Strollers batsmen bemused by Beamers

Our first 20/20 fixture of the year took place against the Beamers on a glorious late spring evening; hot, sunny and in the delightful surroundings of the magnificently refurbished North Middlesex CC - the pavilion now more closely resembling the interior of Raffles than the egg sandwich stained environs of former years. With the pitch looking flat and dry, and seemingly an embarrassment of riches in the batting department at his disposal, Gav had no hesitation in opting to bat first when he won the toss – sadly it was to be one of the all too few successes of the evening.

In his first appearance of the season, Harsh opened the batting with Spencer and got proceedings underway well in the first over with a textbook cover drive to the boundary. Spencer too looked assured as he wasted no time   with two loose balls in the following over neatly ‘dispenced’ (© Chris Lucas, 2008) over midwicket. All too eager to cash in without delay though, both openers suffered early dismissals as first Spencer cross-batted a catch to third man and moments later Harsh mistimed a lob and was caught at mid on for 13.

Still, there was plenty of batting to come …or so we assumed. Graeme, again batting up the order at three scored just that before swiping down the wrong line to one that kept low from one of the two Hyam brothers who were about to reek havoc upon the remaining Strollers lineup. De Dazzler, back from injury in his first innings since Toulouse ’06, looked composed as ever until a faster delivery from Hyam had him trapped LBW – it all happened so fast that the Beamers looked bemused and almost didn’t appeal until a quiet enquiry from point gave the ‘neutral’ ump (the Beamers’ 12th man) all the impetus he needed to raise a sharp finger. David marched off indignantly, whipped off his pads and returned to the middle immediately to relieve the umpire in question.

The Strollers batsmen continued to discover new and elaborate ways to get out in the impatient scramble to put runs on the board. Patrick Marshall, our new signing from the London Utopers, managed only a single before succumbing to the spin of Richards, and George fared little better as he too spooned another catch to the Beamers cordon. At 32-6 things were looking dismal and although Matt and Gav managed to run the ball about a bit, neither were timing their batting particularly well and both fell to the accuracy of the other Hyam brother now operating from the pavilion end, the two of them failing to reach double figures.

With the scoreboard displaying a paltry 50-8 and over ten overs still remaining, Chris initially showed commendable self-restraint as he looked to steady the ship, but after one well struck boundary the appetite for more got the better of him as he too skied a regulation catch. Things looked bleak.

However, cometh the hour, cometh The Legend. When all others had lost their wickets Dickie, batting down the order, kept his and decided now was the time to take the attack to the opposition, initially with dogged resistance and then with outright aggression. Ably supported by Andy at the other end, Betts launched ball after ball into the deep and one scorching straight drive in particular had his team mates on their feet whooping wildly on the boundary. With gathering momentum, the Strollers’ total marched towards something like respectability as the prospect of a three figure total came into view. Sadly it was not to materialize as, with the score on 96, Andy’s valuable cameo came to an end as he looped a drive down extra cover’s throat, leaving Dickie unbeaten on 22 not out. Still, thanks to an incalculable last wicket stand, the Strollers did have a total to bowl at, albeit a modest one.

Buoyed by the fireworks at the end of their innings, the Strollers took the field eagerly and, knowing that accuracy was now key and that no quarter must be given, Gav opted for an all-spin attack, placing the onus square on the batsmen’s shoulders to get the ball away. The applied pressure reaped immediate reward as Spencer struck in the first over with one that cut back sharply, dislodging Williams’ bails. Graeme, opening from the other end also kept it tight. In his second over Spencer struck once again when, with the score on just 9, Noutch attempted a lob over the bowler’s head only to find that Patrick, who had somehow made the ground from mid on, had managed to cling on to a sensational full length diving catch. The celebrations were loud and the side knew that although they didn’t have much to defend, this could be on!

However it was to be the last wicket to fall as, knowing they had all the time in the world to reach their target, the Beamers’ batsmen sensibly held back, managing to see off Spencer and then they began to take Graeme on – Wright launching two towering sixes over the fence. George, on first change, bravely gave the ball some air and although he found a good length his radar was off a little and both Wright and Blount made hay, quietening those in the field. Harsh, on for Graeme, started his spell with extra pace than usual which the Beamers managed to read and play well as sure enough the 97 target slid into view.

De Dazzler came on for George and after a couple of looseners began to find his line but it was too late as, in the fifteenth over, the Beamers nudged a single to claim an all too easy win.

Still, it had been an enjoyable evening’s cricket and thanks to Dickie’s memorable contribution with the bat we had at least made a game of it. However, questions must be asked of the Strollers’ batsmen who crumbled under pressure that they can only have put on themselves. Having last season seemingly put to bed the hoodoo of failing to bat out our overs, some old demons seem to have returned.

However we have the immediate opportunity to banish them swiftly once again in this coming weekend’s Clash Of The Strollers at Sandon where we will be on Sunday, still searching for the first victory of the 2008 campaign.

Gavin Richardson
12.05.08

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