Nomads made the short trip to Giant Arches Road, the home of Dulwich cc, probably South London's finest club, to play their young but talented Development XI, well-managed as ever by John Lawrence.
Mr Lawrence is a Dulwich institution. There is a scorecard on the wall of Dulwich's bar describing a match he played in for the club in 1966. He is a primarily a coach/manager now but he still took an excellent slip catch on Sunday to dismiss Nomads' finest batsman - Hassan.
Anyway, after a slight delay due to rain, the Home side batted. As expected, their technique was good, but some of them did struggle a bit against the pace of Zia and especially Abbas, who continued his excellent run of form with 4 for 16 in a rapid 7-over spell of pace bowling, Hassan, Safi and KK also bowled well but the other Nomads bowler that the youngsters had particular difficulty with was Emil, who got through 5 overs and conceded only 5 runs. Presumably it was not Emil's pace they had trouble with but just the mystique of the man. Facing Emil is not something that can be taught or coached, it is just a life skill that the lucky few can acquire (if they are not bowled slogging first.)
With the exception of the No. 6 - name to follow -(G. Davies)- who made 31, no-one could really turn a start into big runs, and a steady stream of wickets resulted in Dulwich being dismissed for 96.
The same No. 6, G. Davies, opened the bowling and took 2 quick wickets - including the valuable one of Darwin - to rock the visitors back on their heels. Nomads were scoring at 7 an over though and, once the wickets dried up, we soon began to look comfortable with Mahesh - who has had a great August - and Hassan dominating. The useful leg-spinner / slow-medium leg-cutter bowler Alex had Hassan well caught by John Lawrence in the slips but Zia kept up the momentum and then struck 2 large sixes to have the match won before half past 5. Zia just overtook Mahesh with these late sixes to finish top-scorer with 25 not out. A very creditable unbeaten 24 for Mahesh.
So an enjoyable day out at an excellent ground against opposition who are always interesting and are a very pleasant and polite bunch - a credit to their club.
Nomads now stand at 7 wins and 7 defeats with just Old Leagonians (against whom we could be pre-match favourites) and Wimbledon United (for whom Dave Hitchman will score his usual century) to play. We would have a chance of finishing in the top half of the table (if there was a table, that is.)
Man of the Match was Abbas for another deadly spell of green tea-fuelled fast bowling. Fielder of the Day was John Crossland who took 2 catches behind the stumps on his return from injury.
Dulwich 96 all out from 28 overs
Nomads' bowling;
H. Khan 5-2-11-0
E. Todorow 5-1-5-0
Abbas Khan 7-0-16-4
Zia 7-0-33-2
Safi 4-1-3-2
KK Khusro 4-0-17-2
Clapham Nomads 98 for 3 from 15.5 overs
M. Vyas not out 24
D. Gunawardena 4
Naeem 5
H. Khan 19
Zia not out 25
Did not bat; - J. Iqbal, Safi, KK Khusro, Abbas Khan, E. Todorow (capt), J. Crossland (wkt)
F.O.W. - 5, 13, 43
Clapham Nomads won by 7 wickets.
Wednesday 31 August 2016
Monday 22 August 2016
Clapham Nomads v Streatham & Marlborough - 21/8/16
Nomads hosted a youthful Streatham & Marlborough side in a conference fixture at the Del Ballard Rec in Dundonald Road, Wimbledon, on Sunday and took our unbeaten streak against this well-organised club to 4 games.
Nomads batted first and recorded our highest score of the season - 211 - in a see-saw innings. The early dismissal of Darwin, which should probably have been called for a high no-ball, was followed by an excellent stand of 93, our highest partnership of the season so far, between Mahesh Vyas and Paul Murphy. 4 wickets then fell for 1 run in the mid-90s before a hard-hitting 67 not out - including 13 boundaries, from Javed Iqbal, with good support especially from KK, took Nomads well over 200 against a bowling line-up that tried their best.
Streatham shot out of the traps with 35 off the first 3 overs, but Nomads gradually bowled their way back into it and a great spell of hostile fast bowling from Abbas seemed to have swung the pendulum in the Home side's favour. At this point, in steady drizzle, the visitors took a fairly unilateral decision to leave the field and call things off. It is not clear whether they feared getting into trouble for arriving home wearing sopping wet kit, or that they felt the game had begun to turn decisively against them. There was a rumour that it was the latter. Anyway, the rain stopped after 30 minutes. Although the Away side were fractionally ahead on run rate (6.14 to 6.03), the minimum Nomads will claim from this game is a draw and I might consult Messrs Duckworth and Lewis to see if we did, in fact, win. Not that we are desperate, of course.
UPDATE....I have just checked out Duckworth-Lewis and, guess what; Nomads won by 12 runs. Call us lucky, call us winners, call me a sad *****, but just don't ask me to explain. Anyway, congrats to Nomads on our 6th win of the season.
