Ricky 4s hand it to Redbourn

On a chillier than expected afternoon, we rocked up to Redbourn’s second ground with a strong line-up, and with expectations of a good win, or at very least a very spirited performance and a close game. Rumpole won the toss, and elected to bat – not a bad decision given the line-up and a decent wicket with some reasonably short boundaries. Decent facilities, decent team, decent opposition, it had ‘cracker’ written all over it. Then we started…our top order (which on paper was extremely robust) contrived various ways to get themselves out for not very many, including a smart stumping (Jinesh just carried on walking after charging the bowler and missing), and Owen playing across a straight ball going for the long handle. Prasanth then arrived at the crease and started to settle the innings down, playing good shots when on offer, and keeping out the decent balls. His problem was that wickets kept falling at the other end, despite everybody’s efforts to stay with him. Rumps was caught at slip (I say caught, but the fielder just about managed to keep it off the floor by using every part of his body), and poor Charlie got trapped by a snorter of a Yorker after being fed with wide ones down leg and outside off respectively. Trigger got caught off a very good catch in the covers, and the rest of us took it in turns to give our wickets away. Brendan gave it some heave-ho at the end, and became second top scorer in the space of three balls, including a consecutive six and four. Hanuman was left stranded at the non-striker’s end. All out for 100.

Redbourn batted straight away (teas wasn’t ready yet), and despite some very good tight bowling, including a fantastic caught and bowled by Hanuman, the Redbourn batters made easy work of reaching the total. Owen almost took a catch at deep square leg that, if he’d managed to hold on, would be a contender for catch of the season, diving full stretch to his left – sadly it was not to be.

Nonetheless, the game was played in good spirits, against a decent bunch of chaps, who invited us back to their clubhouse, and stumped up some cash for the first round – well, it would have been rude to decline!

We knuckle down, and start again next week.