A Dream Come True –2025 MCL Championship Finals (7th September) - Part 2

173 runs to win in 20 overs, and that too in a final against a champion team, can look a bit daunting. But this MSK side has been so dominating through the season and have match winners who can single-handedly win the game.

I was totally floored to see the depth in the batting during the playoffs and semi-finals. They not only have middle-order batsmen who play very sensibly, knowing when to milk singles and when to accelerate with audacious shots, but they also have many batsmen at the end who can smash towering sixers.

Thus, when the tournament organizer Omar interviewed me during the break, I had no hesitation in stating that MSK would win comfortably, provided they played the first ten overs sensibly. That sense of optimism was not because I am the ex-captain of the team but also because the team composition is so solid. It’s a different matter that Omar has still not posted my interview or even the Final pictures as of now.

With the 2025 MCL champions, my beloved Milwaukee Super Kings

Opening the batting was Shiv, who in fact is the only player in the lineup who has been part of Milwaukee Super Kings from day one and, if I am right, likely played the first ball for the team in 2016. I was more than anxious that he should do well and, during the break, urged him to concentrate for two to three overs and then take it deep. Shiv is a confidence player and hence he needs to remind himself of what he is capable of. Far too often, he goes for the audacious shot right away. If that comes off, he makes a big score, but in the same token, he has often perished early because of it.

Either way, Shiv opened the batting with Adriel, a left-hander who likes to take full toll in the first six overs when only two fielders are outside the 30-yard circle.

I was very surprised that Arvind Singh, who was once my captain while playing for Knights, did not open the bowling. He is a proven swing bowler and, with the chilly weather and stiff breeze, I thought he would naturally open the bowling.

But Shaker decided to open with a slow, spin bowler, which I was told was because Adriel is a bit suspect against spinners. In hindsight, it is also possible that Shaker, knowing the middle-order strength of MSK (Wahid, Manjunath, Aditya, Zubair, and Venkat), might have preferred to keep him for those middle overs.

Unfortunately, Shiv got out LBW to what I thought was an innocuous fuller-length delivery, and it showed his lack of confidence. I was very sorry to see him walk back to the pavilion as I really wanted him to play a big role in this game.

It is very critical that MSK don’t lose too many wickets and yet keep scoring at seven an over. Thus, it was good that Srini, who is a good top-order batsman, walked in. Although he is not flamboyant, he knows how to keep the score moving and can occasionally hit the big shot.

Adriel made a breezy 23 off 15 balls as Wahid, who had batted so brilliantly in the earlier knockout games, walked in and was in business almost immediately.

What is amazing about Wahid is how much time he has and how quickly he assesses the length and direction. In addition, he has the uncanny ability to spot open spaces and is not afraid to play the uppish shots. Having watched his performance in the semis, I was convinced that if MSK were to win the game, he had to stay at least until the 15th over.

Srini tried his best to score but made 21 off 27 balls with a good six before he retired out after the first ball of the eleventh over (67/3 in 10.1 overs). The team was getting a bit restless as the asking rate had become 10 RPO, and although the key batsmen were still to come, in a big final, a wicket or two at the wrong time can totally offset the chase. Thus, I started praying that Wahid and the next batsman, Manjunath, would stay until the 15th over.

Manjunath, after hitting a towering six, got out to a very bad shot and was bowled after playing only three balls. It showed a lack of concentration, although I had watched him play so sensibly and brilliantly in the semi-finals. Maybe the pressure of chasing 10 RPO for a good part of 10 overs got to him.

The game totally turned towards MSK as Venkat Edura joined Wahid. Venkat was already so anxious to get in and smack boundaries, and he started with a flourishing boundary off the first ball he faced, as the ball raced to the straight boundary with tremendous speed. Being a hefty man with lots of muscles, it is easy to see that here comes the sixers. Very much like our dear Jeffrey, although compared to Jeffrey—who looked ever so calm (typical like David Gower)—one could see the fire in Venkat when he batted and bowled. Such a fierce competitor.

