KOK News Correspondent: Crusaders enter a testing phase

A series of close finishes have left the crusaders with a disheartened second position as Crusaders finished close second to Bodacious Bandits in the Marquity ka Karmyudh, thus conceding 50 points towards KOK, and badminton semi finals. It were the engrossing turn of events in the badminton semi finals that almost saw Crusaders create an upset when they lead 2-1 at the half stage with Nikhil defeating Karan and Madhur getting the better of Pramod. The only victory thus far for Bandits was Deepa's win over Konyaka.

Crusaders entered the badminton men's doubles with high voltage energy and were cruising with a 17-12 lead in the first set when Karan changes a few gears and directed the play by winning crucial points at an important juncture. His poise couples with a few unforced errors saw Bandits make a comeback and win the first set. In the second set, neither team gave anything up and the match went to the tie breaker. bandits held their nerves to emerge victorious and equal the semi-final equation at two games apiece. Clearly, it was Karan who overshadowed the match making up for his loss in the singles. The story continued in the mixed doubles where Aman-Geetu bowed down to Pramod-Deepa in again a closely contested match. 

Camineys had a disappointing end to the marketing campaign after losing by three points. Although the defeat was a bitter pill to swallow, nevertheless the Crusader's participation in numbers was a great motivation. All the available Crusaders put their hands up and made themselves available. Be it Megha, Shauvik, Konyaka, Madhur, Mohit, Neha, Amrut, Anket (in spirit), Abhishek and others, everyone contributed wholeheartedly.

These close misses have opened a pandora's box with Bandits also coming into the picture as a contender for the KOK championship. The next few days will decide the outcome with a host of finals lined up. Crusaders face up against Bheydiyas in the Cricket finals. It is expected to be a close contest although Bhediyas are firm favourites after having defeated Crusaders convincingly during the group stage.

Crusaders' Anthem

KOK News Correspondent: Crusaders get a breather in Football; Crowned champions in Table Tennis & Chess ; Volleyball tournament yet to begin

August 22, MDI, 03:52 AM

It was a day when lady luck smiled on Crusaders after a disappointing day in the football field. Been deprived of a victory at the end of full time, Hellraisers defeated Camineys 3-0 on penalties. However, bearing to a mismanaged decision to conduct the shootouts in the group stage the victory was later rescinded to a draw as no penalty shootout are to be conducted during the group stages.

The match began on a high note for the Camineys as they rallied their mid field to earn the ball and create some bright moves for the forward line. The constant attack paid off as Amrut netted a goal in the 6th minute of the match. Camineys kept up the pace with Hellraisers ably defending the continuing surge forward. However, it was a lucky break which saw Hellraisers scoring against the run of play after Singhi saw the ball being headed over his head after the initial clearance. The second half began with Hellraisers taking full advantage of their first half goal to build more pressure on the Caminey's defense. As the game progressesd, the balance again tilted in the favour of the Camineys who attacked from both the flanks. Bhuppi, Amrut, Nikhil were impressive in their moves and passed the ball efficiently. The defense led by Sandy was equally impressive in clearing any signs of danger and passing the ball to the mid-filed. At the end of full time, the score was level at 1-1. Mukund, the referee decided to conduct a penalty shootout which clearly surfaced the weakling of the Crusaders. None of the Camineys got on the score sheet while HellRaisers converted three of their four attempts to win 4-1 on penalties. But Camineys had the last laugh as the penalties were cancelled giving a ray of hope to the Camineys. Now all eyes are set on the match up today between Camineys & IM, who would want to seek revenge for their cricket semi final loss to Camineys at the same venue.

In other news, Volleyball match was called off for a second day counting as weather played the spoilsport yet again. the not so congenial volleyball court was covered with water even during the late hours of Saturday evening.

