


Jarongi's [Football] World [Cup] (Qualification) Fantasy: what don't they organise?


Wight & Wight Puzzle Company: the ever quizzical Wightlings have been an inspiration


The Beetroot: *Turnip suing noises*

[Sylestone]

I'll keep on updating this, but I just wanted to get something up before cutoff.

Matchday One: Sylestone vs Elejamie

Racecourse Ground, Talbott

Sylestone - 5/171 (20)
L Afosha 54* (33)		A Rodriguez 2/27 (4)
L Cocrine 53 (39)		R Hamilton 2/32 (4)

Elejamie - 5/172 (19.2)
S Loughlin 91* (59)		N Pistecial 3/22 (4)
K Entwhistle 34 (27)		J Vilesti 1/37 (3.2)

Player of the Match: Steve Loughlin
Elejamie win by 5 wickets with 4 balls remaining

For the full scorecard, click here.

The Hawthorns’ campaign in the 14th edition of the GCF Twenty20 World Championship began on a losing note, although unsurprisingly as their opponent was Pot 1 side Elejamie. However, Sylestone still succeeded in putting up a difficult total on the board, racking up 171 from 20 overs, including fifties from Lachlan Cocrine and Liam Afosha. However, despite Norbert Pistecial heroics with the ball, nothing could stop Elejamie opener Steve Loughlin as he steamrolled to 91 not out, ensuring his side a five wicket win in the final over. But it was a spirited performance from the underdogs and good times awaited.

Luke Tiati and Simon Monteane produced a solid start to the innings inside the first couple of overs before Robert Hamilton slipped a thunderbolt through Monteane’s defence in the third over, dismissing the opener for eight in the third over. It wasn’t the ideal start for the Sylestoneans, but no one was really worried as Lachlan Cocrine entered the field. He began in the same fashion he ended with in Gruenberg two years ago, racking up runs at a rate of knots. However, the entrance of Elejamie leg spinner Arian Rodrigues ensured that he was thrust back into his shell. Around him, wickets fell, though. Luke Tiati and Daniel Fomleya both made promising starts but failed to go on, with Fomleya only scoring five despite middling every one of his six balls before his wicket. However, Liam Afosha, as he does, provided Cocrine with the stability he required as the two took the Sylestonean total to 133 before Cocrine was dismissed for 53. A cameo from Chloe Anderson helped Sylestone reach a defendable target of 171 as Afosha reached a fifty in the final over.

The Sylestonean bowlers made a promising start, too. In the third over, swing bowler Norbert Pistecial had both Dawoud Halabi and Robert Hamilton caught behind within three balls to put the favourites on the back foot at 2-16. Pistecial then got his third in the seventh over of the match and with the run rate only hovering around 5 and the score 3-34, Sylestone were well ant truly on the front foot.
But not if Steve Loughlin had anything to do with it. Which he did. Off the next over, he put Sean Polen to the pump, racking up 21 runs with Kelly Entwhistle to relieve some of the building pressure. The two of them combined for an 81-run partnership before Entwhistle was caught by Afosha at point off the bowling of Josh Vilesti and when Ricardo Montoya was run out in the following over, Sylestone had a sniff at victory. But Steve Loughlin continued to deny the bowlers and with four balls remaining, smacked Vilesti over cover for six to wrap up a resounding win over the upstarts.

Matchday Two: Sylestone vs Hebitaka

Racecourse Ground, Talbott

Hebitaka - 6/140 (20)
R Fathima 43 (35)		L Afosha 2/24 (4)
K Musako 27* (22)		N Pistecial / B Hall 1/27 (4)

Sylestone - 9/142 (18.4)
L Afosha 37 (27)		R Hibiki 2/23 (2.4)
N Pistecial 33* (22)		S Tenzuo 2/25 (4)

Player of the Match: Norbert Pistecial
Sylestone win by 1 wicket with 8 balls remaining

For the full scorecard, click here.

Sylestone’s first win of the tournament came against Pot 3 side Hebitaka, a sole rank above the Hawthorns in the official rankings. However, with the Hebitakans only able to put 140 on the board, Sylestone really should have been able to pass the total set with relative ease. However, Hebitaka’s bowlers simply did not give up and it was only due to solid knocks from Liam Afosha and Norbert Pistecial that they came out with the victory.

In the second over of the innings, Josh Vilesti sent two of Nasako Kim’s stumps cartwheeling out of the ground as the Hebitakan opener stood rooted to the spot while trying to push at the ball. A brilliant start if any. However, with Debraj Joshi coming to the crease, the big scalp was still to come.
Hebitaka moved along to 45 before Chloe Anderson plucked a screamer at short cover to dismiss Joshi. It was a huge turning point in the game; the Hebitakans in the crowd simply sat silent as she threw the ball up over her head and into the air. With Joshi out, the Hawthorns were well and truly in control. David Aron and Musfiqur Asif failed to get going, while Ravi Fathima eventually fell for 43 in the 13th over. Kamado Musako and Tanujit Mondal managed to put together a decent partnership for the sixth wicket, but the Hawthorns’ death bowling was sublime, limiting Hebitaka to 140. It should be an easy chase, but it’s cricket. You never know.

Hebitaka, though, came out with their tails up. Luke Tiati and Lachlan Cocrine were both dismissed within the first two overs while Simon Monteane departed soon after. Dan Fomleya and Liam Afosha set about rebuilding the innings but when the captain was dismissed in the eighth over with the score on 55, Hebitaka were on top.
Anderson departed soon after before a cameo from Oliver Edwards took the total to 89. His 19 from 10 balls, though, was possibly one of the most important knocks he had ever played for his country. But Norbert Pistecial was the only recognised batsman left to hang in there with Liam Afosha; following that was the tail.
When Afosha was dismissed with the score on 103, Hebitaka were once again back on the front foot. And that was when disaster struck. After defending out a couple of balls, Chiku Bhave slipped a ball through Broughton Hall’s defence. 8-108. The very next ball was full again and castled Vilesti. 9-108. Sylestone were going to have two losses from two.
Or were they?
That was when Pistecial showed his true light. He whittled down the runs at a rate of knots, with Talvin Mankira, on debut, providing adequate support at the other end. 20… 15… 10… 5. With five runs to win and nine balls remaining, Ryo Hibiki delivered a full toss just outside off stump. Pistecial did not hesitate. The next thing anyone knew was the ball landing over the sighscreen behind Hibiki’s head. Sylestone had won.

Matchday Three: Sylestone vs Pratapgadh

Lewes Park, Neverend

Pratapgadh - 5/171 (20)
S Gadia 53* (42)		N Pistecial 2/34 (4)
F Gondalwala 29 (19)		J Vilesti 2/38 (4)

Sylestone - 8/160 (20)
S Monteane 62 (46)		K Kakadia 2/27 (4)
C Anderson 26* (22)		R Rajawat 2/28 (4)

Player of the Match: Sanjay Gardia
Pratapgadh win by 11 runs

For the full scorecard, click here.

The Hawthorns’ second loss came at the hands of Pratapgadh, the Pot 2 side in the group. Following a victory over Hebitaka that Norbert Pistecial single-handedly snaked from Hebitaka’s hands, Sylestone were on a high despite not really deserving the win. And although they gave Pratapgadh a run for their money in Neverend, they could not take the points out of the game.

