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Saturday Third X1 Match Reports
Dulwich 229 for 7 wkts declared (S.Heath 62, A.Blackford 60, J.Mascarenhas 46) in 48.5 overs Old Wimbledonians 225 all out (A.Willis 4-15, K.Dawkins 3-30) in 49.3 overs Result: Dulwich won by 4 runs
After the washout of the previous Saturday at the South Bank ground against Weybridge, Dulwich entered June on the road to Old Wimbledonians in glorious sunshine. The damp weather experienced in May was still evident in the state of the pitch as Dulwich lost the toss and were inserted. Stephen Heath opened the batting with his third partner in as many games, and again watched from the other end as an early wicket was lost. However, a 111 run 2nd wicket partnership with skipper Jeff Mascarenhas followed. Mascarenhas (46) departed soon after the drinks break and Heath (62) followed shortly afterwards, leaving two new batsman at the crease needing to find their way on the slow wicket and outfield. However, the benefits of setting a foundation in the first half of the innings (manifested for the first time since the opening game) were clearly evident later on. The fall of the fifth wicket heralded the arrival of Allen Blackford playing his first league game of the season, and from the outset he dominated the bowling with a combination of powerful hits to leg, deft touches for singles, and aerial chips over the off-side ring. Well supported at various times by Paul Keymer, Paul Smith and Adam Willis, Blackford raced to a rapid 60 before being adjudged lbw. His assertive batting allowed a declaration in the 48th over at 229 for 7, leaving the opposition a generous 52 overs to chase the target.
Dulwich started with the old ball after tea with Heath’s probing leg spin from one end and Keith Dawkins’ accurate medium pace from the other. Each picked up two quick wickets leaving Old Wimbledonians reeling at 31 for 4. At this point Old Wimbledonians looked to be playing to save the game, but as so often happens in this league in particular a solid partnership swings things around somewhat. As the 5th wicket pair looked more and more comfortable, the new ball was called for after 24 overs, and whereas the objective for the fielding side would have been to draw more false shots from the batsmen, the actual result was to see the ball flying to the boundary far more rapidly than previously. Five overs later, further pressure was placed on Dulwich when they lost wicket keeper Alistair Sykes with a dislocated finger. Gaps were immediately more difficult to fill with only ten players on the field, and the spinning options became more limited as Blackford took over the duties with the gloves.
Having mixed the bowling around a little (seven bowlers were ultimately used), Keith Dawkins was now recalled, and his courageous efforts broke the valuable 132 run partnership. Adam Willis replaced the suffering Dawkins and Willis’ first league spell for the club saw him hit the stumps three times and entice a fourth batsman to sky a ball over the infield which Mascarenhas at extra cover somehow held onto with two hands running away from the wicket. Willis’ match winning figures were 4 wickets for 15 runs as the Old Wimbledonians lower order succumbed to the pressure of having to complete the task of overhauling the Dulwich score.
This was Dulwich’s first league win of the season in their fourth completed game, yet in each of the other three the gap between Dulwich and victory was not large. Having finally achieved 13 points in a match, Dulwich need to show similar patience with both bat and ball as the season continues to ensure there are plenty more victories to celebrate.
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