The Crusaders are still basking in the glory of their back to back TT & Chess victories. The TT Final saw keenly contested matches between D & Camineys. After Amrita prevailed to win the opening match, D enjoyed an easy win in the second ladies singles match. The tension was palpable as D came from behind to win the mixed doubles match. The tension was high with both side's supporters going on full frontal attack to discourage the opposition players. In the next match, Aman played out of his skin to win a comprehensive and beautifully carved victory to bring the finals in the balance. This was followed by a smothering victory in which kandarp decimated Ashwin of Section D. Emotions ran high as Hardik & Sid inched closer to the men's doubles victory. It was a scene of chaos as Camineys sealed the match. Despite the 4-2 victory, Section D definitely deserved the accolades for putting up a tough fight in front of Camineys. Though camineys were expected to win, D's grit and determination almost derailed the Crusading Camineys. unperturbed by the resistance, camineys stuck at what they know best, TO WIN and gave the first 100 points to Camineys.

Clockwise from above: Amrut & Abhishek in a boisterous mood; kandarp gets ready to face Ashwin; Crusaders' joy knows no bound after winning the TT tournament

The Chess team was instrumental to bag the Chess championship with 4-1 victory over HellRaisers as Camineys again proved to be beyond excellence. Singhi, kandarp and Amruteshwar were intrumental in getting the all important 100 points. Camineys crashed out of the Tennis tournament following a 3-0 drubbing at the hands of Section B. With other disciplines beginning in the coming week, the Crusaders will need to pull up their socks to account for 150 more points to rekindle any hopes for being crowned the KOK champions.

KOK News Correspondent: Crusaders enter cricket finals

August 19, Cricket Greens, 03:52 AM


Crusaders marched into the finals of the cricket tournament after beting the over-hyped PGPIM team in the Semi-finals. Batting first Crusaders made good opportunity of the conditions as the top order creamed the bowlers all over the park to lay a good foundation. The middle order made amends of the good start and kept up the pressure. However, good bowling by Kshitij bansal saw PGPIM stage a comeback into the match. he kept a leash on the runs in addition to picking crucial wickets. The lower order could not make good use of the last overs as Crusaders finished on 99/9 at the end of the stipulated 12 overs.

Utkarsh  gets ready to face a delivery

PGPIM started horrendously losing two batsmen in the opening over as well as Kshitij being castled in the third by Abhinav. There was no coming back as Imkept losing wickets on regular intervals. Light played the spoilsport as the match was abandoned for the day and carried forward to the next day. At this point, PGPIM required 53 of 4 overs with 4 wickets in hand.

Aman & Pulkit having a gala time

The continuation of the match saw madhur being pounded for a six of the very fisrt ball. however, he had the last laugh as Jatin skied an easy catch to the deep Mid-wicket boundary. The iniings shortly folded up as two of the last three batsmen were run out.

Crusaders having a good time

This victory will boost the morale of the Camineys as they wait the result of the second semi final between A & D. 

KOK News Correspondent: Crusaders enter Cricket semi finals, Chess team on a roll

August 17, MDI, 00:15 AM

Good news was again on the cards as Crusaders entered cricket tournament's semi finals thanks to Section A's victory over Section B. Made to depend on the outcome of the match between the other two teams in the pool, Crusaders let their fate hang in the balance after their two round robin matches. However, a decent effort by A saw them outshine B in a close match. Though the score would not suggest that the tension was high during the closing overs, but a superb batting performance by Ketan amidst falling wickets was not enough to secure the all important win. Ketan was the lone knight in the shining armour as B folded up for 71 while chasing a gettable 89 in the 8 overs to win with a bonus point. The fall of wickets around him was the major reason for the loss. However, this loss meant that Crusaders can now look forward to a match up with PGPIM today. Incidently, PGPIM won their last league match against Section D to finish on top of group B. Now all eyes are set on the first semi finals between PGPIM and Camineys.

In some other news, Camineys defeated A 3-0 in Chess to make a grand entry in the Finals, on aggregate (6-0), of the Chess tournament. There was no competition as Kandarp, Singhi and Amruteshwar won their respective matches.

