This article contains the opinions of the author, Sunil Kumar, who is the electronic media representative of the Central East Region.
For DreamCricket.com's coverage of this tournament, please click here (Day 1), here (Day 2) , and here (Day 3).

Hasley Hall, the most revered Minnesotan baseball commentator never would have thought that his now famous phrase “holy cow!” would ever be used to pen an article on the glorious game of cricket. Moreover, he never would have dreamt that his home state would someday be host to a national cricketing event - the USACA Western Conference Championship. Pinch not yourself Hasley, for this is true. Yes, the Western Conference Championship was played in the same land where once a Super Bowl, a World Series and an NCAA Final Four Basketball Championship were held inside the famous climate-controlled Metrodome.

All credit to USACA for having chosen Minnesota as the destination for this year’s championship. This indeed helps the growth of cricket across the nation and will surely bring new fans and new players. If this game has to grow and go places, then championships such as these needs to go places. Take it to all parts of this great nation, sit back and relax; the nation will come back to you asking for more. Such is the appetite of this sports loving nation; once they jump onto the bandwagon, the world will notice it with awe.

It was refreshing to see the Central East squad. It was a wonderful mix of youth and experience. A men’s senior team which has boys as old as 16 or 17 is surely a reflection of courage by the cricketing administrators in this region. They realize the need to infuse talented young blood into the team for they are the future of this game. Win or lose, these youngsters need to be baptized with fire if the game has to stay the distance. Hats off to Nabeel Ahmed, Masood Syed Chik, Khurram Syed and Chidambar Joshi who have zealously created opportunities for the youth – I am sure this investment will be a legacy of sorts.

Day 1: They Came!
(31st of July 2009 Bryn Mawr Meadows – Minneapolis, MN)
The opening day saw a grand opening ceremony with a much grander breakfast being served to one and all. After the customary speeches following the inauguration by USACA’s CEO Mr. Don Lockerbie and the official photo sessions, the games got underway, albeit after a small delay.

Central East won the toss, elected to bat and sent in the two teenage sensations – Abhijit Joshi and Saminda Sriwardena – to open the proceedings. Joshi is a National U-19 player and Sriwardena, a regional U-19 player once admired by none other than Sachin Tendulkar when he was just about 7. After a fairly brisk start Joshi, after scoring 11, and Sriwardena, with 18 against his name, were out leaving it to another youngster Fahad Babar. Babar is yet another U-19 talent who takes pride in being coached by a famous cricketing icon from Pakistan, Rashid Latif. He, along with Amit Kumar, steadied the proceedings and built a sizeable partnership.

Kumar, who has been extremely consistent in the run up to this tournament, continued his good form. He went on to score a stroke-filled century and stayed not out at 115 (12x4’s, 3x6’s). His younger team-mates may have picked up a few tips about building a long innings. Fahad with 31 and Ashar Mehdi with 26 were some of the other contributors who set the stage for Usman Shuja, the captain of the Central East team, to step in like a gentle breeze and explode like a thunder storm. He made a quick 33 of 16 balls (4x4’s and 1x6) which put the total at 293 for 7 in 50 overs. South West were generous with their 32 extras.

Captain Usman Shuja and Nasir Mahmood opened the proceedings with the ball and sent down a fiery spell of fast bowling. However the South West openers Kadu and Timbawala had different plans. Both of them played with élan and ensured that their team gradually seized the advantage from Central East. The partnership started growing and the Central East team appeared a bit concerned about it. It was at this stage that Abhijit Joshi was introduced into attack. In just his third over Joshi produced a beauty that enticed the batsman Kadu to play a false stroke. All credit to the brilliance of Joshi and persistence by Captain Shuja (who persisted with Joshi), Central East was able to break the resolute partnership of 151 put together by the South West openers. The game that was otherwise slowly drifting away suddenly sprang to life and there was a new sense of urgency and pumped up energy in the team. Thanks to the cheering by the Central East brigade who literally lost their throat cheering their team and inspiring them to go for the kill, once the wicket fell the team was transformed totally and the boys were infused with renewed enthusiasm.