In the next 23 balls, Wahid and Venkat scored 52 runs and pretty much settled the game. When Venkat perished going for yet another six, MSK needed only 46 runs from 33 balls. Considering that match winners Zubair and Aditya were still to come, I was certain it was easy. But the only catch was that Wahid should stick around.

With the brilliant Wahid

Wahid was playing in a different zone and seemed to be totally oblivious to what was going on around him. In fact, when Manjunath got out, I thought Wahid’s concentration might be affected, but nothing seemed to bother this man. He was batting as well as I have seen any other batsman in all my cricketing career.

Wahid has shots all around the wicket and, very importantly, picks the length and direction so easily. He hits with such punch that it looked like he would never get out and could score a boundary off every ball. Such was his dominance as he completed his 50 with such ease (56 off 28 balls). It was brilliant batting of the highest order indeed, and everyone at the ground felt that it was a formality for MSK to win.

MCC’s fielding was pathetic at best. I think they dropped at least four catches, almost all of them sitters. This is one department they take so much pride in, and I am sure Shaker would have been very disappointed that his fielders let him down today. Although MSK might still have won because of Wahid’s one-man show, the game would have been a lot closer.

We all say that cricket is a one-ball game and all it takes is one delivery for the batsman to get out. Thus, there was always a probability that Wahid could be dismissed any ball. But for those of us at the ground, it didn’t look like that one ball would happen today as he went on merrily hitting sixes and boundaries.

In the 16th over by Mohammad, Wahid hit two towering sixes and two boundaries and had raced to 79 off just 37 balls. With MSK needing 21 to win off 24 balls, we all began to sense that Wahid could indeed score a hundred, and all of us began to focus on his hundred since victory was now a formality.

Captain Zubair, sensing this opportunity, tried to take a difficult single to give Wahid the strike but got run out. Aditya walked in and also had the same feeling—that Wahid should score the runs.

As the 18th over started, with MSK needing five to win and Wahid needing seven for a hundred, we all prayed that he would hit a boundary and then one more to finish it off.

Alas, the first ball was smoked to long-on, a flat hit as the fielder fumbled the ball on the boundary and it went for a six. MSK had won, but Wahid was stranded at 99—the best runs you will ever see in a final.

It was virtually a one-man show as, out of the 173 to win, this man scored 99 in just 44 balls with—take a breath—six boundaries and seven sixes. If you recall, he was also the star of the bowling department with his clever and smart death-over bowling.

Such an all-round performance, and he deservedly not only won the MOM award but also the Player of the Tournament (MVP) award.

With captain, Zubair

Take a bow, young man. It was your day—and my dear MSK’s day—as we became champions.

What a team! From our infancy days to today, the team looks so awesome in every department. Each and every player is so driven, motivated, and exudes utmost positivity. A totally deserved team win, and I had such a happy feeling watching my players dancing merrily, enjoying the sweet smell of victory.

A word about Zubair’s captaincy. It is so hard to captain such a bunch of players where each and every one looks like a match winner. I am sure he found it difficult to set the batting order and bowling spells. That’s where a captain who remains calm makes a difference. Brilliant players naturally pivot towards a captain who is calm in the field. Well done, Zubair.

Tough luck Shaker bhai and MCC. You were about 15 runs short and your catching didn't help.

A dream came true, and my Milwaukee Super Kings are champions!

A Dream Come True –2025 MCL Championship Finals (7th September) - Part 1

2025 Milwaukee Cricket League Championship game - The Finals (September 7th, @ Lincoln Park) - Milwaukee Super Kings vs. Milwaukee Cricket Club

A dream that first germinated on a cold February morning in 2016 blossomed into reality this past Sunday.

How?

    The team I formed back then—the Milwaukee Super Kings (MSK)—lifted the 2025 Milwaukee Cricket League Trophy, defeating the formidable Milwaukee Cricket Club (MCC) in a convincing fashion.

Looking Back on the Journey

As I drove the 40 minutes to the ground on that chilly September day—temperatures hovering around 60°F with scattered clouds—my mind wandered to the early days.

When I started MSK in 2016, my motto was simple: give opportunities to players who love the game and play it in the right spirit. Winning wasn’t my priority in those first three years. Instead, I wanted every player to bowl, bat, and field, to truly be part of the experience.

