Pirates of the St Lawrence versus Bengal United
Sunday 16 June 2013
By Neville Cardus (channelling through Prashant Bhawalkar)

Pirates of the St Lawrence have, once again, affirmed their loyalty to their long-standing tradition of playing cricket in all conditions. On a day when dampness permeated the socks of many of the participants involved, and very nearly crept into their souls, Bengal United defeated the home team by a convincing margin of 48 runs.

When the game began, there was heat and humidity in the air. Possibly, a few clouds lingered over the horizon. However, to deduce the onslaught of a full-blown shower from these vaporous wisps of black and white would have been to arouse suspicions of insanity. In the end, such was the state of mind to which players from both teams were almost driven.

“Where’s the vodka?” a voice was heard crying in the wilderness.

The opening overs of the match suggested nothing out of the ordinary. As can be expected during most of the matches played at this time of year in Montreal, the ball kept low, skidded, and swung exponentially. The initial drizzle was greeted by the players as a welcome break from the humidity that had been hanging over them till that moment. Indeed, the air began to cool and attain a fresh demeanour that doubtless soothed and invigorated the senses.

Skipper Farishta and Bhawalkar kept a tight line and managed to induce several edges. In the end, the first wicket fell to the skipper. The unfortunate Rajib was beaten by a straight ball which kept low and rapped his back pad in front of the stumps. However, bowling became a tedious affair thereafter.

Shortly after the initial drizzle metamorphosed into a moderate shower, bowlers could be heard grumbling about the state of the ball. Indeed, one likened it to a bar of soap, another to the planet Mars due to the possibility that it held water underneath its red surface. Amidst the chaos, Rayan and Nandan played sensibly and led the visitors to a useful 150 — a score that was always going to be difficult to chase in these conditions. Rayan was forced to retire hurt on 50, while Nandan was unfortunately dismissed three runs short of a landmark he richly deserved.

Needing 151 to win in 24 overs, thanks to a rain-influenced reduction, the home team did well to reach 103 all out. On a pitch filling with puddles, where the ball barely rose above ankle height, much skill was shown by Joshi, Panday, and skipper Farishta, the only batsmen to reach double figures.

During the course of the day, many dry observations were made about the wet weather.

Pirates of the St Lawrence versus Bengal United
Sunday 16 June 2013
The Candy Fields, Mont-Saint-Hilaire
Match type: 24 overs per side
Weather conditions: Disgusting. Wettest game of cricket ever.
Result: Bengal United won by 48 runs

Bengal United Innings

Extras 22 (Byes 0, Leg Byes 1, No Balls 1, Wides 20)
Total 151 for 2 in 24 overs

FoW (1-23, 2-113, 3-34*)

Pirates of the St Lawrence Innings

Extras 24 (Byes 4, Leg Byes 8, No Balls 1, Wides 11)
Total 103 for 10 in 24 overs

FoW (1-24, 2-36, 3-36, 4-37, 5-42, 6-54, 7-84, 8-92, 9-98, 10-103)