KOK News Correspondent: TT team march onwards into the Finals, Chess team wins 3-0 over PGPIM in the opening round

August 16, CM Basement 2:24 AM

The TT team continued their grand display of mastery with a 4-3 win over Section A to enter the finals of the KOK TT tournament. With the victory over Section A, Caminey Crusaders become the first team to reach the finals of any event in KOK 2010. The semi finals was a fairly contested contest which saw a resistance put up by section A. The going was not all that easy this time round as Camineys fell from a 1-0 advantage to a 2-3 scoreline due to handsome victories by the opposition in game no 2,3 and walkover in the men's doubles. It was left to the very last match to seal the all important win.

The semi finals began with an easy victory of Kandarp over the opponent. However, Hardik was outplayed in his match which saw some smart play by Section A's Gangwani. unable to unleash his master weapon, Hardik faced an uphill task to force the issue. The strength of his game lies in the fat that despite not being at his utmost best, Gangwani managed to just edge past him in all the three sets. The next match up saw Geetu lose to the seasoned Swati. Under duress, Amrita rose to the ocassion by thrashing Anuja and returning the favour for the Lawn Tennis loss last night.

Amrita & kandarp at it all day long

Next, their was a brief mix up due to unavailability of a Camina for the TT Men's doubles match up leading to a walkover and Section A going ahead 3-2. Needing to win the last two matches, Kandarp (briefly excusing himself from his Chess match) joined Amrita in a mixed doubles match against Swati & Mr. MDI (dunno the bloke's name). The acrobatics and energy of Section A players was insufficient to hold back the Crusaders as they easily overcame the opponents to set the match statistics at an interesting 3 apiece. It was the cool Siddarth who again drove home the advantage to outclass Section A in the all important men's singles match to win 4-3 on aggregate.

Deepak was by far the supporter of the day with his shrill voice causing discomfort amongst Section A as well as other Caminey supporters. Abhishek Jain was in his usual elements while Surender preferred to be the silent spectator as the drama unfolded.

In the other news, Singhi and Amruteshwar won their opening encounters while Kandarp massacred his opponent in the opening round of the KOK Chess tournament. Also, there was more nerves on the cricket field as the rain played spoilsport leading to postponement of the match between A & B. B is expected to field their strongest team todaywith the inclusion of all the players who chose to go home over the weekend. The A vs B match up is scheduled for 4 PM today.

Singhi getting the better of Jatin

 

Some of the Camineys have been overlooked in the previous correspondences. Be it Shauvik who has turned up for the cricket matches or Simron who was boisterous in his cat calls on the cricket field yesterday, all have chipped in with their support.

KOK News Correspondent: Satisfaction at Last

August 15, MDI, 1:24 AM

August 14th was a successful day for the Camineys as they steam rolled over their opponents to win convincingly in all the disciplines namely, Cricket, TT and Tennis. While the batsmen did a wonderful job in securing a much needed win in cricket to keep any hope alive to qualify to the semi finals the tennis players overcame a decent resistance from the Section A to win 3-1. Moreover, It was the usual story in the TT arena as Crusaders whitewashed PGPIM 4-0 to march onwards into the semi finals.

It was a tenuous start to the day's proceeding with a heavy downpour raising concerns of abandonment of the cricket match. However, due to some champion efforts of the sports club of MDI as well as the players of HR team, the match between Crusaders and Section B was rescheduled to 5:30 p.m. Section B won the toss and elected to bowl in overcast conditions. The Crusaders started well with Pulkit carting two sensational boundaries in the first over itself. However, the joy was short lived as Pulkit handed an easy catch to point on the last ball of the first over. Aman and Utkarsh seized the initiative with hitting boundaries at regular intervals in the next two overs. Again, the top order fumbled with Aman and Utkarsh getting out in succession. Hardik and Abhishek, who was sent lower down the order, played very well and hit some lusty blows to clear the boundary and push the score over 50. Camineys maintained a constant run rate of over ten per over all through. With the fall of few more wickets, the lower middle order as well as the tail again contributed with as many as 5 sixes being hit between them. The Crusaders ended at 110 for the loss of nine wickets.