Clapham Nomads 211 for 8 from 35 overs
M. Vyas (wkt) 38
D. Gunawardena 0
P. Murphy 38
R. Khan 0
Zia 1
Safi 5
J. Iqbal not out 67
KK Khusro 16
Abbas Khan 7
N. Lefebve not out 0
Did not bat; E. Todorow (capt)
F.O.W. - 1, 94, 94, 94, 95, 132, 190, 207
Streatham & Marlborough 129 for 5 from 21 overs
Nomads' bowling;
Zia 5-0-31-1
R. Khan 5-0-35-0
KK Khusro 5-0-32-0
Abbas Khan 5-0-23-3
Safi 1-1-0-1
Nomads either drew or won - further details to follow
UPDATE - Clapham Nomads won by 12 runs. (Duckworth-Lewis formula)
Man of the Match was Javed Iqbal, though Abbas might well have claimed this, with another wicket or two, had he been able to complete his spell. Zia was Fielder of the Day.
Nomads batted first and recorded our highest score of the season - 211 - in a see-saw innings. The early dismissal of Darwin, which should probably have been called for a high no-ball, was followed by an excellent stand of 93, our highest partnership of the season so far, between Mahesh Vyas and Paul Murphy. 4 wickets then fell for 1 run in the mid-90s before a hard-hitting 67 not out - including 13 boundaries, from Javed Iqbal, with good support especially from KK, took Nomads well over 200 against a bowling line-up that tried their best.
Streatham shot out of the traps with 35 off the first 3 overs, but Nomads gradually bowled their way back into it and a great spell of hostile fast bowling from Abbas seemed to have swung the pendulum in the Home side's favour. At this point, in steady drizzle, the visitors took a fairly unilateral decision to leave the field and call things off. It is not clear whether they feared getting into trouble for arriving home wearing sopping wet kit, or that they felt the game had begun to turn decisively against them. There was a rumour that it was the latter. Anyway, the rain stopped after 30 minutes. Although the Away side were fractionally ahead on run rate (6.14 to 6.03), the minimum Nomads will claim from this game is a draw and I might consult Messrs Duckworth and Lewis to see if we did, in fact, win. Not that we are desperate, of course.
UPDATE....I have just checked out Duckworth-Lewis and, guess what; Nomads won by 12 runs. Call us lucky, call us winners, call me a sad *****, but just don't ask me to explain. Anyway, congrats to Nomads on our 6th win of the season.
Clapham Nomads 211 for 8 from 35 overs
M. Vyas (wkt) 38
D. Gunawardena 0
P. Murphy 38
R. Khan 0
Zia 1
Safi 5
J. Iqbal not out 67
KK Khusro 16
Abbas Khan 7
N. Lefebve not out 0
Did not bat; E. Todorow (capt)
F.O.W. - 1, 94, 94, 94, 95, 132, 190, 207
Streatham & Marlborough 129 for 5 from 21 overs
Nomads' bowling;
Zia 5-0-31-1
R. Khan 5-0-35-0
KK Khusro 5-0-32-0
Abbas Khan 5-0-23-3
Safi 1-1-0-1
Nomads either drew or won - further details to follow
UPDATE - Clapham Nomads won by 12 runs. (Duckworth-Lewis formula)
Man of the Match was Javed Iqbal, though Abbas might well have claimed this, with another wicket or two, had he been able to complete his spell. Zia was Fielder of the Day.
Wednesday 17 August 2016
Clapham Nomads v Energy Exiles - 14/8/16 - Updated
Even if Clapham Nomads are unable to win a particular match, we always like to make it interesting for the opposition and we certainly succeeded in doing the latter at Raynes Park last Sunday. There was a great deal of interest for the visitors as they stacked up the runs; just which batting records would they break and by how much? They ended up setting three new marks; their all-team highest team total - 283 for 4; their highest individual score - Steve Parkinson's 141 off only 107 balls; and their highest-ever 2nd wicket stand - Parkinson sharing 191 off just over 150 balls with Bernard Leuvennink, who scored even faster than his partner with 81 runs off 52 balls. The innings was also the highest total Clapham Nomads have ever conceded.
I have to say this was just brilliant batting, though of course the track was excellent and there was one short boundary. The greatest assistance, though, was from some truly terrible fielding from the Nomads.
It all started so differently with tight swing bowling from Hassan and a very rapid spell from Zeeshan restricting Exiles to only 36 off the first 9 and 2 very catchable chances had gone down. From this point however, the throttle was well and truly choked. Abbas had Tom brilliantly caught by Hassan in the deep but the introduction of Leuvennink was the cue for massive acceleration. 90 runs were taken between overs 9 and the 18-over drinks break.
