An overcast sky and two combined flocks of geese (Canada and Egyptian) greeted the Dodgers on their return to Chiswick to face the Wanderers. We lost the toss but were put in to bat - an intriguing decision on the opposition's part, given the low light and late start. Astroturf and some very short boundaries (chosen by us) suggested a high-scoring game in prospect.
Charlie and Mike opened our account briskly, with Mike notching up numerous crisp fours on his way to an unbeaten 25. Charlie hit a towering six before being bowled by a cultured inswinger, while Jack was unlucky to be dismissed without scoring by one that jagged back. This brought Will and Satya to the crease, each of whom proceeded to plunder the Wanderers bowling mercilessly before retiring unbeaten. Special mention is due for one of Will's sixes, which sadly crashed into an unobservant pigeon on the full and left it comatose, at the very least. Brendan took over batting duties with Abhi, the latter offering three high catching chances to the opposition on his way to an unbeaten 26. Matt and Captain Ralph rounded off the innings in style, with Matt guiding some very elegant square cuts to the boundary before clubbing a final six. We had finished on a total of 172 for 3, which seemed a pretty reasonable result all told.
Jack and Abhi launched our bowling attack with vim and vigour, despite a slippery run-up surface made all the more treacherous because we were not allowed to wear spikes. Jack made a double breakthrough by removing the Wanderers' two openers, the first nicely caught behind by Ralph, while Abhi bagged his own wicket by bowling their number four. Charlie and John took over as first change, the latter making amends for his expensive two overs by taking a catch off Charlie in the covers, until Satya and Will finished off the game for us with the Wanderers still 34 runs adrift. The rapidly fading light rendered fielding almost impossible at the end, which makes Abhi's three steepling catches even more commendable than they would otherwise have been. A good victory against a team that always includes a considerable amount of talent.
Man of the Match votes: Will 5, Abhi 3, Satya 2
 |
Dodgers offering product placement opportunities... |
Comments