Cricket in Village

If you are reading my earlier posts, this is in continuation with my memories of village. I am trying to write small post in a single day… so that you can read it.

In village, we were having buffalos for milking. Sometimes I used to take them for grazing with other friends in the morning and again in the evening. We were out for three to four hours, enjoying and playing some games in-group, climbing on trees. We carry the meal rapped in a cloth. One thing I noted was we enjoyed the meal much more on field rather than at home. The taste of meal at field was really different. Don’t know why?? May be after hard work the meal tastes better or the environment makes it tasty. But it was really great feeling having meal out of home on the field.
While returning in the evening with cattle, you might have read in books the evening scene, how the sun looks like at that time which is called “godhully” in Hindi. It was marvelous scene, which I have seen and was a part of that.
In the evening, we used to play cricket. The Bat was made of plain patta or the wood with which we wash cloths. The ball was made of by tearing cloth and then making the tear cloths rolled over and then stitches it with needle. It was hard one. The wickets were sticks of a neem tree or other tree putting them in the ground with the help of sand. The teams were made depending on the number of players available.
We used to play cricket sometimes in field or in galli or inside house. The courage was so high that sometimes only my brother and me play cricket and it continued for hours in hot. And sometimes I played with small children. Even if no one was at home, I used to hit the ball on the wall (my son does the same at home now and his mamma will say “apne baap par gaya hai”) when it rebounds back I hit it with bat trying to make different shots or was making bowling practice at home trying to swing or spin the ball.
Tournaments were being organized amongst different villages teams. The matches are mostly of 16 overs. We took part in those tournaments. After taking part in one or two tournaments, I became a prominent member of my village team. We participated in big tournaments by making team of combining good players of nearby villages. One thing I noted was they all respect me and called me in all the tournaments and soon I became a very known, familiar player around the villages. The most important point was my batting, bowling and fielding i.e. I was all a rounder. It was always difficult for the opponents to out me and when I bowl they fear of my bowling. Though I was not a very fast bowler.
We won many matches. I remember one incident, after joining my service I was out of village, my friend were playing in some tournament… 50 kms away from village. When I reached village in the night, they came at my home around 10 PM and requested me to play the semifinal match tomorrow. Even at that time my parents could not deny me and in the morning I went with them, and we won that match…..
At that time, for cricket, I could be anywhere; sometimes I have to face parent’s anger. But gone are the days now…..woh deen….