I have to say that Nomads bowling remained reasonable throughout but there were some spectacular missed chances, many caused by the sun being in fielders' eyes. Other possible causes were the hubbub coming from the pavilion (where a large extended family picnic was taking place with food and organised activities such as bike races and running on to the outfield to see if you could get injured), also the fierce heat and being just generally pissed off.
I'm sure there must have been a few Nomads fielders that didn't make any mistakes but our only real bright spot in the field was a fantastic, energy-packed performance by the oldest man in the side, Chris Kennedy. He made a full-length diving stop, didn't miss anything easy and injured his finger attempting a flying catch which would have been Nomads' finest of all time but unfortunately didn't quite stick. The ball just kept coming to him as he protected the short boundary and he was very solid. He did put another one down but it was very firmly struck and he had 2 injured fingers by this point.
The whole ground had a slightly odd feel to it as there was a large 12-foot high hoarding just behind the short boundary running about a third of the way around the pitch. Extensive building work was taking place behind this. We speculated as to what was being built and the general consensus was that it would be a main stand accommodating 6,000 ticket-holders, complete with a Media Centre, luxury changing facilities, an Indoor Cricket Academy and a licensed restaurant. One Exile pointed out that, since Nomads are one of the main users of Raynes Park, this new stand could contain facilities for an LBW decision review system. I'll get onto Merton Council about it - we do pay over £100 a game after all.
300 looked a possibility at one point but good bowling from KK, and a slight improvement in the fielding with Abbas taking a neat catch, meant that Energy only just passed their previous record score of 280. Well done to them though. Magnificent batting.
This was a hell of a task for Nomads but we had a few targets; a) about 60, which would prevent this being our heaviest runs defeat of all time and becoming known as "Slaughter in the Sun 2"; b) pass the 100; c) get within 100 runs of Exiles' total and d) hit the ball out of the ground and onto the building site- which Energy had done about 6 times - on at least one occasion.
We cracked on at about 6 an over but for the loss of Mahesh and KK fairly early. Hassan joined new man Javed and they produced probably the best stand of the innings. Hassan has been in great from and has been averaging over 55 since Ramadan. The boundary rope began to be peppered and Exiles skipper Chris Plume did acknowledge later that he had just a slight concern at this point. Javed eventually fell but Abbas, at No. 5, took 4 boundaries off an over in a bright 20. Zia joined Hassan and these two batting at their very best would certainly have had the potential to at least make it tense. Sadly Zia, hampered by injury, didn't last too long. Hassan made a nice 43 which looked like it would be our top score until Zeeshan began to really get after the bowling. With Nick Lefebve blocking the other end (after surviving a strong LBW shout early on from swing bowler Phil Ling), Zeeshan assumed command with a series of heavy blows and managed to get the ball into the building site twice, once via an Exile's fingertips. He completed an excellent half-century which we were told was his first 50 in any form of cricket. Well done!
After Zeeshan fell for 55, Lefebve kept the board rolling with some agricultural leg-side blows, supported by Kennedy, who very sportingly walked after an edge that no-one else had heard, and Emil Todorow. In trying to get the margin of defeat below 100, Lefebve holed out tamely to mid-wicket off Leuvennink with 4 balls to go and exposed John Crossland, who had a possible thumb fracture, to 4 balls which Nomads' tough guy coped with admirably to at least prevent Nomads being all out. In fact, our total of 176 for 9 is our second highest against Exiles in the last 10 games.
So a memorable game, played competitively with just a few hints of tetchiness but not even at the Handbags at 10 paces level, more Jellybabies on the Pitch but good-humoured in the main. We always enjoy playing the Exiles and may now consider paying boot money to any ringers that could make us enjoy it even more. If any readers know any First Class players that would be interested in playing against the Exiles next year for ....er, the honour of turning out for the Nomads....please let me know.
Energy Exiles 283 for 4 from 35 overs
Nomads' bowling;
H. Khan 7-0-53-0
Zeeshan 7-2-33-0
Abbas Khan 7-0-51-1
Zia 2-0-24-0
E. Todorow 4-0-39-0
Javed Iqbal 4-0-48-0
KK Khusro 4-0-31-3
Clapham Nomads 176 for 9 from 35 overs
M. Vyas 8
KK Khusro 14
Javed Iqbal 4
H. Khan 43
Abbas Khan 20
Zia 0
Zeeshan 55
N. Lefebve 23
C. Kennedy 0
E. Todorow(capt) not out 4
J. Crossland(wkt) not out 0
F.O.W. - 21, 22, 59, 81, 81, 115, 149, 157, 176
Clapham Nomads lost by 107 runs.
Full scores to follow. (Now included.)
