Stats/Medawar (Jack Cox) at Balliol College Ground. 20 overs.
After a rain-affected cancellation in our opening Jack Cox match, this appetising fixture against the memorably monikered Stats/Medawar was our first completed game of the tournament. Like the cricket World Cup being run parallel, the tournament had yet to quite take off, with low scores and a long group stage meaning attrition was the order of the day. Bodley Captain Matthew Neely won the toss and under grey skies, blustery wind, and a complete absence of the promised 'sun', Bodley were batting first on a wicket carrying a lot of green, what looked like fairly even bounce, and no rough or cracks. Which being artificial, was not surprising. A new opening partnership - long-awaited by many Bodley regulars - of Dave Freeman and James Shaw got things going nicely, singles being energetically taken and the score building nicely with each passing over. It's fair to say that Bodley are not renowned for their running between the wickets, and even less for their backing up at the non-strikers end, but these two gave a textbook display of awareness and intent, bringing the score to 59 from nine overs before the first wicket fell, Freeman bowled for a tasty 22. Shaw marched on, boundaries coming more easily as the change bowlers came and went before retiring not out on 30. Unfortunately a succession of Bodley batters couldn't quite trouble the scores in the same manner, and it was only the swishing bat of Tim Philipson, and the heavy bat of Gavin Robinson that took the score over 100, ending up on 107-5. Of particular note for Bodley as thoughts turned to fielding, was the bounce and unexpected difficulty of playing the slower, flighted, loopy-doopy bowling employed by Stats in the latter half of the innings. Canny, would be the word. After a quick break that sadly included no tea whatsoever (a serious flaw in the Jack Cox order of play, and one that will hopefully be rectified for next season, along with floodlights, music, and garish coloured kit), the second half got underway. As it was the teams bustled out in faded whites under a fading sky as a breeze from beyond the wall cut across the field of play. Bodley's stylish South African wunderkind opened up the bowling with the equally excellently coiffured Steve McGranaghan at the other end. After a maiden to start things remained tight as the match took on the feel of a North of England test match in early May. Tight fielding and sharp returns ensured the run rate was kept below six an over, and as Shaws James and Dan toiled in tandem first change, a few well-hit boundaries kept Stats in the hunt. At the half-way point, with the score 50-0, things looked good for Stats - if they could change gear - and not so good for Bodley, as that short square boundary and low total looked under threat. A couple of overs later the ever so canny bowling of Dave Freeman lured the batsman out of his crease to give Neely a well-deserved stumping. With one opener retired for 30, and the other holding vigil, this brought the Stats number four to the crease with 50-odd still required from less than seven overs. By now Robinson was on from the building site end, and with the first ball of his second over saw a huge swipe off a wide one safely pouched by an eager Neely running out to point with outstretched gloves. Game on. The next few overs saw some big hitting and a good deal of effort to keep their number five off strike. Who knows what the score could've been had the middle order got to the crease sooner - thankfully for Bodley, that wasn't the case, and consistently sharp fielding from Gareth Jones, Dom Hewett and a run-ragged David Busby kept things tight enough to ensure that by the final over twenty were needed. Freeman was duly hit for three singles, and then, with three sixes needed to win from the final three deliveries ...a six! Two more of those from the big number five to win. In comes Freeman ...dot. Phew. Another dot ball sealed the match and a Bodley victory by 11 runs. Very well played all, a just about defendable score and great bowling effort to take the two points and set up a run to the knock-out stages. GJ.
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Note from the Ed.Generally always written late on the night of the game. Any accuracy or sparkling prose is purely accidental. Archives
September 2019
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