Venturers vs Canal Taverners, Wednesday June 23rd

Canal Taverners 97-9, Venturers 98-5

We don't usually get slip catches and the folk memory of Gregory catching one is the only real reason why he, or anybody else, fields there. So he was entitled to be surprised when one arrived, rather above head high, from Canal Taverners' very competent opening bat. He was less entitled to stick his hands vaguely in the air and hope that the ball hit them. It did, but not quite squarely enough; and, even though the bowler was Tom, not Simon, he dropped it. This opener was also given a difficult time by Stuart, who had identified him as a hit wicket candidate. Two or three times he nearly walked on his stumps while avoiding the ball or while reacting to having not avoided it. The latter is painful at Stuart's pace. In between he took advantage of whatever was loose, which wasn't much. His partner (George, Canal Taverners' St Lucian) worked the ball around intelligently. Stuart and Tom ran out of overs with the opening partership still unbroken but the runs kept well down. Gregory changed both of these things, conceding seven runs in each over he bowled but getting a wicket in each one too. Three of them were bowled, two aiming heaves to leg and one signalling his charge, and George was lbw, aiming a heave to leg. At the other end Kevin was half as penetrating (a perfect yorker and a breakback that trimmed the bails) and three times as economical. Simon, inexpensive, and Santha, deadly to the tail (two bowled and a catch by Alastair, keeping) rounded off an excellent bowling performance.

Needing under five an over we were favourites even in the face of good bowling. Alastair and Rob started cautiously, except for their running. Fortunately Alastair is very quick. After six overs, with twenty on the board, Alastair got yorked. Soon after a spinner came on and Kevin aimed a heave to leg. He explained afterwards that he had been given a full toss, which was not really the case. Vijay came out swinging his bat, gave a sharp yelp and retired hurt without having reached the middle, let alone faced a ball. Rob got bowled; Simon got bowled; Vijay, elbow restored, popped a catch to mid-off. We were 31 for 5 in the eleventh over, and clearly sunk. Tom and Chris did what they could to save us from embarrassment, and managed another seventeen by the end of the fifteenth over, and ten more, slightly fortunately, in the sixteenth. All this time we were, unquestionably, one wicket from disaster; but now Canal Taverners spectacularly ran out of bowlers. The last four overs consisted of a series of wides and half-trackers, which Tom and Chris gleefully hacked to all parts. We were still a wicket from disaster. We remained a wicket from disaster until the very end, although Santha is capable of hitting; and then suddenly we, or rather Tom and Chris, had won.

Fixtures & Results 2010