WEEKEND REVIEW - JUNE 6-7
By Simon Heaney, James Wheeler & Richard Ward
Saturday 6 June 2015
MIDDLESEX COUNTY CRICKET LEAGUE DIVISION THREE - FIRST TEAMS
Bessborough CC 1st XI 123 all out (39.2 overs)
Highgate CC 1st XI 125-2 (24.3 overs)
Highgate won by 8 wickets
MIDDLESEX COUNTY CRICKET LEAGUE DIVISION THREE - SECOND TEAMS
Wembley CC 2nd XI 221-7 (48.5 overs)
Bessborough CC 2nd XI 218-9 dec (49.5 overs)
Wembley won by 3 wickets
MIDDLESEX 1987 CRICKET LEAGUE DIVISION TWO
Bessborough CC 3rd XI 132 all out (31.3 overs)
Indian Gymkhana CC 4th XI 237-9 dec (46 overs)
Indian Gymkhana won by 105 runs
MIDDLESEX 1987 CRICKET LEAGUE DIVISION FIVE
Alexandra Park CC 4th XI 217-9 dec (45 overs)
Bessborough CC 4th XI 220-9 (44.1 overs)
Bessborough won by 1 wicket
Sunday 7 June 2015
LORDS CHESS VALLEY SUNDAY LEAGUE DIVISION THREE
Bessborough CC 174 all out (39 overs)
Preston CC 203-7 (45 overs)
Preston won by 29 runs
Leaders Highgate thrash Bessborough
Bessborough’s patchy form took a turn for the worse on Saturday as they were completely outplayed by league leaders Highgate in the Middlesex County Cricket League.
The visiting side held the only 100% record before play started at Headstone Manor and never looked like relinquishing that record as they ripped through Bessborough’s top order from the off. The home batting side quickly found themselves in deep trouble on 17-4 and then 40-5 thanks to devastating spells from Highgate’s opening bowlers Hashen Ramanayake (3-27) and William Brookes (4-45).
A sixth wicket stand of 66 between Hemmen Jutla (33) and Gihan Pallage (39) restored some pride but a lower order collapse meant Bessborough could only muster 123 from 39 overs. It took Highgate just 24 overs to reach the target for the loss of only two wickets. Opener Christopher Arul top scored with 54.
The loss means that Bessborough now sit in joint-sixth place with 20 points, 30 adrift of the runaway leaders Highgate.
The second eleven’s search for a first league victory of the season continues after they lost a close match by three wickets away to Wembley in the MCCL.
Bessborough openers Adil Parker (39) and Vidoosha Jayawardena (11) put on 45 for the first wicket but things rapidly deteriorated as five wickets fell with only an extra 14 runs being added.
Thankfully, Kibreeth Rameez (64) and Shiv Patel (65) came to the rescue with a fine sixth-wicket stand of 147. Unfortunately, when those two departed the Bessborough innings lost momentum as the tail failed to wag and the away side eventually declared on 218-9 with only one ball of the allotted 50 overs remaining.
In reply, Wembley went about reaching the target in steady style with most batsmen chipping in with runs but Bessborough’s attack, spearheaded by veteran spinner Nitin Modha (pictured), picked up wickets at regular intervals so that the game was evenly poised entering the final stages. Nitin finished with 5-78 – his second fiver-fer of the season so far - but it wasn’t enough as Wembley closed out on 221-7 with seven balls remaining in the game.
The team remain second bottom of the league after five games on 4 points, three ahead of Harrow who they will play at Headstone Manor this Saturday.
The 3s suffered a second home defeat in the Middlesex 1987 Cricket League Division 2 when they were beaten by 105 runs against Indian Gymkhana. Captain Ian Ridley (2-55) won the toss and put the opposition into bat and he and new ball partner Jamie Young reduced them to 80-5. Teenage swing bowler Young picked up his best bowling figures for the senior side picking up 3-16 in six overs.
Assisted by some erratic fielding, Indian Gymkhana’s lower order rallied with captain Sohail scoring 102 from number eight, allowing him to declare on 237-9 after 46 overs.
