Cricket-Match-Special ... A forum for discussion

Hey guys, after having last year off due to travelling, i am back this year for another season of cricket...I have regained the captaincy somehow... i was voted in again and tasked with the mission to get our side promoted due to the lads being relegated last season.....

We had our first league game saturday just gone, and we unfortunately went down by 57 runs.

This was how we lined up

1.A.Nuttall
2.G.Lake
3.Andy (C) (CF)
4.T.Robinson
5.G.Jackson
6.B.Hunt (wk)
7.G.Welch
8.N.Fuller
9.J.Long
10.P.Terry
11.H.Davids

I lost the toss and we were asked to bowl first. I probably would have bowled first to be honest. Was a good wicket to bat on, but was cloudy and overcast, and i expected it do quite a bit upfront. Also due to injuries, both my spinners were ruled out, so i had no spinner and thought our best chances of getting wickets was via the seamers under cloud cover.

I took the new ball along with N.Fuller. Whilst we didn't take any wickets, there was control. Only 32 runs were scored from the first 10 overs, with the ball going past the bat, it almost did too much. I bowled 6 overs that cost 25 runs, and i didn't bowl again, i just wasn't threatning enough, and didn't have any real penetration on the day. P.Terry came on as first change, and his first ball was a waist high full toss that got despatched. At that stage i felt it was going to be a long day. J.Long came on and gave me some control, but wickets were still hard to come by. The 100 partnership came up in the 23rd over, and was scratching my head looking for wickets... Howveer as soon as one of the openers made 50, they then got the jitters with their running, and every ball looked like a wicket was going to come from a run out..eventually the breatkthough came in the 27th over via a run out! The brakes then went on...meaning that after 40 overs they had 160-2, and they tried to push on...a cluster of wickets fell along with some decent death bowling meant that, they closed on 217-6, which they would admit, they fell around 40 runs short on that wicket.

So at the interval we were thrilled with that and full of confidence. We started well, putting on 62 for the first wicket, rate only around 3.5 an over, but was building a platform. I came in at no3, and hit my 2nd ball for four, through midwicket. However they introduced both spinners, who tied up both ends and made scoring really difficult.. i got bogged down and frustrated, and was out stumped for 9. At that stage the score was 93-2. What then followed was an epic batting collaspe, that brought sheer and utter rage to me, and hence why its taken this long to put this up.. we fell to 111-8, as spin strangled our batting line up. It didn't turn much, they just bowled wicket to wicket with the odd one turning. Only a last wicket partnership got us up to 160. Felt embrassed after the game, that we capitutlated that badly, and so much work to be done in the nets this week.

Which team do you play for, Andy?

SLHCC

Happy that this is back!

Best wishes for the season. Glad you're doing this again.

Cheers guys

No overseas this time?

Na unfortunately there was complicatons in getting a visa in time

unfortunately rain has wiped out tonight's training session

The spinners maybe need time to get over their injuries anyway.

didnt rain all day till 30 mins before training started, had torrential downpour since....hmmm good point, hoping they will be fit for the weekend, but not convinced

Hmm....On Saturday we had our 2nd league game of the season, and it didn't go well at all...we went down by 8 wickets to our local rivals, on a day, where the toss proved crucial.. It had rained all week, and we turned up saturday to our home game, under cloudy skies and a wet pitch. I lost the toss and we were asked to bat first, on a soaking pitch, which would only get easier to bat on as the sun came out an hour into the game and dried out.

I made 2 changes to the side. Seam Bowling all-rounder N.Sharp came in for G.Welch and B.Poskitt came in for H.Davids. Poskitt batted at 8 to strengthen my batting side on a day where i had enough seam options, or so i thought.

1.A.Nuttall
2.G.Lake
3.Andy (C) (CF)
4.T.Robinson
5.G.Jackson
6.B.Hunt (wk)
7.N.Sharp
8.S.Poskitt
9.J.Long
10.P.Terry
11.N.Fuller

So having said i lost the toss. Lake fell first ball of the 2nd over, to a well directed yorker, with the side yet to get off the mark. I Joined Nuttall at the crease, and we put on 46 in 20 overs. Slow i know.. but the pitch was wet, the bowlers were well drilled and on form, and it was almost impossible to get the ball away...relying on quick singles and the odd. I fell in the 21st over for 12, to a ball that hit the seam and took my off-stump away. That sparked a collapse, we fell from 46-2 to 68-8, with 23 overs left to bat in the innings. Sharp came in and somehow biffed a quick 29, with little support elsewhere..we eventually batted 47 overs and made 97 all out. We felt if we bowled well, we could knock them over too.

At tea i went out and loooked at the wicket, and it had dried out, we had sunshine for previous hour, and was getting easier, and i suddenly knew that we would be 50-60 short, as it would get easier to bat on.

Fuller nicked out a wicket in the 3rd over and we had a dream start. However their no3 came in and hit a quick 26 to get them up and away. I rang the changes which resulted in us buying another wicket, however they eventually got home in 27 overs, and i was left scratching my head....

We have only taken 5 points from our first 2 games and it's looking like a struggle already...things need to change

Maybe need a little luck at the toss.

Hope you will have a good season this time as well.

keep plugging away, andy.