Ankit and Fenil reap rewards of respecting the surface
Highgate Wood, 1/5/2021
Strongroom won by 106 runs
Strongroom: 216-5 [A.Chandna 65*, F.Gandhi 63]
Jesmond Jaguars: 110
View the Scorecard
Classic fixture this. Spring showers, hail, blue sky, cloudy, cold. Pitch looked good. Rough, dry outfield. Old-skool lineup on both sides, befitting of a marquee fixture. Good to see Guy and Hem back in the fold. Ayon answered the late call-up for an XIth man. DP won the toss. Gower bros didn’t last too long, sadly. Otto looked good, but a mix-up led to his run out. Fenil (63) and Ankit (65*) both played very well, mixing watchful defence with attack - they got the balance just right for this surface. They were lucky at times, as several shots went aerial but somehow evaded Jaguars’ fielders. The pick of their bowlers was the ever-reliable Mounsey, nagging away at the top of off with his feisty in-duckers. They missed Eccles in their attack. Our final total of 216 was very decent. Anything over 180 at the woods and you are in business. The surface played well, as a long dry April had been saved by some midweek rain which softened it a touch.
DIY tea for all, a la Covid-19.
Mario n’ Otto was a good, contrasting opening attack (left arm / right arm, veteran / youth, etc.) Mario got the ball to talk, as always, and Otto generated whippy pace and bounce. Chataway bros didn’t last too long, sadly. Mario snared the first wicket, jagging one back in after Adam had struck a couple of boundaries. Vinay snared a good low catch off Otto, and kept wicket very tidily overall. Jags had a good batting line up, but every time a partnership emerged, a wicket fell, which kept us in the game. They were a little bit too aggressive for this surface. I detected a slight lack of patience and application. Two key wickets fell directly either side of tea! We also witnessed some excellent catching - notably Hem, DP, JG. Ayon (3-20) bowled some good off spin, with nice drift and flight, and induced some rash shots and overly cautious defensive prods.
Our final margin of victory (106 runs) was surprising as they had the stronger batting line up, but our bowling was stronger. Ultimately, the difference was the patience and application of Fenil and Ankit. Roll on 2022!
The image below shows the heavy roller in action half an hour before play. Not the most exciting photo. Heavy roller in action. Nice.
Written By: J.Gower
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