The 8 men of the Twickenham 5th X1 were at
Broom Road for this hastily arranged friendly against the unknown
Elite CC. Spirits weren't raised by the very large
cricket bags and matching kit of the visiting side. Had we been
stitched up here? After being asked to field first it seemed
that the Ts may be in for a long day as the Elite skipper
immediately looked in fine form hitting 10 off the first over from
JLS Gordon. Despite JLS and new boy "Shibu" (not he of saucer of
milk fame) bowling a good line and length the visitors raced away
to fast start. The lads kept trying with the ball and in the field
and started to chip away at the visitors. JLS was rewarded with a
wicket that spat up off the Broom Rd surface to take the gloves on
the way through to stand in skipper Uzzy Khan. BT was as miserly
as ever and wickets kept falling. Young Harmeet Singh bowled a
nice loop and with subtle variations in pace kept the batsmen
honest. It was left to the webmaster to come in to the fray to
clean up the tail with 3-7 to leave the visitors on 150 all out. A
good team effort given the circumstances. well done to JLS, Shibu,
Harmeet and BT who all bowled excellently against what would
appear vastly superior opposition.
chasing 150 in 35 overs with 8 men, the Ts were always going
to require a positive start, but the Ts struggled against the pace
and movement of the Elite opening attack. Uzzy Khan looked to be
positive with some nice straight (ish!) drives but Nik Walder was
undone by a late swinging ball which castled him for 0. young Tom
Hopkins then kept his wicket intact but struggled to hit runs and
when he was dismissed the Ts were 18-2 off 12. The webmaster came
to the crease with one gameplan. Block the good ones and lean in
to the bad ones. This tactic immediately paid dividends as the
bowlers became ever more frustrated with 2 balls going to the
boundary per over. Uzzy departed and Shibu came in to join the
webmaster. Utilising the same tactics of "stand and deliver" also
paid dividends for the impressive Shibu. The pair put on 100 to
pass the visitors total with 4 overs to spare with Richards 57*
and Shibu 37*. A good days cricket against a team who played it in
the right spirit. Next week the 5s return to league action with a
trip to Alexandra Park to take on AP's 4th X1.
Player Points
Shibu - 5 Points
BT - 4 Points
Harmeet - 3 points
JLS - 2 points
Webmaster - 1 Point
