American Journey into Cricket

My Journey into the World of Cricket

I am you average 40 year old American male from Massachusetts. I’m 6’3” and 200 lbs and in good shape. I have a wife, 8 year old daughter, and 5 year old son. I grew up playing all the typical American sports, baseball, basketball, football, and lacrosse. I work in the IT world for a big company and as the years have gone by, the only activities I really have a passion for are; weightlifting year round, snowboarding in the winter and boogie boarding in the summer. One of these summers, I am going to learn how to surf and that will keep me busy for a while.

Out of nowhere, I really can’t explain it, I have found myself a new passion and it is the game of Cricket. Like I said, I can’t explain it and it doesn’t make sense. Why would I be fascinated by a sport that most of America has never heard of and if they did, know nothing about? Why would I be interested in a sport that you would be hard pressed to even find someone to practice with let alone play a match with? Why would I be interested in a sport where you cannot even buy equipment for unless it is done online? Why would I be interested in a sport where if you could have a match, most towns would scoff at the idea of letting you play it on their sacred baseball fields even as they sit empty because most children prefer video games to exercise?

I suppose it is because I am an athlete and a competitor and I love a challenge. What could be more challenging than trying to learn a sport that you know nothing about and is not native to your country? Another reason would be that Cricket is a sport that has not been contaminated like so many other American sports. Who wouldn’t welcome an opportunity to learn a sport that is based on sportsmanship, manners, patience, and proper behavior? Most important is the fact that Cricket has zero tolerance for those who cannot display such admirable qualities. In my opinion, the youth of America, no matter what their heritage, need a good swift kick in the wickets. If I can learn this game and pass my knowledge on to others and they in turn do the same, I will have accomplished my goal.

I have chosen to document my journey and share it with anyone who is interested so they will know what it takes to be an American in the World of Cricket.

July 2005
On most workdays, I get up at 4:00am. This gives me about an hour to drink my 5 cups of coffee while I watch some TV before I leave for the gym at 5:00am. Why do I do this? It is the only time that I can faithfully get some exercise due to work requirements and the fact that the only thing I want to do is see my wife and 2 children after I finish work. The nature of my occupation sometimes requires unexpected extra hours so I cannot count on hitting the gym after work. I cherish this early morning time because the world is quiet and it provides a perfect environment for personal reflection before all hell breaks loose with the kids, work, commitments ect. Anyway, the TV programming is very limited at this early hour. I tend to watch PBS shows which are very educational and rarely cover the same topic. On one particular morning, I was watching a BBC mystery / detective series. This particular episode was set at Oxford University with the focus on finding a murder suspect who was one of the players on the Cricket team. I had no background or knowledge of this game but what caught my attention was the uniforms. I fancy myself a smart dresser and the all white uniforms in conjunction with the leg pads, helmets; batting gloves and especially the bat fascinated me. There also seemed to be some kind of strategy. What stood out was when one person got a hit and yelled “yes” but the guy at the other end yelled “no”. They got into a pretty heated argument. For whatever reason, I was intrigued by this.

Sunday, August 21st, 2005
On the way home from the gym, I noticed a bunch of guys, all appearing to be of Middle Eastern descent, oh what the hell, what I really thought was they were from India playing a game of Cricket on a baseball field. It basically looked exactly like the softball games that are usually played there. One team hanging out like they were waiting to bat, the other team in the field, a guy was pitching and someone had a bat and was waiting to hit. This was all observed as I drove by in a matter of seconds.

Sunday, August 28th, 2005
Once again, I am coming home from the gym, but this time, I am purposely looking to see if a cricket match is going on. I can see that there is and at the last minute, what appears to be a tennis ball comes over the fence and into the road. I stopped my car and let the guy run out and retrieve it. He gives me the thank you sign and I give him the thumbs up and go on my way. I get home and ask my wife if I can take the two kids up to the field to watch the guys play cricket. My eight year old Daughter would rather play with her dolls but my five year old Son wants to go only if he can practice hitting baseballs as well. So we head off. We arrive at the field and the game is still underway. We sat on some rocks outside the fence. None of the players really notice us. Just as we get settled the batter hits a high one that is approaching the fence and the guy chasing it crashes into the fence in front of us but doesn’t make the catch. What an effort and it would have made the highlight reel of any sports newscast. Everyone playing applauds him and he is ok. Within 15 minutes, the game appears to be over and the team’s congratulates each other. The guys then seem to be recapping the outcome with their respective team. I say to my son “I would give anything to be able to play with them someday” My son looks at me and says “why don’t you just ask”. This moment immediately reminds me of the summer before my freshman year of high school. The high school football team starts practicing informally a couple weeks before the official practices start. My Dad took me up there and asked the guys if I could play. I was 14 and these guys seemed like men to me. I was shy and embarrassed but they let me join in. I caught a few touchdowns and as a result I ended up making the varsity team as a freshman. I always remembered that day and will be forever grateful to my Dad.
Anyway, I grab my son’s hand and walk over, I am much bigger than any of the players but feel exactly like I did my freshman year, full of anxiety, self doubt and very intimidated. It is only a 40 foot walk over but it seems like an eternity. The only thing that kept me going is the fact that my son is there and I need to set a good example, just as my Dad did 26 years ago. Once I get to the players, I politely say “excuse me” to one guy. He acknowledges me but now I have the attention of all 10 guys and I am on the spot. In retrospect, they probably thought I was there to kick them off the field. I am stuttering my words, fumbling my sentences. “How can I learn?” “Where can I learn?” who knows what I was saying I was so nervous. Then one guy says “do you want to join us?” I am flabbergasted because that is exactly what I wanted, I wanted into the game with these guys. I didn’t want internet sites or recommended reading; I wanted to be in the game. Still nervous I tell them “yes, I’ll do whatever you want chase balls, sweep the field, get the water” He kind of laughed and said “ be here next Sunday at 7:00am” Inside, my heart was exploding with happiness just as it used to when I was kid. I kind of remember he said something else but all I heard was 7:00am Sunday. As I walked away, I high-five my son and thanked him for giving me the courage to ask. When we get home, I burst through the door and yell “I am in the Game” I can see the “oh no here we go again” look on my wife’s face when she knows I am about to become obsessed with something like snowboarding, guitar playing, acting, writing ect. She knows I don’t “dabble” in anything

August 29th thru September 3rd 2005
I know that this week is going to be an eternity and I can’t just sit back and wait. I look on the internet for anything related to cricket. I focus on the history, laws, terminology, gear, and anything I can that will help me prepare for Sunday. Every day I tell my kids “6 more days until cricket, 5 more days until cricket etc”. Out of all my research, the biggest things I take away are: Cricket is a gentlemen’s game. Cricket is all about sportsmanship; Cricket is a very cerebral game; Cricket is the complete opposite of what the traditional American sports have become (self-centered athletes and parents with no respect, courtesy or manners, even at the youngest levels.) Above all, Cricket is a game I want my children to learn for the values as well as athletic attributes.

Saturday night September 3rd, 2005
I am a nervous wreck and full of anxiety. I cannot sleep well but still set my alarm for 5:00am. My kids are exited as I am and my wife thinks I’m crazy. I think to myself “what is my goal and what is my motivation” The answers are simple. My “goal” is to do whatever it takes to learn Cricket and someday wear the “dress whites”.
My “motivation” is a 5 year old kid on my son’s T-Ball team. This kid played like a big leaguer. Sound fundamentals, knew where to make the play, could throw and hit like a kid twice his age. I asked his Dad “how did he get so good” He said “he lives, eats and sleeps baseball, always has his glove and bat, plays pickup games with kids much older than him and would wear his uniform everyday if they let him.” This kid was like a mini Joe Dimaggio. He could have easily played with the 10 year olds but rules forced him to play T-Ball. Needless to say, I try to motivate my son by using this kid as a role model and it is working for him.

Sunday, September 4th 2005
I woke up at 4:00am and drank my coffee, watched TV and basically paced around the house until 6:30am. My prior sports and work ethic told me to get there a little early so they guys know I am serious. I left the house at 6:40am and my kids acted like I was going to the World Series. It took me 5 minutes to get to the field and no one was there. That was ok because I was early. Next thing you know, it is 7:30am and no one was there. To say I was heartbroken would be an understatement! I prayed as each car drove by, I would see the blinker go on and the car would turn towards the field. At about 7:45am I faced the facts and started walking to my car. At the last minute, a car pulls in but drives right by me and goes to a field which is further down. Again, not to make generalizations but at least the driver looked like he might be there to play Cricket. I jumped in my car and drove to where he parked. I see him open the trunk and pull out a bag of gear. I walked over to him as another couple of cars pulled in. I politely told the first guy that I was told to be here to play. He tells me it must have been another group of guys that play on the other field but I could join in as they would not have enough guys for a full match and this would be a practice session. That was fine with me. While one guy was setting up the wickets another guy invited me out to start playing catch and loosening up. The first thing I noticed, is that it was not a regular tennis ball, it was much heavier. From the moment I touched that ball I gave it my all. The whole time thinking “I have to show these guys I am serious and motivated” Other guys started to show up, 7 total. These guys were more than courteous and I made it a point to introduce myself to each one and thank them for letting me join. I got to practice batting, bowling and fielding. After a while they started a match. I did not bowl but I did get to bat and I guarantee I earned the name of ferret, weasel or rabbit. My first big chance, I swung for the boundary, missed the ball and it not only hit the middle wicket but knocked it out of the ground and sent it spinning. Oh well, at least I got to finally swing the bat. I had a blast and the guys were always giving me pointers and advice. As I always do, I keep my mouth shut and ears open and learn. My take on this first day is that I have the athletic ability to play cricket, I can run fast, and I can play the field but it is going to take a lot of practice to learn how to bowl and bat correctly. The biggest thing I need to do is suppress my baseball instincts and focus on Cricket. Again, the guys were constantly offering me tips whenever possible. When it was over, my team lost and I am sure it was a direct result of my lack of skills but they were kind enough to let me play and it was a practice so hopefully that was my worst performance. I did feel like part of a team and was treated that way by the others. I shook each ones hand and thanked them and I was told I could join in anytime they are holding practice or are short players. They also told me that my company has a team. I will try and find out more about that when I get back to work on Tuesday. A funny anecdote goes back to when I was originally told to show up at 7:00am, I was so excited, I didn’t hear him say that like anything else in life, some people can never be on time so hang around and people will show up. That’s fine if you even had a ball to throw around but I had nothing. Once I have my own gear, waiting will be easier because I can at least practice bowling. This was a day to remember and it exceeded my expectations. For now, all I can do is learn, practice and play anytime I can. When I got home my kids treated me like a hero. I was sore and tired but can only think about playing again. Hopefully, I am not that sore tomorrow.

