#how to defend the ball in cricket

[userblaney]

!!!!!

[bloodbrown]

P & Gemini Friendship Headcanons

requested by @almophia

• In my mind, Gemini is that annoying friend who busts your balls constantly, but deep down and when the time comes he's just the ultimate homie. Always got your back and willing to give serious lip to defend you. That's what I imagine his relationship with P is like (especially since we know he annoys P in canon!)

• Speaking of Gemini annoying P, that probably happens all the time and it's simply something P has to accept. His tiny lamp friend is sorta cringe, often making a spectacle out of himself (like in that cable car) and piping up at awkward moments, and P has learned to be ok with that.

• In some situations though, I can see Gemini being the grounded one, especially considering that P can be quite naive at times. Like I think he'd have to step in to tell him, "pal, this guy is sketchy", because P just wants to run errands for everyone they meet. Gemini in cases like these would need to explain to his naive puppet friend why he can't trust everybody. I think stuff like this would happen more when P is low-humanity and just trying to be generous.

• Gemini has to explain lots of things to P in general, probably. P needs a guide for highly complex human topics, and Gemini, in his mysteriously unlimited wisdom for a cricket, is happy to provide. Especially stuff like romance, which P really can't wrap his head around at first. Gemini ends up exasperated attempting to walk him through the concept of flirting. Human anatomy was another interesting discussion, one that is not very enjoyable to have with a robot cricket who thinks he knows everything.

• Gemini is a total guy friend to P as well. He's willing to tell him, "listen, I know you like that shirt, but neon yellow is NOT your color pal," when no one else is. He can be annoying in his suggestions and assertions but they can also be exactly what P needs to hear.

• Also! I wholeheartedly believe that the person to give P a real name would be Gemini. 100%. He's already familiar with the tale of Pinocchio and probably thinks it would just be a bit funny and ironic to use the mischievous puppet's name as a nickname for his nearly-human friend. After he calls him that in a tongue in cheek manner, the nickname ends up sticking and that literally becomes P's name.

• I can't imagine how P feels, wondering if he can ever really pay it forward to Gemini, who has been there with him since the very beginning. I'd like to think after everything in Krat calms down, P might talk with him about getting his cricket friend a humanoid puppet body, freeing him from the lamp, as well as helping him with restoring his memories. I'd love to imagine that one day with enough time and technological innovation, P and Gemini can hang out together as two mostly-human dudes, just being bros. The dream.

[narcissisticmf]

say don't go | aragorn x fem!reader

description: getting ready to leave for battle leads to an unexpected conversation.

trigger warnings: angst, mentions of violence, some sexism, daughter of gandalf!reader, witch!reader, etc. read at your own risk.

word count: <1k

You squeezed through the many bodies of men that were amongst the camp. Searching for Aragorn, your tired eyes bounced from tent to tent, hoping he would appear eventually.

Across the camp, Aragorn was saddling his horse. You took the opportunity to approach him as he was seeming to be leaving somewhere in secret; without Legolas and Gimli, more evidently.. without you (you observed).

"You're leaving?" You questioned with a subtly firmness which you did not intend.

Aragorn saw you, eyes locked for a moment before parting his lips to speak, "This I must do alone, Y/N."

You nearly rolled your eyes, but fought yourself from doing so and remained still. The crickets sung, filling the silence between the both of you. He stared at you with reluctance, but continued to saddle his horse.

"So you're no longer the ranger from the North, are you?" You questioned and looked at you. "You are the King of Gondor.. protecting his people, is that right?"

"Y/N, I need you here protecting these warriors. You are more powerful than any of us all together," Aragorn explained, stepping toward you away from the stallion. "I am leaving to summon an army that will defend us, we do not have the numbers and you know that."

"That is precisely why I should be going with you, you'll die back there," You stated, blankly.

"I do not fear death," He replied.

"You have far too much pride, Aragorn," You whispered, lowly.

"You will stay here and protect these men," He ignored your insult.

"That is what I am to do? Stay here and watch you go?" You bit off, frustratedly.

"I must do this alone, Y/N," Aragorn repeated more what felt like the hundredth time that evening.

You were beyond frustrated now. It felt as though you were conversing with a stone wall. Aragorn never doubted your abilities and your magic, but now it felt like you were merely a woman being told to stand back while a man took care of other matters of business.

Unaware of your emotions, your eyes filled with tears and became red. You were angry more than anything and reached your hand up into a fist. Aragorn watched you with a furrow in his brow. His pupils large as he slowly gripped your wrist, ever so gently.

"Tell me to stay," Aragorn spoke softly to you as you looked to him with an emotionless expression, though tears continued to fall. "Say don't go," He added.

"I cannot tell you that," You replied, wanting more than anything to.

"I don't understand," Aragorn lowered your hand as it was no longer balled in a fist. "A moment ago you are angry that I go alone, now you tell me you can't say you don't wish for me to leave."

"What I want is to join you, Aragorn," You told him with pure vexation. "I never felt like just a hopeless woman with you until this very moment. I cannot tell you to stay, but I can come with you. I can make sure that you do not end up dead."

Aragorn stared at you for a moment longer before his lips curved into a soft smile, "You're almost as stubborn as Gandalf."

"I learned from the best," You whispered and a snicker left your lips shortly after. "Don't unsuspect that Legolas and Gimli won't be coming along as well," You warned with a small, thin smile.

Aragorn's lips curved into a pleasing smile in response.

.

a/n: i don't know how i feel about this. is it good?? idk how to feel!! needless to say, i hope you enjoyed this sweetpeas! this is my first lotr fic and i'll definitely be doing more! mwah! be safe and happy (almost) halloween! <33 — angelina.

[dranathedragon]

I’m a D&D nerd, who is currently obsessed with Dead Boy Detectives, so of course the “What class would everyone be?” thought has been tickling me. I’ve seen a few other people post their thoughts on it, and I’ve been reading the amazing “Messrs Payne and Rowland’s Adventuring Agency” by @terresdebrume whenever it updates. Seriously, it’s really good, highly recommend. So I figured I’d throw my hat in the ring and see what anyone else’s thoughts are while I’m at it. Just doing the core four in this post.

So let’s get the easy one out of the way first, Crystal. She’s 100% a sorcerer, her power comes from her bloodline, she was born with it. Because she’s psychic based I’d say she’s specifically an Aberrant Mind sorcerer, without all the deep space tentacle monster baggage. Though she does have disembodied floating eyeballs in her psyche so MAYBE!

