Time For Our Cricket Match …
February 16th, 2009
Prepared and Submitted by Morgan O’Hara:
Can you see it? Us in Mumbai, a beautiful summer’s day, playing cricket with a group of Indian MBAs, drinking chai, talking life, making those important connections. That’s business for you, Cal Poly international style. And not only is it going to happen in a few months, but we are going to be prepared.
On the morning of Feb 28th, we have a cricket ‘friendly’ with the Indian Student Association at Isley Park located on Tank Farm Road in SLO (let me know if you need directions). Start time is ten sharp (10:00 am), and we’ll end early afternoon, around one o’clock (1:00 pm), after burgers have been served. Though my authority is uncertain, I’m requiring attendance. Even so, RSVP by shooting me an email at mdohara AT calpoly DOT edu. We need to know how much eats to order.
On the evening of the 27th starting at 8:00 pm sharp, ten to twelve of us will have the privilege to crowd into Dr. Carr’s living room after that week’s hob nob ends at his house, and watch an Indian movie (Lagaan — and Oscar nominated cricket themed Bollywood production) on cricket’s nascence. (He notes 10-12 people is about all his living room can comfortably hold and he will supply the pillows, popcorn and sodas to said first come first served 10-12 people). I’ve been told that this movie serves as a good intro to the sport, and there will be someone knowledgeable on hand to answer any questions we may have.
For everyone, especially those who can’t make it on the evening of the 27th at Dr. Carr’s house, here are some quick youtube videos which go over some cricket basics.
Basics Video: CLICK HERE
How to Bat: CLICK HERE
How to Bowl: CLICK HERE
How to Field: CLICK HERE
India Team Highlights: CLICK HERE
Three important things you need to know, copied straight from Wikipedia:
Test cricket is played between two teams of eleven players over a period of up to a maximum of five days - although matches are sometimes completed early when one side wins well within the time allotted (i.e. in three or four days). On each day there are usually three two-hour sessions with a forty minute break for “lunch” and a twenty minute break for “tea.”
One Day International (ODI) is a form of cricket, in which 50 overs are played per side between two national cricket teams. The Cricket World Cup is played in this format. One Day International matches are also called “Limited Overs Internationals (LOI)”, because they are limited overs cricket matches between national sides, and if the weather interferes they are not always completed in one day. Important one-day matches, international and domestic, often have two days set aside, the second day being a “reserve” day to allow more chance of the game being completed if a result is not possible on the first day (for instance if play is prevented or interrupted by rain).
Twenty20 is a form of cricket, originally introduced in the United Kingdom for professional inter-county competition by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), in 2003. A Twenty20 game involves two teams, each have a single innings, batting for a maximum of 20 overs. The game is completed in about two and half hours, with each inning lasting around 75 minutes, thus bringing the game closer to the timespan of other popular team sports such as football. It was introduced to create a lively form of the game which would be attractive to spectators at the ground and viewers on television and as such it has been very successful. The ECB did not intend that Twenty20 would replace other forms of cricket and these have continued alongside it.
See you all on February 28th at 10 am. If any questions, please contact me. As for the sparkly white uniform, we’ll have no dress code, but keep in mind, in India we’ll be sporting pants. Also, this is important, playing is NOT mandatory. You can come by, soak in the sun, enjoy the camaraderie, laugh at us fumbling all over the place, and get first dibs on the food.
10 Comments Add your own
1. Lindsay Leaver | January 9th, 2010 at 6:55 pm
Though this post doesn’t apply to the 2010 India trip goers, I it is a good platform to point out how far ahead we are on the cricket front than the 2009 students. We have had two highly successful cricket practices lead by our ringer, Indian local himself, Hemanth. We have our third on Sunday, and are expecting an excellent turnout. Our goal is to take on the Indian students in a US vs India match, rather than mix the teams like last year.
For centuries friendly sporting events have brought people of different backgrounds together and formed unbreakable bonds. It gives you a common ground on which to communicate and an activity to share.
Keeping that in mind, I think the real goal of the cricket match is to make a connection with the Indian MBAs that we will challenge that day. And even more than making a connection that could potentially lead to a job or business deal, the goal is to show them respect and thanks for having us. We are putting in the time before we get there to learn their favorite sport, so that they know we are appreciative and excited. There is probably no way we will win, but there is a way that we can impress! Go Mustangs Go!
2. Jason Silver | January 19th, 2010 at 10:52 am
As an avid sports fan, I have been intrigued by international sports not common to the United States. Soccer and Formula 1 driving were my favorite international sports, until I added cricket to the list. Cricket is an awesome combination of baseball and golf. If you can play those sports, you can definitely play cricket. Cricket involves throwing, hitting, catching, and running. Although there has been sparse attendance to our current attempts of cricket practice, I would like to see everyone in the current 2010 MBA class come out to participate.
Morgan’s idea of including food and possibly a movie to introduce us to the game would be a great way to integrate everyone. The only way we can be considered legitimate business professionals in India, is if we practice and do our homework. We must be decently versed in the terminology of cricket; we should know of famous cricketers, we should also be able to play the game. I hope that as the trip nears its departure date, the urgency of understanding cricket will become more evident. Look out for more practices in the future and let’s show the Indian MBA’s what we are made of!
