v Mumbai Indians CLT20 Semi Final @ Chennai Saturday 8 October 2011

Scorecard

Every game in this competition is now a massive ask for Somerset.  Every game they have been up for the challenge and every game they have moved on in this tournament.  Tonight they face the Indians with Kieron Pollard in their ranks looking to put us away.

Alf has picked the usual side for this semi and keeps the people who got us there against the Warriors on Wednesday;

Kieswetter, Trego, van der Merwe, Hildreth, Buttler, Suppiah, Compton Thomas, Kartik, Dibble and Kirby

Adam Dibble keeps his place after the excellent comeback he made at the end of the last game to bring us home.  The rest is as expected and no place for Lewis Gregory who has suffered from a stomach bug and now cannot get a place.

Harbajhan wins the toss and decides to bat first so Blizzard and Kanwar come out to face Thomas and his partner (now there on merit) Steve Kirby.  They look solid and steady for the first 3 as they move at about 7 and over but the first bal of the fourth finds Kanwar out and he is caught by Jos off Kirbs with 19 on the board. Raydu replaces him and looks to push the score along with his opener.  They pass 50 in quick order and look to be moving too fast for us.  Enter Dibble who sends Raydu on his way courtesy of the safe gloves of CK and it is 67 for 2.

Franklin comes in but he isn't there for too long as RvdM finds the pad in front of the stumps and he departs for 6 at 86 at the start of the 12th.  It looks even more promising when Master Kartik sends Blizzard back with his stumps awry at 92.

In comes Keiron Pollard and he is in a hurry.  We soon see the power of the man as he sixes Pete Trego's first ball of the match.  He is looking to emulate Chris Gayle and smash his side into the final...he could do it as well as they pass 100 in the 15th.  Unfortunately for him we have this bowler called Alfonso Thomas and he has other ideas when he fools his ex player colleague and castles him at 117.  That is about our lot though as Yadav comes in early to partner Satish and they move the score past 150 and then Reolof keeps them down to 160 with some good glovework from Craig keepng the batsman in their crease for the last over.

Excellent figures from Dibble with 1 for 20 off his four.  Alf got a bit of tap on his last one but got Polly with a beauty. Blizzard was the backbone of their innings with his 54.

Big target - we need to be off to a flyer to get there.  They have a good bowling line-up so we need to be on our game from ball one.

The Reply

Craig and Pete open our account against that Malinga bloke.  His first ball is full and swings away from Mr T.   The second one is also full and straight and off Pete goes for a duck without getting a bat on it - comprehensively bowled.  Somerset are 0 for 1 and this is not starting well!!

His third ball is 'leggy' and RvdM strokes it to the boundary for the first four.  We have 5 after 25% of the "nightmare's" overs!! Nechim takes over number 2.  I know nothing about this man at all.  He's medium pace by the look of it and seemingly difficult to get away until Reolof punches the 4th ot the boundary and is nearly C&B hitting the next straight at the bowler.  He gets his hands to it but finds him self off balance trying to avoid it as well.  They take 6 off the over as Craig gets off the mark with the last ball.  11 for 1 after 2 needing 150 off 18 overs (108 balls).

Malinga stays for the 3rd and CK faces him for the first time and the attempted yorker first up becomes a full toss and the keeper sends it on its way for four.  However, he is keeping us in check and we aren't getting much from his full straight ones.  If we wiat him out will that give us too much to do?  He will probably bowl two and then be kept for the end.

But we don't wait him out as he takes RvdM with his last of the third! Bye Bye middle stump and in comes Hildreth. Absolutely beautiful yorker right at the base of middle stump. 19 for 2 and we are now a long way from 161. James is looking scratchy.

On comes Chahal (legbreak) while we are falling badly behind the asking rate at 20 for 2.  The rate is already over 9 and rising as we seem to be struggling to get it off the cut bit.  We do however manage a boundary and get to 29 after 5.  Harbajhan will probably take the next after Nechim finishes the 6th.  They take 6 off it but keep finding the fielders.   35 for 2 after 6.  A lot left ot get off 14.  Chahal gets another however before the Indians' skipper takes to the crease.  Craig is looking to establish himself for the long haul but JH can't seem to get it past a fielder in the inner ring and they only get 6 off the over - as the commentator says..."it's not enough".