Next up is the second easiest, Edwin. He’s a wizard, everyone knows he’s a wizard. What KIND of wizard though? I’m going with Order of Scribes. He loves that little notebook so much, it gained sentience. How awesome would it be, if in this D&D version of the show, Edwin’s notebook didn’t follow him to hell because it was his sentient spell book, and it stayed behind with a purpose? It stayed behind because it KNEW Charles would never leave Edwin there and he would attempt a rescue. It KNEW Charles would go, and it KNEW it had to stay behind to help him. It showed him the things he needed to see, the information and maps that would reunite him with their wizard. I just love that.

Next up is Charles. He was a little tougher. I’ve seen quite a few posts saying that he’s a barbarian, and at this, I must object. At least with the criteria I’m using I suppose. Charles’ power doesn’t come from his rage. The one time we see him using his rage to fight, Edwin’s horrified and worried reaction pretty much confirms this was wildly out of character for him.

Just as an aside, I’m a firm believer of when Edwin said, “That was extreme”, he wasn’t talking about knocking the night nurse off the cliff. He was talking about Charles’ reaction in general, it was an extreme REACTION. He’d never seen Charles act with that much anger, hate, and violence before. He’s not an attacker, he’s a defender. It scared him, but he was scared FOR Charles, not OF him. Our wizard just isn’t great at people’ing. That’s a discussion for a different post though! Back to the topic at hand!

So, if I don’t think he’s a barb, what is he? Well, I’ve got two possible options. One thing that’s said quite a bit in the show, is how charismatic Charles is. And let’s face it, he is. So, using that logic, I’d say he could possibly be a Paladin. Specifically, an Oath of Devotion Paladin. I mean, come on, his power would so come from his extreme devotion to his favorite wizard. That would be a fun one, but there’s my second option which I find slightly more plausible.

It’s shown multiple times in the show, that while Charles claims to be just the brawn, he’s actually very clever and capable of thinking outside the box. Not to mention, he’s all about magic items. Bag of holding, enchanted cricket bat, enchanted jar/paper weight, enchanted lullaby ball, the disguises, the list goes on. So he’s smart and specializes in magic items, that screams Artificer. I’d say he’s a Battle Smith Artificer, some of their specialty spells are based around defending/supporting their allies, and you can’t tell me he wouldn’t find having a little robot pet, sorry STEEL DEFENDER, completely aces. He’d also name it like “Steve” or something and treat it like it was his and Edwin’s child, fight me on that lol. (Jk, don’t fight me I don’t like conflict!) Update: Charles’ lock picking has been mentioned and it just added to this for me as Artificers get expertise in thieves’ tools. How did I forget this?!

So that leaves Niko, who is kind of the wild card. I saw at least one post saying she’d be a bard, but I don’t think that’s accurate. Bards are all about attention (well mostly, I guess whispers would be an exception but she wouldn’t be a whispers anyway) and the whole sprite possession thing seemed to kinda make her uncomfortable with it. Idk, it just doesn’t really fit right to me. On the same thread though, so far in the show, Niko’s only real power is to see the dead. That might be expanded if we get a second season (🤞🏻), but for right now, that’s all she’s got other than being a good friend and excellent reading comprehension skills (which I might revisit this using that last one later). That said, since she got that ability (technically) because of the sprites (more because they almost killed her, but also they’re with her in the igloo so this still might work!) I’d say Niko is a Warlock. Just by the by, I hate that the class is called “Warlock”. That’s a word that came from an old English word meaning “oath breaker or he who breaks their oath”. Warlocks are all about MAKING not BREAKING pacts. Just a weird choice but MOVING ON! Since the sprites seem kind of Fey, I’d say she’d be a Pact of the Archfey. Nothing to do with the pact’s skill set, since we’d have nothing to compare it to, just because they seem fey to me.

So that’s what I’ve got so far. I might think of other characters’ later, like what would Jenny be etc. What do you guys think? I like to hear other people’s opinions on this! It’s fun to bat around!

[phxntomhives]

My Kuroshitsuji AU

This started because I wanted to write something else. All this was supposed to be the introduction. But it is too long, so take this for now.

Spoiler for well, all kuroshitsuji manga.

Important premise: the fire didn't happen/it happened but the Phantomhive survived (sorry servants). R!Ciel is not a sociopath as he may be now as a bizzare doll, what we saw when he was a child was a slightly obsessive brother that wanted to stay with his twin, for this AU he just grew up and maintained a couple of those traits. Sebastian also isn't here.

The twins life at Weston!

Since it's a happy AU (mostly), the twins just get enrolled to Weston, where they both go to Sapphire Owl.

Lawrence takes a like on both of them, tho he is more comfortable with O!Ciel since he is less mischievious.

R!Ciel may affectionally bully O!Ciel and Lawrence would defend him, projecting on him a little.

R!Ciel then actively starts a fight against Lawrence when he sees them bonding a little too much.

"Leave my brother alone, if you want a younger brother ask your parents. This is mine" and proceed to stalk them both.

Edward has to come and stop him as the older cousin. It didn't work, but R!Ciel did decide to slow his obsession down a little.

R!Ciel also absolutely despises McMillan, at first. But since he is always with O!Ciel, he can't do anything about it but suffer in silence. After a while McMillan shows that he is extremely good at getting information so he starts to warm up to him a little.

O!Ciel is better at fags/drudges activities so he is noticed by the P4, and R!Ciel is extremely pleased and runs around showing off his little brother.

Then Maurice tricks O!Ciel and R!Ciel gets furious at him. He tried to defend him with the other students but since they are twins they don't trust him.

When he overhears the night conversation between O!Ciel and McMillan, McMillan finally earned his seal of approval. From the next day R!Ciel treats him almost like he treats O!Ciel and he doesn't know why but accepts gladly the change of pace.

Later, thanks to Soma, the twins discover about Maurice plan and together bring it down with the same plan as in the manga (tho they had to do the work instead of just using Sebastian, so it took a little longer).

When Maurice tried to harm O!Ciel, R!Ciel joined Herman and Edward in running to the rescue. He checked his brother, ignoring Maurice completely.

The day after they exposed the truth, R!Ciel went home for the day for "personal business". Some days after Maurice was "so embarrassed that his real look's was reveal that decided to quit school and went to hide at home". No one ever saw him again.

O!Ciel tried to ask about the sudden disappearance to R!Ciel but he just smiled and said he had no idea what he was talking about. They are both very good actors.

No one mention it again, but all the students are now slightly scared of R!Ciel. McMillan thanks God that he somehow ended up on his good side.

After this, they both get to join the cricket team because they showed how to be smart and quick-witted.

