Bashers Cricket Club

Now even the U.S. is following the Pakistan match fixing scandal: This from The Atlantic:

This week at Lord’s, England won an amazing come-from-behind victory over Pakistan. But the game now is likely to be overshadowed forever by one of the greatest scandals to ever hit international cricket.

The British newspaper News of the World alleged that in a sting operation, they paid Pakistani middleman Mazhar Majeed 150,000 pounds ($230,000) to collude with Pakistani players and deliberately fix the match, for the benefit of gambling syndicates. Majeed was arrested by police and released on bail pending further investigation. The police have also spoken to several Pakistani players. At this stage, the claims are unproven allegations. But the secretly taped video of Majeed looks, on the face of it, pretty damning.

Game’s at 8:45. Bus departing from the Camel at 7:30 sharp. Let me know if you go straight to the field.

1. Pothole
2. Pit Stop (WK)
3. Dazzler
4. Rock
5. Badabing
6. Omega
7. Swahili
8. Terror
9. Swoop
10. Tank (C)
11. Long Dong
12. Korean

All-Star Scorekeeper: Golden Shears
Esky Security: Birdshit and Woodstock

Here’s the team for Sunday. Please let me know if you’re going straight to the ground.

1. Tank
2. Woodstock
3. Rock
4. Badabing
5. Dazzler
6. Swoop
7. Golden Shears
8. Swahili
9. Pothole
10. Pit Stop
11. Long Dong
12. Groove Rider
13. Loose
    

Meeting at the Camel at 11. Bus departs at 11:30 sharp! We’re sharing the transportation with the opposition so make sure to eat a lot of beans the night before.

The Shanghai Cricket Club is organizing a cricket tour of Japan to play the Japanese national team at the end of September and is looking for interested tourists. Anyone who wants to join the tour should contact Paul Howard, Ainsley Mann or Andy Scott. Click on the pic to download the flyer for scheduled dates, costs and additional info.

Here is the Pleasure Squad (in corresponding baseball positions) for our Sunday showdown with the Devils at SRFC.

Bus departs from The Camel at 11:30.

1. Woodstock (Pitcher)
2. Swoop (Catcher)
3. Omega (First Base)
4. Pothole (Second Base)
5. Whipper (Third Base)
6. Tank (Short Stop)
7. Badabing (Left Field)
8. Long Dong (Center Field)
9. Swahili (Right Field)
10. Rock (Designated Hitter)
11. Dazzler (Closer)
12. Billy (Pinch Runner)
13. Birdshit (Mascot)
14. Latex (Bat Boy)
15. Golden Shears (Bench Coach)

Please let me know if you’ll go straight to the ground: 136 8164 2562. Match starts at 1:30.

The long awaited photos from the Great Bashers Weigh-In. Apologies for the quality of the photos, they were taken on an iPhone.

[Show as slideshow]

Time to show some love for our sponsor, who is up for best sports bar in That’s Shanghai’s Eighth Annual Food & Drinks Awards.

Also up for awards are a couple of Bashers-run establishments: Mat “Santa” Ryan and Alan “Here’s Da Ting” Duffy’s Cuvée for best wine bar and Sandeep “Mr. Tickle” Abichandani’s Kebab’s on the Grille for best Indian.

Click here to vote.

There is an excellent article and video on CNN on the origins of baseball.

“An extract from an 18th-century diary containing the oldest known reference to baseball is among the items on display in a new exhibition in London exploring the English origins and cricketing connections of America’s national sport.

“While baseball was once claimed to have been invented in the U.S. in the mid-19th century, recent findings suggest a sport of the same name may have evolved decades earlier alongside cricket, crossing the Atlantic with English settlers to the American colonies.”

Training is on weather permitting. (Address here)

Pleasure has a game on Sunday, sign up here if you are keen.

Leisure also has a game on Sunday, sign up here is you are keen.

A message from Basher XCII:

A huge thank you to Denzyl, Rakesh, Andy and all the Closet Devils…oops!! Bashers who showed up for the event..were there more than 8 in all? Well done guys, appreciate your coming and more importantly behaving! (more…)