TWICKENHAM 4s vs. ACTON 4s
Acton - 248 for 9 decl. (Piper - 55;
Extras – 63; J. Gordon – 4 for 61)
Twickenham – 93 all out. (T. George - 37;
Younis – 4 for 25)
The Ts 4th XI hosted Acton’s
4th string at Broom Road the past weekend and
disappointingly collapsed to a 2nd defeat of the season
– played 2 lost 2. Skipper Kriess, returning after family
duties, won the toss and elected to bowl and at one stage it
looked like a decision vindicated. However in the end Acton
reached 248 for 9 declared in the 49th over, thanks in
part to 63 extras given away. In response the Ts, who showed good
promise at the start of their reply, crumbled to 93 all out.
Opening bowler Younis doing most of the damage with his Malinga
type action taking 4 for 25 in his 10 over spell.
After deciding to insert the
opposition, the Ts opening pair of Bowman and Shrikanth struggled
to find their line and length and did little to impose themselves
on Acton’s opening pair of Rampton and Joshi. The first bowling
change came from the River End, where young Gordon replaced Bowman
and eventually the breakthrough came. Gordon’s pace getting the
better of Rampton, dispatching his middle stump. He soon followed
that up with a delivery that got Joshi edging behind to a well
taken catch by wicketkeeper Sam Papworth, who was making his
senior debut for the Ts.
Shrikanth found his rhythm the longer
he carried on and was unlucky not to claim his first scalp of the
day when No.3 Ruis edged to first slip. Senior Pro Tim George
dropped the opportunity, blaming his ageing eyes and in the
process complaining to the skipper about why he was fielding in
the slips. Shri was however replaced by Kriess from the Road End.
Kriess claimed his first wicket with No.4 Madden, playing across
the line. He top-edged the delivery to square leg where Khan was
well placed to take what should be a very random catch under
normal circumstance. Khan however decided to leave everyone
waiting and holding their breath, showing off his circus-like
juggling skills and finally holding on at not the 1st,
2nd or 3rd attempt but the 9th
attempt!! In 5th team skipper Dassani’s terms, this
would have been a Jonty-Monty moment combination! Breathtaking
stuff to say the least!
Gordon, having finished his fine spell,
was replaced by debutant Willoughby-Strauss. The latter, who
hadn’t bowled a ball for 4 years due to exile in Germany’s
beer-drinking capital Munich, struggled to find anything that you
can call line and length. He was replaced next over by Bowman for
his much-improved second spell. Bowman claimed his first wicket,
No.5 Khan, caught well by Phil “safe-hands” Walker at mid-on. He
also bowled No.3 Ruis and when Kriess claimed his 2nd
wicket of the day No.6 Subramony, again in a combination of Kriess
and the “juggling” Khan the Ts looked in a very strong position
with the score at 138 for 6.
Enter No.7 Piper and No.8 Reeve. The
young pair formed a formidable partnership, opening their
shoulders and adding a good 80 runs to the score for the 7th
wicket. Piper in particular did his damage with the only two
shots he could play (apart from the block) pulling or cutting and
he soon reached his 50. Reeve (38) eventually departed, being
bowled by Shri (11-0-48-1) who had replaced Kriess (13-0-53-2)
from the Road End.
Gordon (11-0-61-4) came back for his
second spell from the River End, replacing Bowman who finished
with the same figures as his skipper (although he bowled more
wides!) Gordon’s second spell was not that accurate, he did
however manage to take a further 2 wickets. Piper (55) eventually
departing, well caught again by Mo Khan on the deep cover boundary
for his 3rd catch of the day. Gordon immediately struck
with the next delivery. Younis lashing out, being caught by Kriess
at mid-on. The hat-trick was not to follow and soon after skipper
Joshi declared.
After tea, which was indeed a
delightful affair even though quite a bit was still left over, the
Ts commenced their reply knowing that they had 43 overs in which
to chase down a formidable total at this level of cricket.
Opening the charge were Tim George (his
first time lifting the willow since August ’09) and Nihal Tomar,
promoted from the 5s after an impressive half century. Both held
their own, even though opening bowler Younis troubled them with
very full on-the-toe deliveries and with a pace that is not often
seen in a 4s outfit.
It was Nihal who made the early runs,
stroking the ball mainly through the cover regions. George, once
his ageing eye was in caught up with events and hit some lovely
shots all across the park. Things looked promising, as the Ts saw
through the first 10 overs without losing a wicket. A draw
was looking possible as the Ts were unfortunately well behind the
required run rate at this early stage.
Skipper Joshi had surprisingly taken of
his main strike bowler Younis, and replaced him with himself from
the River End. This was very much to the surprise of skipper
Kriess and scoring vice Walker, as Younis went for only 5 runs in
his first 4 overs. It was just a ploy, as Joshi wanted him to
change ends and bowl with the sun behind him. Opening bowling
partner Sabir, bowling from the Road End never looked like getting
a wicket.
And first to strike was indeed the
skipper, who bowled Tomar with his tally on 16. Kriess joined
George at the crease with Younis now coming in from the Road End
for his second spell. And no one was expecting what was
about to happen. Younis trodded in to deliver his first ball, a
full-bunger, but luckily Kriess’s reflexes saved him from a very
serious injury to the head. The ball was palmed of his hands into
the ground. On came the helmet, however still shaken from events
the next delivery dislodged the bails and removed middle stump out
the ground. Kriess gone for 0.
From there on in the Ts innings started
to crumble, especially once George (37) departed lbw Younis. Mo
Khan (20) showed some resistance and looked like the only one
after George able to cope with the opening bowler’s pace and
at-the-toes kind of deliveries. A further 3 batsmen added no score
and eventually the last wicket fell with 93 runs on the board.
All in all it was a disappointing end
to the day. The Ts had fought hard in the field only dropping one
catch. A draw was a very likely possibility, however in the end
the difference proved to be the bowling of Younis and the many
extras given away by the Ts bowlers, which added to Acton’s big
total. Next up for the 4s is a trip away to North London and
hopefully a win and the first points on the board.
Onward and upwards!
Holger Kriess
4th Team Captain