They also both train very hard, R!Ciel has an easier life adapting and improving on the physical aspect, while O!Ciel relies more on strategy and mental play.

When the tournament comes, it happens with the same strategies. Vincent is in the spectators seats and he is trying his best not to laugh too loudly from his seat. He is very proud.

Diederik is also present and he is fuming while watching the matches. He will scold them both later.

Rachel is loudly cheering them both and encouraging them.

R!Ciel can actually make a couple of points in a fair way! It's more luck than anything but he talks about it like they were decisive.

The final strategy of switching the ball was O!Ciel's idea, but he didn't share the part about being hit on purpose by Greenhill with his twin.

When he got hit, R!Ciel froze on the spot, but O!Ciel was focused on the game and went on with the plan.

After he recover from the shock, R!Ciel doesn't let anyone get close to him, almost growling, and somehow brings him to the nurse. Vincent and Rachel follow soon after.

While O!Ciel is being visited, R!Ciel is outside picking a fight with Greenhill who doesn't fight back bevause he feels guilty. Diederik has to stop him.

O!Ciel gets invited to the midnight tea party, he feels guilty about going because R!Ciel can't go. R!Ciel doesn't stop him but follows him until he can because he is worried something may happen.

Nothing happens tho! We are happy here!

No one shuts up about the blue miracle part 2. Vincent can't stop bragging, especially to Diederik. Rachel talks about it to anyone that has ears.

Every year after that, the twins made it a personal goal to win especially to flex about it to Vincent and because they need more material to annoy uncle Diederik. So they spend their free time at school coming up with more complex and wild strategies.

The manual with the rules for cricket became twice its size by the time they graduated, because they had to keep add rules to not make the twins cheat. But they still won for all the years they frequented. After the second year they win, both the twins just annoy Vincent with "What would you know about sport? You only won once"

Do you want more? I have so much more, this arc is my will to live.

Edit: I made part 2 here

[hainethehero]

Dude. Basketball is a high contact sport, he bumped into Eddie and Eddie fell bad lmao. Tell me you've never played a single team sport in your life without telling me etc.

Plus Buck felt terrible about it. That was literally on screen.

You guys are so weird and racist. What the fuck.

Though it's not surprising that a toxic buddie stan cannot see a scene for what it is, I implore you to watch it again.

He purposely bumped into Eddie. He had room to knock the ball away from the basket and stumble forward, but CHOSE to bump into Eddie. I never said he purposely wanted to hurt him, or that he didn't feel bad about it, but it's pretty clear from the scene that he wanted to slam into Eddie.

And though this means nothing, I actually have played sports, including MMA, football, cricket and basketball. And what Buck did would and could be classified as a foul. Do a whole replay since you're so sporty and watch it in slow motion.

The whole point of that ask & my reply (AND YOU'RE PROVING IT RIGHT NOW) is that dumb af toxic (because there are some good ones) buddie stans would excuse it because it's Buck, and not if it were anyone else. Y'all do it all the time, don't get mad when people draw the right conclusions. If Tommy did it, y'all would CRUCIFY him. Same with Eddie.

And HOW is pointing out your OBVIOUS favouritism for Buck vs any other character racist? Stop projecting, weirdo. And stop using the systematic racism that minorities go through to defend your fictional ship when you could GAF about racism and pocs.

It's a disservice to people actually facing racism and discrimination when you use it as a cheap excuse to fabricate hatred for a character that's getting in the way of your buddie delusions.

[hehehhe1d]

What I disliked the most about this World Cup final was the crowd. There was no response, no cheers, no enthusiasm.

Team India lacked confidence yesterday right from the beginning, because they knew the pitch wasn't what they would've liked, but still they gave their best, and the least they deserved was and INDIAN crowd cheering for them.

I saw a video this morning of the crowd in Wankhede during the semi-final, poking fun at Surya when he was fielding at the boundary, asking him to bowl. It wasn't much, maybe even distracting him from his job for a moment but it made him smile. It made him realise people were confident enough in the team's abilities to joke during a tense moment in the game.

If you love cricket enough to go watch a match in a stadium, you'll know the confidence Bumrah gets when the crowd chants 'Boom Boom'. And that's what should have been done with each ball.

When you trust Siraj, Kuldeep and Shami's abilities enough, then cheer at each one of their balls. Even if they're lacking in confidence for a moment, let them know that the billion people who back them never doubted them.

The pitch wasn't the best for batting on, and yet Rohit, Virat and Rahul gave their best. It was slow, but they tried, and none of us watching the match could have done that. The crowd should have screamed even when they got a single or defended a tough ball, because they deserve to know how much we appreciate them for the joy they bring us.

Shubman, Shreyas and Jaddu weren't at their best with the bat, but they tried so hard with the fielding. Every time they dived for the ball, every time they stopped a single, they should have been cheered on.

Ishan, Shardul, Hardik, Prasidha and Ashwin didn't even play, but watching the crowd cheer on the team mates despite seeing the conditions would have made them happy, and their smiles would have made the eleven on the field believe in themselves more.

When Cummins had openly declared that he wanted to silence the crowd, then it was the responsibility of every single person in the crowd to fight his challenge. It was their job to stay until the last ball, to instill hope in our boys till the very end. Maybe it could have made our team more confident, and theirs a bit afraid. Maybe things would have been different right now.

[paintedgrilledcheese]

The DOA/RITHOTD preschool au!

The burning kitchen

It's another day in Mr. Goncharov's preschool class. The children were enjoying their free time in the classroom, playing nicely together so far. Little Sigma, the youngest of the class, was dashing back and forth between the pretend kitchen playset and the snack table where the kids normally eat their lunches. He was playing as the manager of his little pretend restaurant, and he was serious about it. Sigma wanted all his customers to be satisfied with his service, including satisfying the stubborn Mushitaro.

Mushitaro was a little vex to these games. If he was going to play, he made sure to be the antagonist and make the game much more difficult than it needed to be. Mushitaro liked playing the role of a food critic, always giving Sigma the unfortunate 4 star rating. This would always make poor Sigma upset. He believed that his restaurant was the greatest and DESERVED a 5 star rating.

After receiving another 4 star rating, delivered on a pink sticky note with poorly drawn stars and scribbles, Sigma huffed and stomped his little feet back over to the kitchen playset.

"PUSHKIN!" Sigma yelled in a high-pitched voice, which startled Pushkin. Pushkin was Sigma's one and only chef. "We got another 4 star rating from Mushitaro. I don't know what we're doing wrong. Are you slacking?" Sigma accused.

