Energy Exiles Cricket Club

Match Summary: vs. CYPOS, Sunday, 08 Aug 2010

Ground: Old Tiffinians Grist Memorial Ground
Captain: Andrew Wingfield
Match type: 40 overs
Toss: Exiles elected to field
Weather: Sunny
Opposition: CYPOS scored: 126 all out (35.3 overs)
Exiles Score: 127 for 5 (38 overs)
Result: Won by 5 wickets
Man of the match: Keith Roberts 51 & 4 for 18

Only a week after recording a tense victory at the Old Tiffinians ground the Exiles returned to the very same scene to win an equally nervy game against Cypos.

Playing on the main pitch the teams were greeted by a very green and slightly damp surface so it was no surprise that Andy (skipper for the day) chose to bowl first.

From their previous encounter with Cypos a few weeks earlier the Exiles knew they would have to play at their very best to beat a talented side, particularly as we were down to 10 and – so we thought – a bowler light.

The Cypos opening pair began cautiously against Naren and Andy who bowled tightly but it wasn't until the 11^th over that Andy got one to shape back into the right hander and knock back the middle peg of Anandakumar.

Naren and Andy were replaced by Simon and John, who had made the agreeable decision to come out of retirement and bowl seam up, continued to keep the pressure on the batsmen. The Cypos pair ticked along nicely for a while – Howell in particular playing some good looking shots – but in an effort to pick up the run rate both eventually fell to John as they were caught behind trying to carve the ball backward of square.

It was now that Andy sensed the time was right to introduce spin into the attack. It was perhaps serendipitous that Exiles were lacking a 5^th 'frontline' bowler as Keith immediately found the green wicket very much to his liking. Bowling a good line at a decent pace Keith had the Cypos batters (and Will K behind the stumps) hopping around as he found turn and bounce just when the Cypos middle order were looking to press the accelerator. A few lusty blows found the boundary but wickets fell quickly as the Exiles spin king ripped through the opposition finishing with superb figures of 4 for 18.

Simon returned to end proceedings by bowling the number 11 with a fast, straight one and Cypos were all out for 124 in 35.3 overs. It was a really good performance in the field; tight bowling and athletic (there's a word you don't hear often in Exiles' match reports!) fielding to back up the bowlers.

After an insipid performance in the field the week before, the fielding was a good deal sharper; notable mentions for Barry at square leg, Will S at point and Naren, who was required to chase the ball more than the legs of a man soon eligible to claim his bus pass should allow. Will K had a fine performance behind the stumps as did Q at slips, between them snaffling six sharp chances.

If Exiles were the happier of the two sides going into the interval, anyone thinking that victory might be achieved with minimal fuss could be pointed to the history books as to why such optimism should be severely tempered. And so it proved again.

Weighed down by one of the best teas on the circuit Keith and Q began the run chase sedately albeit against the speedy and accurate opening combination of Dolan and Ram. It was hard going early on and for a while there were more overs bowled than runs on the board but some respite arrived with the change bowlers and runs began to flow a bit more freely.

But Q, seeking to hit out, went early to the new bowler, Tila, but not before spending some much needed time at the crease and showing glimpses of his old self.

Keith picked up the pace with some trademark drives and cuts but Tila from one end and, particularly, Montgomery from the other maintained a good line to ensure runs were hard to come by and a winning score of 127 still seemed a long way off.

Will S sensed the urgency and began brightly but was caught at mid on attempting to launch the ball back over the bowler's head. Sri and Barry both had the right idea but fell cheaply not long after and before they could get going. Confidence was now surging through the opposition whilst panic levels were increasing in the Exiles camp. There was still plenty of batting to come but time was running out. Immediately, however, Keith found a willing ally in Will K who played some fine shots and together they took us within sight of the winning line before Keith was caught at short extra of Dolan for 51.

Sill needing around 5 an over off the last few, Andy had shuffled around his lower order to promote Simon to next man in (a plan devised with the slower bowlers on). Simon, never one to question his skipper's orders (ahem), politely enquired as to whether this was still the plan now that the pacy opening bowlers had returned. It was.

So Simon confidently (ahem) strode to the crease to find, with a hint of Schadenfreude, that Ram had withdrawn from the attack due to injury and had been replaced by Tila. Will K and Simon exchanged quick singles of some fast, straight deliveries from Dolan but boundaries were required.

With Tila back on to replace the hobbling Ram and 15 needed off 3, Simon went on the charge though not without some fortune; first edging the ball through slip for four, then top edging a short ball over the keeper's head for another, but then at least hitting one sweetly timed off drive to the long on boundary. A couple more and a single off the last ball of the 38^th over saw the Exiles home with two full overs to spare!

A good game of cricket with the usual squeaky bum moments that seem to accompany a lot of Exiles game but at least we're actually winning some of them!

Report By: Simon Gundry

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