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*Official* Season XIV Discussion and Results

Mr Mxyzptlk

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Tuesday 9th September

Masters XI vs Cricket Web Blue
5D - Manuel Ramprakash Trophy - Casston Reserve

Scorecard
Ball by Ball

Sensational efforts by Lance Klusener and Shane Bond left Cricket Web Blue helpless and defeated by a close margin of 5 runs in Casston. The Blues had dominated the first half of the match, but the game swung dramatically in the second innings until a thrilling end.

The batting effort of Masters XI started poorly with the loss of two early wickets. But SS Das and Brian Lara resurrected the innings with a partnership of 94 for the third wicket. Das was bowled by Adam Collins and gave way to a middle order collapse at the hands of the Blue seamers. Wickets fell regularly, but Lara stood tall and punished anything marginally short through an innings of 103. For all his efforts, however, his team could only muster a moderate 262 all out. All 10 wickets were shared among the three Blue seamers, with Demeza taking 4 for 91 at the head of the attack.

The CW Blue reply was off to a rocky start with two chances going down in the short session before stumps. All the same the visitors returned to the pavilion with all wickets intact. The following day they lost Stephen Young for 25, but Pete Young (89) powered on to a confident half-century. The Blues continued to battle strongly and Robert Cribb joined Pete Young as a half-century. And at his dismissal for 79, CW Blue still had 6 wickets remaining with a lead of 6 runs. Whatever hope existed of a fightback by the Masters was initially arrested by Sam Morris, with a solid 54. But after he was out on the third morning, James Wilson marched onward in most impressive fashion. He ended unbeaten on 110, dropped twice approaching his hundred, and the Blues were all out a run short of 500.

A deficit of 237 then became even more imposing when the first two Masters XI wickets fell with 77 on the board. Again Lara had to stage a fightback, partnered by Farhat that time, and he cruised to 37. But on that score he missed a straight delivery from Morris, and was adjudged lbw. The Blues celebrated in the knowledge that they had snared the key wicket, but it merely brought Klusener to the crease in heroic mood. Two sessions and 230 runs later, Farhat walked for 137. The Masters had long erased the deficit and moved into the lead by 136 runs. But even as the late order fell cheaply, Klusener merely switched to a higher gear and the prospective target climbed to a very competitive level. Demeza bowled his heart out to improve to a 5-wicket haul, but by the time Klusener was run out for 178, the score was 462 all out.

CW Blue were then left with 226 to get. The total looked very much within reach when the Blues had scored 54-0 at the end of day four. But their fortunes made a sharp turn on the final morning. Bond bowled with the wind at his back and presented the batsmen with devastating conventional and reverse swing. By the time rain brought an early lunch, the score was 95-3. Pete Young cut Warne confidently for four to score his 50, and looked determined to guide the chase. Yet Bond remained irresistible. A sensational yorker left Morris (41) without his middle stump, then a beautiful outswinger snatched Bowen's edge. It was a 5th wicket for the fast bowler, and after Warne got Wilson for 3, he took his 6th. Collins was thrice dropped in his brief stay of 16 balls, but his 13 runs looked invaluable in pushing the score to 209. Henderson then collected his first wicket and CW Blue had only 2 wickets in hand to score the remaining 17 runs.

The key man, Pete Young, added 3 more runs before rain interrupted play briefly, and it seemed to break his concentration that he crucialy gloved a Henderson delivery down the legside to Ronchi, out for 93. Captain Demeza arrived to attempt the impossible. Surprisingly he hit a boundary, but with 6 to his name and 6 required, he inevitably fell prey to Bond- a 7th wicket.

Masters XI 1st Innings 262 all out
Lara 103, Das 55, Demeza 4-91, Shah 3-41
Cricket Web Blue 1st Innings 499 all out
Wilson 110*, Young P.E. 89, Bond 4-102, Odoyo 3-99
Masters XI 2nd Innings 462 all out
Klusener 178, Farhat 137, Demeza 5-129, Popat 2-89
Cricket Web Blue 2nd Innings 220 all out
Young P.E. 96, Morris 41, Bond 7-83, Henderson 2-44
Masters XI won by 5 runs.
Man of the Match: L Klusener (Masters)

Cricket Web Red vs Cricket Web Green
5D - Manuel Ramprakash Trophy - CW Oval

Scorecard
Ball by Ball

Breezy fifties from Matt Luff and Zac Ritchie were central in a successful chase of 199 and an impressive win for Cricket Web Red. The young batsmen were hardly overawed and played some stunning shots with great freedom to tackle the potentially tricky target.

The problems for Cricket Web Green started on the opening day after the Reds won the toss in overcast conditions. The pace of the innings was set by the dashing openers, Mamesh and Scott, but while runs flowed throughout the innings, wickets tumbled to a persistent attack. David Kennett returned to some semblance of yesteryear's form with 5 for 59 and CW Green fell for 219 in the space of 39.1 overs. The buoyant Reds found themselves in early difficulty at 45-2, but by stumps Jamee Gray had a brave half-century to his name to maintain control for the home team. That brave fifty turned an exceptional hundred the next morning and the Greens became progressively more sloppy in the field. Ritchie and Heads cashed in with 54 and 78 respectively, and the Reds took the lead by 170. For Gray it was a day to remember, as he reached a clear highest score of 164 before a thin edge behind ended his stay.

