There was the desperate feeling in the pit of the stomach when New Zealand 'A' were shot out for a paltry 129 in the first innings of their semi-final clash against Indian Railways in the MRF Buchi Babu Tournament. Playing some top flight cricket that included aggressive batting sustained over a period of time and quick bowling that put the batsmen on the back foot, New Zealand 'A' enjoyed the sweet taste of success when they, to use a cliché, derailed Indian Railways, beating them by 23 runs. The Kiwi's now face the Cricket Association of Bengal XI in the final of the MRF Buchi Babu Tournament.

The wicket at the MA Chidambaram Stadium is one that cricket experts over the years have found to read. Typically it is a track that has a bit in it for the fast bowlers early on, but slows down quickly and takes turn fairly early. New Zealand 'A' showed today that the role a wicket plays can be overcome with positive cricket. Lou Vincent creamed the Railways bowling to all parts in his run a ball 102, and gave his bowlers something to play with. One must remember that Vincent made a century in the last match he played too. Playing the spinners and pacemen with ease, Vincent spread the field in a hurry.

Beginning the day on 216/6, with an overall lead of just 66, New Zealand 'A' had but a small chance of forcing a result in the match. Vincent, overnight on 57 struck nine boundaries in his century and in the company of Kyle Mills (37) took New Zealand 'A' to 318/8 declared off just 62 overs. This left Indian Railways with a target of 169.

For New Zealand 'A' to win, they needed at least one stunning performance. In the event there were two! If Vincent's ton won praise, then Shane Bond's sensational bowling analysis of 14.3-2-45-7 deserves a lot more. Bowling in temperatures over thirty five degrees centigrade, Bond produced a spell of genuinely hostile bowling. More than anything, it was the sheer pace of Bond that knocked the wind out of Indian Railways. Constantly pitching the ball just short of a length and outside the off, the Canterbury mediumpacer scythed through the Railways batting line-up.

After removing the Railway openers with just 9 on the board, Bond cooled off for a while, as the Railways middle order batsmen offered some resistance. When Brooke Walker ran out Murli Kartik (30) with the score on 49, the beginning of the end was signaled. Soon after, Bond ran thorough the innings, picking the last five wickets to fall. Bond's 7/45 skittled Railways out for 145, handing the visiting side victory by 23 runs.

* Cricket Association of Bengal brushes aside Jolly Rovers

Cricket Association of Bengal beat Jolly Rovers Cricket Club comprehensively by 125 runs to enter the final of the MRF Buchi Babu Invitational Tournament. In the match played at IIT Chemplast Grounds in Chennai, on Sunday, Jolly Rovers were bundled out for just 96 runs chasing a target of 222.

Resuming on their overnight score of seven for the loss of two wickets, CAB XI found themselves in deep trouble after losing five more wickets in the morning to be reduced to 28/7 off 23.4 overs. The wickets included that of Rohan Gavaskar (0), Souvik Mukherjee (1), AP Chakraborty (10), Laxmi Ratan Shukla (1) and Saikat Mukherjee (8).

Sanjib Sanyal and Utpal Chaterjee added 87 runs for the eighth wicket to rescue the faltering CAB XI innings. Sanyal was run out after making 44 runs with the help of three fours. Utpal Chaterjee went to complete his half-century (50, 102 balls, 4 fours) and was the ninth batsman to be dismissed. CAB XI second innings did not last long as they were bowled out for 133 off 63 overs. Divakar Vasu was easily the best bowler, finishing with the figures of 22-8-42-2.

Chasing the target of 222, Jolly Rovers batsmen threw their bat at everything. Only opening batsman Sujit somasunder (26) and Ganesh Kumar 29 made any valuable contribution with the bat. Jinju Joesph and G Babu made 14 runs apiece. All the other batsmen failed to make to double figures. Three run outs in the middle order did not help the Jolly Rovers cause as they were bowled out for 96 off just 23.1 overs. Shib Sankar Paul (2/22) and Saurasish Lahiri (2/23) were the pick of the bowlers. CAB XI will meet New Zealand 'A' in the final.

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