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SNCL Division N

2nd XI v Awsworth II

Saturday 3-July-2004

Wilsons II 126-7 (20 points) beat Awsworth II 133 all out (6 points) by 3 wickets

The English summer was its usual unpredictable self yet again. As we turned up at 1pm the pitch was perfect - dry and flat and looking full of runs. However, when Awsworth arrived at 1.30pm the heavens opened, dumping enough rain to ruin many a fixture. A late start was made in a match reduced to 36 overs per side but after just 7 deliveries we were off again following another short shower.

At this point a very early tea was taken with the opposition clearly taken aback by the excellent fare on offer courtesy of Fizzy. After an ample supply of chicken, samosa and pakora plus conventional sandwiches it was a shame to start a game of cricket, but it was decided to start a new game of 24 overs per side on the artificial surface.

We made an excellent start as Daoud ran out Riley with a good underhand direct hit from mid-wicket before Nadeem bowled Case for a duck and Daniel for 7 as we took the upper hand. Unfortunately Tim T was struggling with a bad back and gave way to Mehtab after just 4 overs. Mehtab took the next 2 wickets bowling Hunt and Derek Balmforth for 17 and 13 respectively just as Awsworth were building a decent score.

Our situation was made worse by Andy Call not feeling well (too many samosas??) and Tim struggling to move effectively. Also a string of wides didn't help. But Daoud bowled Keetley for 4 and Mehtab bowled Gadsby for 5 until some big hitting from Shaw and Rose took the score along at a rapid rate. Eventually Mehtab had Rose caught by Nadeem for 18 before Mark nipped out the last two batsmen (Craig Balmforth LBW for 10 and Shaw bowled for 21). The final score was 133 all out which was boosted by 34 extras - a disgraceful amount in just 24 overs.

In reply Ray soon went, bowled by Case, and Dave suffered the same fate in yet another disastrous start with the score on 5. Geoff and Mehtab rebuilt the innings putting on 55 before Geoff was run out after slipping over when sent back. His attempt to regain his feet would have been amusing (a la Athertonesque) had it not been for the disasters that followed. Firstly Mark was bowled by skipper Balmforth for only 1 run amid raucous howls of approval from the fielding side) no doubt remembering the carnage inflicted on them by Mark earlier in the season.) Mehtab was bowled by Riley for an excellent 35 as the score slumped to 64-5 in the 14th over. Fizzy was then trapped LBW in the 17th over as we were floudering at 72-6.

Sixty two runs were still required off just 7 overs and something special was required. Enter Nadeem at number 8. He resorted to the lofted approach and with Daoud playing some glorious straight drives the fielding side were pushed onto the back foot. Excellent running by the pair and some beautiful shots turned the game on its head - one over going for 20 as Nadeem smashed two enormous sixes. Daoud hit a couple of lovely boundaries and after yet another 6 from Nadeem victory was in sight.

But oh the innocence of youth. Nadeem was caught in the deep in the 21st over for an excellent 33 before Tim joined Daoud to see us home with one over to spare. Appropriately Daoud scored the winning runs with an outrageous 6 chipped over the cover boundary for an impressive 32 not out.

The win gave us the maximum 20 points and completed the double over dejected opposition who could feel very unfortunate having had the upper hand in both matches before having victory snatched from their grasp at the eleventh hour. It's a mark of our resilience that after looking like losing for three quarters of the match we came back and snatched yet another unlikely win. This was mainly due to sloppy cricket on our part. The Awsworth lads slumped off the field after the game and although I sympathise with them, I was proud of our fortitude and stickability and obviously delighted with the outcome.

Les Hardy

Batting

Bowling

Extras 34 !!!

Catches: Nadeem Ghani 1

Run outs: Daoud Ali 1