A solid opening partnership by Rajendra Rathore and Divaj Dharel helped Pratapgadh to 0-47 inside the powerplay before Pistecial had Rathore caught behind on 27. Soon after, Broughton Hall had Bipin Parte trapped LBW and after a strong start, Pratapgadh had slipped to 2-54. Farhang Gondalwala, though, had some slightly different ideas. He set about scoring at a quick rate and despite Dharel falling for 29 with the score on 70, he began to build a partnership with Sanjay Gadia. Gadia began slowly but got the hang of it with the more balls he faced, with Gondalwala’s dismissal in the 16th over only increasing his ability to release the pressure. He found a solid partner in Javed Kazmi, who hit 15 off only 7 balls before finishing on 53; the fifty coming in the final over. For Sylestone, Vilesti and Pistecial each took two wickets, but none could really contain the flow of runs for long. Pratapgadh’s final total was 171 - certainly a tough chase, but still certainly doable.

The Hawthorns began well, but a beautiful yorker from Kartik Kakadia removed Luke Tiati when he was on 16 and just starting to get going. Lachlan Cocrine was caught soon after and when Daniel Fomleya was bowled by Rajat Rajawat, Sylestone were at 3-54 in the eighth over and a defeat seemed to be brewing. However, Simon Monteane was seeing the ball well and Liam Afosha seemed to be the man for the job.
The two of them put together a 41-run partnership before Afosha’s dismissal, which brought Chloe Anderson to the crease. Unlike Afosha, though, she struggled to get going as Monteane passed fifty and continued on his merry way. With the score on 120 and Monteane on 62, odds were perfectly even. Pratapgadh needed a wicket.
And so they dismissed Monteane.
It knocked the life out of the Hawthorns. Oliver Edwards, Norbert Pistecial and Broughton Hall could only rack up ten runs between them as Sylestone fell 11 runs short of the target, Anderson not out on 26. It meant that Sylestone would have to win their next three games to be nearly certain of qualification, but as they were all against unranked nations, who is saying they couldn’t?

Matchday Five: Sylestone vs Starblaydia

Lewes Park, Neverend

Starblaydia 5/173 (20)
[REDACTED] 86* (60)	T Mankira 2/36 (4)
[REDACTED] 63 (45)		J Vilesti 1/35 (4)

Sylestone 4/177 (19.2)
D Fomleya 76* (49)		[REDACTED] 2/27 (3.2)
L Afosha 50 (31)		[REDACTED] 1/34 (4)

Player of the Match: Daniel Fomleya
Sylestone win by 6 wickets with 4 balls remaining

For the full scorecard, click here.

Sylestone overcame a tough Starblaydi challenge on matchday five to move back into their winning ways once again. After being 2/7, Starblaydia’s numbers 3 and 4 put on 133 runs together, helping the side to 173 from their 20 overs. To win, the Hawthorns would have to rack up their biggest total yet, and despite an early calamity, did so with ease, with captain Daniel Fomleya finishing on 76 not out alongside Afosha’s fifty. It put Sylestone back in the middle of the table and with an easy draw to go, could snare a top two spot if results went their way.

Following a leg-bye on the first ball of the innings, Norbert Pistecial delivered what could well be dubbed the ball of the tournament. Pitching on off stump, Starblaydia’s opener went to leave it, but the ball swung and seamed back in, just enough to click the outside edge of the off bail. It was an absolute beaut; even the very best batsman would have no hope. To make matters worse, the other Starblaydia opener missed a good length ball from Josh Vilesti in the following over, knocking out the middle and off pegs. However, despite the beautiful bowling they had just witnessed, Starblaydia’s 3 and 4 went about notching up runs at an alarming rate. The 50-run partnership milestone was passed, as was the 100. But just as Starblaydia looked to accelerate towards a total of 190 or 200, Liam Afosha had the Starblaydi number four caught by Oliver Edwards at long-on on 63, leaving the underdogs at 3-140 in the 17th over. A solid little cameo from [REDACTED] ensured that Starblaydia got to 173 with two balls remaining, but two wickets in two balls to Talvin Mankira cleaned up the rest of the middle-order and meant that Starblaydia had to suffice with a score of 5-173 from their 20 overs.

The Sylestonean innings began in the same fashion as the Starblaydia one did. Simon Monteane was caught in the second over before Luke Tiati continued his poor form with only 14 runs before his pegs were knocked over in the fourth over. As Lachlan Cocrine struggled to get going, Daniel Fomleya began hitting everything in the middle of the bat, giving Sylestone some hope. Cocrine’s dismissal in the ninth over left Sylestone at 3-68, but with Liam Afosha coming to the crease, they were still certainly in it.
Afosha and Fomleya, as predicted, really took to the Starblaydi bowling lineup. Her required run rate slowly began to come down as they matched each other shot for shot, Fomleya passing fifty - his third of his career and unarguably his best. With a single over to go, the Hawthorns had all but won, with Fomleya on 76 and Afosha 50. But going for a six to seal the win, Afosha skied the ball straight down mid-wicket’s throat, bringing Chloe Anderson to the crease. She, however, did not hesitate to cream a ball on her legs to the square leg boundary, handing her team the victory with four balls remaining.

Matchday Six: Sylestone vs Dryicor

Racecourse Ground, Talbott

Sylestone - 4/180 (20)
L Tiati 54 (38)			P Lehkinen 3/25 (4)
S Monteane 37 (31)		M Ulriksen 1/41 (4)

Dryicor - 4/158 (20)
M Walston 54 (44)		B Hall 2/27 (4)
J Merimaa 49 (38)		T Mankira 1/35 (4)

Player of the Match: Luke Tiati
Sylestone win by 22 runs

For the full scorecard, click here.

An all-round dominant batting display followed up by some strong, economical bowling ensured that Sylestone would be able to take a 22 run win over a decent Dryicor side; one of whom appeared to challenge playoff spots. Luke Tiati finally found a shred of form with his first fifty of the tournament, and he was ably supported by Simon Monteane and the reliable Liam Afosha. While Josh Vilesti didn’t have the best day with the ball, going for 39 off four overs, the other bowlers made up for it, barely conceding runs at times and bowling on tough lengths, much to the frustration of the Dryicor batters. In the end, Sylestone would move into playoff contention in third place, but all three results had to go their way if they wanted to be assured an automatic round of 16 spot. More on that later.

Luke Tiati and Simon Monteane began the innings cautiously, slowly working their way into their stuff while maintaining an acceptable run rate. As time progressed, both batsmen, Tiati in particular, looked to up the ante as the ten over mark came into sight. However, with only a few balls remaining until the halfway point, Monteane was delivered a corker of a delivery from Pyry Lehkinen, which he could only succeed in top-edging to fine leg, where Magnus Ulriksen snaffled the catch. Nearly ten overs in, the Hawthorns were at 1-74. An up in run rate was required.
Lachlan Cocrine and Luke Tiati sort of provided it. The two of them upped the run rate to roughly eight-an-over before Tiati’s dismissal in the back end of the 14th over. It was a double blow, with Cocrine falling in the very next over to Lehkinen’s bowling. However, with two wickets to his name, plans were to save him for the last over. But with Fomleya and Afosha popping off, he needed to be brought back for his last over. It was the fourth-last of the innings, and it paid off, with Fomleya falling with the score on 136. However, he could not get the prize wicket of Afosha, who continued on his merry way.
Some brutal hitting from the finisher and Oliver Edwards ensured Sylestone finished up on 4-180 from their 20 overs - their best total so far. Dryicor would have to pull off a miracle if they were to win this.

Jaajo Nykkäinen did his best. The pinch-hitter racked up 18 quick runs off 8 balls before, on his ninth, went for one big swing too many and was caught at mid-on by debutant Mitchell Stein. It brought star batsman Jouku Merimaa to the crease and while he got going, could not really take the bowling down. Magnus Walston faced the same issue. The two of them put together a 93-run partnership but it took up until the 15th over. It meant that they would have to score at 12 an over if they wanted to win. A near-impossible task.
Walston passed fifty, but was caught at mid-off by Fomleya before, the very next over, Ohto Uvsa was trapped LBW by Broughton Hall. and while Jonas Eldevik and James Plepic tried their best, they still could only get Dryicor to 158 before time was up.