Monday, September 5th, 2005
It’s a holiday and what better thing to do on a nice day but practice Cricket. The only problem is I have no gear. So I find some plywood, take my kids measurements and use a jigsaw to make them each a bat. I used multicolored tape on the cane and then let the kids use markers to make designs on them. I also used some wood to make 6 wickets and some bails. To make a pitch, I used a lawnmower and set the blades really low and mowed a 50’ long by 4’ wide section. We used a regular tennis ball and had a great time. In fact ,we played the whole day, and had our last match as the sun went down. It was really amusing hearing them yell “ yes” and “no” when they hit it. It was one of those days I’ll always remember. Later that night I tell my wife I need to order my own gear. She says” what do you need gear for, you don’t even know how to play”. I told her how am I supposed to practice, so she agreed. I went online and ordered my stuff through Modells sports. I don’t know anything about what type of bat to order and the price ranges went from $50 dollars to $300 for the Kukaburra “ big kahuna” I had to use common sense although I would have loved to get the big kahuna, I went with a short handle Gray-Nicolls Longbow model for $60.00. I also ordered a real cricket ball ($17.99), a real practice ball ($7.99) and a kids starter set ($49.99) I could not find out where to buy a practice tennis style balls. I’ll ask the guys next time I see them. My reasoning for the low end bat was that I will beat the heck out of it while I learn and the last thing I want to happen is have the bowler knock out the middle wicket while the “ ferret “ is holding the “big kahuna”

Tuesday, September 6th 2005
I head to the gym at 5:00am and my legs are still sore specifically, the hamstrings and inner thighs. My bowling arm is feeling better but I decide not to do any upper body work and let it recover. My abdominals and lower back muscles are also tender. I decide to work on my legs, lower back and abs because they are obviously my weak spot based on the soreness. Once I get to work I have 2 main thoughts; when is my gear coming and who is in charge of my company’s cricket team. I called a friend at our other location to see if he knows who the Cricket guy is. This is touchy for me because I don’t want to make generalizations that just because a guy is from a cricket playing country he plays it or is even interested in it. He gives me a couple names. I contact both guys and one of them replies that they do have a team but after a tourney this weekend, the season is over. He says he can try and get me in the tourney but I tell him I appreciate it but I would not be very valuable at this point and I have to attend a wedding anyway. Some good news came out of it though. The person at our other facility has an interest in playing and he sends out an email to some people, including me, to see if they can get something going. I continue to focus on learning the laws, strategy, and techniques of batting and bowling. When I get home I see a box on my porch with my name on it. I can’t believe it is here already. I run in the house, yell to the kids and they help me open it. It is the kids starter set that includes a bat, 4 wickets, a set of bails, a rubber practice ball, and batting gloves. My bat and balls will be delivered on September 8th. We can’t get out back fast enough. My kids start fighting over banging the wickets in and then fight over the bat. I start bowling to my daughter and she hits a few. My son is already whining that he wants his turn. When it is his turn, the bat is heavy to him and he gets frustrated. The kids start arguing more. At this point I have to step up and stay true to the game. I walk over and pull out the wickets, tell my son to give me the bat and tell them there will be no more Cricket until they can obey the most important rules of Cricket; manners, respect and sportsmanship. Believe me, it hurt to do this especially since I was so excited to play but like I said “in my mind, the values of Cricket are more important than the game”

Wednesday, September 7th 2005
I head to the gym at 5:00am as usual but I bring along the rubber practice ball that came with my kids set. There is an indoor basketball court and I can practice my bowling and fielding skills. I start out with 10 minutes off shuffling side to side from one end of the court to the other. My thinking is that this will help my movement on the field as my inner leg muscles are a weak spot of mine based on the soreness that is still present from Sundays and yesterdays leg workout. I then take my water bottle and place it against the wall and walk off 66 feet. For the next 15 minutes I practice bowling focusing on the form and pointers the guys gave me. My mission is to work on form and accuracy by trying to knock over the water bottle. I did ok and noticed the bowling motion is more natural, my accuracy is improved and my velocity is definitely better. I finish my workout throwing the ball against the wall and trying to field it. I practice ground balls, pop ups, and ones that require me to jump vertically or stretch horizontally. It was a good workout and I’ll see if my arm is sore tomorrow but it feels good now. As I do with weight training, I make sure I have protein and take a few L-Glutamine tablets to help muscle recovery. I got a nice surprise when I got home from work. My bat, ball and practice ball had been delivered. My kids had some friends over and they all were waiting for me to open the box. Once I did, they were all fighting to hold the bat and the ball. I let them play around with the practice ball and attempt to swing the bat, which was too heavy for them. I told them the real ball is off limits. I was in awe of the ball. It was red and so shiny with hand stitched seams. It’s a Gray-Nicols Crown-A Supertest. It is 5 ½ ounces with gold writing. It’s hard to believe some made this with their hands in Pakistan. To be truthful, my first thought was “what have I got myself into. If this ball hits me, I am a dead man”. To get over this apprehension, I immediately envisioned myself in the dress whites, helmet, gloves, and leg pads to protect me. I also told myself I have been hit by baseballs and lacrosse balls all over the body with less protection and survived. Plus, I have endured many punishing and vicious hits during my football days as a tight end and got through that ok. I took my kids up to the local baseball field which has a brown clay infield and squeezed in about 45 minutes of practice. It’s cool because my kids can set up the wickets and bails without my help. My Daughter is really starting to get the hang of hitting with the kids bat. My son has to use the plywood bat I made because the kids bat is too heavy for him. He loves to wear the batting gloves though and for whatever reason likes to play the role of wicket keeper. When I pitch to them with the kids practice ball I try to practice my bowling motion but bowl it to them slowly so they can hit it. After we were done, I said “now it is Dada’s turn” I told them to move away so I could throw the real ball up in the air and give it a whack with my new bat. I threw it up in the air and let loose a boundary swing. The ball took off like a rocket. I must have hit the sweet spot because it made the greatest knocking sound. What a feeling. We spent the next 10 minutes trying to find the ball in the grass. Believe me; I was not leaving until it was found because for $17.00 I wasn’t leaving it for some kid to find. After we found it, I stepped back and told my kids to throw it at me as hard as I could because I need to know how it feels to catch it. They were nervous and didn’t want to hurt me. I said “Give it your hardest throw because you don’t wear gloves or pads as a fielder and if I ever get into a real Cricket game it will be coming at me much harder than they could ever throw” So they did as I requested and I was able to catch it. They each threw it at me about 5 times. We ended the night by shaking hands and I congratulated them for both displaying good sportsmanship. The field we were playing on is next to the main road and I did notice some people slowing down to see what we were playing. There were also a couple of moms with their children who were curious and walked over and watched us for a while.

Thursday, September 8th 2005
Once again, I’m up for the gym. I start watching the early morning news. As always, they have a couple minute segment on the London Stock Exchange. It basically shows an English reporter providing a status with a backdrop of vehicles going through a roundabout. I have seen it a million times and only watch it for the clever exchange of banter between the English reporter and the two hosts of the news program. All I hear, is the word Cricket and they have my undivided attention. As it turns out the “Ashes” are now being played and the American hosts were joking about how big the trophy was. I must have learned something though my research because I understood the joke. In a nutshell, the Ashes is a historic, annual cricket match between England and Australia that dates back to 1877. I realize that I need to get on the internet when I have time and start reading as much news as I can about this event because it won’t be covered in the U.S media. If it was on television, it would really help my understanding because I could see an actual match being played at the highest level along with all the techniques, action and announcers explaining every play. I just add that to the list of frustrations I have to accept of living in a country where Cricket is not a popular sport. I head to the gym at the usual time and decide to work on my back muscles because I notice some soreness on the bowling arm side of my lower lats where they tie in with my ribcage. This is from last nights fun with the kids. I do some chin ups, pullovers and seated cable rows. I also came up with a way to try and work on my bowling delivery as well as strengthen my arm. I stand facing away form an overhead, handled pulley station and with my hand extended over my head, I pull the cable forward as I practice the last step of the bowling delivery. This makes me focus on keeping my arm straight though the delivery as well as providing some resistance to strengthen my arm. The regulars who see me at the gym must be wondering “what is he doing”. I end the workout with some abdominal work and lower back exercises. I have to work at one of our other sites today and we have a really nice baseball field so I decide to bring my kit so I can try and squeeze in some practice as well as show my gear to a couple of my co-workers. This is also the site where they want to try and get a team together. I’ll try and meet as many of the guys as I can if I have the time. I found a good BBC website that is reporting on everything “Ashes” and it was awesome. The first thing that I notice is that this is big time stuff, the players are celebrities and the fans are rabid. They provide written commentary on every play and I read each sentence to see if I can understand what is going on and for the most part I can follow along. The also have highlight pictures which is what I like. The first one I see is a player with a towel against his face because he just got hit by the ball. Now that I have a real ball, I feel his pain. For the most part, I am starting to recognize the names but they all pretty much look the same with the batting gear on. A couple of pictures show some players in regular clothes as well as casual dress. They kind of remind me of soccer players with cool hair cuts and stylish clothes. This appeals to me because I am a bit of a showman who loves nice clothes and is always sporting a different hairstyle. I have no problems putting highlights in my hair and before next season starts I’m sure I will have created my own unique persona. I’m leaning toward the California surfer / hippie look which is basically what I am except I live in Massachusetts, make pretty good money and can’t surf. These guys have it made. I also saw a few pictures of the English team with their practice suits on. Those are really cool, even better than the soccer shirts. I find myself feeling and acting like what I think a cricket player is. I am using extra manners and have started having a new feeling of confidence. In my mind, I am a cricket player who is representing all of America and I need to act as such. I really want to get a couple of cricket shirts and sweaters as well as a couple official practice shirts. I suppose not many Americans will know what they are but anyone who plays Cricket will know just like I would now. I showed both my real ball and practice ball to a couple of the guys who want to start a team and they loved them. I don’t think they have seen one in a while because they always use the hard tennis ball and don’t play the full contact version. We talked for a while and decided we should ask permission from the company to use the baseball field for practice and if possible matches. I volunteered to be the point man for this task. After work, I went to the ball field on site and started to hit the real ball from end to end. I swung for the boundary, hit line drives, ground balls and choppers, I tried to envision where the opposing team players were and tried to hit it accordingly. There is nothing like letting it rip, hearing that knocking sound and watching the ball take flight. I am starting to notice which parts of the bat do certain things. I know where the sweet spot is because I can feel it in my hands. I was able to hit it over the fence a couple of times which is 260 feet so I know I must have some power. I then spent about 30 minutes practicing bowling. I set the wickets and focused on form and tried holding the ball different ways. I had the most accuracy when I put my middle finger between the seams. I also discovered spin when I put my middle finger between the seams and at the last minute turned my wrist to the right. That was really cool, not very accurate but I had some spin on the ball. When I started this journey, I didn’t think I would enjoy bowling because when I throw a baseball around my arm aches afterwards. I am really enjoying the bowling though. I only wish I had someone to practice with so I could practice batting and fielding. So by default I am forced to concentrate on bowling. I still get a big thrill when I hit the wickets. I hit them a few times. One time, I took out two of them with authority and they went spinning out of the ground. I ended by giving myself three chances to knock one over the fence and I did it on my second turn. I still feel as if I am making progress.