"I'm not slacking. I'm the one who's cooking, not you." Pushkin defend as he put a wooden block of milk into a plastic bowl with wooden eggs in it. "Mushitaro is being a meanie. That's what's happening. He doesn't know how hard I work to cook his order. I should put a dead cricket in his order next time." He muttered.

Sigma shook his head and protests. "No, don't do that. We'll lose customers."

"Why not? Crickets have nutritional value, my dad told me so." Pushkin argued.

"Nuh uh, bugs are gross and not meant to be eaten, you weirdo." Sigma was getting a little upset since he was scared of bugs.

"Yeah huh. You're just a scared of trying one." The two started to bicker. Despite this being a fun game for pretend, it was serious for them. If Sigma lost customers, the world would end in his little child mind.

The back and forth continued, calling each other names and getting so caught up in their petty argument (that was completely off-topic now) that Nikolai came over and threw balls of red paper into the plastic bowl Pushkin was using.

"Uh oh, seems like you got a fire!" Nikolai laughed loudly as Sigma screamed high pitched. Sigma yanked the bowl away from Pushkin and threw it into the pretend kitchen sink. But Nikolai continued to throw more red and orange balls off paper into Sigma's kitchen, causing a "fire." Nikolai was giggling joyfully as he watched Sigma try to put out this fake fire.

With all the commotion going on, Sigma screams, and Nikolai's laughter, Nathaniel came over wearing a plastic fire fighter helmet from Firehouse subs.

"Is there a fire?" He asked, holding an empty water bottle that he found.

"Yes. Please help." Sigma said in a panic. Nathaniel had a good look at the scene, seeing all the red and orange paper balls scattered across the kitchen playset.

"Hmmm, pay me first." He demanded.

"Why would I pay you?!" Sigma yelled, being extra loud.

"Because I'm going to need a lot more water to put out this fire, and I'm out of water." Nathaniel said with his logic.

"The money is burnt." Pushkin informed. Nathaniel looked at him straight in the eye before shrugging.

"Guess you guys are on your own then." Nathaniel turned to abandon them. Wow, what a great firefighter. Nikolai laughed more, watching all of this before running to leave the scene he caused. Sigma looked upset. He was upset. Sigma was about to throw a fit before Ivan announced it was snack time.

All the children were distracted by the announcement of snack time, including Sigma. Today was sugar cookie day, which cheered him up in an instant, forgetting all about his little game for now. During nap time, Ivan picked up and cleaned some of the room, picking up Nikolai's mess he caused in the pretend kitchen area. This brought joy to Sigma's face to see his kitchen wasn't on "fire" anymore when he woke up. All was well once again. Expect for that 4-star rating.

[leicamoments]

May The Fourth Be With You

Saturday 4th of May arrived and with one eye cast at the weather forecast, I headed out to cover my first game of the Theakston Nidderdale League season.

I’d been looking during the week for a game to get to on Saturday when a post from Paul Garton on Twitter/X caught my attention. He’s the groundsman at Kirk Deighton and the photos he had put up showed a ground that looked in superb condition, considering all the rain we’ve had.

Kirk Deighton Cricket Club is situated a stone’s throw from Wetherby and one of the easier grounds for me to get to. My last visit to the club was in 2017 and I thought it was about time that I got reacquainted.

It’s an easy club to find, from Harrogate head to Spofforth and ‘turn right’ [yes that’s how poor my directions are usually], you will then find the club on your right before you get into the village. Simples!

My Daughter Aibhlinn and I arrived about an hour before first ball and I saw someone putting the final touches to the square, so walked over to make sure the game was still on. It turned out to be Paul and we had a good chat about just how good the ground was.

I will be honest, I was genuinely impressed by the near-perfect state of the grass, given the huge amounts of rain we’ve endured since September last year. Paul and the other volunteers have done a magnificent job.

The game I was there to cover was the Theakston Nidderdale League division seven game between Kirk Deighton CC 2XI and Knaresborough Forest CC 3XI. Coincidentally, my first game of the Theakston Nidderdale League that I covered last season was at Knaresborough Forest, and there were similar concerns about the playing surface then [I seem to remember the boundary rope there had been brought in and certain parts of the outfield was like standing on jelly].

Knaresborough won the toss and elected to bat under the light grey cloud and subdued light.

Kirk Deighton is a compact ground and one that could promote high scoring games; this wasn’t going to be one of them. Instead, this was one of those interesting games that saw runs being scored in a start-stop fashion and wickets falling regularly.

Munro Goldfield was the stand-out performer for Forest, as he reached 32 from 75 balls, hitting five fours. Antony Brown pitched in with 17 runs from 24 balls, which included two sixes.

Knaresborough managed to post 88 all out in just under 32 overs before tea was taken, and to be honest, it looked a tough total to defend.

Kirk Deighton came out after the break in good spirits, but that was quickly dampened when David Bowes was bowled by Own Wibberley for 0 after just one ball. Disaster! Maybe this game had a few twists and turns yet!

The other opener for Kirk Deighton, Qasi Naeem, seemed to settle quickly and although not scoring quickly, looked solid at the crease. Nine runs put on in the first over despite the loss of a wicket and that target did look vulnerable.

Forest bowled well in the next three or four overs, restricting the home team to picking up a few singles and the odd boundary. More importantly, they started to pick up the odd wicket and the score was twenty-something for three; if they could claim a couple more wickets, then the result would be in real doubt.

Kirk Deighton responded with some great hitting, with the ball reaching the boundary fairly regularly to take big chunks out of the required amount. Darren Bowes scored 17 runs from 18 balls; Rick Bower got 14 from 29; and Qasi added a solid 22 in his 71 balls faced.

Wickets were still falling, but with only around 20 required and what seemed like plenty of wickets in hand, the home team appeared to be crusing to a season-opener win.

It was Nick Ireland who hit the winning runs, reaching 24 from 21 balls faced, including three fours and a six. Kirk Deighton had reached the target of 89, losing seven wickets and winning the game by three wickets.

It had been an enjoyable day covering cricket with no rain and some genuinely good play from the two teams. I realise that this isn’t even close to being the highest level of grassroots cricket, but I generally find that as long as you aren’t expecting big scores and big hitting…then you can get some really friendly, competitive and tense games of cricket to watch.

This was certainly one of them!

It may have been seven years since I’ve been to Kirk Deighton, but it certainly won’t be that long before I pop back to catch another game. 

A few additional shots above provided by Aibhlinn (aged 11).