To progress, Sylestone needed the following:

1. A win over Arjunnagar
2. An Elejamie win over Pratapgadh
3. A Dryicor win over Starblaydia

If this occurred, the H2H run rate between the Hawthorns, Pratapgadh and Dryicor was in Sylestone’s favour, so they would progress in second spot in the group. If anything else happened, though, they were simply fucked.

[Liventia]

Round of 16
Bollonich 163/6 (20 overs)
The Sarian 166/5 (17.1 overs)
The Sarian win by 5 wickets

The Plough Islands 164/7 (20 overs)
Rundel 181/4 (20 overs)
Rundel win by 17 runs

Gruenberg 138/3 (13.2 overs)
Fodhla 135/6 (20 overs)
Gruenberg win by 7 wickets

Liventia 187/5 (20 overs)
Elejamie 159/8 (20 overs)
Liventia win by 28 runs

Pratapgadh 158/5 (17.2 overs)
Ethane 154/6 (20 overs)
Pratapgadh win by 5 wickets

West Phoenicia 161/8 (20 overs)
Sylestone 152/8 (20 overs)
West Phoenicia win by 9 runs

Damukuni 180/6 (20 overs)
Baggieland 181/5 (19.5 overs)
Baggieland win by 5 wickets

Ko-oren 186/5 (18.5 overs)
Darmen 183/2 (20 overs)
Ko-oren win by 5 wickets

Quarter-finals
Q1 - The Sarian vs Ko-oren at Folenisa Cricket Ground (+1)
Q2 - Rundel vs Baggieland at Island Cricket Arena (-2)
Q3 - Gruenberg vs West Phoenicia at NCE Oval (+3)
Q4 - Liventia vs Pratapgadh at Park Central Oval (+3)

[Gruenberg]

(Provisional) match details as posted on the GruenCric website.

Fodhla 135-6 (20 overs)
                                               R    B   4/6
S Mullan             c Contemnible+ b Grovan  16  (15)  2/-
F Ó hÁilgheasa       c Broimbles    b Grovan  15  (22)  1/1
N de Búrca*                     lbw b Fizbin  37  (28)  2/2
L Ó Grianna          run out (Tumcoweiss)      4  (10)  -/-
É Mac Giolla Seanáin c Contemnible+ b Grovan  18  (20)  1/-
C Mannion+           NOT OUT                  35  (19)  6/-
O Mag Aonghusa                      b Grovan   3   (6)  -/-
É Kelly              NOT OUT                   0   (1)  -/-
Did not bat: M Brennan, T Gallagher, L Doolan
EXTRAS (1lb, 5wb, 1nb)                         7

FoW: 1: 27 (Mullan, 4.5 overs); 2: 34 (Ó hÁilgheasa, 6.4 overs); 3: 45 (Ó Grianna, 9.2 overs); 4: 83 (de Búrca, 14.1 overs); 5: 114 (Mac Giolla Seanáin, 17.2 overs); 6: 130 (Mag Aonghusa, 19.4 overs)

             O    M    R    W
Tumcoweiss   3    0   30    0
Fizbin       4    0   15    1
Grovan       4    0   28    4
Renkauer     4    0   27    0
Skejjibox    4    0   22    0
Thchthaarheq 1    0   12    0

Gruenberg 138-3 (13.2 overs)
                                                R    B   4/6
FLIB Ventreltraxibung* c de Búrca b Kelly      23  (23)  2/-
NQX Honk               NOT OUT                 70  (37)  8/2
EME Broimbles          c Mannion+ b Brennan    31  (15)  6/-
ZVEU Hengtridan Jr.    c Mannion+ b Gallagher   9   (4)  2/-
CCLOG Thchthaarheq     NOT OUT                  4   (1)  1/-
Did not bat: HAYW Tumcoweiss, YQB Contemnible+, BPGV Grovan, TIMTAM Renkauer, QD Skejjibox, PPPPPPP Fizbin
EXTRAS (1wb)                                    1

FoW: 1: 60 (Ventreltraxibung Jr., 7.3 overs); 2: 120 (Broimbles, 11.6 overs); 3: 134 (Hengtridan Jr., 13.1 overs)

                    O    M    R    W
Doolan              4    0   36    0
Gallagher           2.2  0   34    1
Brennan             3    0   25    1
Mac Giolla Seanáin  2    0   25    0
Kelly               2    0   18    1

Fodhla innings
Powerplay: 33-1 (Ó hÁilgheasa 15, de Búrca 1)

Gruenberg innings
Powerplay: 48-0 (Honk 25, Ventreltraxibung 22)
1st wicket: 50 in 37 balls (Honk 27, Ventreltraxibung 22)
NQX Honk: 50 in 29 balls, 6x4 1x6 (Gruenberg 82-1)
2nd wicket: 50 in 23 balls (Broimbles 31, Honk 22)

Match result: Gruenberg win by 7 wickets
Match award: BPGV Grovan

[Baggieland]

[West Phoenicia]

'Don't let that ball knock you out of the game'

The Lightning Bolts are a popular sporting team in West Phoenicia, who are watched by over 5 million fans during their times of competition and season.
They proudly represent the nation on the international stage, especially in regards to The GCF World Twenty20 Championship XIV, where they have taken out the top prize and have for a time claimed the number one ranked spot.

However, sports are not only what they are active in.

Under former coach and now West Phoenician Cricket Federation President Edward Mount-Alexander, the team was active in various charities and causes to raise awareness and funds.
His daughter Janet Mount-Alexander is continuing the tradition of the team stepping up as Health ambassadors.

"We all respect doctors and Health experts, but often the importance of the message they are getting across falls on deaf ears", team captain, Jack Tennessee expressed in Men's Sanitas, a popular Men's health and fitness monthly magazine.
Last year, The Lighting Bolts were part of a live auction to raise money for STI awareness and prevention in youth.
Each team member sold themselves to the highest bidder, the winners received front row tickets to the next match, a night out of dinner at a luxurious restaurant, followed by a night out dancing and a Lighting Bolts gift basket.
The Lighting Bolts managed to raise over $70,000 from the auction and appeared in over 100 high schools to raise awareness.

This year they are partnering with The West Phoenician Cancer Council

Cancerous illnesses affect people on a global scale. West Phoenicians are not immune, and while there is a host of campaigns tackling everything from breast cancer to the prostate to melanoma, one often gets missed, due to the sensitive nature of the topic.
Malignant neoplasm of testis or as it's commonly known Testicular cancer.

"Early detection is a blessing, over 97% of cases continuing to live healthy lifestyles once treated, for over 5 years.
While it may not affect hundreds of thousands like other cancers, if alerting the population to the causes and treatment and awareness to diagnosis it quicker, and that saves even one life, then it's been money well spent in advertising and making the public aware."

Minister of Health, Dr Kiri Alfred stated to Men's Sanitas.

The ''Don't let that ball knock you out of the game's campaign was cleverly devised by the West Phoenician Cancer Council Marketing team.
The belief is having such a popular team speaking out in support of self-testing will help shed the embarrassment of men self-testing to ensure they are healthy.

The campaign will consist of two different advertisements. One will appear as a commercial on all channels that produce sporting content.
It will be tongue in cheek as the team and Cancer Council call on males to first self-test while in the shower and to follow up with their general practitioner if they have any concern or worry.

