Match Report from Sunday 16th June:

Rain, rain go away

After much work to ensure a playable pitch, the match started with us losing the toss and being put into bat. A fine opening stand enabled the score to move rapidly to 136 before the first wicket fell in the 24th over. A vintage batting performance ended with an unassailable score, a brilliant all-round performance and a deserved win! Well done team! Upwards and onwards.

Oh! … and the other match report follows (courtesy of Malc):

Blenheim shoots self in foot

After much hard work and anxious cover hovering we got a game on. The ten men of Blenheim against the 11men of Felix. Felix won toss and elected to Bat and we were in good control from the outset with Jake and Nigel difficult to play. Change pair of Tom Flemming and JVF also performing well and an enjoyable couple of overs of Finn bowling well against his dad. Then the Felix batting turned up and they motored from about 70-6 to 147 all out. Cox picking up a couple at the end. (Jake 2, Nigel 1, Tom 2, JVF 1, Finn 2, Cox 2). Keeper wars escalated another level with Stan conceding no byes and taking 2 good catches. Champagne moment Phil Spearman Ct Angol Bowled F Spearman/JVF departed chuntering about bloody wicket keepers who can suddenly catch.

An excellent tea was widely enjoyed and then the Blenheim chase began. Phil Boardman was confident from the off and had 30 on the board by the ninth over when Martin remembered he was also supposed to add to the score as well and started to pick off the weaker 2nd string bowling. At half way drinks BPCC were 73 for 0. First wicket fell at about 85 (Martin 30) and Phil ploughed on joined by Jake who hit a flashing 25 in short order and ran hard (and Phil into the ground). Then requiring about 25 from the last 12 overs with 8 wickets in hand the Blenheim collapse started. My therapist advises me not to try to recall it but Phil was last man out trying to steal a single off the last ball of the penultimate over to protect the drafted in spectator batting at no 11. Phil made an excellent 70 (and hobbled off the pitch as if he was indeed 70). We managed to give 4 LBWs (at least one of which had a bat involved), had a player bowled of the 7th ball of the over, had a catch given with no bat involved and didn’t have a full 11 to bat.

A match we should have Won, could have drawn and lost by 6 runs. At 1pm the BBC rain predictor said 97% chance of rain, we laughed when no rain came. At 7pm the Match predictor said 97% probability of BPCC win, 30 mins later we were not laughing.

PS: I wonder whether we can attract sponsorship from Kumon, SpecSavers, Boots Audiology etc?

All said and done: W4, L2, D1

Match report (June 2019): BPCC 152 for 9 at home to Swinbrook 82 All Out (28.3 overs)

Another BPCC win (W6, D1 and L1) in a rare match where everyone contributed – bravo! At 40-4 things looked decidedly dodgy but George (44) and JVF (33) built on the foundation, weathered the … well, weather and set up a challenging total.

In reply, Swinbrook were restricted by some sharp bowling with wickets split between Amir Shazad (1), Nigel (2), Raj (3) and Stan with 2 in 2 balls …. and then comes the hat-trick ball … bowled on the stumps, batsman takes a wild swing … edges it onto the leg-side … wicket-keeper Lee dives for an impossible catch … and it was an impossible catch! BPCC complete a good all-round display with sharp fielding – 6 caught and 2 run-outs! BPCC dominance saw only one opposition batsman getting into double figures.

Raj

On a near perfect May Sunday we started our home season on the South lawn the air thick with heavy expectation, midges and Spitfires. After a hard week of prep without the roller thanks to Raj, Nigel, Phil Boardman, Andrew and Stan the ground and pavilion was looking excellent and our relaid wicket about as good as it could for the first game.

As the striped army of IZ advanced across the Haha and onto the south lawn we were surprised to note that we were all at the pavilion at least 15 ins before start time, hopefully a habit to be continued. As planned we lost the toss and IZ decided to bat in this timed game. So yet a new opening partnership of Walker and Dewar (Mitch ) welcomed our guests with early session variable bounce and immediately we felt we might have something to play for. So when they quickly made their way to 33 we were getting concerned but then Old faithful Walker broke through clean bowling the opener. Then to our utter delight Mitch produced a fantastic three wicket maiden (..WW.W) inducing jag back down the slope, full on front foot LBW and another bowled and suddenly we were sniffing victory already. But with 15 overs of openers past we were needing a change. Jake bowled very tightly and Nick had the remaining opened dropped on the boundary at deep square leg but we made no further breakthroughs as the total began to build. The opener piling on the runs comfortably passed 50. Changing to Gokani and Stoddart started to bring wickets at the other end but with the opener again dropped in the deep it looked like he was inevitably set for a century…but no. Inexplicably with him on 90no and his team on 161-6 his captain declared ten minutes shy of the allotted tea time. (Yes we can’t quite explain it either).