 Harbajhan finally takes the ball for the 8th and we are still not past the 50 mark.  It is very slow and we need 117 from 76 at the moment - it certainly does not look on at the moment.  The 50 does come up as we take 12 from the Mumbai captain and finish the over on 53. The runs are moving a bit now and the two Somerset boys are taking runs off most balls from Chahal, though they don't seem keen to take the little leggy on much.  Then just as I type that Hilda smacks him for consecutive fours 63 for 2 after 9 - looking better but still behind the asking rate.

On comes KP to bowl his medium pace and slow stuff.  Can they hit him like some others did in the summer?  Well it seems not as he goes for only 2 off his first 3 balls - we need to remember that Maliga will be back for 2 of the last 10 so they need to clear most of this total before the 16th.  The ex Somerset boy goes for 4 and puts the brakes on (even though the pair did pass 50 off 43 balls in his over).

Harbajhan then gives Satish an over for the first time in the tournament.  We have 67 off 10 and we have to push it on.  We keep scoring but we can't get to the rope!!  We need 50 off the next 5 or 6.  Hilda goes for broke and is lucky when the fielder gets his positioning wrong when a catch was on.  The boundary is welcome though.  We need 85 from 55 and then 81 from 54 as CK glances the ball beautifully for a four behind the keeper.

We pass the Mumbai comparison score halfway through the 12th at 87 but we are not far enough in front to have any real level of confidence - a couple of BIG overs would change the outlook though and Craig is moving towards a 50 as the partnership reaches 72 off 55 balls.  Franklin is brought in to see what he can do for the 13th and we take 7 off the over.  Malinga is on the horizon though as we need 66 from 42.  Harbajahan is back on after conceding 11 off his first.

The 100 comes off a wierd reverse cross sweep shot.  The next all does for him though as he steps across and plays on off his pad trying to go fine.  A good knock by him though and an excellent partnership between him and Craig.

In comes Jos with the game there for the taking needing 60 off 38.  103 for 3 with 6 to go.  Franklin continues and they take another 7 off his.  I have this nagging feeling that they are leaving themselves too much to do off Lasif and his partner in the last four.  You'd back yourself to hit 100 off the last 10 but not against a specialist like Malinga... he is the Indian's "ace in the hole" IMHO.

Craig reaches 50 at 112 for 3 but Jos can't seem to get it away as we move into the last 4 with more than 45 needed. In fact they need 45 off 24.  They go for it in the 17th as CK hits the first for 6 and then sends the next for 4 while a fielding error gives them a single off the next. He has 66 off 41 at the moment and if he stays there he could take us home.  Jos can't get it away though and Nichem comes back well.  He nurdles the next for four however with that characteristic chip over the keeper.  They take 16 off the over.  29 off 18 needed but the 'Slinger' is back!!

His first ball is a bye. His second is a single. The third is a dot.  The fourth goes to the boundary for a much needed four!! 23 from 14!! The nerves are jangling as the ball keeps low, Jos misses it and the keeper nearly lets it through. as it swings to leg.  A single means just 7 off the over and JB who has not got his eye in is on strike to Franklin for the penultimate one.

22 from 12 becomes 20 from 10 as Jos middles the second ball of the 19th  straight into Craig who saves a certain four by getting in the way...didn't have a lot of choice to be honest.  The break while Craig gets treatment doesn't seem to help as Franklin bowls Buttler with the next ball and we send in Compo (not my choice in this position I have to say).  He takes a single and Franklin gets CK and effectively ends our tournament as KP takes the catch in the deep.  Too many off Malinga's last over and we pushed on too late as Suppiah comes out to try and take us home.  We need 19 off 7 and it doesn't look much better at 15 off 6 from the Sri Lankan?

Ball one of the last Indian over of 2011?  Arul faces and gets a rushed single off the first.  Compo takes the second, tries to send him to leg and loses his middle stump in the process as the ball is too full to play that shot!!  But he had little to lose to be honest.  14 off 4 and it looks like Mumbai in Chennai I am afraid.  Kartik arrives and then departs first ball.  Should have gone earlier and not gambled on taking on this man I'm afraid.  14 off 3 and Alf hoping to do it?  2 sixes would make it interesting!!  They take a single off ball 4 and another is taken off the ball 5.  Franklin has done for us and then Malinga has put the icing on the cake.

We lose by 10 runs and we shold be proud of the tourament form and the $500,000 we have earned here.  Well done boys - you could have gone one more round but came up short against a good side.

Home and winter.... but thanks for the extra month and a bit boys!!

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