Port Trust Emerge Victorius in a Nail Biting Opener against Perambur United Club

Port Trust Sports Council faced Perambur United Club in their inaugural match here at the PBEL City Ground. Port Trust won the toss and decided to bowl first on a wicket that looked perfect for batting, with little or no assistance to the bowlers. 

Perambur’s openers got off to a flying start, scoring above 8 runs an over. Sri Neranjan looked in great touch from ball one, making sure that atleast a boundary cam every over. He had a lucky escape when Salman dropped a sitter in the cow corner off Thilak. Off Spinner AK Balachander got the first breakthrough in his first over, dismissing Neranjan( It is note that this wicket was taken after Neranjan had earlier hit two sixes in the same over). Balachander giving the ball less flight(pulled it back) and drew Neranjan into a mis-hit. Perambur lost Barath Kumar lbw to Thivakar, while the young Abhishek trapped Solomon Selvaraj lbw, though Abhishek had to leave the field later with a back issue.

Sri Neranjan gave a fiery start for Perambur

Jayesh Yogeshwaran (62 off 88 balls) anchored Perambur’s innings. At the other end, Sakthi Eshwar  contributed to a steady 40-run partnership with Jayesh. The middle and lower order struggled as wickets tumbled, Thilak breaking the important Jayesh-Sakthi stand and later dismissing Surendhar during a slog sweep attempt. Balachander and Thilak stood out with the ball, taking 3 and 4 wickets respectively, while Nathan SP executed two crucial catches—one of Sri Neranjan and one of Lakshmanan(at the very end of the innings). Perambur finished with 241 all out with 4.4 overs left.

Thilak contributed both with the ball and bat, taking 4 vital wickets and an exemplary 57
(He is here to be seen with Legendary Indian Cricketer Yuvraj Singh)

Port Trust’s chase started shakily, losing both openers and their No. 3(Madheswaran) within five overs and stumbling to 27 for 3. A brief partnership was formed between 17-year-old Lalith and Surender. Surendermade a presence, rotating the strike and building a platform. Lalith fell to a pre-planned cover trap, caught after a circle of three fielders was set for him in that region.

The turning point came when Chokkalingam and Thilak put together a 90-run partnership that set up Port Trust’s victory. Thilak initially took the offensive approach and then slowed on when team was nearing the Target. Thilak was eventually given out LBW after a fighting 57, a decision which this writer feels may have been questionable which he thinks pitched outside leg.  After Thilak’s dismissal, Chokkalingam switched gears, becoming more aggressive as the required runs dropped under 50. Thivakar joined in, hitting two big sixes, but was dismissed trying for a third. Chokkalingam remained not out, finishing the match with a four. Left-arm spinner Lakshmanan was Perambur’s best bowler, taking two wickets.

Chokkalingam played a crucial innings which cumulated to the victory

For Port Trust, Chokkalingam’s unbeaten 68, Thilak’s 57, and Surender’s steady 40 were key to their disciplined chase.In the field, Nathan SP’s catching was commendable, an outstanding catch to dismiss Lakshmanan at the end.

For people sitting in the dug out, this match proved to be a nail biting one. Some felt it was Port Trust's game to lose when they were reeling at 70(odd)/4, but the way Thilak and Chokkalingam played changed the course completely. Some even felt that it was Perambur's game right after Thilak departed, when Port Trust needed 50 odd runs while Perambur needed only a few wickets. Perambur noteworthily dropped some catches which might have helped them grab the match. The composure of Chokkalingam and the Steering Capacity of Thilak have to be appreciated, no wonder.