There followed a very nice tea.

As suspiciously nobody else seemed that interested in opening the batting with Mitch the skipper stepped up and after breaking his bat and then creaming the perfect cover drove to the rope he was predictably caught by deep mid-off and Lee joined Mitch. However we struggled to really get away against a good opening attack who bowled 21 overs. Mitch picked up the occasional boundary including a huge six over deep wide mid on (cow) but eventually, inevitably the wickets began to fall. First Lee frustrated and then Martin LBW and Mitch (44) caught as the frustration grew. Then a flurry of wickets with only Nick beyond the top order able to break double figures and carry his bat to the end. We eventually held out for a memorable draw (for all the wrong reasons in the end) 110-9 from 39 overs. Unfortunately we couldn’t blame this on the pitch which had evened out over the day and ended up playing quite well.

Still a draw in a timed game against that bowling attack is not to be sniffed at and we proceed undefeated towards the bookworms of Bodleian Library next Sunday.

MOTM: Mitch Dewar

Tied drama against #izingari

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Courtesy of Malcolm West

For those in a hurry scroll down to the in brief version in bold.

In fuller form: IZ won the toss and elected to bat then raced to 60-0 in the first third of their innings and it looked like we might be looking down the barrel, in fact both barrels again as Walker and Talbot G were tortured with the new ball.  Canham started to slow up the rate and a dose of Stoddart (as is usually the case) settled the nerves with a Wicket almost immediately.  After some typical Blenheim fielding gave the IZ opener and top scorer a life off Canham in the deep amends were made with a great run out by Walker and the tables began to turn. Wickets fell steadily and runs dried up as the bowlers now including Gokani were skilfully rotated. Fielding was unusually sharp with confident catches taken the deep by Walker and Henman and a sharp catch on the drive by West.  IZ finished their 35 overs with 142-8 (Walker 1 – 37, Talbot 1-23, Canham 1-23, Stoddart 2-9, Gokani 2-44)

An excellent tea prepared by Talbot G with additional Victoria Sponges provided by the ladies of Woodstock was enjoyed by all. The general consensus being that the total should be possible to get with the batting line up we had available.

In reply an electric start from Keys supported by Cox M saw us race to 45 in the first 8 overs.  As Keys fell the rest of the upper and middle order came and went in regular order, all contributing a few but the rate slowed except for a brief injection of fireworks by Henman. By the 25^th over we had crept to 90 leaving 50 runs to get in the last ten with only 4 wickets down and still looking likely to do it. With five overs to go 25 were required with five down and still it looked likely with Cox M still at the crease anchoring the innings having been joined by Stoddart.  Then the unthinkable happened and a diving one handed catch at midwicket snaffled Cox for 40.  An unseasonal flurry of wickets fell while Stoddart found the boundaries at the other end and as we started the 35^th over 7 were required for the win Gokani facing with Stoddart at the other end, for IZ the bowling was slow and expensive from the luckiest/richest and portliest member of their team.  Let me go into ball by ball mode.

Ball 1 – Gokani, LBW, hearts sink and we look around to see who is due in next…

Ball2 – cometh the moment, cometh the Stan (who was still putting has pads on during the preceding delivery). Swing  Miss.  Groans from the anxious benches.

Ball 3 – Swing…Hit the Stan shot of the century a lofted cover drive over the close ring field for a single.  As the cheers ring in Stan’s ears, he considers coming back for a second but is strongly discouraged from doing so.

Ball 4 – Stoddart crashing drive back over the bowlers head is almost a six one bounce just inside the rope, 4.  Leaving us 1 behind with 2 balls left.

Ball 5 – Stoddard squeezes it through the ring and takes a single.  Scores tied.

Ball 6 – This is the moment.  Stan swings… Stan misses. Scores tied.