P.S. Lindsay, there is always a chance we can win!!!
3. Jay Ponto | February 28th, 2010 at 5:00 pm
We definitely need to have more cricket practices this year! As Lindsay wrote, this will be an important bonding experience with the Indian MBA students. We don’t have to strive to beat the Indian MBA students at cricket (long-shot). Rather, by practicing cricket more and ensuring that ALL OF THE CAL POLY MBA STUDENTS are well acquainted with the game, we can show the Indian MBA students a degree of respect through us learning their cultural sport.
Last quarter we had a few good practices, and there was one at the beginning of this quarter with very low attendance. Next quarter, I would be willing (and I’m sure other MBA’s would agree) to make an effort to attend more regular practice sessions. We could even these practices into GSBA events; anything to encourage attendance and ensure people remember to come.
It’s not everyday that we get the chance to meet and impress our foreign counterparts! As Cal Poly MBA students, we need to put forth a solid effort in order to make the most of this experience.
4. John Barry | March 4th, 2010 at 1:32 pm
Excuse my lack of enthusiasm in this matter, but I’m a little skeptical about this cricket match. From our teleconference with the Indian MBA students it is clear that their prospects in the boardroom are already far superior to ours, so the last thing we want is to be humiliated by them at sports where their advantage is astronomical. Our cricket captain Hemanth has had an exceedingly difficult time getting people to unite in common effort to play a sport they have no experience in and will probably never play again after coming back from India, so how about a friendly game of soccer!? As the rest of the world knows, America is substandard at soccer, and from what I’ve heard, Indians love soccer as much as every other country not located between Mexico and Canada, so how about a game where the playing field will be more leveled? Furthermore, the timing for this match couldn’t be better as the biggest sporting event in the world will be taking place in South Africa at the same time as our stay in Mumbai. I just feel that it would be unfair to our Indian counterparts to be unenthused and virtually clueless competitors.
5. Frederick Peemoeller | March 12th, 2010 at 6:21 pm
I feel that Heymanth needs to make it to India with us as our cricket ambassador. Without him, we are lost as a team. The Lakers are nothing with Kobe Bryant. The Bulls would of never won all those championships without MJ. The Cal Poly MBA team will surely have our hands full without the help of our ringer. There aren’t enough performance enhancing drugs to give us an edge over our opponents right now. I am hoping we step up our practices in the next period to make the game a little more respectable.
6. Chase Janvrin | March 15th, 2010 at 3:42 pm
I disagree with John on this one. Personally, I think this sounds like a blast! Will we be lost without Hemanth? Of course. Will we get our asses handed to us against an Indian team that actually knows how to play this sport? Most definitely. Do I think it’s a shame that we’re not playing a more “level” sport? No way in hell. I want to go to India and experience everything it has to offer. And that means Cricket. Sports, like business, sometimes require an ego check in order to gain insight, experience, or build relationships. I don’t mind checking my ego at the door in order to better experience India, learn about the sport, and foster relationships with my Indian MBA cohorts. Even better is if I get to by them a round after wards.
7. Vitus Holzner | March 18th, 2010 at 6:07 pm
Chase, where is the American “can do” attitude on this one?! Preparing ourselves to get our asses handed to us?? No way man! I’m competing to win!
Okay, maybe your view is more realistic but we still have 3 months to step our game up!
As I said in my blog post for this quarter I am super excited to meet the Indian MBA students. They seem to be a great crowd and the cricket game will be a blast.
8. Leslie Mann | March 19th, 2010 at 11:25 am
We do have just three short months to step whatever game we may have up. And yes, I too agree with Chase that we will get our *$#@* handed to us but why not experience a new game and be humbled at the same time. I think it would do us all some good. I for one will be the first to admit I have yet to attend a practice game and unfortunately my work schedule could not avail itself around them, but I, like Jay, will make every effort to attend the practices that *hopefully* will be held in the next coming months. Either way, we are going India, playing a game of cricket with players who certainly know more than we do, so prepare yourself or not. I certainly will not be left standing on the sidelines, wishing I knew more about the game. John does bring up a good point. It would be a disservice to “our Indian counterparts to be unenthused.” All unenthused players should sit this game out.
9. Kirk Story | March 19th, 2010 at 1:01 pm
I’m with Vitus on this one. Although, I admit, I have not attended a cricket practice yet, we must dominate the cricket field this summer. However, we need a ringer. Hemanth does not plan on joining us in India. To that I say hogwash. We must begin planning a way to get Hemanth back in his native country to help us win the match. Does anyone have a heavy duty duffel-bag about six feet in length?
10. Yuxiang Gao | March 19th, 2010 at 4:47 pm
I definitely want we to have more cricket practices this year! but honestly, I am pretty sure we gona be kicked ass very badly. I half agree with John on this one. For the culure exchange, when we play cricket with Indian MBA, maybe we should give some sports include American culture , ie: football. (this game gave me hard time to understand it )
By the way, I think John’s soccer idea.
As he mentioned ‘As the rest of the world knows, America is substandard at soccer, and from what I’ve heard, Indians love soccer as much as every other country not located between Mexico and Canada, so how about a game where the playing field will be more leveled? ‘
I have to say the whole level of scocer in Asia is …………As a scocer fan, I don’t even want to mention it.
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