Mellor leaves his Mark
London Fields, 4/25/2010
Strongroom won by 71 runs
Strongroom: 285 [M.Mellor 92, O.Moore 56, Praneet 45, J.Gower 41]
London Fields: 214-7
View the Scorecard
It wasn’t a bad toss to lose, considering the rain showers in the morning, and Strongroom were duly asked to bat first. We didn’t get off to the best start as Martin was soon snared in the slips off one that bounced a little extra, but Olly Moore [56] and Praneet [45] soon made amends. Their stand of 101 came in only 10 overs, and both batsmen made the most of some loose bowling and a fast outfield. However, three quick wickets left strong room slightly stuttering at 131-4, which brought J.Gower [41] and Mark Mellor [92] together. This pair piled on 133 runs in just 12 overs, a Strongroom record for the 5th wicket, but Mark was the leading man in a violent display of clean hitting that yielded eighteen 4s and two 6s off only 40 deliveries faced. At 264-4 off 29 overs, Strongroom were considering a mammoth total, but London Fields fought back to bowl us out for 285 in only 33.3 overs. Steve [6-0-20-3] in particular caused real problems with his lively pace and seam movement. Several catches were dropped by London Fields, including one that unfortunately ended in a broken finger, but as we were to discover, this isn’t the easiest ground for visibility.
Tea: No tea! We made do with some crisps and rationed water provisions.
We were confident about defending our decent total, but as we were to re-discover, this ground is difficult when it comes to maintaining a low run rate. As it was, Paddy made a strike with the very first ball, the unfortunate Rhodri slicing a square drive straight into Simon Ray’s safe hands at gully. The next four batsmen though all made good totals, and the cricket meandered between dominance of the ball and counter-attacking batting. Steve [80*] again resisted our efforts in a fine battling innings, unafraid to drive on the up and take on the bowlers. As for our bowling and fielding, it blew a bit hot and cold, with plenty of wides thrown in amongst some fine deliveries, and Peter terblanche, in his first game of cricket for 20 years, was kept busy behind the stumps. U-Roy [2-20] and Simon Ray [3-33] were the pick of the bowlers, both attacking the stumps and getting some good lateral movement. As it was, the margin between the two teams was 71 runs, and London Fields will probably rue some key dropped chances that enabled us to get the winning total.
Written By: J.Gower
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