Scenes in the commercial will depict captain Jack Tennessee ready for the ball to come down the pitch, as he is 99 runs looking to bat a century.
His teammates will be heard shouting ''Don't let that ball knock you out of the game."

The scene will cut to the locker room where Jack Tennessee will be showering and seen from the waist down, before sliding his hand down to self-test repeating the same phrase,
''Don't let that ball knock you out of the game. Self-test to save your life, so you too can reach a century."

In addition Hasaga Kain, the team's all-rounder and the best fast bowler the country has seen will appear in print ads and billboards across the nation.
Hasaga Kain will be appearing in a nude illusion, holding two cricket balls with the words, 'Performing the perfect bowl requires checking your balls.'

The Lighting Bolts are ecstatic about representing this campaign and hope that the advertising while fun and cheeky will send the right message home to their male fans.



.

[Pratapgadh]

OOC Notes

• The scorecard for Pratapgadh versus Ethane is at the bottom.
• The first eleven for the next match against Liventia is at the bottom.
• The RP will be added later.

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Pratapgadh Will Be Facing Liventia In The Quarter-Finals

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Written By Rajeev Chauhan
Cricket

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Pratapgadh is heading to Orean to play Liventia at the Park Central Oval! That's right, the men in red and gold have defeated Ethane with five wickets left to go on to the quarter-finals. Ethane posted a score of 154 in the first innings and lost six wickets in the process. Pratapgadh lost five wickets in 11.3 overs and only scored 104 runs in total. Main batsmen Farhang Gondalwala and Sanjay Gadia fell for less than ten runs. However, Javed Kazmi's hard hitting half-century and Bhuvan Shahane's support from the non-striker position helped Pratapgadh reach its target and win the match. This is probably the first time Javed Kazmi has been able to step up and lead the innings for Pratapgadh unlike many matches he played before, where he was only valuable as a wicket-keeper. Javed Kazmi rise as a leader today has inspired many Pratapgadhis back home and has finally got the recognition he deserves. So how did Pratapgadh fare against Ethane in detail? Let's get to it.

Ethane's captain, Adam Loughton, won the toss and decided that his side would bat first. As always, Gondalwala handed Kakadia the ball to start off the innings. Kakadia conceded seven runs in the first over, but seemed to be control. After a few overs, Kakadia finally made the breakthrough on the fourth ball of the sixth over, bringing the score to 44 for 1. Shahane didn't waste any time to get into the spotlight when he took a wicket the very next over and only conceded about five runs. For the next overs, Ethane managed to not lose any wickets and kept on piling up the runs to get to a secure position. After ten overs, Ethane's score was 72 for the loss of two wickets. Ethane were on roll at this point and it seemed like they could go past 160. However, what happened in the few overs was simply amazing. Anand Chauhan started off the second half of Ethane's innings and on the fifth ball, bowled a short one for a caught behind. Anand Chauhan bowled four overs and managed to take a wicket in each over, conceding only 31 runs in total. Neel Karamchand on the other hand, conceded 34 runs and was unable to take any wickets or create any opportunities. After 17 overs, Ethane was on 129 for the loss of six wickets. Bhuvan Shahane bowled the eighteenth over and conceded nine runs. Abdaal Rahman bowled the nineteenth over and conceded eight runs. The score was 146 for the loss of six wickets now and it was all on Kartik Kakadia to make sure he doesn't let the other side get too many runs off the last over. He successfully does so by conceding only eight runs in the last over. Kakadia has really built up a great reputation as a death over bowler, making him a key player of this side. Ethane ended their innings on 154 after 20 overs and set a target of 155 for the men in red and gold to chase.

It was now Pratapgadh's turn to bat and needed to chase 155 runs off 120 balls to win the game. However, this is a elimination match, making the stakes much higher puts Pratapgadh under some pressure. Rathore and Dharel opened the match built up a promising partnership of 37. However, it ended a bit to early as Rathore was caught at mid-on and head back to the pavilion after making 20 runs off 13 balls. Dhanuka took up the job of supporting Dharel on the pitch and they built a strong partnership of 31, only for Divaj Dharel to get clean bowled on his 22th delivery after making 31 runs. Gondalwala arrived at the crease and the fans hoped he would bring things back on track. But the partnership between Dhanuka and the skipper only lasted for thirteen balls as Gondalwala caught behind on a short ball. Dhanuka himself became a victim of an Ethanian spinner and was given an LBW. Sanjay Gadia, the one we can all depend on, was also caught behind after making six runs off six balls. This left Javed Kazmi with Bhuvan Shahane. Pratapgadh still needed 51 runs to win the game and Kazmi knew that his team depends on him. He doesn't hesitate to take up the job and gets on with his hard hitting innings while Shahane made sure that Pratapgadh doesn't lose any wickets. To everyones' surprise, Kazmi led Pratapgadh to a five-wicket victory over Ethane and the whole nation celebrated this victory. Pratapgadh were now going to face Liventia in the quarter-finals due to Javed Kazmi's heroics. What happened next was unthinkable.

In a post-match press conference, Gondalwala praised the 32-year-old Javed Kazmi for stepping up when his team and his country needed him. He said, "Javed used to get ignored by the fans a lot and wasn't given enough credit by the match experts. Many believed he wasn't an international-level player as he struggled a lot with his batting. Today, he has proven them wrong as he led us to victory against Ethane. That's what makes this team so special, we are like a family and when we struggle, someone will always step up to help the whole family. We always had each others' backs, Javed especially was the most supportive one when I struggled in the domestic season. This day goes to you Javed." Javed Kazmi takes a seat beside Gondalwala to answer a few questions from the press. "How do you feel today after accomplishing such a feat for Pratapgadh?" asked one reporter. Kazmi answered, "Great, really great. I think I have fulfilled my one wish, to lead my team to victory from the front. I have achieved my dream to, playing for my nation and getting to this stage." However, what he said next shocked the press and fans all around Pratapgadh. "I think it is finally time for me to hang my boots. You might feel it's too early, but I struggle to keep up. I had many discussions with my personal trainer, my family and the people who are close to me. For the last few weeks, my health has deteriorating and I just can't keep up with others. It's getting harder and harder everyday now and it seems like I won't be playing this game for too long. So I will now like to announce that this tournament will be my last. Once the tournament ends, I will be retiring from all forms of cricket." Gondalwala eyes were wide open looking at Kazmi with shock. Kazmi just looked down as he tried to control himself. Kazmi just gets up leaves as his teammates follow him from behind. Gondalwala doesn't say anything either as he gets up and leaves too.

After Kazmi's announcement, #KazmisAnnouncement was trending on Sonchiraya (social media platform based in Pratapgadh) with people from all backgrounds shocked to hear such news. "Please don't leave us Kazmi" said one user. It does seem like he is rushing his retirement, but we don't know what he's going through and we should let him decide his future. All I would like to say his that he deserved way more recognition through out his career. Thank you for entertaining us Kazmi, you are a star.

With Kazmi announcing his retirement after this tournament, it seems like the management has decided to let him play the remaining matches in this tournament as a good gesture. Let's hope Pratapgadh does defeat Liventia so we can witness him playing him last few matches. So who's playing in the next match against Liventia? Well, the team seems to be pretty much the same except a few changes. Neel Karamchand has struggled with his economy rate in the last two matches, conceding too many runs in four overs and failing to take any wickets. The management decided to bring in veteran Pradip Khatmode as his experience could help Pratapgadh compete against Liventia. Bholanath Dhanuka has also struggled a bit, but not enough for the management to decide to swap him with Bipin Parte. Bipin Parte played the first two matches of the group stage, but was dropped and replaced by Dhanuka. Now, he has been brought back to face a big team in Liventia. He's a veteran with a lot of experience and his batting skills will prove valuable at Park Central Oval. Can Parte turns things around for himself? We will know soon.

