Won
| Batsmen | Runs | Balls | 4s | 6s | SR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mark Richards | Out | 2 | ||||
| Duncan Parr | Out | 5 | ||||
| Scott Stevens | Out | 36 | ||||
| Wade Johnston | Not Out | 101 | ||||
| Simon Brooks | Out | 0 | ||||
| Richard Harris | Not Out | 19 | ||||
| Nasim Amin | DNB | |||||
| Fahad Majeed | DNB | |||||
| Abbas Ghulam | DNB | |||||
| George Troughton | DNB | |||||
| Extras | ||||||
| Bowling | Overs | Maidens | Runs | Wickets | Economy | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Duncan Parr | 14.0 | 5 | 36 | 4 | 2.57 | |
| Wade Johnston | 15.0 | 3 | 52 | 1 | 3.47 | |
| Nasim Amin | 4.0 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 4.50 | |
| Fahad Majeed | 2.0 | 0 | 17 | 0 | 8.50 | |
| Abbas Ghulam | 12.0 | 4 | 20 | 1 | 1.67 | |
| George Troughton | 6.0 | 1 | 30 | 1 | 5.00 | |
| Extras | ||||||
| Fielder | Catches | Run Outs | Stumpings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duncan Parr | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Wade Johnston | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Simon Brooks | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Stand in Skipper JJ Harris arrived at Aldershot with a much changed side looking to maintain Sonning’s unbeaten start to the season. Missing Captain Gary Phillips, the prolific Ian Boyton and keeper Andy Sumner meant that the senior players were going to have to step up to the plate and opening bowlers Ghulam Abbas and Wade Johnston certainly did this after Aldershot had won the toss and decided to bat. Abbas bowled an unplayable spell combining pace with swing and seam and was unlucky to only take 1 wicket while bowling a miserly 12 overs for only 20 runs. Johnston also bowled well and the Aldershot innings was crwling along before Duncan Parr came on to bowl his famous “Gravity balls� particularly well. He used the slope perfectly and bowled 14 overs taking 4 for 36 with 5 maidens, while his last over went for 14 ! As he said himself “It was coming out nicely� and Aldershot could not get him away without slogging. Unfortunately Sonning could not quite keep the same control from the other end with some new bowlers coming into the side, and despite losing regular wickets, Aldershot slowly accelerated to reach 189 for 7 in their 52 overs.
Sonning tucked into tea confident in the knowledge that Mark Richards should make short work of a score under 200 on a good track, however when he hit a ball from the accurate off spin of Neil Mumby straight to Mid-Off in the first over, confidence dropped a bit, and when Duncan Parr was out to the same bowler in the 3rd over, the inexperienced batting line up to come now looked slightly fragile. However Aussies Scott Stevens and Wade Johnston knuckled down really well, ignoring their attacking instincts against Mumby, and gradually getting their eyes in before accelerating the run rate. A terrific 80 odd partnership ensued before Stevens played a loose shot to get out which sparked a mini collapse. First Simon Brooks on his first team debut got a “Jaffa� which bowled him and then Pete “Biffa� Whitmore missed a straight one. This brought Skipper Harris to the crease with 60 odd still needed. He found the middle of the bat as soon as coming to the crease as Mumby, who had bowled a marathon spell was tiring, and with Johnston now smashing the ball to all parts, the target was approaching rapidly. In fact Harris realised that with 24 needed to win, Johnston needed 20 to reach a well deserved century, and as there were plenty of overs to go, he started to help Johnston to this landmark. He was not let down as Johnston continued smashing the cover off the ball and brought up his century with the boundary that won the game.
This was a good win for a weakened team that showed it can still do the business when their talented but sometimes over confident talisman at the top of the order does not perform! A word of thanks must go to Aldershot for their excellent hospitality and terrific facilities, which were thoroughly enjoyed.
JJ Harris