Friday, September 9th 2005
I have the day off today and get to take my kids to the bus stop. All the kids like it when I go to the bus stop because I usually play some kind of game like Frisbee, football, kickball or whatever. Today though, I brought the kids bat, batting gloves and kids practice ball. I let each kid have a turn batting. They all thought the bat was heavy but they had fun. I’m sure it will become a neighborhood activity. In my mind I did my part to promote the sport and will gladly teach them more. I’m sure some matches will be played in my back yard and they will lean more with the wickets set up. After the bus left, I went up to the local baseball field. I set up the wickets and started practicing bowling. The main road in town goes right by where I was practicing. A steady stream of cars and school buses and cars were going by as well as some foot traffic. I am sure that most were thinking I was playing baseball but as the got closer and saw the bowling ,motion, red ball and wickets, they were wondering what I was playing. My bowling was pretty accurate and the velocity is really coming along. In fact, I hit the leg side wicket so hard that one time that a 3 inch piece of it broke off the side as it went flying. That was really cool. I was about to end my session when a guy pushing an empty baby stroller motioned over to me. I ran over and he asked if I was from England. By his accent I knew that he was. I said no and he tells me the reason he asked was because he has lived in the U.S for 13 years and has never seen asset of wickets set up. This was very cool and we began a discussion about the game. His Dad loved Cricket and he played as a kid. He said he felt bad seeing me running back and forth to retrieve the ball after every bowl. I leaned some thing from him. He answered the biggest question I have been trying to understand; “what is an over”? Even on the internet I could not grasp the explanation. I told him we played “6 overs for 36 balls”. He made it simple to understand by explaining that each time you bowl, it is one ball. So using last weeks example, each time the bowler bowls 6 times it is an over and we played 6 of them for a total of 36 balls. The one thing I forgot to ask is; does each team bowl 6 balls during an over for an actual total of 72 balls or does each team alternate after every six balls which equates to 18 total balls for each side? I will research that answer. The guy asked to hold the ball and he said it had been a long time since he held one. He is actually a youth soccer coach in town and faces the same frustrations that I mention in the introduction to this story. I’ll behaved children and indignant parents. I explained how I am using cricket as way to teach my kids good qualities and he was in agreement. He offered to join me in the mornings. This was music to my ears but I had to tell him it was a vacation day for me and I work regular business hours. He gets his kids to school and goes to work later in the day. He also asked me about the players I joined last Sunday and I told him they are from a combination of India and Pakistan and they were better than me at cricket and each had different skill levels. I was not going to let this opportunity go by so I told him I will be away this weekend but I will be at the same field next Saturday a 6:30 am and hopefully playing with the guys on Sunday. He said he will make a point of joining me. I was ecstatic, we shook hands and I told him the more the merrier. I hope he shows up. This was a good day because I feel like I am starting to draw attention to the sport or at least conjuring up curiosity form people who see me practicing. I end my session by knocking the ball around and then head home. I tell my wife the good news and she just gives me the usual “your are insane look” My wife, kids and I are heading down to Cape Cod this afternoon to attend a wedding that I am in usher in. We are staying at a hotel on the beach so I am bringing the kids kit so we can play on the beach. I love the beach and always have. The store I am picking up the tuxedo at has really nice “proper” clothes. If they have one, I am going to by a cricket style sweater vest. I feel like I am doing my part to spread the good word about Cricket and I’m sure we will have some curious on lookers as we play on the beach.

Saturday, September 10th 2005
Set up the wickets on the beach and played around with the kids for a while. Other than that, it was a day to just enjoy the beach and the company of family.

Sunday, September 11th 2005
I went up to the usual field after we got home from Cape Cod. Set up the wickets and started practicing bowling and hitting the ball around. I try and always keep moving at a mild pace to build up my endurance. When I retrieve the ball after hitting it I always carry the bat along so I get used to running with the bat. There was definitely some curiosity from the kids playing basket ball and football near by but no one asked what I was doing. Near the end of my session a man with his wife and small daughter started watching. As I ran by them the guys asked what team I played for. I stopped and filled him in on what I have been doing. Turns out, he was from South Africa and was startled to see someone playing Cricket. He lives in town and we chatted for a while. He asked if he could try to bowl a few although he had a large cut on his bowling hand. I tried to contain my happiness but I’m sure it showed. He bowled a few making it look effortless and then he asked to hold the bat and I bowled a few to him. He then bowled a few to me and after just one ball, he asked if he could give me some pointers. This is exactly what I was hoping for. My grip was wrong, my stance was wrong, I was holding the bat wrong and as I suspected, my bat is too short. My bat comes up to mid thigh and should come up to my belt. He worked with me for about 10 minutes on these facets and I then bowled a few to me. Just simple impromptu lessons like these make a world of difference and I am truly grateful for them. Some kids wanted to use the field for baseball so we obliged. Just as I told the guy from England, I will be up here early on Saturday mornings and he is more than welcome to join as well as bring along anyone else. We shook hands and I again thanked him and told his wife I was pleased to meet her as well and we went our separate ways. When I got home, I told my wife all about it and she seemed happy for me.

Monday, September 12th 2005
England defeated Australia today to take home the Ashes. It is great moment in British sports. The players must be the biggest celebrities in the U.K. Even in defeat the Australian players were congratulatory and displayed sportsmanship even though they must be hurting inside. Found a great website BBC sports UK that will be a great resource for me. I also learned that I have been calling the stumps the wickets when in reality, the stumps, and bails when all set up are called the wicket and when a batter is out they are “taken wickets” I also ran into a guy I work with from England and told him I was trying to learn the sport. He seemed really interested we talked for a while. He will prove to be a valuable resource. Once I again, I realized that my bat is too small and it should come up to the top of my thigh. As soon as I can, I am going to order a new one that is sized for someone my size. Told me a guy from India might know where to buy Cricket gear in Massachusetts. No luck, the guy told me that he and his buddies get the bats, tennis balls, and stumps for India and the closest place to by gear in person is New York. I found the following excerpt that I find extremely motivational as well as preparing me for what I can expect when I get a chance to bat in a real match. One thing for sure is Cricket is a gentleman’s sport but at the same time an extremely competitive, and almost vicious one.

The second key success lesson is that you must not get distracted from your goal of scoring runs or anything else by mental or physical pain. In ordinary life, many painful things can happen which can demoralize you unless you are determined enough to keep going in spite of the pain. Keep focused on your goals and dreams whatever happens. Those who have not played cricket may not realize how hard a cricket ball is. It is especially hard and bouncy when it is new. Fast bowlers are usually given the new ball so that they can bounce it high to hit the batsmen in the head, throat, ribs or hands.
Once the batsmen get distracted by the pain in their head or hands, they will be vulnerable to the next ball and will do something silly like knocking up a catch or failing to protect their wicket (the three stumps or sticks protruding from the ground) from getting hit by the ball. Brett Lee, the Australian fast bowler, was run out when he hesitated before running. He wanted to flap his hand to get rid of the pain. His index finger and then his thumb had been hit by fast balls. Later, however, in another match, he redeemed himself by batting well even though he had been hit hard on the head and the arm! On the second day of the first test England were bowling at the Australians who were having their second innings (chance to bat). However, the England bowlers were not harassing the batsmen enough. Boycott, the former great England batsman, commented that the ball should be whistling about the batsmen's ears and hitting their gloves: "The ball is new and hard. Now is the time to hit the batsmen before the ball gets too soft. Once the batsmen get too comfortable, they will start thinking: 'I fancy scoring a hundred.'" Even the tailenders or weaker batsmen who bat last have to suffer. The bowlers cannot allow them to stay in too long. Boycott continues:
"Bowlers should hit the tailenders in the ribs or on the hand before they get too comfortable. That's what you have to do as a fast bowler. You have to hurt the opposition tailenders. Tailenders are alright if there is not a likelihood of them getting hurt. They're not too brave." On Saturday, the third day of the test, the Australian tail enders were batting. Gillespie, one of the tailenders, was hit in the stomach near the belly button. He grimaced in pain. A few balls later he was hit in the groin by a ball from Harmison and doubled over in agony. The ball was traveling at about 90 miles an hour. The crowd roared with laughter. Harmison had been aiming for the throat and the toes and the crown jewels.

I get goose bumps when I read this and its why am trying to get into this sport. This is what it is all about for an athlete. I can assure you that this is not the image that is conjured up when an American thinks of Cricket. Small things like this are building my enthusiasm and confidence. If I have been successful in my goal, America will know that Cricket and its players are every bit as tough, if not tougher, than their baseball brethren.


Tuesday, September 13th 2005
While drinking my morning coffee before the gym I started reading bowling tips on the BBC Sports website. It was a great learning experience because they covered all the bowling styles complete with pictures of the grip as well as how to throw it. It is kind of ironic that I am spending all my time learning bowling when I thought I would be batting. I am actually enjoying it though and justify it by thinking I could be an “all rounder” meaning I am proficient at all aspects of the sport and it will only help my batting by being able to identify the bowler’s style and delivery. I went to the gym and worked my quadriceps, hamstrings and inner groin muscles. I then did 10 minutes of shuttle runs, 10 minutes of side to side shuffles and 5 minutes of vertical jumping on the basketball court. It’s been good so far because I have the whole court to myself. I also did some wrist strengthening exercises, abdominal and lower back exercises. I still have some slight pain in the middle of my right quadriceps but only when I try to run really hard. I am thinking this was caused by not bowling correctly and will now focus on the proper grip of the ball, form, and the last stage of the delivery so I get the fundamentals down. When I got to work the guy from England emailed me the following, which I found very funny because I get the joke.
The Rules of Cricket as Explained to a foreign visitor:
You have two sides, one out in the field and one in.
Each man that's in the side that's in, goes out, and when he's out, he comes in and the next man goes in until he's out.
When they are all out the side that's out comes in and the side that's been in goes out and tries to get those coming in out.
Sometimes you get men still in and not out.
When both sides have been in and out including the not-outs, that's the end of the game. Howzat?
While sitting in my cube a co-worker from India noticed my Cricket ball and we had about a 10 minute chat about the sport and about the guys who play at my company. As has become the norm everyone I meet is more than willing to answer my questions. It turns out the tournament that was supposed to be played over the weekend was postponed until this weekend. That means the guys that play up my way are also playing in the tourney this weekend. I Hope to go up and watch the action If I can. I am constantly using the BBC Sports website because it is a great resource with lots of videos and practice lessons. I am really starting to understand a lot about the sport especially the bowling styles such as spin, seam and leg spinning. Later in the day I asked the same guy more questions that I had. I found out that you can use your wrist to make the ball do certain things and that the only requirement is that you have to completely follow through on you bowling delivery. I learned that you can over step the crease when bowling as long as the ball is released within the crease. I also learned that you can run pout any ball if you agree with the non striker no matter where the ball goes on the field or even if you don’t bat it and it rolls away. I also learned that the boundary is a complete circle and it is worth six of 4 runs no matter where it goes over the boundary. On the BBC Sport site I also learned a lot about catching, fielding and throwing techniques as well as some practice drills that I can use train myself. I hope to practice bowling, catching and trying to throw at the stumps tonight after work at home if possible. My enthusiasm continues to build each day. I went in my back yard and practiced the throwing drills I learned and my son even came out and joined me.