So what could we expect from this match? Well, I'd say a defeat, but not a huge one. The first time these two teams faced each other was in the 22nd edition of the GCF World Twenty20 Championship, where they had a tie and Liventia won the super over. The second time was in the 23rd edition, which Liventia won by 23 runs. So the first time Pratapgadh faced Liventia, it was close thriller and the second time it was an easy win for Liventia. However, things have changed quite a bit and we are looking at a more professional Pratapgadhi side led by Gondalwala and they could wreck havoc on Liventia. Keep in mind though, Liventia are the second best T20 team in the world right now, so Pratapgadh needs to stay grounded. So I predict that Liventia would beat Pratapgadh, but you never know.

Thank you for reading this piece today, do not forget to watch the match live on Chiraag Firesports Channel 1 Chiraag Firesports Channel 2 and Chiraag Firesports Premium and support the team. Stakes are high in this match so it is surely going to be a three-hour thriller. Pratapgadh have went far in this tournament, can they go any deeper? We will know soon. Goodbye and take care and don't forget to rally around Pratapgadh.

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www.firesports.com/home

Ethane Won The Toss And Chose To Bat
Pratapgadh 158/5 (17.2 overs)
Ethane 154/6 (20 overs)
Pratapgadh win by 5 wickets

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XI vs Liventia

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1. Rajendra Rathore
2. Divaj Dharel
3. Bipin Parte
4. Farhang Gondalwala (C)
5. Sanjay Gadia
6. Javed Kazmi (WK)
7. Bhuvan Shahane
8. Anand Chauhan
9. Pradip Khatmode
10. Abdaal Rahman
11. Kartik Kakadia

[Rundel]

The Annasholm Sentinel

"Go and catch us the foxes, the little foxes." This scripture is probably too suggestive for the Skurgway, and technically, they were the ones attempting to catch our total, but we will allow some poetic license. The dour free-market forces emerged triumphant over the pleasant communists as Rundel set an imposing target of 181. The Foxes, aware of the challenge, batted aggressively, with Jonathan Colin Morris unfortunate to misplace his leg (not literally) in the third over. Sippel Angacos was able to dismiss both Charlotte McCulloch and Humphrey Clark, who hit forcefully despite missing a finger and appendix (literally, respectively). But this allowed captain Laura Scott to take over and doggedly (foxedly?) keep her team in the hunt. Though the inexperienced Snita Massoin allowed a couple sixes to her, Rikkel Doudie was able to keep Susan Houghton's opportunities minimal, and Rundel held on for a hard-fought win.

They are now guaranteed three more games, regardless of outcomes, as this format will feature playoffs for first through eight places. (Much like the "major" bell ringing methods.) The quarterfinal pits Rundel against Baggieland. "I approve of keeping the faith," said Skurgway representative Foheb Mauk, in response to a common phrase of the Throstles', but 'boinging' seems a bit suspicious."

[Gruenberg]

Match report posted on the GruenCric website.

Holy miracle inspires crushing win

Gruenberg flattened Fodhla on their way to a quarterfinal reunion with West Phoenicia, cruising past the GCF newcomers thanks to an inspired spell of swing bowling from attack leader Brigveger Grovan. Praising “Holy Mother Wena’s most goat-enabled benevolence,” Grovan attributed his success to “a holy miracle”. “I think Holy Mother Wena was smiling down on us,” said Grovan as he hastily tossed a sheet of sandpaper into the bin before the post-match conference. “It’s the only explanation for how we were able to bowl so well.”

The story of the Gruenberger attack to date has been a flirtation with the 20 overs of spin tactic that won them their sole white ball world title, but at the NCE Oval it was a different story, with seam and swing to the fore. IiPiqup Fizbin conceded just 15 off 4 parsimonious overs, and Grovan took a career best 4-28. Transportflowmap Renkauer, despite failing to take a wicket, looked no less threatening, especially when threatening a changing room attendant who asked him why his pockets were full of bottle caps and boiled sweets. “For… normal reasons,” explained Renkauer. “Involving normal things.” Interestingly, Renkauer proceeded to find prodigious swing, which he said was “very normal”.

Fodhla were never really in the game after a slow start that saw them struggle to pass 50 before the halfway point of the innings as Fizbin, Grovan and Renkauer hurried the top order and moved the ball with great skill (and absolutely no artificial assistance! ha ha! the very idea!) past flailing bats. Funvorgious Ventreltraxibung kept in attacking fielders – Ettexinor Broimbles was in place to take a fine grab at second slip off Fiachna Ó hÁilgheasa – and bowled out all three of his seamers for the first time. Wicketkeeper Ciarán Mannion finally injected some urgency into the innings with an attractive unbeaten 35, including 19 runs off Hraff’ Tumcoweiss’s third over, but it was too late to mount a defensible total.

Amazingly, despite the conditions being fair all day, the Fodhla seamers failed to find the same swing the Gruenberger bowlers did. “Weird,” said Ventreltraxibung, who also said it was “weird” how the 12th man had brought out three bottles of water and a cheese grater. The target of 136 proved inviting for Nurples Honk to recover a little form with his first significant innings of the competition, crashing a quickfire 70*, and although Ventreltraxibung was well caught by Niall de Búrca, holding a stinging drive at short cover, Etexxinor Broimbles slashing 31 off 15 before guiding the ball straight into Mannion’s hands, and Zambuimmi Hengtridan Jr. continuing his rotten run skying a top-edged hook, the result was never in doubt.

Gruenberg will remain at the NCE Oval where, Ventreltraxibung says, “they hope Mother Wena’s munificence continues to shine on them”. After slipping a pen-knife into his pocket, Grovan agreed: “I’m optimistic about the chances of some (divinely enabled) swing showing up for us”. Also chiming in was the GFX delivery agent who arrived, asking who had ordered fifty pounds of industrial strength coarse grained sand. Their opponents, West Phoenicia, are familiar foes from tournaments past, and the two sides met most recently in the group stage, with Gruenberg coming out on top.

[Liventia]

Quarter-finals
The Sarian 148/5 (20 overs)
Ko-oren 152/5 (17.3 overs)
Ko-oren win by 5 wickets

Rundel 175/5 (20 overs)
Baggieland 177/3 (19.5 overs)
Baggieland win by 7 wickets

Gruenberg 185/9 (17.2 overs)
West Phoenicia 182/5 (20 overs)
Gruenberg win by 1 wicket

Liventia 168/9 (20 overs)
Pratapgadh 170/5 (19.3 overs)
Pratapgadh win by 5 wickets

Consolation semi-finals
C1 - The Sarian vs Liventia at Racecourse Ground (0)
C2 - Rundel vs West Phoenicia at Dawston Ground (+1)

Semi-finals
S1 - Ko-oren vs Pratapgadh at Folenisa Cricket Ground (+1)
S2 - Baggieland vs Gruenberg at The Bastion, Dover Cricket Ground (-2)

Positional playoffs
7th place - Loser C1 vs Loser C2 at Lewes Park (0)
5th place - C1 vs C2 at Racecourse Ground (0)
3rd place - Loser S1 vs Loser S2 at NCE Oval (+3)
Final - S1 vs S2 at Park Central Oval (+3)

[Gruenberg]

(Provisional) match details as posted on the GruenCric website.