 

 

Clockwise from above: Pulkit hits a lofted shot over covers; Abhinav steaming in to bowl his first delivery; Karthik a.k.a. Cobra raises his arms during the match in glee after claiming two wickets

If it were the batsmen the other day, it was the turn of the bowlers to disappoint today. A match which could have well been won in a jiffy was left till the very last over majorly due to lackluster performance in the field. Both the frontline bowlers were put away by some efficient and thoughtful batting. If it was Ketan's pinch hitting display in the first over, It was Karthik a.k.a. Cobra whose sublime batting towards the end overs led to a close contest with respect to the crucial bonus point. Section B had long lost hope of the victory target and the only important milestone in their strategy was to deny Crusaders of the all important bonus point. Well, they needed to score 89 to do just that but fell short by just one run as their innings closed at 88 for 6 thanks to a good performance in the field.

Hardik runs in to high five with Nikhil at the fall of a wicket

 Now, the fortunes of Caminey Crusaders hang in the balance and all eyes are focused on the match up between Section A and Section B. If Section B manage to beat Section A with the bonus point, it is the end of the road for Caminey Crusaders as far as cricket is concerned. However, if Section B beat A by a stupendous margin, Section A might be at the receiving end. The team expressed confidence post their victory and were happy with the extra bonus point achieved. If Camineys do go to the next round, one can expect some changes in the lineup.

As far as TT, the team rocked with Anket defeating Raghav in the opening encounter.Anket came from behind to win the opening set and followed it by a more convincing display of superior game in the second set. Kandarp slept through his match up and did not even crease his jersey once during the course of the match. Next, Amrita won 11-0 11-1 to drive home the advantage. Amrita and Kandarp wrapped up the proceeding with a mixed doubles victory. The TT team did not even lose one set in this match up and are confident of repeating such performances in the days to come.

Anket overpowering Raghav of PGPIM

Moving on to the Tennis arena, The Crusaders saw change in the tennis team with Abhinav & Bhuppi coming in the team. Aman was scheduled to play the opening match, followed by Abhishek in the next men's singles match. Amrita was to play the next match followed by Abhishek-Abhinav teaming up for the men's doubles and Amrita-Bhuppi for the mixed-doubles. Aman won the opening match against Section A's Sagar and Abhishek followed it up in yet another victory. Abhishek suffered from cramps and gulped humongous amounts of Gatorade to keep his energy level up. In the end, he prevailed over the opponent who was also down with cramps towards the later part of the match. Amrita lost out a closely contested match 3-2 after sniffing victory in the ladies single match. In the next encounter, Abhishek-Abhinav managed to easily beat the opponents and thus wrap up a successful day for Crusaders.

Abhishek waits for the opponent to serve; Bhuppi & Prakahr having a good time

With respect to crowd support, Crusaders were ably backed by good turnout of the support group. If it were Prateek and Deepak who were on the cricket ground sidelines,it was Anket and party on the tennis filed to cheer the teams on their road to victories. Special mention should be made about Kandarp and Prerna who were trigger happy to click plenty of snaps all through the day. Narsi was the photographer during the TT rounds. Dhaval, Amrita, Singhi, Bhuppi, Amruteshwar, Pulkit, Prakhar, Hardik and the EXTREMELY POPULAR Surendar (who has not missed a single match faring Caminey Crusaders) were all there to cheer with poise and energy. Anket was in his elements during the tennis matches and even christened Abhishek as 'PAPA' for his over the top mentoring of Amrita. All in all, it was a successful day for SEC-C who can now look forward to cool their heels on the independence day.

Crusaders cheer their team to victory