Week 3 – Kenton CC 1st XI vs South Hampstead CC 1st XI

On a sunny day, Kenton won the toss and elected to bowl first. The new opening combination of Charles Erdwin and Kumar Sadagopan (the pro) got off to a bright start as they have done so far this season. After a few hit and miss boundaries and a few swings from the hip, Erdwin picked up the first wicket and bowled a tidy 1^st spell. 

Kumar continued to put on the pressure at the top end of the ground whilst a sharp piece of fielding by Kaushal Patel had the opposition no.4 run out, the same dangerous batsman who hit the ball to all parts in this very fixture last season. Continuing from the bottom end was Mohsin Zubair, who further reduced the opposition to 85-4 after bowling a wicket maiden in his 6^th over. 

Some good batting lead to a good middle order partnership, with South Hampstead (SH) skipper Paul Atherley batting steadily throughout the match. The arrival of David Sweeney lead to another wicket maiden, and from 133-5 wickets fell at regular intervals, eventually leading the score to 194-8 from 44 overs. With Atherley continuing in good form, SH’s no.10 batsman Majid Akram joined him at the crease. SH batted a further 9 overs, from which the run rate rapidly increased, seeing Atherley score 126no, and Kenton conceding 82 runs from 9 overs. SH declared at 276-8 from 53 overs after Kenton fell flat in the field.

Kenton required 277 to win, and 245 to get the winning draw following the break. Jonathan Mills despatched the first ball of the innings to the boundary stating Kenton’s intentions to score quickly. After chasing a wider delivery, Schopun Jooma was caught behind and soon followed by K.Patel caught in the slips. Captain Sachin Patel attempted to support Jonathan Mills’ solid innings of 39, but was soon bowled. After avoiding the awkward bounce of a length ball which managed to rise over Mills’ head, Mills soon departed, leaving Kenton at 86-4 in the 18^th over. 

At this stage, Kenton are still ahead compared to the same stage in the previous innings. Kumar and Sweeney were going steady at the crease until Kumar was given caught behind for 25, a game changing decision which may or may not have been correct. Sweeney and Singh continued at an equal rate on course for the 4pt Draw, but 2 quick wickets from J.Medlin lead to a score of 147-7 from 31 overs. 

Erdwin soon departed but no.8 batsman Rishi Kotecha batted superbly under the conditions with Sweeney, who lost his wicket with a few overs to go. With Kenton 9 down, Zubair attempted to salvage the 1pt Draw. Drama in the final over as Zubair edged to 3^rd slip at a catchable height, only to be dropped. With only one ball to negotiate, Zubair managed to handle the situation, leaving Kenton at 176-9 from 47 overs – a 1pt Draw. Kenton stay above SH in the league tables.

 J.Medlin bowled excellent areas to reach figures of 4-53 from 16 overs.