[observeowl]

Her Assistant | Chapter 20 - Brain vs Power

Summary: After losing her family, Natasha Romanoff builds her company from the ground up. During the rise of her company, she decided she needed an assistant, one that works in her office and her house. That's when she saw your resume. After working five years for her, how was it like working for her? Or more importantly, how things progress?

Series Masterlist

Third POV The first match in the Cricket Tournament, was Sapphire Owl vs Scarlet Fox. Each match comprises 2 innings of 20 overs.

The players stood in front of their opponents (like the Civil War poster). "I didn't think you were going to join, Odinson."

"Of course I am! Australia has a great Cricket Team."

Once the game started, the majority of the people were cheering on Red House, even those that were in Blue House knew they wouldn't stand a chance.

Once the first ball was thrown by the Red House, Blue House was immediately bowled right away. There were definitely hidden gems that were found amongst first years as well.

After getting bowled again and again, the Blue House players rotated quickly. And soon enough they collected 10 overs and were due for a switch. At this point they only gained 21 points.

Once it was the Red House turn to be the batter, the wind was even stronger in their favour. Even with Blue House's tactic of throwing softer balls making it harder to it hit boundary 6, they still managed to gain a lot of point.

It was a one sided match for the first half. During the break, Blue House was trying to strategise. Bluer wanted to be the bowler for the second half but Natasha stopped him. "Weren't you going to save that for the finals?"

"But if we lose here there will be no final." Bluer rebutted. "We still have half a game left, we have a chance. We can't let them score more points. Do you agree, coach?" Bluer turned to find Y/N but she was nowhere to be found. "Where is Professor Y/L/N?"

"Maybe she went to the bathroom?" Natasha offered a suggestion. "Anyway, we shouldn't change the strategy without the coach's approval." Bluer was still hesitant at not using his trump card. "I'll be the next batter. Leave it to me."

With Red House, after having a snack from the buffet table, they were very relaxed and confident with their chances to secure a win, and even started planning their attack on Green House who was their real enemy.

"I'll let Harcourt bowl in the second half." Redmond decided.

"With those skinny arms?" Odinson asked.

"As a gentleman, I'll give them a handicap. Cricket is a game to watch. I'm sure the audience prefers to see something beautiful."

Right before the second half begins, Y/N came back from wherever she was from and Blue House was so distraught that they weren't able to rely on her advice. "Sorry, I was in the bathroom."

Natasha started as the batter and she did a great job at defending but it wasn't enough. She was basically just defending and trying to make sure Red House doesn't get as many points as possible.

"Deliver the final blow, Harcourt!!" Even though Natasha played a part in taking down Maurice Keller and therefore making space for Harcourt to be Redmond's fag, she wasn't going easy on Natasha. She did her wind up and dropped the ball suddenly.

"What happened? Harcourt?!" Redmond shouted from the bench after seeing his fag lying on the ground. People around him started clutching their stomach and dropping to the floor before he felt his own excruciating pain in his abdomen.

The ball rolled to Natasha's feet who picked it up with a sinister smile on her face. Looks like the time has come.

The meat pie they ate during their snack time was not a regular meat pie. Removing her disguise, Y/N replaced the original with the one filed with laxatives. They knew it was a matter of time before it took effect and they weren't able to play.

"Due to Scarlet Fox's inability to continue the match, this will be considered a forfeit. The winner of the first match is the Sapphire Owl dormitory!!" The MC announced.

"Ehhhh?" The entire stadium shouted except for Y/N and Natasha. Even Bucky, Wanda and Pietro who were there to support them were surprised that they won. Even though they weren't huge on sport, they were prepared to console the players. Not that Natasha ever needs consoling for such an event.

"Bucky!"

"Y/N! Great work out there. I see you still have what it takes to bring people down from the inside. Literally."

"Well, they are just a bunch of students."

In the meantime, the match between Violet Wolf and Green Liion dormitory was still ongoing. It was a close fight as Chesslock,  Violet's fag, was the one bowling. His super low bowl hit many by surprise and they were unable to defend it. To give a ball a topspin with your fingers is an extremely difficult skill. He was only able to do this because of his magical fingers, he can play any musical instrument instantly, hence his sorting into Violet Fox dormitory. However, it wasn't enough for them, Greenhill lived up to his name and kept on a hitting streak, which ended up hitting up earning the win for their team.

Throughout the game, Violet didn't not participate at all even though he was on the field. He was busy doing his own art, plucking out weeds to make his dormitory emblem. "Don't step on it okay?" It was a rather large piece of work for one person.

(pic of the emblem)

"And so, the fight for the title will be Green House against Blue House. Is there going to be another blue miracle?" The MC excitedly announced as the last match was about to start.

"Our opponent for the deciding fight is the certain victor, Green House. Can we really win?" There were some doubts surfacing in the locker room of Blue House as it was getting closer to the start of the match. People say history repeats itself, and it certainly has for a few times in the history of this annual cricket match.

Luck was never on their side.

"Let's win! I know we can win." Natasha said when she saw no one was stepping up.

"We will now commence the deciding match. Sapphire Owl dormitory versus Green Lion dormitory." The drum sounded and

"It's like the adults versus the children."

"Go for it. Nat!!" Wanda and Pietro shouted after hearing others thinking less of their boss's team. Bucky knew they needed no cheering, Natasha was going to win no matter what, even if she had to snatch it by force.

"Well then, as their coach, let me put my all into cheering them on as well." Y/N said as she turned to a band. "Everyone, get ready."

"Music as cheering? How boorish." The house master of Green Lion sneered. "What is Miss Y/L/N thinking."

"I see Green House can't even afford to listen to music." Y/N said as she picked up her conductor wand. "Then, our first song. The Radetzky March." The band players started playing the piece.

Green House started bowling first and Blue House held the bat. Everyone thought it was luck but Blue House has won 4 runs. Everyone in Green House thought the Blue House players weren't going to be able to hit their fast ball but they were keeping up.

"They just got lucky. Don't let down your focus." Greenhill shouted towards his teammate. He nodded at his captain before trying once again.

Their form was terrible but they were hitting their shots where they needed to. Greenhill looked closer into the players that were batting and realised their eyes were closed. How were they able to hit the ball with their eyes closed?

Flashback

In their meeting, they were coming up with plans to go against Green House. Natasha knew they have no chance against them unless they have something that others haven't tried. "I don't think that we, Blue House, the lowest ranking in physical strength and sports can handle fastballs." People started shouting that it was a bit harsh to call them that but Nat did not pay them any attention. "Therefore, we don't have to watch the ball."