Bessborough were never in the hunt and in reply collapsed to 132 all out inside 32 overs. Dinal Kadawathage top scored for Bessborough with 18.
In Division 5 of the 1987 League the fourth XI pulled off a remarkable one-wicket win away to Alexandra Park in what captain Richard Ward described as one of the best games he has played in for the club, with both sides entering into the “true spirit of competitive cricket.”
New ball pair Ravi Vyas (1-55) and William Gill (2-32) kept it tight at the start of Alexandra Park’s innings but when number three Robert Gyles (31) came in he pretty much went after everything. Just when it looked like he was taking the game away from Bessborough, debutant Vinay Macwan made a stunning catch on the boundary at long off to remove him off the bowling of Aadil Raja (1-19).
The rest of the innings ebbed and flowed with control shifting between the sides. Alexandra Park finally declared on a very competitive 217-9 from 45 overs. All but one of the eight bowlers used claimed at least one wicket with Aman Maan the pick with 1-6 from four overs.
Bessborough’s innings started shakily with both openers Richard Willson (6) and Eddie Idrees (7) guilty of playing across the line at an end which had already shown to keep low on occasions. Macwan (7) followed soon after despite looking quite solid, while Gill performed his usual pyrotechnics to get the side above the run rate before departing for 21.
At 55-4 captain Richard Ward was initially looking to save the game but the plan soon changed when some loose bowling allowed him to get off to a double-quick start while new partner Maan attacked almost every delivery.
Aman’s “unconventional” innings of 91 and Ward’s 50 added 137 quick runs but when both departed soon after one another there were still 26 more runs required for the win. Neither Aadil Raja nor colt Bavan Seelan could add any runs but a composed ninth-wicket partnership of 19 between Vyas’ Bharat (12) and Ravi (7 not out) got the side tantalisingly close. With two runs needed, last man Prashant Dhayal (5 not out) showed remarkable cool to smash a boundary to seal the win.
On Sunday, the nine men of Bessborough put up a brave fight in the opening game of the Chess Valley campaign against Preston but fell 29 runs short of an unlikely victory. Tight bowling and energetic fielding helped to restrict the visitors to 203-7 from 45 overs. Opener Ishan Shah steered the side close to the target with a well-crafted 82 but the lack of players ultimately cost the side.
Earlier in the week the Barbarians lost two thrilling Twenty20 friendly games against West Harrow and the Duncan West Allstars.
On Thursday, over 380 runs were scored in just over 38 overs as neighbours West Harrow won a thrilling ‘Headstone Manor Derby’. The Barbarians batted first and scored 191-3 in their 20 overs with Rajan Modha top scoring with 81, while captain James Wheeler scored 73 as the pair put on 106 runs in just 10 overs.
On an excellent wicket for batting, West Harrow attacked from the first over and were always ahead of the run rate. The Barbarians ground fielding was excellent but a string of dropped catches kept West Harrow well ahead and they reached the winning target inside 18 overs.
On Friday, Bessborough legend Duncan West brought his Allstar team back to the club looking to avenge their defeat in the same fixture two years ago. The Barbarians won the toss and posted a below-par 133-9 off their 20 overs with some late order hitting from Sharuban “KP” Kanthasamy (30) giving the score some respectability. The Allstar bowling attack made up of five spinners and one seamer was perfect for the occasion with Nick Wale picking up 3-11.
The Allstars response got off to the worst possible start when Andrew Sharland was taken smartly at slip off KP (1-21). However, the Allstars rallied with Dean Wilson, former Bessborough opening batsman and now cricket correspondent for the Daily Mirror, leading the reply with a brisk 24.
A middle order collapse left the Allstars on 88-5 with six overs remaining when Andy Carr (18) joined former England youth cricketer and Bessborough all-rounder Ben Murray at the crease. The pair played some big shots mixed in with some clever running to win by four wickets with 8 balls remaining. Murray top scored with 38 not out and was named man of the match.
Bessborough CC 2015 Fantasy League - Week 8 MVPs
- Nitin Modha 151 points
- Aman Maan 126 points
- James Wheeler 113 points