16th September, 2008
The ICL player-pool prowess and its contemporary relevance were proved when two of its players Murray Goodwin (Ahmedabad Rockets) & Mohammad Sami (Lahore Badshahs) were involved in a match-winning partnership to help their team, Sussex, win the Pro40 County Championship.
The high-octane match in it climax stage saw Sussex needing 4 runs of the last ball against Nottinghamshire with the stylish Rockets middle-order batsman, Goodwin on strike.
Chasing 226 for victory, Sussex was in all sorts of trouble at 130 for 8 before Mohammad Sami joined Murray Goodwin at the crease. With Nottinghamshire expecting a victory soon, Goodwin and Sami slowly started taking the game away from the opposition.
Once they settled into momentum, the duo practically had everything going in their favor as even Sami, who came as a tail-ender managed to preserve his wicket till the end scoring an unbeaten 32 from 40 deliveries with the help of 2 boundaries.
Murray Goodwin however was in impeccable form as his unbeaten 87 included six boundaries and three huge sixes. Needing four runs from the final delivery to win the match, Goodwin struck a six to take his side home to a well-deserved victory.
Goodwin, who was later awarded the ‘Player of the Match' award for his heroic efforts, admitted that he himself did not expect to win but he kept telling his ICL teammate, Mohammad Sami, to keep hitting the ball hard and into the gaps.
Sussex ended up wining the Pro40 County Championship by 2 wickets thanks to the match-resuscitating, unbeaten, 99-run partnership between the two ICL stars. This innings will hold both players in good stead for the forthcoming ICL season which begins in less than a month's time.
Sami will be seen in action for the Lahore Badshahs, a team which is considered one of the strongest units at the ICL despite not winning a title last year.
Goodwin will feature at the ICL for the Ahmedabad Rockets and his recent form in the county is a stark reminder for all opposition in the ICL that the Ahmedabad Rockets will be one of the dark-horses in the forthcoming ICL season. The challenge from the Rockets is something every ICL team management will take on priority.
It is best exemplified by the legendary player and coach of the Chennai Superstars, Michael Bevan, who in his recent interview to the ICL website, www.indiancricketleague.in, expected the Rockets to provide stiff competition to his side, Chennai Superstars. By the looks of Goodwin's form and confidence, Bevan's prediction may just come true.
Another big move in favor of the Ahmedabad Rockets is the inception of its home ground in the form of the Sardar Patel Stadium, Ahmedabad, as the fourth venue in the forthcoming ICL season. If the Hyderabad Heroes' home-court advantage last season was anything to go by, then the Ahmedabad Rockets may just be ‘the side to watch out for' this season.
The ICL player-pool prowess and its contemporary relevance were proved when two of its players Murray Goodwin (Ahmedabad Rockets) & Mohammad Sami (Lahore Badshahs) were involved in a match-winning partnership to help their team, Sussex, win the Pro40 County Championship.
The high-octane match in it climax stage saw Sussex needing 4 runs of the last ball against Nottinghamshire with the stylish Rockets middle-order batsman, Goodwin on strike.
Chasing 226 for victory, Sussex was in all sorts of trouble at 130 for 8 before Mohammad Sami joined Murray Goodwin at the crease. With Nottinghamshire expecting a victory soon, Goodwin and Sami slowly started taking the game away from the opposition.
Once they settled into momentum, the duo practically had everything going in their favor as even Sami, who came as a tail-ender managed to preserve his wicket till the end scoring an unbeaten 32 from 40 deliveries with the help of 2 boundaries.
Murray Goodwin however was in impeccable form as his unbeaten 87 included six boundaries and three huge sixes. Needing four runs from the final delivery to win the match, Goodwin struck a six to take his side home to a well-deserved victory.
Goodwin, who was later awarded the ‘Player of the Match' award for his heroic efforts, admitted that he himself did not expect to win but he kept telling his ICL teammate, Mohammad Sami, to keep hitting the ball hard and into the gaps.
Sussex ended up wining the Pro40 County Championship by 2 wickets thanks to the match-resuscitating, unbeaten, 99-run partnership between the two ICL stars. This innings will hold both players in good stead for the forthcoming ICL season which begins in less than a month's time.
Sami will be seen in action for the Lahore Badshahs, a team which is considered one of the strongest units at the ICL despite not winning a title last year.
Goodwin will feature at the ICL for the Ahmedabad Rockets and his recent form in the county is a stark reminder for all opposition in the ICL that the Ahmedabad Rockets will be one of the dark-horses in the forthcoming ICL season. The challenge from the Rockets is something every ICL team management will take on priority.
It is best exemplified by the legendary player and coach of the Chennai Superstars, Michael Bevan, who in his recent interview to the ICL website, www.indiancricketleague.in, expected the Rockets to provide stiff competition to his side, Chennai Superstars. By the looks of Goodwin's form and confidence, Bevan's prediction may just come true.
Another big move in favor of the Ahmedabad Rockets is the inception of its home ground in the form of the Sardar Patel Stadium, Ahmedabad, as the fourth venue in the forthcoming ICL season. If the Hyderabad Heroes' home-court advantage last season was anything to go by, then the Ahmedabad Rockets may just be ‘the side to watch out for' this season.
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