Normally, I would give Man of The Match to Zeeshan for his 50 and he played really well. However, Chris Kennedy produced something really special today. He threw everything into his fielding, despite injury and he produced a great moment of sportsmanship in walking when no-one else realised he was out. He is a model Sportsman and a true Nomads legend. He is Man of the Match and Fielder of the Day.
I have to say this was just brilliant batting, though of course the track was excellent and there was one short boundary. The greatest assistance, though, was from some truly terrible fielding from the Nomads.
It all started so differently with tight swing bowling from Hassan and a very rapid spell from Zeeshan restricting Exiles to only 36 off the first 9 and 2 very catchable chances had gone down. From this point however, the throttle was well and truly choked. Abbas had Tom brilliantly caught by Hassan in the deep but the introduction of Leuvennink was the cue for massive acceleration. 90 runs were taken between overs 9 and the 18-over drinks break.
I have to say that Nomads bowling remained reasonable throughout but there were some spectacular missed chances, many caused by the sun being in fielders' eyes. Other possible causes were the hubbub coming from the pavilion (where a large extended family picnic was taking place with food and organised activities such as bike races and running on to the outfield to see if you could get injured), also the fierce heat and being just generally pissed off.
I'm sure there must have been a few Nomads fielders that didn't make any mistakes but our only real bright spot in the field was a fantastic, energy-packed performance by the oldest man in the side, Chris Kennedy. He made a full-length diving stop, didn't miss anything easy and injured his finger attempting a flying catch which would have been Nomads' finest of all time but unfortunately didn't quite stick. The ball just kept coming to him as he protected the short boundary and he was very solid. He did put another one down but it was very firmly struck and he had 2 injured fingers by this point.
The whole ground had a slightly odd feel to it as there was a large 12-foot high hoarding just behind the short boundary running about a third of the way around the pitch. Extensive building work was taking place behind this. We speculated as to what was being built and the general consensus was that it would be a main stand accommodating 6,000 ticket-holders, complete with a Media Centre, luxury changing facilities, an Indoor Cricket Academy and a licensed restaurant. One Exile pointed out that, since Nomads are one of the main users of Raynes Park, this new stand could contain facilities for an LBW decision review system. I'll get onto Merton Council about it - we do pay over £100 a game after all.
300 looked a possibility at one point but good bowling from KK, and a slight improvement in the fielding with Abbas taking a neat catch, meant that Energy only just passed their previous record score of 280. Well done to them though. Magnificent batting.
This was a hell of a task for Nomads but we had a few targets; a) about 60, which would prevent this being our heaviest runs defeat of all time and becoming known as "Slaughter in the Sun 2"; b) pass the 100; c) get within 100 runs of Exiles' total and d) hit the ball out of the ground and onto the building site- which Energy had done about 6 times - on at least one occasion.
We cracked on at about 6 an over but for the loss of Mahesh and KK fairly early. Hassan joined new man Javed and they produced probably the best stand of the innings. Hassan has been in great from and has been averaging over 55 since Ramadan. The boundary rope began to be peppered and Exiles skipper Chris Plume did acknowledge later that he had just a slight concern at this point. Javed eventually fell but Abbas, at No. 5, took 4 boundaries off an over in a bright 20. Zia joined Hassan and these two batting at their very best would certainly have had the potential to at least make it tense. Sadly Zia, hampered by injury, didn't last too long. Hassan made a nice 43 which looked like it would be our top score until Zeeshan began to really get after the bowling. With Nick Lefebve blocking the other end (after surviving a strong LBW shout early on from swing bowler Phil Ling), Zeeshan assumed command with a series of heavy blows and managed to get the ball into the building site twice, once via an Exile's fingertips. He completed an excellent half-century which we were told was his first 50 in any form of cricket. Well done!
After Zeeshan fell for 55, Lefebve kept the board rolling with some agricultural leg-side blows, supported by Kennedy, who very sportingly walked after an edge that no-one else had heard, and Emil Todorow. In trying to get the margin of defeat below 100, Lefebve holed out tamely to mid-wicket off Leuvennink with 4 balls to go and exposed John Crossland, who had a possible thumb fracture, to 4 balls which Nomads' tough guy coped with admirably to at least prevent Nomads being all out. In fact, our total of 176 for 9 is our second highest against Exiles in the last 10 games.
So a memorable game, played competitively with just a few hints of tetchiness but not even at the Handbags at 10 paces level, more Jellybabies on the Pitch but good-humoured in the main. We always enjoy playing the Exiles and may now consider paying boot money to any ringers that could make us enjoy it even more. If any readers know any First Class players that would be interested in playing against the Exiles next year for ....er, the honour of turning out for the Nomads....please let me know.