Wednesday, September 14th 2005
At the gym this morning, I worked on my chest muscles and biceps. These muscles have nothing to do with Cricket but I still want to take pride in my physique. I hit the basket ball court and practiced my underhand and overhand throwing by throwing out the ball, running after it, retrieving it and then trying to hit my water bottle which was on the floor against the wall. I did this for about 15 minutes. I then practiced basic leg spinning and fast seam balls. I am only focusing on the last stage of the delivery because there is not enough room for a proper run up and I really need to focus on technique at this stage of my training. I ended my workout with some abdominal work and some lower back exercises. At work today, I met the captain and a few players from my company team which has been a goal of mine. I told them that I would be at the tournament this weekend to support them and hopefully learn a lot at the same time. I also learned that the term “nets” means practice nets just like the nets that baseball players use when practicing hitting or pitching. I envy these guys because they hold strategy meetings and I wish I was a part of it. I will have my day and I still feel extreme pride when I realize that I am only focusing on playing the real sport of Cricket and not the tennis ball version. When I got home my son wanted to practice the throwing drills that I learned on the BBC sports website. I set up the stumps and place a ball about 5 feet away and another one about 10 feet away. When I am by myself I usually use a distance of 15 feet and 40 feet but because he is only 5 years old and I want him to enjoy himself and be able to get a sense of accomplishment, I use the short distance. We start at the wickets and run to the furthest ball, pick it up and throw at the stumps overhand. We then run back towards the stumps, pick up the closer ball on the fly and throw underhand at the stumps. To make it fun, we yell “wicket” when we hit a stump. He loves this game and would play forever if I let him. He also likes the fact that the ball makes “red cherry” on the stump if he hits it. After were done we look at each stump and count the red marks’ I always tell him how many “wickets” he has taken. I then tell him “it’s time to hit the showers and you will make a great Cricket player if he ever decides to play the sport. When he started little league baseball last spring, even though he could not throw very far it was always very accurate. The same hold true for his throwing the cricket ball and he can throw the ball further now that he is older. He is very accurate and this should also help his baseball throwing when baseball starts next spring.

Thursday, September 15th 2005
I headed to the gym as usual this morning. I worked my quadriceps, hamstrings, and groin muscles with weights. I then headed to the basketball court and it was empty as always. This has proved to be an invaluable resource and will allow me to practice all winter. I did 5 minutes of side to side shuffle runs, 5 minutes of shuttle runs and 5 minutes of vertical jumping. I always try to keep my head straight ahead to work on my focus. By now I had worked up a good sweat and was loosened up to practice bowling. I have been concentrating on the last step in my delivery with attention to my form. I practiced some leg spinning and seam balls focusing on accuracy and velocity. Out of nowhere I thought about intimidation. Because I have studied the craft of acting, I am able to use the power of visualization to place myself in an altered state where I can see things that are not there and basically convince myself that I am in that situation. When I am in this altered state, I experience all the emotional and sensory feelings that are associated with it. An example of this is when I was 13 years old. Our family dog had become quite ill and one morning his back legs would not function. The only ones home were my Mother and I. This dog was my closest friend and had been in the family since the day I was born. The dog had to be taken to the veterinarian to be put to sleep. My mother sat me down and tried to explain this to me. This was my first experience with death and the loss of something that was cherished and loved. I had to pick the dog up and carry it out to the car, knowing this was the final time we would be together. Once we got to the veterinarian, I had to say my goodbyes. This was by far the saddest, most heart wrenching experience that I have ever had even to this day. To make a long story short, on the ride home with my mother, we were both so sad and she turned on the radio which was playing the Doors song “light my fire”. There is an organ solo within the song. Anyway, to this day if this song comes on the radio and they get to the organ solo. My nose begins to burn, my face gets enveloped with a burning sensation, my eyes start to well up and the tears start running down my face. When I was learning the “method” form of acting and training my senses to get in character, this was the first example I used. Eventually, through practice and visualization, I could experience the same emotions without hearing “light my fire” I decided to put these skills to work for me as I bowled. I envision my self on a Cricket field. I pictured the green grass and the smell it emits when it is freshly cut, I envisioned that I was standing on the pitch in my dress whites with fans looking on, I was the opener for the United States Cricket team and my country was depending on me. I had accomplished transporting my mind into the setting. I then moved on to the underlying reason of this exercise, the intimidation of the batter. First, I envisioned him standing there with all his pads on looking right at me. Once I could fully envision him there, I just stared at him with my meanest, steely eyed stare. I was looking right into his pupils and never even blinking. I had the image of the boxer Mike Tyson in his prime. Before the bell even rang for the opening round, Tyson had already won the fight and the opponent new he was going to be lucky if he didn’t die on this night. In my mind I am hearing the Gun n Roses song “Welcome to the Jungle” specifically the part when Axl Rose screams “welcome to the jungle baby, YOUR GONNA DIE”. As I prepare for my delivery, I have visions of Samual Jackson in the movie Pulp Fiction. I have fully convinced myself that I am “the baddest mother-f-er in the land” and the ball is now my gun full of deadly hollow point bullets. I want to put the ball through this guy’s heart, knock out all of his teeth and hit him so hard in the groin that he cannot walk for weeks. I want this batter and all of his teammates to fear my wrath and regret their decision to stand in the crease against me. My mental state is exactly where I need it to be and I unleash a seam ball that is more accurate and travels faster than any I have bowled before. I repeat this process over and over for all of my 20 balls that follow. Whenever I finally get a chance to stand in the crease as a batter I will use the same technique to build my courage and confidence. I am also getting into top shape since I have been training. I have been eating as much protein as I can, drinking lots of water and cutting way back on the goodies, which is tough because I have a big time sweet tooth. My body fat is consistently dropping and I am feeling a lot lighter on my feet. I need to be fast, agile and healthy if I want to succeed. I cannot believe what I just read. I was looking on the internet to find out about the United States Cricket team. I pictured huge, strapping, blond haired Americans who were international stars. The image I had was that of professional volleyball players. With great anticipation, I clicked on a Sports Illustrated article that was titled “Meet the U.S Cricket Team” In one click of the mouse, I was completely horrified at what I read:
“Meet the United States cricket team, a ragtag bunch of weekend players who are 1,000-1 underdogs going into one of the sport's elite events -- the two-week long Champions Trophy. Imagine a team of semipro baseball players from South Korea or Puerto Rico taking on the New York Yankees”
How could this be? To make matters even worse, not one of the United States team members was born in the U.S or even looked like an American. Just to be clear, I do not mean this in a derogatory way, I am just totally stunned and shocked as to the state of Cricket in the US. I figured that in the worst scenario, Cricket in the U.S was a game that only the elite and privileged of society could play with the players coming from places like the Hamptons in New York or Newport, Rhode Island. After reading the entire article, I am just grateful that the U.S even has a team and they have achieved as much as they have to date. I believe at this moment, that I have had an epiphany or an awakening and it is my mission to do whatever I can, besides giving up all my possessions and quitting my job, to help promote the sport and have the youth of America start playing it. As I said in the beginning of my quest, the youth of America need a “GOOD SWIFT KICK IN THE WICKETS”. I am emailing this Journal to the USACA with the hopes of them adding a link to this journal and I will be more than willing to update it daily. I am also asking them “what can I do and how can I help to spread the good word about this amazing sport
Friday, September 16th 2005
At the gym today I worked on my wrists, forearms and shoulders then headed to the basketball court. I started with some side to side shuffles and some shuttle runs. I also practiced batting by throwing the rubber practice ball up in the air and trying to hit it off of the bounce across the court and against the wall. I Finished up with some bowling practice and then did some abdominal exercises. Once I got to work, I tried not to bother the guys who are playing in the tournament tomorrow. At the end of the day I wished some of them good luck and said I would be there if the rain holds off.

Saturday, September 17th 2005
My daughter had a soccer game this morning. My son gets antsy so I usually take him out on the field and we run around, play Frisbee or play catch. On this day for some strange coincidence I just happened to have the cricket ball with me. I asked him if he wanted to play catch or practice fielding. He was all for it. So we practiced tossing it back and forth and then some ground balls and then he tells me he wants to practice bowling. We headed over to the baseball diamond and I drew a line in the dirt and told him to practice his run up and once he gets to the line, let the ball go and try and hit the fence way down low. He did this about 10 times. Once we were done, he shows me his hands and they are all red. I looked at my hands and they were also red. The grass was wet and the ball had been rolling around in it. If the ball gets wet the red dye on the ball ends up all over your hands. I had noticed a faint red coloring on my hands with a dry ball but it is way worse when it gets wet. Needless to say, my wife was not a happy camper. When we got home we had to really scrub them with brush to get them at least back to a rose color. I jokingly told him it is a sign of honor. Once we cleaned up, we made the 45 minute drive down to the field where my co workers were playing in the tournament. Once we arrived I was in heaven. We were the only non Middle Eastern people there and we had our bats in hand as we walked by each match. I also had my bat bag with the rubber practice ball inside. I could see everyone looking at us with a curious stare. I said hello to everyone we walked by and they reciprocated with a nod or a hello. It was a great atmosphere full of energy and competition. When we got to the second match, I immediately recognized some of the guys that were on the bench of the batting team. Before I could even say hello, I was greeted by some one yelling to me “Sean”. He got up shook my hand and a few of the other guys came over and did the same. This was totally awesome because all the other players on the bench knew I had some friends in the cricket community. They joked around with my son and asked him if he wanted to play for them. I wished them good luck and let them concentrate on the mission at hand. I am really feeling like I belong and realize that all my hard work is paying off. We then went to the far end of the field where a team was warming up and we watched them for a while and also got in some batting and bowling practice behind the fence. Everywhere I looked the players were curiously watching us and each and everyone had a smile on their face. Playing with you son is a universal experience and everyone can relate. But playing cricket with your son at a cricket tournament goes beyond that. People were so friendly and we talked to many of them. Almost every single person wanted to know whether I learned the game either in England or Australia. I can under stand this because from a physical appearance, I really do look like a Cricket player at least from what I have seen on the internet. When I told them “I have only been playing for about 3 weeks and that I have learned from kind people like everyone on the field teaching me and letting me join in, they seemed even more impressed. We then ran into one off the players from my work and he told us what field they were playing on. We followed him to the field and as his teammates arrived we started meeting them and they treated my son like a king. They joked with him, gave him a batting lesson and he and I loved every minute of it. One of the guys even told my son he was in charge of watching the equipment and the water. He took his job very seriously. As we watched, people who walked by always said hello and gave us a smile and we had more conversations. I cannot stress what a great bunch of people I have encountered during this journey. We headed home after about 3 hours and even though I may have appeared to be only watching the action, I was constantly observing, learning and taking in everything my brain would hold. This trip proved to be beneficial in many ways. I learned more about the sport, I made myself familiar to many more people in the cricket community and most importantly my son experienced something that not many American children will ever know. The whole ride home we talked about all the action and even joked about the guy we named “the king of swing” because he was really knocking the ball around at will. He even looked like a star with his white floppy hat, white sweatpants and white sweatbands in his wrists. I am also starting to notice who has really good skills and try and focus on those players. The guys I first practiced with invited me to join them in Nashua tomorrow at 7:30 am. Of course I will be there.

Sunday, September 18th 2005
I had written a letter to the editor of the Lowell Sun newspaper last Sunday September 11th. Basically they had a Metal / Goth festival (NEPGM) all set to be held at LeLacheur Park where the Lowell Spinners minor league baseball team plays. It was going to be the first non baseball event held there. All the tickets had been reserved and it was officially announced in the paper. At the last minute, the City Manager of Lowell, John Cox, put the kibosh on it saying “Lowell doesn't need that type of people in the city and James Taylor was more what he wanted”. There had been a lot of back and forth in the paper about the "scandal" and what should be the inagaugural event. I figured the editor didn't use my letter because it wasn't in the paper all week. I woke up and started reading the Sunday Lowell Sun and there was my letter front and center in the section where the showpiece Letters to the Editor are listed. My letter was also the only one with a bold font title. Here it is.