West Phoenicia 182-5 (20 overs)
                                             R    B   4/6
G Gryphon    c Contemnible+ b Tumcoweiss    14   (8)  3/-
J Emanon     c Contemnible+ b Fizbin        40  (32)  6/-
J Tennessee*            lbw b Grovan        88  (53)  9/5
H Kain       c Renkauer     b Thchthaarheq   1   (4)  -/-
A Shields    hit wicket     b Renkauer      14   (9)  1/-
S Persana    NOT OUT                        16  (13)  1/-
R Parvati+   NOT OUT                         1   (1)  -/-
Did not bat: A Narre, P Fellachino, A Viet, B Brinkley
EXTRAS (2lb, 6wb)                            8

FoW: 1: 27 (Gryphon, 2.1 overs); 2: 114 (Emanon, 12.2 overs); 3: 129 (Kain, 13.5 overs); 4: 150 (Shields, 16.1 overs); 5: 175 (Tennessee, 19.3 overs)

              O    M    R    W
Tumcoweiss    3    0   25    1
Grovan        3    0   33    1
Fizbin        3    0   35    1
Renkauer      4    0   28    1
Skejjibox     4    0   28    0
Thchthaarheq  3    0   31    1

Gruenberg 185-9 (17.2 overs)
                                                  R    B   4/6
FLIB Ventreltraxibung*             b Viet         2   (4)  -/-
NQX Honk               run out (Brinkley)         9   (8)  -/1
EME Broimbles                      b Brinkley    24  (23)  1/1
ZVEU Hengtridan Jr.    c Tennessee b Narre       39  (14)  4/3
CCLOG Thchthaarheq     c Kain      b Fellachino   2   (2)  -/-
HAYW Tumcoweiss        st Parvati+ b Brinkley     6   (4)  1/-
YQB Contemnible+       NOT OUT                   79  (36)  5/7
BPGV Grovan                    lbw b Fellachino   7   (4)  -/1
TIMTAM Renkauer        st Parvati+ b Brinkley     6   (5)  1/-
QD Skejjibox                   lbw b Viet         4   (4)  -/-
PPPPPPP Fizbin         NOT OUT                    1   (1)  -/-
EXTRAS (5wb, 1nb)                                 6

FoW: 1: 5 (Ventreltraxibung, 1.2 overs); 2: 13 (Honk, 2.2 overs); 3: 64 (Hengtridan Jr., 5.6 overs); 4: 73 (Thchthaarheq, 6.4 overs); 5: 80 (Tumcoweiss, 7.6 overs); 6: 106 (Broimbles, 11.2 overs); 7: 117 (Grovan, 12.5 overs); 8: 153 (Renkauer, 15.3 overs); 9: 163 (Skejjibox, 16.2 overs)

            O    M    R    W
Narre       3.2  0   30    1
Viet        3    0   30    2
Kain        3    0   46    0
Brinkley    4    0   49    3
Fellachino  4    0   30    2

West Phoenicia innings
Powerplay: 66-1 (Tennessee 26, Emanon 23)
2nd wicket: 50 in 33 balls (Tennessee 32, Emanon 13)
J Tennessee: 50 in 32 balls, 7x4 2x6 (West Phoenicia 105-1)

Gruenberg innings
3rd wicket: 50 in 22 balls (Hengtridan Jr. 39, Broimbles 13)
Powerplay: 64-3 (Broimbles 13)
YQB Contemnible: 50 in 27 balls, 2x4 5x6 (Gruenberg 147-7)

Match result: Gruenberg win by 1 wicket
Match award: YQB Contemnible

[Rundel]

The Annasholm Sentinel

One hundred and twenty changes is the length of a full extent in a "doubles" method. One hundred and twenty deliveries is the length of the first inning of Twenty20 cricket, and also the second inning if the second team to bat is unsuccessful in their chase.

If the second inning takes one hundred and nineteen deliveries, as Baggieland's did, it means that (unlikely) the batsmen have been ever-so-slightly too aggresive in losing their wickets, or that (less unlikely), they have used nearly the entirety of their allotted opportunities to catch and overtake the target set. The dramatics of this sequence of events have had unexpected ramifications in Rundler society; dejected fans have temporarily sworn off, not cricket per se, but any sort of narratives with potential for dramatic endings.

"My heart cannot take much more of this, at least until we've had some pleasantly tedious week-long matches to cleanse my palate," declared Irthem Sungoa, prompting speculation as to the anatomical relationship of her heart and her palate. "Forget the consolation matches, forget anything that ends with a last-second parental revelation or dramatic murder scene. I'm going to go read the dictionary."

"I harbor bitter jealousy of myself in the alternate timeline where Baggieland crushed us with a bunch of overs to spare and we didn't have to worry about this," claimed the brazen Nitla Orhagi. "Um, I'm not sure if alternate timelines are heretical under the Skurgway, but you know what I mean."

Credit must be given to the fielding leadership of Baggieland's David Shackleton, who caught and bowled out Robley Pauxten, dismissed Fipkin Gorig via run out, and caught a Zhobie Bostwa strike off of Sam Udal. The Throstles advance to face Gruenberg in the semifinals, while Rundel will take on West Phoenicia.

"Credit should also go to that Gruenberg side for managing to catch up to West Phoenicia on a mere 104 deliveries," mused Danvis Ertlun, "thus preserving their batsmen for the next round as well as the blood pressures of both sets of fans."

[Baggieland]

[Sylestone]

Player of the Match: Anh Viet (West Phoenicia)
Result: West Phoenicia win by 9 runs

[Pratapgadh]

[REDACTED]

[Gruenberg]

Match report posted on the GruenCric website.

Contemnible powers Gruenberg into semis

Ystipug Contemnible played one of the greatest innings in Gruenberger white ball history to overhaul a daunting target of 183 by West Phoenicia and deliver Gruenberg into the semi-finals of the GCF World T20. It marks a striking return to form for a team that, on home soil, crumbled in the group stages of the previous tournament. The win was all the more remarkable given the relative failures of the team’s leading batsman, Ettexinor Broimbles, and most in-form players, Chthchibvuel Thchthaarheq and Hraff’ Tumcoweiss; instead, Contemnible, a specialist wicket-keeper who had hitherto scored 56 runs in 7 games, blasted an unbeaten 36-ball 79 to power the chase home.

Set 183 to win on the NCE Oval featherbed, Gruenberg had collapsed to 80-5 as West Phoenicia’s spinners wrecked the innings. Zambuimmi Hengtridan Jr.’s capralier* 39 saw him attempt to right the wrongs of a poor tournament by just swinging hard, but eventually he skied a massive, swirling top edge to be stunningly caught by captain Jack Tennessee. When Tumcoweiss danced down and was stumped, the chase looked moribund. Only Broimbles remained, in awfully scratchy form – he had already been dropped once – and had just Contemnible, whose form hitherto with the bat had been nothing to write home about, nor even to wordlessly grunt home about. Broimbles soon fell, too, and neither Brigveger Grovan nor Transportflowmap Renkauer batted sensibly, but by then Contemnible was up and running.

His innings featured seven sixes despite the large NCE Oval boundaries: several of his leg side swipes would have cleared the fences even at the Moroschwegen Arena of Death. Marrying orthodox strokeplay, hitting length crisply down the ground, with some wild invention, such as a cartwheeling Juffscoop** that ended up with him on his back and the ball over the fourth man*** boundary hoardings, his innings had some goat-enabled fortune – he could have been run out twice without scoring, and was dropped on 58, a difficult chance to James Emanon running in from the boundary – but for sheer audacity has scarcely seen its equal in the annals of Gruenberger white ball cricket. Anh Viet trapped Quouodan Skejjibox LBW to leave Gruenberg 9 down needing 20, but iiPiqup Fizbin squeezed a single off an inside and Contemnible then hammered two sixes, retained strike with a desperate dive, and finished things off with a flat-batted four through the covers.

