Titanomachy - The Ultimate War

What is titanomachy? Well, simply put, it is just an idea. But, men will die, Greece will rise or fall, but this idea will live on…no matter what. What is popularly known as the most anticipated event of the academic calendar was upon us on the 30^th of October as the bidding process for the players began with full gusto...

The stage was set. The four teams (Ire of the Jedi, Dependable Devils, TMK & Maniac Marauders) had been formed & thoroughly marketed through social media. The owners sat with their newly appointed junior managers & bid for two solid hours in the conference room, eager to get the best set of players for all the varied games. The highlights of the bidding process were the never ending bids for Nakul & Jayanth who went for 2600 & 3200 points respectively. A bid that caught everyone’s eye was that of Vartika Goel who went for a heavy 2600 points. Speculation suggested that reason for her price going up so high wasn’t strictly, ahem, skill-based.

Once the teams were set, there was the draw which was carried out by Dr. R.P. Sharma. First up was Chess, then the first stage of Football to be followed by a mega day of all the matches of Volleyball, Basketball & Badminton. Next would be the day with all the Cricket matches followed by Table Tennis in the evening. The event would be concluded with the Football finals & the closing ceremony on the 12^th of November.

Chess was up first & the surprise player was Nitika Bansal who won over many hearts after defending brilliantly against Subhra & timing her out before tearing through Vartika Singh’s black army. Jedi raced to top of the table by finishing at the top. TMK followed in second place with DD finishing in third.

Next up was Football with stars shining bright in DD & MM’s caps. Rain played a major part in this match with the wet, muddy ground proving too hard to play for many. Regardless, DD demolished Jedi in their first round match by scoring 4 unanswered. The upset of the day was TMK overcoming DD when a half-intended pass by right winger Ankit Yaduvanshi found its way into the feet of Varun Raj & he found the net with ease. The player of this event was undoubtedly Mayank Gulati, the star goalkeeper of TMK who blocked attempt after attempt on his post.

The very next day was the mega-day. First up was Volleyball & there was just one thing that anyone & everyone had praises for in this event, the serves of Ankit Yaduvanshi. TMK, in both their matches were down by large margins before the ball was given to Ankit Yaduvanshi. In Manish Bhai’s words, ‘It was as if rockets were being launched from the other end.’ He was sadly the recipient of most of Ankit’s serves in their first encounter & the impact made his forearms clot. He was given the nickname ‘Hand of God’ by his teammates. Needless to say, TMK won & with Jedi finishing last, TMK took the lead in the points table.

The action then shifted to the basketball court where Manish Bhai’s two big buys shone & Raj set the trail ablaze. He was, by-far, the best player on the court that day. MM defeated DD in the final & MM recorded their first victory. This was the third time that DD was in the final & they had lost both of the two finals that they had played. In the third place match, TMK’s magician Mayank Gulati turned it around for TMK with a memorable 8 point game. Ankit Yaduvanshi also scored a three pointer from way out, rising over Nitika Bansal’s head.

Next came Badminton & it was really hard to pick out a single player that shone out. The level of play displayed by the top two was very high indeed. Manish Bhai, Tushar Pandey (JPC), Tarun Madaan & Viksit Arora were shining like gems & their doubles match was the highlight of the day. DD won the final but MM won hearts.

Dead tired from the day’s toil, the titans trundled their way back home. A brilliant strategy was devised by Umesh (all credit to him) which gave 3 days of rest to everyone before the action moved to the Cricket grounds where after defeating MM & Jedi respectively, TMK & DD met in the finals. This was the third final between these two giants. In the end, DD took the cake with a 14 run victory over TMK. There were no star players as such but Tarun Madaan, targeted to be lambashed in the final, bowled superbly & gave just 4 runs in his 3 overs which was the difference between victory & certain defeat. A brief fistfight between Ankit Yaduvanshi & Rohit Shukla was the highlight of the day. Kunal Patil set the stage ablaze with a quickfire 18 for Jedi which included 2 sixes.

The Table Tennis matches saw a major upset as TMK’s team, which looked very strong on paper, went out in the first round. DD won & it was Kunal Patil who was the shining star for Jedi once again. Titanomachy had been decided & yet, the Grand Finale was eagerly awaited.

The stage had been set. The ground had been booked. The torches had been lit. The time had come for the Football Finals. The final event of Titanomachy was upon us. MM & Jedi’s third place match was won by MM in extra time which set the stage for a last minute drama in the next match.

TMK’s strategy was to frustrate DD & hit them on the counter. With a rock solid defense, they were able to do just that. They created some really good moves with solid moves going down both wings. Raj Sharan had an off day & failed to convert a host of chances that were in the offing for TMK. The match ended at 0-0. Now is when the drama began!

Penalties were declared & just as it was about to start, the floodlights went out. So, the match was declared to be a draw. Many TMK players left including star finisher & right winger, Ankit Yaduvanshi. Then the lights were switched on again & after 3 extra penalties, DD won the tie amidst strong winds of controversy. It was a fitting end to a brilliantly organized event.

UMESH, hats off to your organizational capacity! The event was very well planned & executed.

By: Ankit Yaduvanshi