Twickenham II          238 a/o           E. Paxton 49, T. Guy 41, M. Cull 3-47

Old Rutlishians II       198-7              J. Pryce 52, A. Khan 2-24, P. Johnson 2-31

Twickenham’s second string started 2010 with a winning draw in the traditional season-opener against Old Ruts.  Solid performances from Twickenham’s middle order helped set the hosts on their way to 238 with Eddie Paxton (49), Tom Guy (41), Anu Agarwal (34) and Richie Brewin (34) the stand out performances.  A lively new ball spell from Athar Khan (2-24 off 8) put Twickenham firmly in the box seat, whilst 2-31 from the old war horse Paul Johnson pushed the Ts to the edge of victory.  52 from opening bowler Jamie Pryce, his first half century in senior cricket, nonetheless stemmed the tide as Old Ruts held on for a well-deserved draw.

The pavilion might still be something of a building site, but that didn’t stop Twickenham entering 2010 in good spirits.  Blue skies and sunshine were the order of the day and summer appeared to be well and truly on the way.  The square on Twickenham Green looked in immaculate nick, and on winning the toss new Ts’ skipper Dan Hough had little hesitation in opting to bat.  Successful though the skipper might have been with the coin, the same couldn’t be said of his batting; Hough departing for 3 in the third over.  This early setback brought Eddie Paxton in to join Tom Guy and between them they went about setting a decent base.  Both played aggressively through the leg side, whilst running positively between the wickets. 

The Ts 50 came up in the 13^th over and soon the score was motoring on in the direction of 100.  It wasn’t long before both Guy and Paxton entered the 40s themselves, and it was a bit of a surprise when both departed in quick succession; Guy successfully found the one and only man out deep on the leg side to depart for 41 whilst Paxton was well caught by Flanagan off Watson one shy of his half-century.

The Ts middle order nonetheless did an excellent job of keeping the momentum going; Anu Agarwaal whacked and clobbered his way to a brisk 34, whilst Richie Brewin played some silky smooth drives and glances as he too advanced in to the 30s.  Brewin in particular looked in decent nick, and it was against the flow of things when he was abruptly bowled by Cull for 34. 

Dave Brady and Athar Khan carried on the good work, Khan in particularly forcing the scoring rate upwards.  Khan played a couple of excellent cover drives, and once he (32) and Brady (18) had been and gone the Ts were well over 200 and on course to set a decent target.  Club Captain Paul Johnson played a couple of imperious cover drives to see the Ts close on an eminently respectable 238 at the close.

Old Ruts began their reply in positive fashion, with both Liam Armstrong and Simon Flanagan looking to be positive.  Armstrong in particular was timing the ball well, and looked as if he was settling in for bed and breakfast.  Athar Khan had other ideas.  Khan bowled with admirable control to an 8-1 field, tempting both openers into expansive drives.  He got his reward firstly when Eddie Paxton pulled off the day’s champagne moment, running back from mid on to catch Armstrong (18) left-handed just as it looked like the ball was beyond him.  It was a top effort.  Debutant Steve Kruger then pulled off another super catch, this time at second slip as Flanagan edged Khan whilst attempting a drive through the covers.  When keeper/batsman Darren Noonan was forced to retire on 5, it became clear that the Ts were very much in control.

Paul Cassidy (0-37 off 11) put in a strong stint from the pavilion end, whilst Anu Agarwaal began nicely from the Staines Road End.  Agarwaal bowled with a nice loop and caused all of the batsmen problems, and although he ended wicketless (0-32 off 8) his first spell in Twickenham colours was nonetheless very promising.  The wickets were, however, beginning to fall again at the other hand.  Dan Hough ran out Simon Piper-Maska (22) with a direct hit from mid-wicket, whilst Johnson bowled the dangerous Daryl Bryant for 40.  Johnson soon doubled his tally when Ruts’ skipper Lance Keene was trapped leg before without scoring, bringing opening bowler Jamie Pryce to the crease.

Pryce took his time at the beginning, but soon started to open up and play a few attractive shots.  He rode his luck a little, but his half-century was ultimately well deserved.  Time was slowly ticking away for Twickenham, and Hough subsequently rotated his bowlers again.  Steve Kruger toiled away unluckily, eventually claiming Pryce thanks to a tumbling catch by Tom Guy at cover, whilst Matty Bendelow removed Rhys Watson (28) with two overs to go.  The Old Ruts’ rearguard nonetheless held firm, as the visitors from Morden saw the final few balls out for a losing draw.

All in all the Ts can be reasonably happy with their season-opener.  Several batters enjoyed good time at the crease, and half a dozen of them looked in pretty decent nick.  Although the Ts bowlers ultimately struggled to get the 10 wickets needed for victory, the hosts kept control of the game and have plenty to build on as the league season approaches.  Next week sees the Ts travel to near neighbours Sunbury in the final warm-up of the season.