Since cricket is all about taking the wicket, it's likely that the ball will pass through a range of about 28 inches high and 9 inches wide. So if you swing the bat in that vicinity at the right time, theoretically, you would hit it."

"As if you'd know when to swing if you don't look at the ball." One of the players called out the preposterous plan.

"You can!" Natasha immediately replied. "We just have to hear it. We'll have a signal at the right time to swing the bat. The batsman just has to swing accordingly."

"Can we do that?" He asked skeptically.

Natasha wasn't used to someone doubting her. "Yes, in fact-"

"No." Bluer interrupted. "If the bowler and the batsman don't face each other in earnest, it's not cricket."

"Is that so?" Nat asked. "We're putting our pride as Blue House on the line fighting the other house. So it's only courteous to give everything we have. We have 'resourcefulness'. Green House's forte is 'power', but it wouldn't be honorable of us to fight them with power." Natasha started to show signs of when she was like giving a presentation as she was first setting up her company, she showed her charisma and determination in persuading others. Her voice of conviction drives others to believe her words even though no actions have been taken. "Blue house is weak! That's why we should work our strategies within the limits allowed by the rules, that will give us a narrow win and challenge them with all we have!!"

Finally, Bluer relented and allowed Natasha's plan to proceed.

End flashback

At the right timing, Y/N would sound direct the band players to hit the cymbal at the right time for the players to swing the bat. With his sound, there would be a swing leading to a point for Blue House. The swing is ridiculous but their timing is right.

"They really worked hard!" Greenhill said as he realised what was happening. He had true admiration for the effort the Blue team put in.

"That's right, we can't allow them to use the mu...- What?!!" Midford, his fag counldn't believe his words. Unable to believe his words and knowing that he cares a lot for the sport, he asked to bowl next.

When he stepped up, people didn't think much of him. Sure, he was a formidable force but his presence wouldn't make the opponent scared more than usual.

So far, Blue House earned themselves 40 points which was more than they ever did against Red House earlier, and they were still attacking.

However, when Midford did his windup, people noticed the difference in his stance. It was really similar to the one Chesslock had. Even with the help from Y/N's music, they were unable to hit the ball as it was travelling so low. Everyone was impressed with him. People thought he was an ordinary person.

He isn't jealous of other's talents, but genuinely respects them. With them as his role models, he tries to come closer to them through unwavering effort. Full respect, that's his talent.

Y/N wasn't affected by Midford stopping Natasha's plan, she was ready to move on to the next one when she heard someone witness the Principal. Looking back at Natasha, she got the go ahead to locate the Principal. If Y/N can come into contact with the Principal, the one who hold everything within the school, Natasha will be able to find out something about Derrick and the rest too.

Without Y/N as the conductor, the music stopped and the players didn't know when to bat. "Where is Prof Y/L/N?" Bluer asked.

"Didn't she go to the bathroom?" Natasha answered.

"Again?!"

They couldn't hit anything without the 'support' after all. They'll have to fight on their own here on out.

As Y/N reached the last seen location of the Principal, only the Vice-Principal was seen. Instead, he was already at the stand interacting with the players' families. Y/N tried her best to catch her but they were only playing a game of cat and mouse.

Natasha didn't want to use the next plan but since it has come to it, she has no choice. After double tapping her shoulders, their formation moved. It was Green House's turn to be at bat, but then somehow they were unable to focus. There were no tricks on the ground. The balls thrown were very easy to hit but Green team's form was all over the place. As the ball was approaching Midford when he stood at the line, he thought that the ball was very easy to hit, anyone on their team would have scored a boundary 6.

"Even you now? That ball was perfect!" Greenhill shouted. Natasha smirked when it even worked on him. Sadly, as one of the few women who were selected for the team,  she knew what would distract these young male teenagers.

"What's up with that shameless group?" There's a group of sexy women dressed in skimpy clothings showing off their skin. All the Blue House students have bad eyesight, so they didn't notice. Natasha planned on pushing them like this so they won't score a single point!

"I told you to leave! It's forbidden to watch the game in such lecherous clothing!" One of the guards came to chase away Tony's bunch of girls. Natasha didn't think they'd come to check so soon and it didn't seem like Green House protested.

"Why is everyone going gaga over these women, it's stupid." It wasn't Green House who complained. It was Nat's old enemy, Maurice Keller. Standing behind a wall, she watched as the guard chased them away.

Even though Blue House managed to stop Green House from overtaking him, the points difference didn't allow them to breathe easily. When it was their turn to be at bat, they employed another strategy, placing the bat firmly on the ground, protecting the wicket entirely.

During the planning, Bluer was surprised that there were more plans. But Natasha had even more in store in case the others end up failing.

With that method, they managed to score a sizable amount of points. It only worked because of the strength that Green House was throwing  the ball and the brains to be able to calculate where the ball would land from Blue House.

At the last Green House's offense, they managed to slow their opponent and were still clinging onto the lead. The difference between them was getting smaller. With 2 overs left, they have to step up their game if they want to stop Green House from gaining more points.

"I'm counting on you Rushman." Bluer placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. Imitating a trumpet, the Blue House's players surrounded the player at bat. It was such a tight defense that it seemed ridiculous.

'The bowler is that pipsqueak? Her throw can't be much. She's hardly a threat to someone like me who's been a Green House regular for three years.' The batter thought when he saw Natasha stepping up with the ball.

Natasha threw the ball and it bounced before heading towards the batter's face. In order to protect himself, he lifted up his bat and the ball bounced once in the field before reaching Clayton.

"Hey, that's dangerous!" He shouted, thinking Nat has got no control.

"I'm sorry."

"It's okay, It's a dot, so do it over."

Natasha tried again and it headed towards the batter's face once again, earning an out. "I was just evading a dangerous ball there! Also, what are you doing, failing to throw properly twice is-" He started complaining about the referee's judgement.

Once the players started to realise what they were playing at, they started shouting that it wasn't fair and that they were breaking the rules. Their rage spread to the spectators in the stands who started booing.

"Breaking the rules? When? Who did?" Natasha said as he looked at the audience. "The bowler throws towards the wicket. The batman tries to protect it by hitting in front of it. So of course the ball will pass through the vicinity of the batsman." Natasha started explaining.

"This time my control was bad, and it went to the vicinity of the batsman's face. For 'some reason' the batsman swung and sent the ball flying. Then 'by chance' a player that happened to be near to the ball caught it with no bounce. So isn't it 'just' one out??" Like having her hostage in her hands, she explained what she was doing.

"It's not cricket!" The spectators started chanting and booing.

