Last man stands cricket crosses boundaries
SAXONWOLD – Joburg's best last man stands cricketers are gearing up for World Champs and the Cape Town Open.
Last man stands (LMS) cricket is still going strong in Joburg, with weekly matches at Zoo Lake Sports Club, Old Eds, Marks Park Sports Club, and Wendywood and Sandringham high schools.
The relatively new format of the game is also experiencing more hype with the Cape Town Open coming up in December, where many of Joburg’s teams will compete.
Joburg’s best team, Rebels, will also go to Australia and compete in the Last Man Stands World Champs, where they were runners-up last year.
“Last man stands is doing well in Joburg, we have about 900 people playing in our 11 leagues,” said Owen Chitsinho, who runs the sport in the city.
“It is popular because it gives every player a chance to participate and the matches are shorter, which helps because of modern working hours.”
LMS cricket involves T20 matches played between teams of eight players. In order to get a team out within the allotted 20 overs, the opposition has to take every wicket, unlike in standard cricket.
When a batsman scores 50 runs he/she has to retire so the next batsman can play.
A six-hit off the last ball of the innings yields 12 runs – this is called a ‘home run’, and more than 20 matches have been won in Joburg in this way.
With fewer fielders and a smaller risk of being run-out, the format encourages explosive batting. Furthermore, singles are not allowed so batsmen have to run two runs if a boundary is not scored.
Another deviance in the rules is that if a ball is hit into the air, it can result in both a catch and a run-out.
“We have a website [www.lastmanstands.com] where all results and rankings are recorded. You can look at how you compare to players around the world. One weekend you can be 2 000th in the world and then score a century and find yourself moving up 800 places. It is very encouraging.”
Chitsinho said there is a great difference in skill levels between the leagues in Joburg so new players do not need to worry about being not good enough. He said there is a team for everyone.
Details: Last Man Stands Joburg joburg@lastmanstands.net; 071 612 1674.
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