Match Reports
Dulwich 3rd XI v Old Wimbledonians 3rd
XI (away) 12 July 2003
Result: Dulwich losing draw
Old Wimbledonians 169 all out in 46.5 overs (C.Smith 6 for
52)
Dulwich 160 for 9 in 54 overs
The two sides who have battled it out at the top of the table
all season met in a very closely fought, tense encounter that
could have gone either way until the last couple of overs. In
the end, both sides had to settle for a draw and could look back
on opportunities lost.
Dulwich elected to field first on a swelteringly hot day, and
Chris Smith soon picked up the first wicket, only to bring in
van Rensburg who smashed 25 in a few balls before falling to
the same bowler. After 10 overs the score was 59-3 as the game
rattled along. Then Ian Marshall began to find a rhythm and everything
slowed down (including his bowling) as he embarked on a marathon
20-over spell, at one stage conceding just five runs in eight
overs. At the other end, Rohan Karat came on for his best spell
of the season, picking up three wickets. When he came off the
score was 112-7. A stumping chance given by Tyson, the No 9,
off Marshall (I said he was bowling slowly) was missed and proved
crucial, as he hit 43 to help OWs to 169. Smith came back at
the end to polish off the tail, bowling straight and fast to
take his haul to six wickets.
In reply, after the early loss of Ally Sykes, Dulwich moved
to 71-1, as Sam Taylor made a fine 49 (58 balls, 8 fours), ably
supported by John Acland-Hood. But the dismissal of Taylor, and
some accurate bowling by van Rensburg and Rouse, saw Dulwich
begin to lose momentum. When Acland-Hood fell for 30 to make
it 97-3, Dulwich still had 23 overs to make 73 runs for a crucial
victory. But the next 13 overs yielded just 12 runs for the loss
of four more wickets. Karat and David Woods tried to force the
pace, but the pressure mounted, and in the end Karat and Stewart
Harmer had to see out the last couple of overs to save a point
and prevent the OWs from opening up a big gap at the top of the
table. In the end, it was probably a fair result, with neither
side having done quite enough to deserve victory.
Next week Dulwich host Guildford, who have slipped to fifth
in the table, and are now 17 points clear of third-placed Woking & Horsell,
who we beat by eight wickets early in the season.
Back to Match Reports
|