Energy Exiles 283 for 4 from 35 overs
Nomads' bowling;
H. Khan 7-0-53-0
Zeeshan 7-2-33-0
Abbas Khan 7-0-51-1
Zia 2-0-24-0
E. Todorow 4-0-39-0
Javed Iqbal 4-0-48-0
KK Khusro 4-0-31-3
Clapham Nomads 176 for 9 from 35 overs
M. Vyas 8
KK Khusro 14
Javed Iqbal 4
H. Khan 43
Abbas Khan 20
Zia 0
Zeeshan 55
N. Lefebve 23
C. Kennedy 0
E. Todorow(capt) not out 4
J. Crossland(wkt) not out 0
F.O.W. - 21, 22, 59, 81, 81, 115, 149, 157, 176
Clapham Nomads lost by 107 runs.
Full scores to follow. (Now included.)
Normally, I would give Man of The Match to Zeeshan for his 50 and he played really well. However, Chris Kennedy produced something really special today. He threw everything into his fielding, despite injury and he produced a great moment of sportsmanship in walking when no-one else realised he was out. He is a model Sportsman and a true Nomads legend. He is Man of the Match and Fielder of the Day.
Monday 8 August 2016
Clapham Nomads v Barnes Occasionals - 7/8/16
Nomads entertained our oldest cricketing friends, the Barnes Occasionals, at a gloriously sunny Raynes Park Sports Ground on Sunday.
Inserted by Barnes skipper Ollie Hogg, Nomads' openers Mahesh and Darwin resumed their almost telepathic understanding at the crease. They seem to take it in turns to dominate and it was Mahesh's turn to force the pace this week as they faced up to the contrasting pace and styles of Hooker and Hogg. Vyas raced to 13 but Ollie Hogg always produces something, usually leaving the victim feeling bamboozled. On this occasion, a slow one caused Mahesh to move forward just a little too much and become unbalanced. The batsman could not regain his ground in time even though the keeper fumbled it, and off came the bails. 19 for 1.
Excellent batting from Darwin and Prasanth, containing a high proportion of boundaries, kept up the pace. Hooker bowled Darwin for a nice 25 in the 11th over with the 50 just on the board. Hassan continued his good work of last week until Prasanth fell for 23 to a one-handed catch described by John Crossland as "amazing." Not a word John is given to using - it must have been quite something. Looks like Prasanth is coming into form to face his favourite opponents, the Energy Exiles, next week.
I arrived with the score 100 for 3 and Nomads were in full flood. Zia and Hassan matching each other stride for stride until Zia struck 2 sixes off an over from Keith Seed, not the easiest bowler to get away. Inevitably, the Barnes Legend struck back in the following over to bowl Zia, just after Hassan had fallen for 45 (top-scorer for the second week in a row.)
Nomads were down to 158 for 5 and still needed quite a few to put ourselves in command. Patrick struck 3 nice boundaries while KK and Zeeshan were there and then Abbas smacked it around at the death to bring Nomads up to 197 at the close.
Occasionals were missing their star batsman Roger Price but there were one or two players we did not know too much about. You can never write off the Occasionals as we know from long experience.
Keith Seed opened the batting, which I cannot remember him doing for many years but, together with his left-handed partner, he played a nice hand; craftily dropping it into the gaps and showing a keen instinct for the quick single and strike rotation. Hassan was again tight, going of just above 2 an over. Zeeshan showed real pace and was denied what looked a certain caught behind when he followed through in front of the umpire who did not get a clear view of the incident.
Barnes were falling behind the rate but it took the arrival of Emil Todorow to break the partnership. A slow full toss managed to find its way past Seed's bat onto off stump. This may become a late inswinging yorker by September. Someone remarked that "Shit gets wickets," to which someone else added that Emil has taken more wickets than any other Nomad. Emil had a bit of an aura about him in this game though. He would receive the ball, shake his head, examine the seam (without, of course, any suggestion that he was going to pick it) shake his head again and lope up five strides and deliver the ball. Most batsmen know that they will receive either a full toss, a deadly delivery on the stumps, or a near wide. They don't know which it will be (how could they? Todorow doesn't know himself) but the suspense seems to destroy them. A hint.....if Emil's hair is floating horizontally the ball will be on middle and leg, but I have said too much already.
Abbas took over at the top end and kicked off with one of the fastest overs I have seen a Nomads produce for some time. Possibly since the days of Ajmal 7 years ago. An absolute flyer was followed by a shortish one which the left-handed batsman only had time to chip back to Abbas for wicket 2. Barnes had their moments but as Abbas continued his spell he began to swing it and the one that moved late to rattle middle stump was the ball of the day. Abbas has been bowling some great stuff in the last month and he puts his success down to drinking copious amounts of green tea. I am tempted to try this myself but I would probably take it with milk, 2 sugars and a couple of Danish pastries which might take away the benefit.
Several Barnes players got a start but few could consolidate. A couple of wickets for KK were followed by the introduction of the leg-spinner Patrick to the attack. He started with 2 full tosses which were hit for 8 by the last of the recognised hitters but, having tasted blood, the player came forward again to a better length ball, missed, and keeper John Crossland gleefully whipped the bails off - a rare stumping for the Nomads.