Joshi’s wicket seemed to have inspired Akhil Pathan the most, to the extent that he started to bowl like a man possessed. He ran in with venom and delivered a fuller length delivery on the leg stump of Timbawala who tried to clip it of the pads only to see his leg stump uprooted. The delight in the face of the bowler was in stark contrast to the agony and surprise of the batsmen. It was agony for one who had just missed a milestone and ecstasy for another who just stepped into the course of a new one.

Thyagarajan, a renowned US national player, who walked in next, put up some resistance before being outplayed by an express delivery from Pathan. Pathan’s joy knew no bounds as he knew he had someone really special; his adrenalin started pumping more. Pathan was not done yet; he continued bowling with the same fire and ended up with 5 for 50 of 10 overs which won him the ‘Man of the Match’ award. He was ably supported by his skipper Usman Shuja who ended with a bowling analysis of 3 for 37. One needs to really appreciate the ground fielding of the Central East team as young and the experienced alike threw themselves to almost everything that came their way and ensured that South West didn’t get too far away with the game. Coach Raghu was all appreciation for his wards saying that “The team stuck to its basics and delivered the results. Despite all the experience they have, they were so keen to learn and implement. I am proud to be part of this team”. Ask Pathan and he only had this to say “Well, I bowled in the right areas and the team backed me”.

It was surely heartening to see Asif Mehmood Khan, one of the senior most players of the team, bowling his heart out. He is such a gifted and committed spinner. His selflessness was at display at this wonderful venue. He was ready to run to the youngsters and share a tip or two. He was willing to impart to the ‘next gen’ what he has learnt, be it the tactics of the game or the art of spin bowling. I would say the Central East team played with a big heart - as big as the famous Mall of America in Minnesota.

DAY 2: THEY CAME, THEY SAW!!
(1st of August 2009 Bryn Mawr Meadows – Minneapolis, MN)
Having announced their arrival with a wonderful win, the Central East team reached the Mawr Meadows with an air of confidence. They knew that they were up against a formidable opposition in North West (who beat Central West a day earlier). They knew that there is only a wafer thin line that splits confidence from over confidence and it was prudent that they chose to stay with the former. Having known Sujesh Pallikal, the North West coach personally, I was more than sure he would have sketched a game plan for almost each player he even remotely knew.

Having won the toss and done his team a favor, Usman Shuja, the Central East captain, quickly opted to bat. Once again the onus of opening the innings fell on the young shoulders of Joshi and Srivardena. Srivardena made the best use of this opportunity and compiled a cool 49 in 64 balls faced (6x4’s). He was supported by the ever reliable Amit Kumar. Kumar continued from where he left the previous day to make a wonderful 65 from 87 balls (8x4’s). Brett Lee once said “Lady Luck's a funny woman. She hasn't wanted to know me over the past few months but she certainly turned up at the SCG on Friday”. Kumar seemed to have Lady Luck with him over the past few months and she travelled with him to the Mawr Meadows ground as well. Step in Usman Shuja, who once again decided to take control of the proceedings and scored a brisk 29 off 22 balls (1x4, 2x6’s). Central East were bowled out for 219 in 48.1 overs. North West gave away 32 extras as well. Coach Sujesh would have certainly shared his views in his own amicable style while the team was back in the pavilion.

Chasing the total of 220 to win, North West started off on the wrong foot – their opener, trying to hook the first ball of his innings from Usman Shuja, could only top-edge a sitter.  Sometimes one bad shot selection will fire up the bowler and that is precisely what this delivery did to Usman Shuja. He was pumped up and he had raised his own bar higher and higher – a bar which the North West team found hard to take measure of on the day.

Wickets fell in regular intervals, which helped Central East apply the pressure on them. It took the 7th wicket stand by the North Westerners to build some respectability to their total. Only Mustafa with a tally of 26, Divekar with 30 and Verma with 47 put up some resistance other than Vashishat and Bilal , who scored 14 and 12 respectively. North West were bowled out for 185/45 overs. On the bowling front, while Abhijit Joshi claimed the prize wicket of his U-19 skipper Vashishat, Yousaf (2 for 35) and Mehmood (3 for 29) chipped in among the wickets. Asif once again proved why he is rated so highly in the central circuit. With an orthodox action he has been extremely destructive and economical in his spell. His 10 overs for 29 claiming 3 wickets is another testament to this big-hearted team player. However, it was the Central East captain Usman Shuja who was the destroyer-in-chief with his spell of 3 for 45 which accounted for the top order batsmen of North West and set the path for victory. His allround performance in this game saw him being rightly anointed the ‘Man of the Match’.