An offer Lowell shouldn't refuse
The Lowell Sun

Having grown up in the Merrimack Valley for 37 of my 40 years, I have personally experienced the best and worst of the city of Lowell. This summer, I was able to take a guided boat tour of the canals and I also attended my first Spinners game. Both activities made me a believer that, indeed, there was at least something to like about Lowell.
If I based my opinion on what I read in The Sun, I would be led to believe the only thing flourishing in Lowell is megalomaniacal, omnipotent politicians and nepotism. Truth be told, the only reason that I religously read “The Column” is to laugh at the childlike behavior of the local “politicos.” The latest fiasco over the NEPGM festival is a textbook example of this. While I am not a fan of Goth music, I am less of a fan of James Taylor.
So with my head bowed, prepared to kiss the ring of “Don” Cox, I respectfully ask the city of Lowell to investigate what it would take to get some big-time cricket matches held at LeLacheur Park next summer. Cricket appears to contain all of the qualities that are required for such an event even if they are foreign to politicians. This would be a major win for a city that is striving for and was built on ethnic diversity. LeLacheur Park is a beautiful venue and would be the perfect place for such an event. It would easily sell out and really showcase the city. However, as seems to be the trend, I would expect ignorance to prevail over intelligence because the “Don” has never heard of the sport. This is understandable because cricket is based on sportsmanship, good behavior, manners and respect.


I showed up at 7:30am but no one was at the usual field yet. Shortly after, some players started to arrive at the other field so I drove over there. Turns out it wasn’t the same guys but it a different group. So here I was again asking if I could join in. They agreed and about 6 of us warmed up with a quick game of touch football. This was a good way to start because I intercepted a few passes then caught a few like a pro. After about 15 minutes it was time to warm up and about 14 guys showed up. We threw it around and had some batting practice and I held my own. A couple of the guys even threw a few with my real ball and seemed to enjoy it. They play 14 overs and I was on the team that was to bat first. I really didn’t think I would get to bat but I was told to go first. This shocked me but I was up for it. I concentrated on trying to focus on the ball as it left the bowlers hand and what do you know, I got my first hit and scored a my first run. I overheard one guy say “his first cricket run” I’ll always remember this one. I wasn’t so lucky my next chance and missed the ball and got bowled out. I still need to practice my swing but that is easier said than done. I need someone to practice with big time. I played the infield the entire time, made a few good stops and held my own. I was told more than once “good fielding” by the others. Each and every play I was in position and watching the batter so I could react if the ball came my way. The only negative of the day was that 10 minutes after we started, my right upper quadriceps started to hurt and it continued to get worse as time went by. The pain was a nagging, stabbing ache. I played through it but it was on my mind and I was constantly trying to not think about it. I kept saying to myself this is your big chance and hopefully I can nurse it back to health by next Sunday. I have been reading a lot about how important concentration is and now I understand why. It is not easy to do this every play but I kept telling myself “focus on the batter, watch the ball as it leaves the bat and be ready to react”. This gets harder with every over as you get hotter, more thirsty and more mentally and physically drained. I was also telling myself “this is only 14 overs and if I want to make it to the big time I need to be prepared for 40 overs” I now understand the term “over” and how it is used within cricket. Hopefully this explanation will help the next person who needs to understand it. Before the match starts, the team captains agree to how many overs will be played. Today, they agreed to play 14 overs. Just like in football, there is a coin toss and the winner of the toss decides whether to bat first of field first. As I mentioned previously, my team decided to bat first so we had to bat for 14 overs. The only thing that would prevent us from us from going through 14 overs would be if the opposition got all of our 11 batters out before the 14 overs were completed. If this happened, we would have been “bowled out”. As I learned a few weeks ago, an over consists of 6 bowled balls that have been deemed “good balls”. Balls that are called “wide”, “not hittable” and I’m sure I will learn the other reasons, do not count and the bowling team receives a penalty or the batting team is awarded a run for these “non balls”. So in a nutshell, an over is considered complete when 6 “good balls” have been bowled. Other facts I learned are; a bowler cannot bowl 2 overs in a row, the batters change over after every over is completed, and batters keep batting until they are ruled out. In the end, my team scored 88 runs in 14 overs and this is reflected by saying “14 for 88. The opposition ended up beating us by scoring 89 runs and it took them only 13 overs to do this. This was a great experience and my first “official” cricket match. Here is what I took away from my experience:

1. Always hustle every minute.
2. Focus and concentrate on every play.
3. Show enthusiasm at all times.
4. Watch the ball as it leaves the bowlers hands.
5. As soon as it leaves the bowlers hand you need to adjust to the ball, decide on your swing and above all protect the wicket.
6. Display good sportsmanship at all times.
7. Thanks each player with a hand shake at the end of the match.
8. Show up on time even a little early if possible.
9. If the ball is batted to me, I need to start thinking about where to make the play

Monday, September 19th 2005
My right quadriceps is still pretty tender and my right shoulder is a little stiff. The Shoulder stiffness is from hitting the gravel while diving for the ball at least 3 times yesterday. I definitely need to give my leg some rest to fully recover. At the gym this morning I did triceps, wrist, and forearm exercises. I also did some abdominal work. When I got to work I was pleased to find out that the guys from my work actually ended up winning their match on Saturday but lost their match on Sunday. They are definitely disappointed and I feel bad for them. They have had some discussions already about what went wrong and what they could do better next year. I would love to tell them what I have observed and seems to be a common thread for most of the players I have seen. Very few of these guys are in shape and they need to start conditioning themselves better if they want to be champions and get the most of their abilities. Physical fitness and proper nutrition are the most important building blocks of success in athletics. Without that, you will never realize your maximum potential. I find myself thinking about Cricket all the time. Thoughts are coming and going in my head all the time at a rapid pace. I figured I might as well write some of them down once in a while. These thoughts remind me of Father O’Connor who was the pastor of our church when I was a kid. He used to have a weekly column in the church bulletin he called “Thoughts While Shaving.” So here we go with my “ Thoughts while Commuting”. I am still astounded that the United States cannot field a championship caliber Cricket team at the international level. In a country where Baseball is so popular, one would think that the talent pool would be tremendous. All the basic skills are there batting, catching, throwing, fielding and running. The U.S is littered with players who never made it to the big leagues and toil in the minors for years. There are thousands of great athletes who with some quality training, coaching and mentoring would be ready for competition pretty quickly. A good batter is a good batter no matter what he is using to hit the ball with. It’s just a matter of modifying the swing and getting used to a different bat. A great catcher would make a great wicket keeper. A great shortstop makes a great infielder just take away the glove. A pitcher who can throw the heat or move the ball around can learn the modified style of bowling. An outfielder who has speed, a nose for the ball, and a rocket for an arm will be just as good on the cricket field, just take away the glove. The point I am trying to make is that the U.S has the greatest overall pool of athletic talent in the world. I have to believe that there are thousands of excellent baseball players who would volunteer to commit to the game of Cricket and would be proud to represent their country at the highest level. I honestly believe that the U.S would be a dominant force if this could happen.
I went to London on company business in 2002 and immediately fell in love with England. I had never been out of the U.S before and not to sound too dramatic but that experience had a profound impact on my life. Everyone should have the chance to experience life outside of the U.S. In the eleven days I was there I must have walked 100 miles taking in everything I could. It was awe inspiring to see the things in person that I had only seen in pictures or movies. I only wish I had known about cricket then but I believe everything has its purpose in life and that everything happens for a reason. As I looked at the 2005 Ashes celebration photos that were online it was cool to see the photo’s of the players at Trafalgar Square knowing that I hung out in that exact spot looking at the huge fountain surrounded by those immense lions while pigeons where all around the square. What really stood out was seeing all the players in their formal clothes and although they were athletes they looked like dashing gentlemen in their gray pinstriped pants, navy blue blazers, striped ties and black shoes. Perfect gentlemen at all times or at least that was the perception. This was the exact opposite of the 1998 U.S Olympic hockey team that was loaded with “professionals” and not only did they fail miserably but brought shame on the U.S with their sophomoric, frat house behavior. I took some time to look at some photos of the beautiful Cricket venues around the world. Places like Lords and the Oval in England, Jade Stadium in New Zealand, Adelaide Oval in Australia, and Wankhede Stadium in India to name a few. These are historic, picturesque structures and very inspiring to look at. Each are unique in their own way and each possesses their own stories of epic cricket matches that were played within its confines. Lastly, an image I have had in my mind since I started this journey is that of the sports journalist George Plimpton. He is a sports journalist who looked like he never played a day of sports in his life but he would try the most outrageous things like trying to get it in the ring with a professional boxer, attend a real NFL training camp, throw to a major league batter etc. It was more comical and entertaining that serious. He was the original “participatory” journalist. This is exactly how I feel and believe it or not, I use him as motivation. If a meek, affable, non athlete can have the guts to do what he did it can only be easier for me.
Tuesday, September 20th 2005
My quadriceps is felling better but is still tight and my shoulder is loosening up. At the gym this morning I worked my biceps, upper back and abdominal muscles. I hit the basketball court for some loose, relaxed, slow bowling before I left. I am going to really concentrate on stretching so I don’t have to deal with this annoying quadriceps pain. As far as my shoulder is concerned I still think it is related to a couple of falls I took while diving for the ball. I’m confident that the shoulder will be fine after a few more days.
I just received some great news. The captain of the team that the guys I work with play for just invited me to join them in a match this Saturday morning. I could barely contain my enthusiasm and told him yes I would be honored to join them and shook his hand as well as told him what a great time my son and I had watching them on Saturday. My journey just keeps getting better all the time. All I can do is to try my best and constantly try to improve my skills. I just sent an email to my wife to see if it is alright. My daughter does have a soccer game at 9:00am but I figure this will be the last match they will play this year and it will be a long winter so I need to take advantage of every opportunity that is presented to me. Just got bad news, my wife is working on Saturday and I have to take my daughter to soccer on Saturday. This is a big time let down and I had to let he team captain know. Hopefully, I will be invited another time.
Wednesday, September 21, 2005
I trained very lightly this morning and I felt really tired. My right quadriceps is still really tender and my shoulder is still sore. This is getting really annoying. Based on what I read on an internet site I most likely have a slight strain of the quadriceps and it usually takes 3 to 7 days to heal. I have started stretching it and will make sure to do this more often especially before matches. At this point I feel like I will recover fully if I do the right things. I sent the below e-mail to the executive board of the usaca.

Gentlemen,

It is with the utmost respect and sincerity that I write to you. My only motive is to do whatever I can to help promote the game of Cricket in the United States. This word document will provide details as to why I feel it is my duty to write to you. My goal is to complete it by October 2006 as that is the end of the typical Cricket season in the Northeast. I will then, if required, take it upon myself to have it published and distributed.