Earlier, West Phoenicia had batted on a flat, true surface. Their innings was anchored by Tennessee, whose stroke-filled 88 was full of the sort of elegance that Contemnible later proved willing to sacrifice. Renkauer was once again the pick of the bowlers, taking only one wicket – a fantastic bouncer discomwhimwhamtomtamspungdrooblarneyed**** Aaron Shields onto his own stumps – but retaining an economy of 7 as his peers went for 9+. Grovan and Fizbin were less effective, finding none of the swing they had in the quarterfinal; completely coincidentally, a member of the NCE Oval groundstaff had helpfully removed a ream of sandpaper that had been hidden under the fine leg boundary hoarding by Grovan just before play began.

Gruenberg’s semifinal opponents are Baggieland, familiar foes from past GCF tournaments. Also familiar is The Bastian, Dover, scene of several notable Gruenberger matches that the search function on the forums is too useless to help me find right now, but it will be the first time in this tournament that Gruenberg have played on an openly spin-friendly wicket. With captain Funvorgius Ventreltraxibung yet again failing with the bat there could be a recall for Spakjutwazz Depraxinong, whose part-time spin offers more bite than Thchthaarheq’s (Tennessee battered him for 19 off his ill-advised third over); or, more daringly, a recall for Jett Tyrkkekkekklukkekklukekk. With Tumcoweiss seemingly content to bowl out in the first overs, Tyrkkekkekklukkekklukekk would offer Skejjibox a genuine wicket-taking partner, at the risk of economy (currently in double figures). Tyrkkekkekklukkekklukekk also offers more with the bat, given Gruenberg’s current frailties.

But the vicissitudes of team selection can wait for another day. For tonight, the team can justly celebrate a famous victory, and toast Ystipug Contemnible writing his name in the annals of Gruenberger cricketing history. Which, given his name is Ystipug and his middle names have a combined 47 syllables, isn’t a very easy thing to write.

* Similar to “cavalier”, except on goats instead of horses.
** Named for Surro Juffwump, the first Gruenberger to play the ‘scoop’ shot.
*** cf. passim
**** Gruenberger publications rarely use the word “discombobulated”, which they believe to be a very silly word.

[Ko-oren]

The Ko-orenite athletic calendar has been tentatively agreed upon by all of the country's largest associations. As always, soccer and gridiron get to call 'dibs' on the calendar outside of the summer months, while cricket and baseball get to decide their key moments next: season openings, List-A and T20 finals, baseball playoffs, with the one caveat being that they do not overlap with key soccer and gridiron dates.

Furthermore, the baseball association has aggressively blocked the entire calendar between spring and autumn, enticing complaints from the rugby league and union associations. Baseball has been told to 'make up your mind' and that schedule should be finalised within a week.

The minor assocations (ice hockey - for now - as well as field hockey and Aussie rules have entered their dates in pencil but some changes are expected before they pen them over. The lack of clear dates when matches will take place is to be cleared up. All other associations have been given their dates for them and lack all forms of detail.

Calendar

[Liventia]

5th-8th semis
The Sarian 132/7 (20 overs)
Liventia 135/4 (16.3 overs)
Liventia win by 6 wickets

Rundel 158/5 (17.5 overs)
West Phoenicia 154/4 (20 overs)
Rundel win by 5 wickets

For the purposes of today's scorination, there was no cutoff – RPs from today for all teams will count for tomorrow's semi-finals/5PPO/7PPO scorination as part of the same RP window.

[Rundel]

The Annasholm Sentinel

Callo Kemdawn has warned excitable fans that "catching the Lightning Bolts" is something only to be attempted by qualified professionals. "Look, I know you all want to go out there and hit the target that the Lightning Bolts, or Black Dolphins or Foxes or whoever, are setting. But that's at best going to get you in trouble with the wildlife preserve people and at worst going to get you killed, so please don't." Kemdawn added that attempting to catch Dragonflies was "permissible, but very difficult."

Rundel will contest the fifth-place playoff against hosts Liventia at the Racecourse Ground. The small crowd is of course expected to favor the hosts, although having played in the Dawston Ground, Rundel will be no strangers to limited capacity. And besides, it's not as if our fans are the sort to get up and make a lot of noise, at least when they're not in a bell tower.

[Pratapgadh]

OOC Notes

• The scorecard for Pratapgadh versus Liventia is at the bottom.
• The first eleven for the next match against Ko-oren is at the bottom.

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Pratapgadh's Unbelievable Victory Over Liventia! Will Be Facing Ko-oren In The Semi-Finals!

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Written By Rajeev Chauhan
Cricket

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Pratapgadh has surprised the cricketing multiverse after defeating Liventia in the quarter-finals of the GCF World Twenty20 Championship XIV. Liventia scored 168 runs off 20 overs losing 9 wickets in the process and set a target of 169 for the Pratapgadhis to chase. The Pratapgadhis successfully did so in 19.3 overs with Bipin Parte and Sanjay Gadia scoring the most runs. What's next in store for Pratapgadh? That's the current best T20 team in the world, Ko-oren. Pratapgadh will be facing Ko-oren in the first semi-final at Folenisa Cricket Ground. This is the best performance from the men in red and gold yet, losing in the elimination playoffs in the 12th edition of the tournament and losing in the group stage of the 13th edition. So how did Pratapgadh fare against Liventia? Let's dig right in!

After winning the toss, Liventian captain DHJ Edwards decided that his side would start with the bat first. Gondalwala went with the usual bowling order of starting with the pair of Kakadia and Rahman and then going to make a pair between Shahane and any spinner, in this case, it was Khatmode. Liventia were settling in comfortably and Pratapgadhi seemed to have no effect at all at first. However, in the fifth over, Kakadia bouncer got him caught behind and Pratapgadh made the important breakthrough by dismissing PD Finch. That wasn't it as in the very next over, Rahman took out skipper DHJ Edwards with a beautiful out-swinger hitting the off-stump. After losing two wickets out of nowhere, Liventia were in big trouble. OH Kerr and RL Quentin kept their ground for as long as possible and built a partnership of 39. However, that finally came to an end in the tenth over where Khatmode dismissed OH Kerr. This brought the score to 84 for the loss of three wickets after ten overs. With seven wickets still in hand, the Liventians were optimistic and aimed for a big score. We saw some expensive overs being bowled, such as the 14th over from Khatmode as he gave away 12 runs while taking a wicket. We saw Khatmode conceding 40 runs from four overs. However, he also grabbed two wickets and Anand Chauhan achieved another 4-wicket haul and conceded 32 runs from his four overs. Liventia added another 84 runs to their total in the last ten overs, which brought the score to 168 for the loss of nine wickets. Though it was a big score, losing so many wickets to a 2nd pot side of Pratapgadh seems a bit odd. Nonetheless, a target of 169 playing against Liventian bowling was going to be hard.