Credit is due to the Central East fielders, especially their wicket keeper Mehdi, whose glove work was outstanding and a key factor in this win. The many fans who had gathered for the weekend fiesta had enough entertainment. For some, this was their first visit to a game of cricket – undoubtedly they were glad they came!!

Central East once again proved that “winning is not everything but the desire to win is”. The team believed in themselves and kept pushing themselves till they reached the goal.

DAY 3: THEY CAME, THEY SAW, THEY CONQUERED!!!
(2nd of August 2009, Bryn Mawr Meadows – Minneapolis, MN)
The victory against North West ensured that Central East had booked their berth to the next level of this prestigious championship. The team enjoyed their evening and went to bed with the confidence that they would give their best when they meet Central West in the morning!!

It will be journalistic injustice if I fail to mention the hospitality of the hosts.  If the breakfast had a well spread menu with a range of choices, the lunch was much more tantalizing with a great mix of vegetarian and non-vegetarian selections. .All credit to the President of Minnesota Cricket Association, Mr. Golam Sayeed, their Vice President Mr. Masaood Yunus and their team mates who have now set a benchmark in hospitality.

Khurram Syed (Regional Chairman – Central East Region, USACA and COO ICMCL) was also impressed with the audience for the matches: “What surprised me most was the audience, there were easily over 60 American families on the ground who had come to witness the game. Kudos to MCA”.

Back to the games, the Central East team had their breakfast and were all set for the challenge ahead of them, the last game of this battle. The match was against Central West - they had been national champions in the past, featuring three current national players and some former national players.

Central West won the toss and elected to bat, though the openers did a decent job, it was the pair of Kukreti and Gowda that flourished during their partnership. While Gowda (57 from 49 balls) was flamboyant and enterprising, Kukreti (54 from 110 balls, 7x4’s) was more cautious and contained in his stroke-making. Step in Akhil Pathan and the scene changed totally. As if energized by some super power, he sent in his missiles in quick succession to which the Central West middle and lower order had no resistance. Other than Desai who scored 31 and Shah who got 17 there was hardly any resistance. Asif, once again, was in the thick of action, his 8 overs that yielded only 10 runs and reaped 2 wickets, were instrumental in the scheme of things. Pathan ended up with 5 for 51 of his 10 overs including one maiden.

Masood Syed (Central East Regional Rep – Member of USACA BOD) said this about Pathan: “This tall young man has a brisk run up and a perfect action to deliver the ball from a height that should surely cause concern to the best of the batsman. What I liked about him has been the gentle variations he brings which catches the batsmen half-cock. He is also able to gain appreciable bounce from almost any wicket and make the ball move”. Maybe a stint with Dennis Lille or Wasim Akram can help this boy learn the nuances, practice it and deliver with more venom.

Post lunch, Abhijit and Fahad padded up and walked in; the drama that unfolded after that took everybody by shock. Central West refused to take field, not sure for what. There were hectic deliberations going on between the best of the brains to resolve the impasse. The team would have wanted to win on the field – but that was not meant to be.

At the closing ceremony, Pathan was declared the Man of the Match and he also won the best bowler award for his two match- winning 5-wicket spells. Amit Kumar grabbed the Man of The Series award for his fascinating display of batsmanship. A few more such knocks and he will be in strong reckoning.

For the youngsters Abhijit Joshi, Saminda Sriwardena, Fahad Babar, Talha Zamir, Mannan Patel this tournament proved to be a visit to the cricketing university. Sharing the dressing room with some of the senior players like Usman Shuja, Akhil Pathan, Asif, Amit, Yousaf and others would be an experience they will cherish in their cricketing careers.

Those who have followed the Central East’s history know that never ever in the past has this team had such a successful march and the team is now a formidable force to reckon with.  I am not surprised when I hear people (including yours truly) cry with joy and tears of happiness “Holy Cow! – It’s a hat trick by Central East.

The author, Sunil Kumar, is an avid cricket enthusiast who plays in the ICMC League in Illinois; Sunil is a freelance writer and passionate photographer. Kindly send your comments on this article to views4sunil@yahoo.com