"Oh noo. Her terrible personality is showing." Thor muttered under his breath as the scene unfolded before him. Bucky was unfazed about what's happening but Wanda and Pietro wasn't sure how Natasha was going to settle this.

"Shut up!" Greenhill shouted as he walked closer to Natasha. "I won't have you booing during our sacred match! And Rushman, unfair?" He raised her hands without informing her. "Can you all see this?" He was talking about her rough calloused hands.

"This hand tells us everything. About his efforts, and commitment. To precisely throw towards the batsman's face. Saying is easy, but doing is hard. She must have done some heavy training to get this far. That from a small girl from the physically weak Blue House would have come this far... Do you understand what that means? The owl came to hunt the lion, in earnest."

He then turned towards his teammates. "Green House isn't so frail that we would lose over one simple trap! Let's give it our all and smash them!!"

Though Natasha wasn't satisfied that he called her small, the match was able to continue without much more commotion.

Knowing that Natasha would throw a ball towards their face, they prepared their bat much higher than they usually would. But this time... Natasha threw an off side low ball, catching them by surprise.

With the prior knowledge that Natasha aim's for the face, the batsman prepares for a leg side high ball. To react properly to an offside low ball in that tense situation is incredibly difficult. If the ball hits the batsman they won't get a penalty. Not to mention no one could imagine there'd be someone who purposely throws dangerous balls... If you defend, it'll be caught. If you attack, it'll be bowled.

Natasha kept their score stagnant for the most part but she was defeated in the end. "Well done, Rushman. Leave the rest to me." Bluer said as she took the ball from her.

After pushing up his sleeves, he got ready to throw. People saw the ball leave his hands but didn't see where it went until it landed behind the batsman and disrupted the wicket.

In the four years since Bluer have been a student, Blue House has never known any position but last in the tournament. For some reason, this became natural to them bookworms at Blue House. But having Natasha there was like a wind pushing them on. They thought they were find just excelling in their studies, but they were wrong, they wanted to win too.

What he could do was to make last minute calculations and create detailed schemes. And keep training so as not to lose to Natasha.

The crowd was silent before they blasted into surprised cheering, never seeing such an unprecedented move. Throwing the ball into the sky and landing accurately behind the batsman.

It's a simple trajectory calculation. It came straight at the wicket from the sky without a moment of hesitation at incredible speed. That ball was almost like... the hunter in the dark.

"As expected Bluer... that overcalculated bowling is just like you. However, there is no ball I cannot hit."

Bluer tried again with the sky high toss but Greenhill placed his bat behind his back and swung it down like it was a sword. Natasha, who was standing behind Greenhill, saw the bat swing just barely millimeters from her face.

He did it again. He did what others wouldn't have thought to do. Muscle, strength, eyesight, senses. It was a way of swinging that's only possible because Greenhill excels at all those.

105 to 103. Going against Greenhill with this score and the last bowl, Blue House wouldn't be able to hold their lead much longer. Bluer trained and bet everything on that ball, to have conquered it this fast, he has nothing else left to take him on with. Green House's students started cheering, thinking they were going to be the champions of the the annual Cricket Tournament once again.

"Bluer?" Natasha came over to pass him the ball. "Let's go at it one more time."

"That throw won't work!! Do you just want to let him swing it back into our faces?" He asked angrily. For once in his lifetime he wanted to win at a sports event, but it was getting snatched away right in front of him.

"You gave it your all that Blue House was able to stand united and do their best. That's why, I want you to throw a ball without any regrets. We are just one step away from victory, I ain't going to throw it away just because of one small obstacle. Please, give us your very best throw." Natasha said as she placed the ball in his hands.

With the new ball in his hands, and new found confidence, he placed everything he had on the final ball before throwing it out. Adjusting to what he saw, Greenhill took a step back before everyone heard a loud thud.

The bat had hit Natasha's forehead and she dropped to the ground. Getting hit by Greenhill's bat was no joke. "Are you okay?" Greenhill went to check on her, not caring about the match that was still on going.

Natashsa saw that the ball was near her and reached out for it, ignoring the blinding pain that was coursing through her. Using all she had, she threw the ball towards the wicket and shouted towards the umpire.

"Out! Greenhouse: 10 out! The match is over. Blue House wins 105 to 104!!"

The Blue Miracle has happened again. All the players ran towards Natasha and lifted her up, throwing her in the sky, shouting hooray. Natasha laughed with them as it wasn't an easy feat defeating Green House. It has been some time since she has done a mission of this size by herself as Y/N usually does it for her. Even the Red Witch mission didn't require as much planning as this.

"Wait a second!" Y/N came out from wherever she was from and brought her down safely. "How rash, your top priority should be to get medical aid." She said when she saw Natasha bleeding from her forehead.

"But I'm happy that we managed to win, that I can forget about the pain. Because we showed everyone that if we try, we can do it." Y/N sighed when she heard the words coming out of Nat's mouth. Whatever means necessary, shouldn't have taken this far.

As Y/N brought Natasha to the infirmary, people applause of admiration can be heard.

---

"Oww! Can't you be a bit more gentle?" Natasha hissed when the antiseptic came into contact with her skin. Now not needing to care about her facade as nobody was here to look, she was free to be whoever she wanted to be in front of her girlfriend.

"Weren't you so happy that you forgot about the pain?" Y/N teased.

"As if!"

"Everything went according to plan. You got a much nicer 'medal' than we expected." Y/N said, talking about the mark on her forehead that wouldn't be going anywhere for a few days.

"I know I can get a nicer medal... from you." Y/N didn't understand what Nat was talking about until she pointed at her cheeks. "Come on... I won the tournament, this is the least you can do." Nat saw Y/N cheeks turned red before leaning in. Nat turned at the right time, capturing Y/N lips in hers. "I want a true medal."

Y/N cleared her throat before saying. "As you ordered, I retrieved the ball." Y/N took out the ball from her pocket.

"Hmph, I don't think Bluer would see through our trick anyway. It's just the weight that's a bit different. But it's thanks to this, we could win according to plan."

Bluer threw the different ball in the same way he always did. Thanks to that, the tiny difference in weight created a big difference in the ball's trajectory. Which means, Nat had every intention to be hit by Greenhill's bat in order for him to stop caring about the game.

[allamericansbitch]

Regarding the WAGs conversation you had yesterday, I wanna bring up another toxic space in sports, Indian cricket. On one hand you have WAGs being dismissed as nothing more than spectators for their husbands' activities and the internal politics in what it means to be one.