I would like to share some ideas that I believe would help promote Cricket in the United States:

1. Use merchandise to raise funds as well as awareness.

Official US Cricket team match shirts that could be ordered with a persons last name on them. It would be great way of advertising and an instant conversation piece. If you offered these, I would be the first one to place an order.
Bumper Stickers with catch phases and the usaca website link on them. Examples would be " Got Wickets" , "Red Cherry" , " Mind the Crease" , "Go for the Boundary" ect..
Key Chains with miniature bats and balls on them as well as the usaca website.
Polo style shirts, sweater vests and T-shirts with the usaca logo on it
Necklaces with miniature bats and balls on them.

2. DVD's and Videos are so cheap to create and mass produce these days. There should be DVD' s that show the best , action packet highlights of the US team in action set to music. There should be instructional DVD's as well as one's that provide a history of the sport. These should be distributed to as many school systems as possible. This would provide excellent exposure to the game and appeal to athletes and educators alike.

3. Utilize the power of the pen by having as many people as possible write and submit stories to newspapers, magazines, trade papers ect,. with the intention of promoting the game and the usaca. Volunteer to report on and or photograph the local cricket league action for the newspaper.

4. Perfom demonstrations for classrooms by volunteering to explain the game to children. Use all the props and pass them around. Kids will love this stuff. Bring the stumps, bails bat, ball, leg pads, helmet, and gloves. Ask the local gym teacher to let you hold an interactive demonstration for the kids.

5. Promote the values of the game because there has never been a better time to do it. American sports have become so contaminated with bad manners, ungrateful parents and athletes. Believe it or not there are millions of parent's who still teach and demand proper behavior from their children
6. Destroy the misconception that Cricket is a game of the rich by comparing the reasonable costs of Cricket gear to the enormous cost of sports such as hockey and football to name a few. Focus on the fact that Cricket can and is being played just about anywhere there is an open space.

7. Get out and play or practice anytime you can. If the local field is unoccupied, especially if there is a chance to be observed, get out the gear and put on a show. This will certainly create curiosity from onlookers. If you are asked questions, promote the game and share your experiences enthusiastically.

8. Start recruiting athletes from every sport. The U.S is filled with great athletes. Make it appealing for the guys in their mid twenties, thirties and even forties who were great baseball players and never quite made it. Believe me, they still have the desire to play team sports and their skills are made for cricket.

9. Focus on patriotism by making it known that the U.S is not taken seriously at the international level. Convince anyone who makes any type of contribution, whether it is money, athletic, support , time ect., that the U.S can be a force to be reckoned with, if we have their help. Convince them that unlike the other established US sports, they will truly be making a difference and a contribution to their country. When the US wins big, they will know they played a part in these historic, unprecedented international victories.

10. Promote the athletic nature of the game as well as the mental aspect. Those who have heard of the game, have the image of fancy people prancing around in nice white clothes just like Badminton. Do whatever possible to dispell this image. Make it know how fast the bowlers throw and that they go for blood. Make it common knowledge that batters are high skilled and courageous to stand in the crease. Inform the public that you don't get a glove to catch the ball.

11. Play exhibition and promotional matches whenever and wherever it is feasible to gain interest. This may be a dream but could you imagine if the World Series Champion Boston Red Sox and the 2005 Ashes champions from England agreed to play each other one time in their respective sport to determine which athletes could do better at the others game. One match of Cricket at the Oval in England and one Baseball game at Fenway Park in Boston. It would be televised and provide unprecedented expose for both sports. The U.S is filled with Minor league baseball stadiums. They always make it fun for the fans by having different types of promotional activities. This is a perfect time to showcase Cricket. Examples would be, see how fast you can bowl using a radar gun, Put on the pads and try and hit some bowling. Have a cricket team play an over or two, home run derby using the cricket ball and bat ect.

That is all I have for now but at least I feel like I have done something rather than sit back and do nothing.

Respectfully,

Thursday, September 22nd, 2005
I was still only able to do limited exercises at the gym this morning due to the stiffness in my shoulder. My right quadriceps is feeling better though and I stretched it out as best as I could. This is very optimistic and I am feeling more confident that I will be able to perform ok at Sundays practice match. I definitely need to get some more sleep because I am feeling worn down and tired. To make matter worse, I have to go to a concert in Boston tonight with some friends to see the White Stripes. It will be a late night and I won’t get home until after midnight. My old friend from India came to my site today to work with me. I have known him since 2001 and it was great to see him. He’s now 28 years old and came right from India two days after the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York. He was originally supposed to work as a consultant at my company for about 3 months and he has been here for 4 years now. He and I have been friends form the start. He had a great job in India with a lot of prestige but came to America because his girlfriend was getting her masters degree in the US. He had big dreams about making it big in America but it was extremely bad timing because the US economy started its tailspin and continued until 2004. I basically took him under my wing and watched out for him and tried to help him any way I could. He was extremely depressed a lot of the time because he wasn’t finding the success he expected, his girlfriend left him, his consultant was giving him the runaround and he missed his family back home. I kept telling him things would work out if he just tried to be positive. Things gradually started to get better for him. He has gotten his Masters degree, has a wife, lives in the city and works at our office in Boston. He is waiting for is his green card to arrive and once it does he will be off to the races. I hope he remembers me when he hits the big time. We discussed cricket and he told me about Sachin Tendulkar, who was only 15 when he made the India National team. I am not exaggerating when I say he looked like a boy in the 1989 team photos. What a great story this was. This guy has dominated the sport like no other as a batter and is only 32 years old now. I will add him to the names of great players I have become familiar with like Saurav Ganguly (India), Brian Lara (West Indies) Shane Warne (Australia), Matthew Hoggard, and Andrew Flintoff (England). At this point anyone who plays the sport is my mentor.

Friday, September 23nd, 2005
Just as I suspected, I didn’t get home from the show until 12:30am. I did not go to the gym and I was tired and lethargic all day. I have hit a mini wall because I’m tired, sore and finding it hard to feel motivated about anything. The only cure will be a good night’s sleep, rest, some Cricket and to feel like I am 100% healthy. I keep trying to reassure my self that I will be as motivated as always once I feel good both mentally and physically.

Saturday, September 24th, 2005
My daughter had soccer and my wife was working, so no gym today. I am starting to feel better though. I am really encouraged by how my shoulder and leg feel. I am hoping that after one more days rest, I’ll be in good shape for tomorrows practice match. I continue stretching my leg and shoulder and it seems to be working. After my daughter’s soccer game, on a whim, I took the kids to our local library to see if I could get a library card I have always loved reading, writing and vocabulary and try to stress to my children the importance of these things. I ended up getting a library card for myself as well as both of my children. This was a big deal for them just as it had been for me when I received my first library card as a child. I told them that their card was the key to the world and I really meant it. Later in the afternoon we all went over my brother’s house for a birthday party for my father. It was actually being held for my father, brother, and grandmother whose birthdays are all in September. It was a great time. I love being with my family and between my two brothers and I we have seven children ages five through thirteen. It’s great now because there are no more babies to watch and the adults can have fun while the kids do their own thing. I showed my thirteen year old nephew my Cricket bat and ball and told him what a great sport it is and about the huge celebration for England in Trafalgar square. He has been to England and France so I knew he would appreciate this and he did. When I left the party it was about 9:30pm and I felt like a million dollars. Everything is getting better just in time and I feel like I am out of the rut I had been in. Just like in everyday life there are highs and lows although with me, it seems to be extreme one way or the other. I realized that I had just overcome both a mental and physical obstacle and I am proud. I can’t wait for tomorrows match and will be extra careful and attentive to my leg. If I can play this match without any nagging discomfort, I will be really happy and motivated.

Sunday, September 25th, 2005
The guys show up for the match between 7:30am and 8:00am. I woke up at 6:45am which is late by my standards. I knew if I showed up early I they would probably be playing touch football. As much as I love Football, I didn’t want to risk aggravating my leg like I did last week so I left the house at 7:30am. I arrived at 7:40am and about 10 guys were already there. I walked to the field with a guy named Jay who I consider one of the better players especially when it comes to bowling. We chatted as we walked. He asked me how I got interested in the sport and I told him the usual story that by now seems like I am reading it from a script because I have repeated it so many times. I told him where I live and he said most of the guys come from the same neighborhood about 2 miles from the field. It is a nice, new neighborhood and the houses are very large. It must be nice to have all your friends and teammates around all the time. I should be so lucky. He also said I should give someone my email address so they can keep me posted as to what’s happening. He also said they have matches the next 3 weeks and I took that to mean “great practicing with you but you can’t play in the matches”. That’s fine with me at this stage of my “career” and I didn’t question him. Warm ups followed immediately and the field had already been set up. Next time, I want to get there early so I can assist and learn the exact placement of the stumps and boundary flags. Guys are remembering my name and I feel much more at ease with the guys. From the start of warm ups until the end of the match I hustled, concentrated and acted enthusiastically. I cheered good catches, good batting and good bowling. We decided on 14 overs and my team decided to take the field first. Almost everyone plays the field because there were only about 14 guys there. I was positioned at the extra cover position on the off leg stump side. Hopefully, they put me there because of my speed, hands and fielding skills. I did an admirable job although I wasn’t really challenged to many times. I would prefer to play the same position on the leg stump side because you get more action. I would also be very valuable playing deep square leg because I am fast and can catch the ball. There were at least 5 balls that were dropped by guys in that position. I didn’t really keep track of the score. When it was our chance to bat, I was selected to be in the first round of batting. I went to the non striking stump and waited my turn. When I got to bat the bowler I faced was Jay so I knew it was going to be tough and it was but I want to face the best. These guys know my weaknesses and take full advantage of them. They know if they make the ball pitch low and right down the middle I am vulnerable and I proved them right. My first time in the crease, I got a piece of the ball and it went behind me. I scored a run. That makes 2 for my career. My next chance, I again got bowled out with a ball that was just like I described above. This really bums me out and is by far the most frustrating thing I deal with. I need someone or someway to practice batting because I know in my heart that I can really excel at this facet of the game. After I was out, I was relegated to the bench to watch the remainder of the match from behind the fence. This was ok because I used the time to observe and learn. I also made sure I cheered on my team. They put on a great display of batting. After the 10th over I was called back into the field at the same position and again was not challenged much but held my own. My team ended up winning but I don’t know the final score. On the way back to bench area I congratulated Jay on his bowling against me. As always the guys stood around in a circle and talked about the Patriots football game that was being played that afternoon. These guys really like football and are very versed in discussing it. I told them I played for a lot of years and they seemed to respect that. I gave a couple guys my name, phone number and email address. I’m curious if they will use it. Hopefully they do. This match was less serious than last weeks and there was a lot of laughing and good natured joking. Even though I was having fun I took every play seriously. On the walk out, one of the guys who I would say is the oldest but also the most passionate told me I am holding the bat wrong. If I had to choose a mentor it would be this guy. I don’t remember his name but I will remember it next time I see him. He also told me my swing is still wrong. He showed me the correct grip and I told him my biggest frustration is that I can’t practice batting. He gave me the following advice to improve my swing: Take my real ball and put it in a sock. Tie a string around the sock and hang it from a tree. Then stand close to the ball and practice your swing over and over again. Adjust the height of the ball so you practice swinging at all different heights. Concentrate on keeping your left arm and elbow raised at or above shoulder height. I thanked him profusely and we went our separate ways. I swear I would pay this guy to work with me. Just like in the movie “The Karate Kid”, I would be the ultimate student, he would be the master and I would be eternally grateful. I got home and my son had a soccer game. I was pretty tired and felt that way for the entire day. Another obstacle I had to overcome was the fact that I do not have a tree in my yard that is suitable to hang a ball from. After we got home from soccer I asked my son if he wanted to help me with an invention I had in my mind. He said yes so we went to work. I nailed 2 eight foot 2x4’s together to make a 12 foot high beam and then nailed a 6 foot pole on top of that. I then secure the 2x4’s to my kids swing set. I now had my batting practice pole. It really looks like a hangman’s gallows, especially when the rope is hanging. I’ll have to take off the rope when I am done because some nosey neighbor might get the wrong idea or the kids might try and swing from it. I tested it out and it is awesome. This isn’t real batting but I need to work on the fundamentals and it all starts with the correct swing. It will also make a great tool for my son to practice his baseball swing.