Ollie Hogg and Mike Webster were the last pair. Both capable players but the required rate was around 10 and an LBW soon confirmed our victory.
A fine victory for an improving Nomads side that is starting to look a well-balanced outfit. We will need to be against the Exiles next week.
As ever, I enjoyed reminiscing with Keith Seed about the halcyon days of Open University v Barnes Occasionals matches in the mid-90s. He reminded me of a match when OU dismissed Barnes for 90, possibly their lowest total against OU. In reply, we were 73 for 3 and Dave Hunter was smacking it around. Sensing that their was just a chance (approximately 99%) that the ball might pop up at Deep Mid Wicket at some stage, the wily Seed put his best fielder, Adam Hogg, and OU's Dublin-born star responded by pulling the ball straight into Adam's hands. It did not shock me to hear that OU then lost the game or that Dave Hunter (who I must mention is a brilliant bloke and I am proud to call a good friend) then set about berating OU's BOWLERS for losing us the game. Happy days, but that's enough rambling about the past. This Nomads side appears to have a bright future.
Man of the Match? I must raise a glass of herbal tea to Abbas. I forgot to mention he unfortunately put down a caught and bowled chance which would have given him a deserved five-fer. Fielder of the Day? KK and Zia made good stops. Sub fielder Nick Lefebve was busy and tidy but, for the third week in the row, John Crossland takes the prize for a stumping, a catch-that-might-have-been and only conceding one bye.
Clapham Nomads 197 for 7 from 35 overs
M. Vyas stumped, b Hogg 13
D. Gunawardena b Hooker 25
P.Pattiyil caught-------- b Gokul 23
H. Khan caught wicket b Binoy 45
Zia b Seed 38
Patrick not out 16
KK Khusro caught-------- b Gokul 4
Zeeshan b Gokul 2
Abbas Khan not out 16
Did not bat; E. Todorow, J. Crossland.
Substitute Fielder (whole of 2nd innings) - N. Lefebve
F. O. W. - 19, 50, 86, 158, 158, 169, 179
Barnes Occasionals 93 all out from 27.2 overs
Nomads' bowling
H. Khan 5-1-11-0
Zeeshan 5-0-16-0
Abbas Khan 7-1-24-4
E. Todorow 6-1-17-2
KK Khusro 2.2-0-7-2
Patrick 2-0-14-1
Clapham Nomads won by 104 runs
Inserted by Barnes skipper Ollie Hogg, Nomads' openers Mahesh and Darwin resumed their almost telepathic understanding at the crease. They seem to take it in turns to dominate and it was Mahesh's turn to force the pace this week as they faced up to the contrasting pace and styles of Hooker and Hogg. Vyas raced to 13 but Ollie Hogg always produces something, usually leaving the victim feeling bamboozled. On this occasion, a slow one caused Mahesh to move forward just a little too much and become unbalanced. The batsman could not regain his ground in time even though the keeper fumbled it, and off came the bails. 19 for 1.
Excellent batting from Darwin and Prasanth, containing a high proportion of boundaries, kept up the pace. Hooker bowled Darwin for a nice 25 in the 11th over with the 50 just on the board. Hassan continued his good work of last week until Prasanth fell for 23 to a one-handed catch described by John Crossland as "amazing." Not a word John is given to using - it must have been quite something. Looks like Prasanth is coming into form to face his favourite opponents, the Energy Exiles, next week.
I arrived with the score 100 for 3 and Nomads were in full flood. Zia and Hassan matching each other stride for stride until Zia struck 2 sixes off an over from Keith Seed, not the easiest bowler to get away. Inevitably, the Barnes Legend struck back in the following over to bowl Zia, just after Hassan had fallen for 45 (top-scorer for the second week in a row.)
Nomads were down to 158 for 5 and still needed quite a few to put ourselves in command. Patrick struck 3 nice boundaries while KK and Zeeshan were there and then Abbas smacked it around at the death to bring Nomads up to 197 at the close.
Occasionals were missing their star batsman Roger Price but there were one or two players we did not know too much about. You can never write off the Occasionals as we know from long experience.
Keith Seed opened the batting, which I cannot remember him doing for many years but, together with his left-handed partner, he played a nice hand; craftily dropping it into the gaps and showing a keen instinct for the quick single and strike rotation. Hassan was again tight, going of just above 2 an over. Zeeshan showed real pace and was denied what looked a certain caught behind when he followed through in front of the umpire who did not get a clear view of the incident.