Rathore and Dharel started off the Pratapgadhi innings as usual. It lasted for only two overs and the partnership ended on 17 when Dharel lost his middle stump to BL Kerr. After a long time, Parte and Rathore finally reunite on the pitch and built a partnership of 23 before Rathore was caught at square-leg. Then came in the captain, Farhang Gondalwala, which is when Pratapgadh was finally starting to build a somewhat longstanding partnership. A partnership of 34 saw Parte scoring 17 runs and Gondalwala scoring 14 runs and three runs coming from extras. Gondalwala was caught behind on his 11th delivery and his innings ended on 14. Parte didn't lose hope though as he continued to add runs to the scoreboard along with Gadia and the two form a partnership of 30 runs off 21 balls. However, even Parte was caught at mid-on and he had to return to the pavilion after scoring 41 runs off 31 balls. It was 104 for the loss of four wickets after 12 overs. With 8 overs left, Pratapgadh needed 65 runs to win the match at a run rate of 8.13. It wasn't going to be an easy task, so Gadia was going to need some help from Kazmi, who will be retiring once this tournament ends. The two put on a hell of show with Kazmi hitting 22 runs off 18 balls, hitting four boundaries. Sanjay Gadia and Javed Kazmi formed a partnership of 56 runs which brought Pratapgadh's score to 160. However, on the third ball of the nineteenth over, Kazmi fell victim to the LBW. It took Gadia and Rahman just another six balls to hit ten runs and win the game. Gadia was the one to finish the game in style, hitting the ball for a six on the third ball of the last over and bought the score 170 for the loss of five wickets. Pratapgadh won the game by 5 wickets and defeated Liventia for the first time in cricket. This is truly a historic moment for Pratapgadh and its cricketing culture.

It is reported that the team will be travelling Folenisa to just relax a bit. Gondalwala was interviewed by a PRT Media reporter, where he said, "Our boys have been working hard for the past month and so they deserve a bit of a break. Yes, I know we are playing Ko-oren next in the semis and that's why I want my team to be relaxed a bit. Of course, we will get back to training as soon as possible and focus on the upcoming match." The players have worked a lot, so a bit of travelling could help boost their morale a bit before facing Ko-oren. Gondalwala has made no changes to the squad as he feels that this team is perfect for the match against Ko-oren. Though Khatmode was quite expensive when bowling against Liventia, he also bagged two wickets. So Gondalwala feels Khatmode will still be a key player in this match. Picking Chauhan again was a no brainer. He has bagged two 4-wicket hauls in the last two matches already. He is in hot form right now so they better use him. Chauhan has proven to be a deadly weapon with his swing bowling and will most likely be selected for the GCF Test Season 12 squad.

Ko-oren is currently at the top of the rankings after winning the last GCF World Twenty20 Championship, beating The Plough Islands. However, they had been beaten by the unranked team of Bollonich during the group stage. So as much as seems that this might be the end of the road for Pratapgadh, they still have a chance at Ko-oren. The men in red and gold and gotten better over the years by playing many quality sides and the constant investment of the PCF into future talent has benefited Pratapgadh greatly with players like Chauhan and Shahane. Can we reach the finals by toppling the giants in Ko-oren? Or will this chapter end for Pratapgadh? We will soon know.

The second semi-final is being played between Gruenberg and Baggieland. Gruenberg is currently ranked 32nd out of 39 countries who have participated in this tournament before and Baggieland is an unranked team. Baggieland and Gruenberg both have achieved a lot this season by reaching the semis. Many expected the top elite teams of West Phoenicia to beat Gruenberg and Rundel to beat Baggieland. However, their skill, talent and spirit helped them get past that. If Pratapgadh wins their semi-final, they could face either Gruenberg or Baggieland. Facing Gruenberg would be a grudge match for what happened in the second edition of the ODI World Trophy. Facing Baggieland would see a thrilling showdown between two proven sides who have never faced each other in any format. This stuff is truly exciting, so you better not miss it! Watch the match between Ko-oren and Pratapgadh live on Chiraag Firesports Channel 1, Chiraag Firesports Channel 2 and Chiraag Firesports Premium. For now, rally around Pratapgadh.

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Liventia Won The Toss And Chose To Bat
Liventia 168/9 (20 overs)
Pratapgadh 170/5 (19.3 overs)
Pratapgadh win by 5 wickets

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XI vs Ko-oren

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1. Rajendra Rathore
2. Divaj Dharel
3. Bipin Parte
4. Farhang Gondalwala (C)
5. Sanjay Gadia
6. Javed Kazmi (WK)
7. Bhuvan Shahane
8. Anand Chauhan
9. Pradip Khatmode
10. Abdaal Rahman
11. Kartik Kakadia

[Liventia]

Consolation finals
The Sarian 126/3 (20 overs)
West Phoenicia 128/4 (13.4 overs)
West Phoenicia win by 6 wickets and place 7th

Liventia 146/4 (16.1 overs)
Rundel 144/6 (20 overs)
Liventia win by 6 wickets and place 5th

Semi-finals
Ko-oren 145/5 (14.1 overs)
Pratapgadh 141 (17.4 overs)
Ko-oren win by 5 wickets

Baggieland 154/4 (20 overs)
Gruenberg 164/5 (20 overs)
Gruenberg win by 10 runs

A reminder that the 3PPO is tomorrow, with the final on Thursday.

[Gruenberg]

(Provisional) match details as posted on the GruenCric website.

Gruenberg 164-5 (20 overs)
                                                 R    B   4/6
FLIB Ventreltraxibung*            b Shackleton  16  (24)  2/-
NQX Honk               c Udal     b Warne       45  (36)  3/2
EME Broimbles          c Smith    b Shackleton  68  (41)  3/4
ZVEU Hengtridan Jr.               b Marshall     1   (2)  -/-
CCLOG Thchthaarheq     c Richards b Marshall    24  (15)  2/1
HAYW Tumcoweiss        NOT OUT                   2   (2)  -/-
YQB Contemnible+       NOT OUT                   0   (0)  -/-
Did not bat: JTT Tyrkkekkekklukkekklukekk, BPGV Grovan, TIMTAM Renkauer, QD Skejjibox
EXTRAS (8wb)                                     8

FoW: 1: 51 (Ventreltraxibung, 7.4 overs); 2: 111 (Honk, 14.4 overs); 3: 114 (Hengtridan Jr., 15.1 overs); 4: 146 (Thchthaarheq, 18.2 overs); 5: 163 (Broimbles, 19.5 overs)

            O    M    R    W
Marshall    4    0   58    2
Shackleton  4    0   30    2
Warne       4    0   33    1
Sainsbury   4    0   17    0
Udal        4    0   26    0

Baggieland 154-4 (20 overs)
                                                          R    B   4/6
B Richards   st Contemnible+ b Tyrkkekkekklukkekklukekk  25  (29)  2/-
R Marshall   st Contemnible+ b Skejjibox                 20  (18)  3/-
P Mead       NOT OUT                                     46  (39)  3/1
R Smith      c Thchthaarheq  b Grovan                    29  (15)  2/2
G Greenidge*             lbw b Grovan                    29  (18)  2/1
B Parks+     NOT OUT                                      1   (1)  -/-
Did not bat: S Udal, S Warne, M Marshall, D Shackleton, P Sainsburg
EXTRAS (2lb, 2wb)                                         4

FoW: 1: 40 (Marshall, 5.6 overs); 2: 64 (Richards, 11.2 overs); 3: 97 (Smith, 14.3 overs); 4: 153 (Greenidge, 19.5 overs)

                          O    M    R    W
Broimbles                 2    0   12    0
Tumcoweiss                4    0   29    0
Grovan                    4    0   37    2
Skejjibox                 4    0   28    1
Tyrkkekkekklukkekklukekk  2    0   23    1
Renkauer                  4    0   23    0

Gruenberg innings
Powerplay: 42-0 (Honk 26, Ventreltraxibung 15)
1st wicket: 50 in 44 balls (Honk 33, Ventreltraxibung 16)
2nd wicket: 50 in 35 balls (Broimbles 40, Honk 43)
EME Broimbles: 50 in 30 balls, 3x4 2x6 (Gruenberg 125-3)

Baggieland innings
Powerplay: 40-1 (Richards 19)
4th wicket: 50 in 29 balls (Mead 26, Greenidge 25)

Match result: Gruenberg win by 10 runs
Match award: EME Broimbles

[Baggieland]