But by 2019, my final year as captain, I longed to see our team in the playoffs. I began selecting the best XI, and we came agonizingly close. In the match that could have secured our spot, two of my best players were unavailable. I stretched myself to play despite a lingering hamstring injury, but we fell short.

One more chance remained: the penultimate game of the season. All we needed was a single point. That morning, torrential rain seemed heaven-sent—the match was called off, and we secured the one point we needed. In celebration, we ducked into a nearby coffee shop, only to learn minutes later that the rain had cleared and the ground was playable again.

The opposing captain asked us to resume. Some teammates urged me to refuse; after all, if we didn’t play, we were through to the playoffs. But I couldn’t. My philosophy has always been: if the ground is fit, you play. Morally, it felt wrong to avoid the contest.

We played. We lost. The one point vanished, and so did our playoff dream. Yet, I walked away proud that we had upheld the spirit of cricket.

I continued playing in a limited role for three more years, but constant rotation of players made it hard to build a core group. In a competitive league with 14+ league matches a season, stability is everything. Without it, playoffs remained elusive.

Arriving at the Final

Fast forward to 2025. I hadn’t played for two years, but as I pulled into the ground, I was buzzing with anticipation. Watching the new generation of MSK players contest a final was surreal.

And I was confident. Their semifinal win had been a masterclass in balance—batsmen showing patience, bowlers executing their plans, and fielders holding their catches. This was a team ready for the big moment.

MCC Sets the Challenge

Our opponents, MCC, were no ordinary side. They had multiple championship titles, a captain in Shaker—one of Milwaukee’s finest all-rounders—and a roster stacked with match-winners.

Batting first, MCC posted a competitive 172 in 20 overs. Decent for a final, though I felt they were about 15 runs short. Our lineup had both depth and a calm, calculating middle order.

Their innings began strongly—118 for 4 after 14.2 overs suggested they were on course for 190+. But disciplined death bowling pulled them back. To my surprise, Shaker himself batted only one ball—the final delivery of the innings, which he dispatched for four. It was an odd decision, given his reputation for turning finals with a few meaty blows.

His son, Muhammed, provided the spark with a sparkling cameo—30 off 16, highlighted by a cover drive that drew gasps from the crowd. Still, none of MCC’s batsmen stayed long enough to dominate the closing overs.

Bowling Highlights

Chandra, a captain’s dream new ball bowler 

For MSK, Chandra set the tone. His four overs went for just 20 runs, swinging the ball with a skiddy, whippy action and that teasing in-between length batsmen dread. A class act on and off the field, he epitomized the team spirit.

Aditya—my successor as captain—shared the new ball. With the chilly breeze at his back, he bowled with pace and purpose, snaring two key wickets. Watching him charge in on that picturesque ground was a sight to savor.

Our younger bowlers—Ashish, Ravi, and Venkat—bowled with enthusiasm and pace but struggled with consistency, leaking runs at over ten an over. A fuller length might have served them better, but their energy was invaluable.

Wahid -  Exceptional death
over spell. 

The standout, though, was Wahid Alam. Tasked with the toughest overs at the death, he conceded only 27 runs in his spell, mixing pace, length, and angle with masterful variation. From my vantage point near his end, it was mesmerizing—his left-arm angle, subtle changes, and fearless execution swung the momentum our way.

And little did we know, Wahid’s greatest contribution was yet to come—with the bat.

In a big final, leadership matters — and Zubair got it spot on. He knew exactly who to bowl and when, showing real tactical brilliance. But more than that, his calm presence made all the difference.

Dropped catches, misfields, or bad balls — they happen. But with a composed captain like Zubair at the helm, the team stayed focused and confident throughout. You could see it in every player — belief, trust, and unity.

Well done, skipper. You led from the front and brought out the best in everyone.

The stage was set. MCC had posted 172. MSK would need composure, depth, and perhaps one heroic innings to claim our first-ever championship.

And as it turned out, what happened next was beyond even my wildest dreams.

To be continued in part 2

MCC batting

MSK Bowling