Then there's the cesspool that is Indian cricket fanboys. Virat Kohli's wife Anushka Sharma has suffered endlessly because of them for over a decade. She's the first person the cameras point to when Virat misses a ball. She's called a bad luck charm if he loses (but not a good luck one if he wins). She's harassed by incels on social media for her and her husband's joint decision to not have their baby daughter on social media. When Virat posts about her genuinely and appreciatively, they'll come camp on his comments like a disease and accuse him of not dedicating his life ONLY to cricket.

Mind you, Anushka Sharma is an A- list Bollywood actress and producer in her own right. She was well known before him. And yet they'll throw around gold digger claims.

Granted, Kohli is not an attention seeker like Travis, he keeps his private life private and has defended his wife from his fandom several times. But still. The life of a WAG sounds genuinely stressful and upsetting and its disappointing that swifties themselves are buying into it

God I hate how this experience is universal

[midnightscxre]

@napalmvein ˙[ Closed starter -- side thread ]

The sound of rolling tires on moist gravel pierced the darkness of the unholy hour. If it weren't for the dim light that barely made its way through the high windows of the old Spanish colonial house, gloomy evening would have mercilessly engulfed everything around it when the American muscle's headlights went off. Scarlet haired woman didn't realize how long she had been driving, the beautiful peaceful landscape where the crickets serenaded the moon, the tall grass swaying gently in the hot breeze, the edge of the forest stretching along the north side of the valley. . . she would have admired everything while keeping the oxygen in her lungs if her tunnel focus had not been on the red dot on the smartphone screen, which showed the destination of the entered coordinates. Clare fought with fangs and claws like a she-wolf defending her cubs to get hold of those numbers, to get the ' map ' that would lead her to him.

She never forgot to close the door and turn the key in the lock of her tin pet, now -- the car was left with the driver's door wide open, while the feet swallowed the meters. . . Blood pump was beating mercilessly, pulse hitting the soft skin, lower lip smeared with a blooming scarlet drips because how much the woman was gnawing away from the nervousness that was ripping the guts. She leapt up four stairs like a gazelle on the run, grabbing the door and gasping for air -- she didn't even let up, didn't take a break. A fist slammed aggressively on the door at least five times before a clear, penetrating voice joined the din. " Vincent?! Vincet open up! " the full name left a strange aftertaste on soft muscle, she always used the shortened version.

Worry poured from every pore as the seconds of deafening silence became a minute. A couple of thunderous fresh knocks, this time hitting the underside of the weathered mahogany door with the tip of her sneaker. " Vincet, open the door! " The palms were covered with a thin layer of cold sweat, the stomach was heaving bile. . . What if he is not conscious? What if the injuries are so dangerous and severe that it is impossible to make a sound, let alone reach the door? The thought injected a new dose of trepidation, dread possessing the hourglass shape as some ancient demon. Darting to the nearest window and getting on the tip of the toes, jade irises jumped from left to right in dismay, like a pink pong ball that players throw over the net. A thick layer of dust and a handful of thrown things obstructed the clear view. Few curses fell between the gritted teeth as she lunged at the door again, ready to break the lock with a porch chair.

Clink

Like an angel's trumpet, the sound of the door unlocking froze her in place with relief, but that feeling evaporated like water in the burning sun when she saw a beautiful face full of cuts, a swollen eye, a stooped posture that was not at all characteristic of this man who exuded strength. .Fatigue, exhaustion, pain, and confusion marred everything that normally graced his attitude... drilling a hole in the readhead's heart. " Vinc. . . wha. . . " eyes glazed with teardrops caused by tremendous concern by witnessing Vince's agony, scanned him anxiously. Darting toward the man, delicate hand pressed on the prominent jaw, lifting his head up, other slipping under the ribs as if she wanted to hold him upright. " What happened?! Why aren't you in a damn hospital? " Pointless questions, knowing answer to both, but refusing to make peace with them. Fury rose along the other unpleasant emotions of the harsh fact that Paul rather had Vince in that damn bug-like man's ' one minute ' care to save himself from suspicion from the real doctors. " Where else are you hurt? Are you feeling nauseous, headache, weakness? " Checking the pupils but barely making anything in the pitch black of the night, Clare tenderly lowered the hand to his chest then slid it gently to his ribs. " Are any of your bones broken? Can you breathe normally? " Fearing that his hunched posture might be the result of a fractured ribs, she continued to examine him.

[cricketdirectuk]

Excitement rises with World Cup set to begin in US

by Rex Clementine

There have been many attempts by the International Cricket Council to take cricket to the United States but with little success. This time staging of the T-20 World Cup in the US is expected to end the deadlock. While authorities have noticed the immense potential cricket has in the US due to the eyeballs that watch the games on television thanks to the large south Asian population,  there’s massive commercial potential as well. The only thing now that needs to be done is to get the locals play the game. This hopefully will be a small step forward in a promising road ahead.

A total of 20 teams will compete in the month long competition with three US venues hosting games – New York, Dallas and Florida while six West Indies grounds are chosen for the competition. The two semi-finals will be worked off at Guyana and Trinidad followed by the grand final in Barbados.

England are the defending champions having won the title in 2022 in Australia beating Pakistan in a closely fought final. Their white ball side has suffered some setbacks since then but they will be keen to prove a point.

New Zealand have been very consistent in ICC events in recent years but they have had little luck going their way in knockout games or finals. They’ve got all bases covered and will be a team to watch during the tournament.

India are coming into the competition under tremendous pressure having not won an ICC event since 2011. When they hosted the 50 over World Cup last year, they cruised through to the finals without losing a game but in the final they stumbled breaking the hearts of one billion fans. Winning ten games in a row in the tournament but failing in the big one was a bitter pill to swallow. They have backed a few ageing players to deliver the goods and no team can boast of the experience that India has.  

Pakistan have been unpredictable always and you never know what they will offer. Their bowling looks formidable but their batting remains fragile while fielding could hurt them.

Australia have made some bold decisions. Pat Cummins would be a welcome leader for any team in the world but the Aussies have opted for Mitchell Marsh as their new captain for the T-20 side. Similarly, Steve Smith could walk into any side but Australia have left him out. It will be interesting to see how they go in the tournament.

Several South African players have had brilliant stints in the IPL this season. They surely will replicate that form during the World Cup but it is those crunch moments that they fail miserably choking not able to handle the pressure.

Temas like Sri Lanka and West Indies were once a strong force in world cricket but they do not have the same impact anymore. A semi-final slot will be a bonus for either team.

With the tournament increased to 20 teams, there’s a chance to accommodate several new teams and it remains to be seen how sides like Uganda and Papua New Guinea will fare.