Barnes were falling behind the rate but it took the arrival of Emil Todorow to break the partnership. A slow full toss managed to find its way past Seed's bat onto off stump. This may become a late inswinging yorker by September. Someone remarked that "Shit gets wickets," to which someone else added that Emil has taken more wickets than any other Nomad. Emil had a bit of an aura about him in this game though. He would receive the ball, shake his head, examine the seam (without, of course, any suggestion that he was going to pick it) shake his head again and lope up five strides and deliver the ball. Most batsmen know that they will receive either a full toss, a deadly delivery on the stumps, or a near wide. They don't know which it will be (how could they? Todorow doesn't know himself) but the suspense seems to destroy them. A hint.....if Emil's hair is floating horizontally the ball will be on middle and leg, but I have said too much already.
Abbas took over at the top end and kicked off with one of the fastest overs I have seen a Nomads produce for some time. Possibly since the days of Ajmal 7 years ago. An absolute flyer was followed by a shortish one which the left-handed batsman only had time to chip back to Abbas for wicket 2. Barnes had their moments but as Abbas continued his spell he began to swing it and the one that moved late to rattle middle stump was the ball of the day. Abbas has been bowling some great stuff in the last month and he puts his success down to drinking copious amounts of green tea. I am tempted to try this myself but I would probably take it with milk, 2 sugars and a couple of Danish pastries which might take away the benefit.
Several Barnes players got a start but few could consolidate. A couple of wickets for KK were followed by the introduction of the leg-spinner Patrick to the attack. He started with 2 full tosses which were hit for 8 by the last of the recognised hitters but, having tasted blood, the player came forward again to a better length ball, missed, and keeper John Crossland gleefully whipped the bails off - a rare stumping for the Nomads.
Ollie Hogg and Mike Webster were the last pair. Both capable players but the required rate was around 10 and an LBW soon confirmed our victory.
A fine victory for an improving Nomads side that is starting to look a well-balanced outfit. We will need to be against the Exiles next week.
As ever, I enjoyed reminiscing with Keith Seed about the halcyon days of Open University v Barnes Occasionals matches in the mid-90s. He reminded me of a match when OU dismissed Barnes for 90, possibly their lowest total against OU. In reply, we were 73 for 3 and Dave Hunter was smacking it around. Sensing that their was just a chance (approximately 99%) that the ball might pop up at Deep Mid Wicket at some stage, the wily Seed put his best fielder, Adam Hogg, and OU's Dublin-born star responded by pulling the ball straight into Adam's hands. It did not shock me to hear that OU then lost the game or that Dave Hunter (who I must mention is a brilliant bloke and I am proud to call a good friend) then set about berating OU's BOWLERS for losing us the game. Happy days, but that's enough rambling about the past. This Nomads side appears to have a bright future.
Man of the Match? I must raise a glass of herbal tea to Abbas. I forgot to mention he unfortunately put down a caught and bowled chance which would have given him a deserved five-fer. Fielder of the Day? KK and Zia made good stops. Sub fielder Nick Lefebve was busy and tidy but, for the third week in the row, John Crossland takes the prize for a stumping, a catch-that-might-have-been and only conceding one bye.
Clapham Nomads 197 for 7 from 35 overs
M. Vyas stumped, b Hogg 13
D. Gunawardena b Hooker 25
P.Pattiyil caught-------- b Gokul 23
H. Khan caught wicket b Binoy 45
Zia b Seed 38
Patrick not out 16
KK Khusro caught-------- b Gokul 4
Zeeshan b Gokul 2
Abbas Khan not out 16
Did not bat; E. Todorow, J. Crossland.
Substitute Fielder (whole of 2nd innings) - N. Lefebve
F. O. W. - 19, 50, 86, 158, 158, 169, 179
Barnes Occasionals 93 all out from 27.2 overs
Nomads' bowling
H. Khan 5-1-11-0
Zeeshan 5-0-16-0
Abbas Khan 7-1-24-4
E. Todorow 6-1-17-2
KK Khusro 2.2-0-7-2
Patrick 2-0-14-1
Clapham Nomads won by 104 runs
Long Ditton v Clapham Nomads - 31/7/16
A much stronger-looking Nomads side turned out for this one, with Prasanth, Hassan, Zeeshan and Zia all making welcome returns. Most of us managed to avoid the absolute chaos caused by the London to Box Hill cycle ride but we were still short at 2.20 and, for the 3rd week in a row, had to bat first by agreement.
This proved no bad thing at all as Mahesh and Darwin, who are developing into a fine opening pair, put on 74 - our best opening stand of the season by some distance.
Mahesh was first to go, LBW to the stand-out bowler T. Leaning. By then, Darwin almost had his 50 and he duly completed the landmark before falling to Spahr. A fine knock. Prasanth and Hassan took us into three figures but the loss of Prasanth on 102 left the game hanging delicately in the balance.