So often this season teams have fought back from big first innings deficits, but Muhammad Amir looked determined to crush any such spirit. Into his 7th over he had taken 5 wickets and left the Greens reeling at 92-6. Typically Amir was wayward and expensive, and despite his penetration, the Green batsmen were able to counterattack. Nick Scott raced to 51 from 49 balls, and was dropped shortly after by Heads at slip. The crucial mistake was confirmed a ball later as Scott pulled to midwicket for four and raised the fifty partnership. Bryce Cunningham brought up his run-a-ball fifty, and then he too was dropped. The spirited partnership began to take epic shape and it raced past 100, 150, then 200. Both batsmen scored centuries and Cunningham was finally caught for 115 with the lead up to 122. The price of the final 3 wickets was 76 runs and Scott celebrated 150 in the process. When all was said and done, and Amir took his expensive 6th wicket, CW Green led by 198.

Such a small total threatened to be difficult on a cloudy fifth day, but the pitch still looked good for batting. Briefly chaos simmered after a brace from Cunningham, but Matt Luff played one of the best innings of his first-class career and took control of the run chase. With 68 to his name he miscued a pull shot, but by then the requirement was down to 59. Whatever nerves there were then were calmed by Ritchie and Heads in expert fashion. Neither batsman so much as played a false shot, and they put together an unbroken stand of 61 to complete the match. Ritchie hit the winning runs with the flourish of an off-driven four. His 65 not out cost just 66 balls, while Heads was not out on 25.

Cricket Web Green 1st Innings 219 all out
Gonzalez 83, Malone 32, Kennett 5-59, Amir 3-105
Cricket Web Red 1st Innings 389 all out
Gray 164, Heads 78, Forner 3-84, Mitchell 3-97
Cricket Web Green 2nd Innings 368 all out
Scott 159, Cunningham 115, Amir 6-163, Kennett 3-87
Cricket Web Red 2nd Innings 201 for 4
Luff 68, Ritchie 65*, Cunningham 2-54, Malone 1-9
Cricket Web Red won by 6 wkts.
Man of the Match: JR Gray (Red)

Cricket Web Colts vs Cricket Web Black
5D - Manuel Ramprakash Trophy - Fardin Qayyumi CC

Scorecard
Ball by Ball

Always a threat, Nick Borcich proved his worth with the bat and played a key role in securing an unlikely draw against Cricket Web Colts. The Colts overpowered an under-strength Cricket Web Black for the most part, but with a day to bowl out the opposition, they were denied by Daniel Speirs and a determined Borcich.

Batting first the Colts piled on 441 all out in excellent conditions. There was no star performer in the innings, but three players scored half-centuries. The best of the lot was Andy Pimpkins, who scored 92 from 102 balls, including 13 fours. For the most part it was a disciplined effort by the Blacks, though Borcich proved expensive on a dead pitch. Given the conditions, there was the promise of big runs as the Blacks began their turn. But despite healthy contributions by Ritchie, Speirs and Donald, they lacked the big individual scores. And when the dust settled, Wilson had taken 4 wickets and the Blacks trailed by 147.

There were hesitant whispers of a memorable win for the Colts at that stage, and even after disastrous running accounted for the openers, they remained in control. Dan Towns was joined by Will Kerr on 85-3 for the defining partnership of the innings. The union soared to 245 and despite a clinical, and often spectacular, performance by the Black fielders, the Colts batted their way into an unassailable position. Both batsmen turned centurions, and each ended on 129 not out when Kyle Wright called the innings to a close. That set 476 for CW Black to win and a day remained in the contest.

For a while the game still seemed alive and all results were open when CW Black raced to 143 for the loss of Dan Smith (19) at lunch. Such authoritative batting came from the youngest guns in the team - Ritchie and Burge - until the former was lbw to Weber for 80. The innings contained 10 fours and several highlight-worthy efforts. Alex Blackman came and went for 16, but the Blacks surged onward with scarce consideration of a draw. Burge raised his ton with an enormous six down the ground, having faced 115 balls to get there. The requirement had been shortened to 204 from 37 overs by the time he dragged a Weber topspinner onto middle stump to fall for 131. For the first time on the day the Colts truly sensed an opportunity to press toward victory, and they sent back three cheap wickets to leave CW Black on 332-7 with 18 overs left to be bowled.

Speirs was on 49 when Borcich arrived at the crease, and by the time the fast bowler took guard, his more established colleague had reached his half-century. Early into the final hour the Colts were presented with the new ball, which they took immediately to try to claim the last three wickets. But instead they suffered the frustration of staunch resistance by an increasingly immovable Speirs and a very organized Borcich. Neither batsman offered a chance despite attacking fields and in the face of everything the Colts bowlers had to offer. And when Speirs defended a maiden to see out the game, he and Borcich shared a tender embrace to fittingly commemorate a sensational escape.

Cricket Web Colts 1st Innings 441 all out
Pimpkins 92, Towns 84, Borcich 3-136, Donald 2-71
Cricket Web Black 1st Innings 294 all out
Ritchie 64, Speirs 61, Wilson 4-58, Weber 2-48
Cricket Web Colts 2nd Innings 328 for 3 dec.
Towns 129*, Kerr 129*, Borcich 1-73
Cricket Web Black 2nd Innings 380 for 7
Burge 131, Ritchie 80, Weber 3-97, Thomas 3-99
Match Drawn.
Man of the Match: DG Speirs (Black)
 
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Simon

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Good performance to get a draw against Black, but really we should have won, on a personal note that was probably my poorest FC game of my career.
 

Johnners

Cricket Web: All-Time Legend
Quality win, and a fantastic innings from Mr. Gray (y)

Was good to see Kennett winding back the clock as well :)
 

99*

International Debutant
Bah! Should be happy with 60ish and 80 in a drawn match, but felt I should've got 100.

Dropped a catch as well. :dry:

Whoever Smith is should be dropped btw captain.....
 
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NZTailender

I can't believe I ate the whole thing
Though that was a great match personally. Final day was exciting, showing that you can never really get on top of Black. Great to see the runs flowing from our batsmen too.
 

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