Things I learned today:

1. After you swing you must keep your foot behind the batting crease or you risk getting out.
2. You must always look at the bowler after every ball because he tells you where he wants you positioned on the field.
3. You can use your feet as a way to stop the ball instead of diving for it.
4. The bowler announces to the umpire what style bowler he is when he starts an over i.e. “right handed bowler”.
5. I need to practice my swing using the hanging ball tool as much as I can.
6. I need to use the correct grip on the bat
7. Contrary to what I thought, when you bowl, you do not need to have your hand and arm directly over your head but you can only bend at the elbow no more than 11 degrees.
8. If I get a hit I need to communicate better with the non striking batter as to whether or not to run.


Monday, September 26th, 2005
Woke up feeling much better that I expected to. I did not sleep well and tossed and turned most of the night. At the gym I worked on my wrists, forearms, biceps, triceps and abdominal muscles. I had much more motivation than I had last Thursday when I was worn down and tired. Checked out the ICC website and learned that the United States is an associate member which is a step below being a full member. The World Cup is being held in the West Indies in 2007 and although I see Canada and Ireland in the tournament, I did not see the United States listed. That is a disappointment. When I got home it was raining so I could not practice batting on the contraption I built in the back yard. I am still in a great mood because I have no nagging soreness, I am rested, and I am motivated. I spent the remainder of the night watching a new TV series called Surface with my kids. Of all the things in the world, my family, wife and kids make me the happiest. Watching this show together reminded me of when I was a kid and the whole family would be together watching various shows like Happy Days, All in the Family, Fantasy Island, The Love Boat, Laverne and Shirley and other programs.

Tuesday, September 27th, 2005
At the gym this morning I stretched for about 10 minutes. I worked my chest, upper back, and lower back. I finally got to hit the indoor basketball court. I did 10 side shuffle runs (up and back counts as one) then 30 stationary horizontal jumps. I repeated this again and it was fairly difficult but I loved every minute of it. I love the feeling of exercise and working up a sweat. For whatever reason, even when I played Football, the hotter it got the better I performed. My worst enemy was the cold weather. I’m hoping that I will excel in Cricket when the going gets tough with the uniform, the pads and the heat. Bring it on!!!! I have been toying with the idea of decorating my bat with some kind of meaningful sayings or logo’s. Here is what I think I will do. In a nice black non erasable marker I will write: “Nar Laga Dia Do Lamh” which is Gaelic for “may god not weaken your hand” and “Hamesha Koshish Karte Raho” which is Hindi for “always try your best”, and “Carpe Diem” which is Latin for “seize the day” This journey into Cricket World as well as writing this journal has started to change me in many ways. I have a renewed passion for writing, reading, thinking and learning. I have developed a new sense of confidence as well as a heightened sense of duty to my wife and children. I have become more aware and concerned as to the denigrated state of our society, especially all of the garbage that is on the television. I have decided that I will take my own person stand by not watching TV shows that contribute to the “dumbing down” of America. This basically includes ninety percent of the available programming. This is an idea that has been festering inside me for some time now. The advent of “reality” shows started me thinking this way and my frustration continued to build. I decided that instead of watching and by doing so, promoting this type of programming, I would use the time to read and at the same time learn. On the way home from work I stopped at the library and left with “The Great Gatsby” and “The beautiful and the Damned” by F. Scott Fitzgerald. I also took home the DVD movie “Ghandi” with Ben Kingsley. I started in on The Great Gatsby and finished a couple of chapters before I was sleepy. When I went up to bed, for the first time that I can remember, I shut off the television and believe it or not I still was able to get to sleep.
Wednesday, September 28th, 2005
Instead of watching television during my pre gym coffee, I started watching Ghandi. I was able to see about 30 minutes of it. This is a movie that I am going to like. I can already understand why this won so many awards back in its day. The cinematography is superb and Ben Kingsley is a wonderful actor. I know I will learn a lot about many things by the time I finish watching it. I am feeling really good physically and mentally on this day and went off to the gym with a purpose. I stretched my legs and upper body for about 20 minutes. My quadriceps is felling looser all the time. I trained my shoulders which are feeling almost 100 percent free of stiffness. I trained my abdominal muscles extra hard and they are really getting into shape and showing up nicely as my body fat goes down. It was always a goal of mine to have a tight, fat free abdomen but I could never get it right. This is the best they have looked since I was in High School. I finished things up with 10 minutes of intense shuttle runs and headed home. We had a fire drill at work this morning and out of nowhere, the captain of the team of guys at my work came up to me and invited me to play in a friendly match this Saturday morning. I said yes and he will provide the details later this week. Compared to last week, this has been a great week so far. I have to keep believing in myself, enjoy the good times and persevere through the tough times. My Brothers wife’s Grandmother passed away yesterday and I need to meet my wife at the wake to pay my respects. After that, she goes to work and I take the kids home. I have started to enjoy doing my daughters homework with her, especially her spelling words. Every week, there are the 20 regular words and 5 challenge words that are much tougher that the regular words. The spelling test is on Friday and they get the results on Monday. As I said earlier, I am constantly telling them about the power of vocabulary and the written as well as the spoken word. I ended the night by heading up to bed and reading some more of the Great Gatsby.

Thursday, September 29th, 2005
After a good nights sleep I continued watching Ghandi. I was able to watch about another hour of it. The more I watch this, the more ignorant I feel but at he same time I feel like I am educating myself. My wife called me at bout 1pm and was frantic. She was having acute chest pains and wanted me to come home right away. My boss told me to get home and got there as fast as I could. By the time I arrived, the pain had subsided but she was scared. We made arrangement s for a neighbor to get my daughter of the bus and watch her and we dropped my son off at her friend’s house. We headed to the emergency room and they took her in pretty quickly. For the next 3 hours I sat in the waiting room. I made good use of the time by reading a lot of the Great Gatsby. This is a very good book and F. Scott Fitzgerald has great style to his writing. He is an incredible wordsmith. This is very inspiring to me and is teaching me how to be a good writer. My wife did not find out much only that it is most likely not related to her heart. That is good news. After we left we had to go to my son’s open house at his school. We picked him up and our neighbor brought our daughter to meet us at the school. When we arrived home, I put the kids to bed and I read some more of the Great Gatsby and fell asleep. What a day this turned out to be.

Friday, September 29th, 2005
I was awaked at 3:30 am buy my wife’s voice. She was having more pains in her chest. I stayed with her for about a half hour until the pain subsided and she fell asleep. I watched the rest of Ghandi. This was one of my all time favorite movies. I went to the gym and when I got home I informed my boss that I need to stay home because my wife needs to go to the doctors. He told me I could work from home. That was good news because I had stuff to do and did not have to use a vacation or sick day. My wife got home a couple of hours later and the doctor thinks it might be related to her gall bladder. She received some medication, has to watch what she eats and absolutely no eating before bedtime.
I went up the video store and rented the movie Lagaan. My friend from India at work highly recommended it and said it is about cricket. I watched about two hours of it and loved it. It is set in the late 1800’s and the story is about some guys from a village in India who have to play a cricket match against the British soldiers. If the India team wins, they have no tax for 3 years. If the British win, they will collect three time the regular task. After I stopped watching, I went out to my back yard for about 30 minutes and took some swings at the cricket pole I made. After that I took a shower and my buddy picket me up for the Kings of Leon show we were going to at Hampton Beach N.H. we had a good time and on the ride up he asked a lot of questions about cricket. I ended up getting home around midnight and went to bed as fast as possible. I was excited about the match tomorrow am.
Saturday, October 1st 2005
I woke up around 6:00 am and felt pretty lethargic. I made coffee and watched some more of Lagaan. I continue to enjoy this movie. I left for the match about 7:15 am. It takes about 40 minutes to get to the field and after stopping for a double espresso, gatorade, and protein bar, I got there about 8:15am. The other guys started to show up at about 8:40am. After some warm ups, the match started at 9:15am. We lost the coin toss and the opposition decided to take the field first. I didn’t see the batting order but I assumed that I was last and as it turned out I was. From the beginning I noticed a lack of enthusiasm form my team. There was no cheering, no clapping, and no team spirit. The opening batters started slow and I noticed an overall lack of hustle. That did not stop me from cheering and being enthusiastic on each and every play by clapping my hands, giving encouragement and yelling just like we used to do in baseball. In my opinion, team spirit is the essence of a good team. After a while, I felt like my enthusiasm started to catch on because more of the guys were rooting for the teammates. We ended up with 58 runs on 16 overs. I did get to bat which surprised me. I first went to the non striking stumps and from the get go, I was in position, ready to fly to the opposite stumps on a hit. I would start proving myself to the team by always being in position, ready to go and once I had my chance they would see how fast I can run. As soon as the opportunity came I took off like a rocket touched the crease with my bat and headed back to where I started. Two quick runs and lots of hustle on my part and it felt great. The batter then hit another shot right over mid off and into the outer field. A soon as I knew it wouldn’t get caught, I took off again and we scored another run. Finally it was my turn to bat. It was the final over and there were only 4 balls left. The bowler let the ball go, it pitched high and hit me in the cheek but I took it like a man and didn’t flinch. The next ball came in just about at my feet and I got a piece of it. The fielder at mid wicket stopped it. I would not have run but the non striker was already on his way and I was thrown out at my end. This was a bummer because I wanted the remaining to balls. The captain came over and said “good job” I told him I didn’t want run and he said “don’t worry about it” It is still eating away at me. I need to remember to take charge and issue the orders when I am at bat. We took the field and after initially being told to play deep extra cover, I was waved in and was assigned to the point position. This is right were I wanted to be to show the guys my fielding skills. It is basically like playing first base in ball. From the first ball until the last I was always on my toes and focused. I chased after a few with great hustle, made a couple of good stops. One time, I almost threw a batter out but he got to the crease just in time. The highlight of my fielding came when I ran in and made a catch on a short ball. My teammates went nuts and they all came and congratulated me just as I had done on every good play they made. This was the first official out in my career. We ended up getting the opposition all out in 10 overs and the team was really excited. During our time in the field, the team was much more enthusiastic than when they batted, it was like night and day. I congratulated each of the opposition players and especially the guy who bowled against me. Before the team went there separate ways, everyone formed a circle and placed their hand on top of each others and did a quick cheer. This was the best part of the day and for a brief moment I felt like part of the team. The captain asked everyone including me, if they could attend a match next Saturday, I said yes. I still feel like an outsider in the cricket world but on this day I felt like a part of a team and Iwil always remember this first match. I spent the rest of the day enjoying the company of my family. While we were out shopping I bought a cricket style white V-neck sweater. It has navy colored stripes on the neck and sleeves. I cannot wait to wear this and I will keep buying this style as I find them. Later that night, I finished watching Lagaan. As I said earlier, this is a great movie and should be a must for anyone who is learning cricket. It should be one of the first things you do as you start your journey. I also read some more of the Great Gatsby before calling it a night

Sunday, October 2nd 2005
I took the kids over to the field where I have been practicing on Sunday’s. Before I even got to the match guys were saying hello and waving to me. These guys are great and I like them a lot. We watched for a while and then the kids and I went into the woods to find stray balls. We found three softballs, one baseball and 2 cricket tennis balls. One was green and one was red. I needed these and I will make good use of them in the future. As we were leaving one of the players in the outfield yelled “see you later” and told me to come next Sunday. Like I said I like these guys a lot. After my son’s soccer game, I took this kids down to see my Grandmother. She loves seeing my kids and they love her as well.