Hassan was in fine form though, and a magnificent 63 not out dominated the second half of our innings. He was well-supported by all his partners with KK (15) and Zeeshan (13) contributing most. A sharp piece of work from mid-off to run out Patrick and late wickets from the Neely siblings were the best moments for the home side, but Nomads' pace never relented and a single from Hassan off the last ball of the 35 overs took us up to our first 200 for a while.
Long Ditton are more than useful though and contain plenty of the type of opponent we fear more than any other; the well-trained youngster.
I didn't attend this game and someone told me later that, at the halfway point of Long Ditton's innings, they were only on 50. I think that is a slight exaggeration looking at the figures, but certainly excellent bowling from Hassan, despite injury, kept a firm brake on the scoring rate. The legendary all-rounder capped a great performance to record figures of 7-2-10-1. Zia bowled at high pace at the other end and also went for less than the required rate. Long Ditton could not really make up the lost ground despite acceleration around drinks. Most Nomads bowlers were pretty economical; only Emil went for the 10 an over Ditton needed by that stage but he retaliated with the inevitable wicket.
It was not totally without tension but we held on well to record a 25-run victory.
John Crossland stated in the scorebook; "we had enough runs on the board but fielding was not good." I trust he is not including himself in this as, with 2 catches and a run out, the evergreen keeper is Fielder of the Day. Darwin took the other catch. Clear Man of the Match was Hassan for a commanding individual performance.
Clapham Nomads 200 for 8 from 35 overs
M. Vyas 13
D. Gunawardena 51
P. Pattiyil 7
H. Khan not out 63
Zia 5
KK Khusro 15
Patrick 4
Zeeshan 13
Abbas Khan 7
E. Todorow not out 3
Did not bat; J. Crossland
F.O.W. - 74, 80, 102, 107, 151, 168, 185, 194
Long Ditton 175 for 7 from 35 overs
Clapham Nomads' bowling
H. Khan 7-2-10-1
Zia 6-1-26-1
KK Khusro 5-0-23-2
Abbas Khan 7-0-45-0
Zeeshan 7-0-30-1
E. Todorow 3-0-30-1
Clapham Nomads won by 25 runs
Man of the Match - Hassan Khan
Fielder of the Day - John Crossland
This proved no bad thing at all as Mahesh and Darwin, who are developing into a fine opening pair, put on 74 - our best opening stand of the season by some distance.
Mahesh was first to go, LBW to the stand-out bowler T. Leaning. By then, Darwin almost had his 50 and he duly completed the landmark before falling to Spahr. A fine knock. Prasanth and Hassan took us into three figures but the loss of Prasanth on 102 left the game hanging delicately in the balance.
Hassan was in fine form though, and a magnificent 63 not out dominated the second half of our innings. He was well-supported by all his partners with KK (15) and Zeeshan (13) contributing most. A sharp piece of work from mid-off to run out Patrick and late wickets from the Neely siblings were the best moments for the home side, but Nomads' pace never relented and a single from Hassan off the last ball of the 35 overs took us up to our first 200 for a while.
Long Ditton are more than useful though and contain plenty of the type of opponent we fear more than any other; the well-trained youngster.
I didn't attend this game and someone told me later that, at the halfway point of Long Ditton's innings, they were only on 50. I think that is a slight exaggeration looking at the figures, but certainly excellent bowling from Hassan, despite injury, kept a firm brake on the scoring rate. The legendary all-rounder capped a great performance to record figures of 7-2-10-1. Zia bowled at high pace at the other end and also went for less than the required rate. Long Ditton could not really make up the lost ground despite acceleration around drinks. Most Nomads bowlers were pretty economical; only Emil went for the 10 an over Ditton needed by that stage but he retaliated with the inevitable wicket.
It was not totally without tension but we held on well to record a 25-run victory.
John Crossland stated in the scorebook; "we had enough runs on the board but fielding was not good." I trust he is not including himself in this as, with 2 catches and a run out, the evergreen keeper is Fielder of the Day. Darwin took the other catch. Clear Man of the Match was Hassan for a commanding individual performance.
Clapham Nomads 200 for 8 from 35 overs
M. Vyas 13
D. Gunawardena 51
P. Pattiyil 7
H. Khan not out 63
Zia 5
KK Khusro 15
Patrick 4
Zeeshan 13
Abbas Khan 7
E. Todorow not out 3
Did not bat; J. Crossland
F.O.W. - 74, 80, 102, 107, 151, 168, 185, 194
Long Ditton 175 for 7 from 35 overs
Clapham Nomads' bowling
H. Khan 7-2-10-1
Zia 6-1-26-1
KK Khusro 5-0-23-2
Abbas Khan 7-0-45-0
Zeeshan 7-0-30-1
E. Todorow 3-0-30-1
Clapham Nomads won by 25 runs
Man of the Match - Hassan Khan
Fielder of the Day - John Crossland
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