Monday, October 3rd 2005 I woke up at 2:30 am. This can be attributed to two things; Daylight saving is coming and for some reason my body is affected by this change. The other reason is that I ate terribly all weekend. I had French fries all 3 days, ice cream and various sweet goodies. I need to buckle down and get back to basics as far as diet and nutrition are concerned. At the gym I worked my biceps, triceps, forearms and abdominal muscles. Once I got to work ,I thanked one of the guys for letting me play in the match with them and he said I would most likely be considered to play on Saturday if they match is still on

Tuesday, October 4th 2005
At the gym today I worked my chest and then did 10 shuffle runs followed by 30 standing vertical jumps. I repeated this cycle 2 more times. Work has been extremely busy so I have not has much time to write. I went to the video store and rented the Great Gatsby. This was the 1974 Robert Redford version. I watched about ¾ of it before I started to get tired. This movie was everything I expected it to be and provides even more inspiration for me to succeed. I understand why this is a classic movie. I admire the way Gatsby carries himself and especially the way he dresses. I am going to start upgrading my wardrobe so I can look as good. Ever since I went to England in 2001, I have tried to dress well. I was disappointed when my company changed the dress code from business to business casual. Thanks to Gatsby, I have some new ideas and more motivation to dress as well as I can. If I had the money, I would be the finest dressed man around at all times.

Thursday, October 6th 2005
I didn’t get to bed until 2:30am because of work issues. So I did not get to go to the gym and felt really tired. To make matters worse, I had to go to our Boston office to work on a project. The only saving grace was that I was going to look good on this day. I had nice presses khaki slacks, stylish light brown shoes, blue striped shirt with a white collar, cufflinks. I topped all this off with my white v-neck cricket sweater with navy blue on the v-neck and two navy blue stripes on each cuff. I also used gel to slick my hair back. I looked like the Great Gatsby and felt like a million dollars. It is amazing how confident I am when I have nice clothes on. I could tell people were admiring me as I made my way to the subway and walked the streets of Boston. I had to work with my good friend from India. We talked about Cricket a lot and we met his new wife for lunch. She is very pretty and very fluent in English. He has done very well for himself and I told him so. He was expecting his green card any time but he told me that it could take another five years because the President has declared that they have reached the quota. This has been really devastating to him and I hope he can overcome it. When I finally got home, I was extremely exhausted and as soon as I got settled, my pager went off. There is yet another problem at work so I knew it was not going to be a good night. I did manage to start reading “The Beautiful and the Damned” by F. Scott Fitzgerald. This is going to be a good book. I am only on page 30 but it has my interest. The more I read Fitzgerald’s work, the more I like it. I started nodding off so I went up to bed around 10:00pm

Friday, October 7th 2005
Once again work had interrupted my sleep. My pager went off a couple of times. The last time was at midnight. I woke up feeling more rested than yesterday but still tired. At the gym, I worked biceps, forearms and my abdominal muscles. I had to get to work early to deal with the problem that started last night.

Monday, October 31st 2005 Well, here I am back again. It has been a while since I have had the time or “luxury” of updating this journal. This is solely due to my job. It has been extremely hectic to say the least the last 3 weeks. Between project and system issues, I have not been able to clear my mind properly to update this document properly. It has been bothering me the whole time but the good news is, that never for a moment has my enthusiasm or desire to play Cricket been compromised. In fact, I have made extraordinary progress in my physical capabilities as well as my mental understanding of the sport. Over this time period, I have continued my quest for knowledge, trained even harder, focused on proper nutrician and become a better overall person. I have spent the time reading 3 great books on Cricket: 1. English Cricket by Neville Cardus. 2. Beyond A Boundary by C.L.R. James and 3.The Creation of American Team Sports by George Kirsh. These books were invaluable in helping me understand the history, philosophy, and techniques of this great sport. I would consider these books mandatory reading for any person who has the desire to learn the sport. If I had to choose one, it would be Beyond a Boundary. This is a fabulous book! I have also spent a lot of time watching the Inspector Morse videos and DVD’s that I get form the library. I have watched about 10 of them and can never get enough. This is also a tremendous program and I can’t wait to get more. I have also continued my reading of F. Scott Fitzgerald. Throughout this time I have also continued my “boycott” on television, making exceptions only for PBS programs, which are very educational. The last few Masterpiece Theatres have been excellent in the form of a Sherlock Holmes remake and a story called Kidnapped which is based on the Robert Louis Stevenson story. As far as my training is concerned, I still get up at 4:00am and go to the gym at 5:00am. I continue to get a good body workout and along with typical body parts, I focus on the cricket specific muscles like the lower back, shoulders and abdominal muscles. I find time after muscle training to practice bowling and batting in the indoor basketball court. The best batting exercise I have discovered is to stand about 20 feet from the wall and throw the ball against it. I then play the bounce off the wall and hit it against the wall. This helps my batting, my footwork and my hand eye coordination. I am fortunate in the fact that I can read something and put it to use physically. As I stated earlier, Beyond A Boundary has been invaluable to me. I have also taken trips up to the field where we play matches and practiced batting with my rubber practice ball and bowling with my leather ball. As it has always been, my goal is to play the “real” game next season. I have become firmly entrenched with the team of guys in Nashua, NH. We are called the “Nashua Nukes”. I have been selected to play in 2 matches since the last time I updated the journal and we won them both. In the first one, I held my own on the field as usual and was voted fielder of the match. I also scored 2 runs at the bat. I almost scored a 6 but it was severely windy and the ball was blown in. I was caught out. The next week, the match was rained out but that was OK due to the number of players I was not selected. The team always gives preference to players who sit out the last weeks match. I found out on Weds of this week that I was selected to play yesterday and I was extremely excited. I spent the week practicing my batting both indoors and outside. I also practiced some bowling with my leather ball outside on Saturday. Last Saturday, I ruined my rubber practice ball and it cracked open from all the beatings I have been giving it. I need to buy a couple more of these because they are a great tool for indoor bowling and hitting practice. Yesterday match was the turning point for me. Right from the initial warm ups I knew I had finally reached a milestone. For the first time I threw some bowling practice. I need to mention that I did not know a right hand bowler could bowl from the left side of the stumps. From all I could gather form my reading, the bowler always aims for the “off stump” and takes it from there. Bowling from the right side of the stumps, I found this very difficult and could never really hit my mark. The day before I did experiment with bowling from the left side and it made all the difference. As soon as I arrived at the field, I asked this question and was told “most right hand bowlers use the left hand side” This is exactly what I had thought. Anyway, I felt very comfortable bowling the practice balls and my delivery motion feels very natural. I will continue to practice bowling because I think I could be a good bowler if I put in the work. I also got in a little batting practice before the match and it was at this exact moment in time that I realized that all my reading and practice paid off. My instincts had taken over. No longer was I concentrating on the bat and hitting the ball. I was concentrating on watching the ball leave the bowlers hands, anticipating where the ball was going to pitch (land) and how I was going to play it. I subliminally knew that my bat was going to work as its own entity just as I had read it would. My feet and body position were also very natural movements. If I realized the ball was going to pitch close to my feet, I stepped up and met it and if it pitched away from me, I got in position to give it a ride. This success, I attribute to the many hours of throwing the ball against the gym wall at different speeds so I would constantly have to be moving and getting into position and adjusting my swing. This exercise made me practice my swing as well. . Once the match started, we took the field. Again, I held my own. I always play the same position, square leg. I made a nice running catch, backed up the stumps when needed and stopped all the balls that came my way with the exception of a very slow roller that went between my legs. It caused no harm because it rolled so slow that they scored a run anyway but I was more embarrassed that anything. One thing I need to work on is, where to make the play as soon as I get a ball hit to me. I have found that my quickness, good arm, and accurate throwing would enable me to throw out some of the runners who don’t get back to the crease in time. My teammates are aware of this and it is definitely the top thing I will focus on as far as improving my fielding goes. Once it was our turn to bat, I was going to be last and to be honest I didn’t think I would get a turn because I figured we would get our 90 runs to beat their 89 well before it was my turn. We started off very slow and although at no point, did I think that we would lose the match, I did start to think that I might get my chance. We eventually picked up the pace and started scoring and the captain came up to me and basically apologized that I wasn’t going to get a turn. I told him never worry about that we are a team and that is all that matters to me. I got a big surprise though because we only needed one run to win and had a couple of overs left when I was summoned to take the helm at bat. I cannot describe what an honor this was. I relished this opportunity and came through. The first ball I was bowled, pitched a little long and I instinctively stepped up to and crushed it with a hard drive directly through mid on and into the outfield. Again, all my practice paid off as I watched that ball the entire time and knew exactly how I was going to play it. After the match, as is typical, they team recapped our performance. My fielding skill was lauded and one guy said he has never seen fielding like mine. I was also given a nickname by my teammates. It was decided I would be called “swami” meaning guru or superstar. It is a Hindu term and I am proud of it. While I am not a superstar, I have made tremendous progress and these guys have witnessed it all. This was the best day I have had to date and I am optimistic that I can succeed at this game. I will not rest on my laurels but I really did need a day like this to confirm my abilities. I will now work harder that ever to reach my goal which has not changed since day 1. TO PLAY AND EXCEL AT THE REAL SPORT OF CRICKET NEXT SPRING SO I CAN PROMOTE THIS GREAT SPORT AND ITS VALUES IN THE UNITED STATES. The one thing that has been nagging away at me is the fact that I have never seen a real cricket match, not even a video of a match. I am sure it is exactly like the tennis ball version I have been playing but there are two big exceptions that I need to see and study to prepare me for the official leather ball game. They are; 1. There is no movement on the tennis ball to speak of and the only variation of the bowled tennis ball is the pace and the pitch. 2. We do not play on a full boundary field. I need to see how the real ball moves after it pitches and swings and curves, see how the batsmen approach hitting this style of bowling and learn how fielding is done within a real boundary. To start solving this mystery I went to the Lords website and ordered the official 3 DVD set of the 2005 Ashes match. It cost a total of 30 dollars and should arrive in about five days from now. I cannot wait to get this and imagine I will watch it over and over and it will be an invaluable tool for me to use going forward. My mission to play the real game starts to day, right now and I have about 5 or 6 months to get ready. By the time the season starts I expect not only to be fully prepared but ready to excel at this game and start taking a leadership role in making the United States a force to be reckoned with in the World of International Cricket