Clapham Nomads averages - 2019 season.
Batting (qualification - 4 innings)
Hasan - 572 runs @ 57.20
Zia - 454 runs @ 41.27
KK - 273 runs @ 39.00
Riaz - 219 runs @ 21.90
Abdul - 248 runs @ 20.67
Abbas - 186 runs @ 20.67
Rafi - 79 runs @ 19.75
Imran - 66 runs @ 16.50
John - 11 runs @ 11.00*
Darwin 129 runs @ 9.21
Mahesh - 135 runs @ 8.44
Sami - 14 runs @ 4.67
Emil - 3 runs @ 0.75
* (John was not out in any of his 8 innings.)
Bowling (qualification - 3 wickets)
Riaz - 20 wickets @ 14.65
Abdul - 7 wickets @ 17.57
Zia - 16 wickets @ 22.19
Emil - 15 wickets @ 22.67
Zaman - 6 wickets @ 23.83
Sami - 9 wickets @ 25.78
KK - 17 wickets @ 26.18
Hasan - 7 wickets @ 27.71
Abbas - 16 wickets @ 33.81
Fielding;
Catches -
John - 9 (all as wicketkeeper)
Abbas - 9
Abdul - 9
Darwin - 6
Hasan - 6
Zia - 6
Imran - 4
KK - 4
Mahesh - 3
Hayan - 2
Kalam - 2
Sami - 1
Stumpings -
John - 1
Based on these figures, Hasan is clearly Batsman of the Year with the most runs and easily the best average. Similarly, Riaz is Bowler of the Year with the most wickets and the best average. Fielder of the Year seems wide open.
For Player of the Year, John Crossland has already received one nomination for excellent wicketkeeping and managing to go through a whole season of batting without being dismissed. I will also nominate Hasan for brilliant batting and captaining the side well while Emil was away, Riaz for being clearly the best bowler on the figures and being up near the top of the batting; KK for very sound batting, being the first bowler to bowl 100 overs in a season for several years, and taking 3 great catches in the final game. Also Zia for excellent figures with bat and ball. If anyone wants to nominate another player before we vote on it at the meeting - ? in February - please let me know. Nick
Sunday 3 November 2019
Tuesday 24 September 2019
Agricola v Clapham Nomads - 22/9/19
For last weekend, our great friends the Energy Exiles set us up with a match at Nursery Road against one of their toughest and longest-standing opposition teams - Agricola. We were looking forward to this even though it would have been a bit like going on a date with your wife's best friend, or possibly your best friend's wife. Anyway, at 10 a.m on Sunday, I was basking in the sun at an outdoor cafe, looking out over a parched Clapham Common, when I took a call from Agricola's organiser to say that their captain had called the game off as there was torrential rain where he was. I am not sure of the skipper's precise location; Seathwaite Tarn? Bergen? Possibly Manchester? Probably not in South West London judging by the sky. So it was off, but at least that meant we finished a rather mixed 2019 season on a win (against India Legends.) I think our final record was played 16; won 6; drawn 1 and lost 9. I'll confirm that and put the averages on here soon.
Monday 16 September 2019
India Legends v Clapham Nomads - 15/9/19
It looked tough for the Nomads yesterday as we got up at the crack of dawn and made the long journey for an 11:30 start against India Legends - a team who have only lost once this season - without our two best players, Hasan and Zia, It got even better when skipper Emil Todorow won the toss and promptly inserted the home side; in 79 degree heat.
There were a couple of silver linings; we were playing at Bromley Common cc, an excellent ground, and the only team to beat the Legends so far this season was ....Clapham Nomads (way back in Mid-Summer.)
Against a strong India line-up all the bowlers did well - with, strangely, the two quickest bowlers, Zaman and Abbas, going uphill. Sami also put a lot of effort into his long new ball spell. The highlight though was one of the finest collective catching performances ever produced by a Nomads team. The first 6 wickets were all caught, with keeper John Crossland snapping up a brace to celebrate his xxth birthday, and the first 4 outfield catches just got better and better. First, a lifter from Zaman was cut uppishly to Deep Point where Abdul made no mistake. Then a very thick outside edge off Sami swirled and spun its way to Backward Point where Darwin held it smartly. The highlights were the third and fourth, both taken low by KK at Shortish Third Man; the second of these was an absolute screamer of a diving effort, probably in the top half-dozen of all-time Nomads catches. Drinks were gratefully accepted with the Legends on 73 for 6. There was a feeling that they would bat all the way down and a recovery did follow to around 115 before KK produced a double strike with the only bowled of the innings followed in the same over by another sharp low catch by Abbas at Deep Gully. I could have watched this quality cricket all day from my vantage point in the shade but I suddenly realised it was 130 for 8 and I had to put our tea out. Unfortunately I missed 2 wickets from the evergreen Emil Todorow; both catches of course with KK pouching a skied effort for his third catch of the innings. A slight wag of the tail could not prevent Nomads from dismissing a strong Legends line-up for 163 with 4 overs unused. A superb, crucial effort in the field. On an average to good day, we would probably only have taken 6 or 7 of these 9 catches and could have been facing 200.
There was still a lot of work for Nomads, missing Hasan and Zia, and on a track which, surprisingly for a ground which won the Kent Premier League Groundsmanship award a couple of years back, was giving considerable help to the bowlers with both high and low bounce.
Mahesh and Abdul started grittily against an awkward new ball attack and saw off some of the shine. Mahesh fell unluckily played on in the 6th over and Abdul was run out shortly afterwards and hopes were low at 19 for 2. We were fortunate in having at No. 4 Rafi, possibly Nomads' most talented player of all time. He doesn't play much cricket these days and failed to connect with some giant heaves early on but, once he had survived three overs, he began to hit it with brutal force and dominated a partnership of 64 with Darwin, who was playing a responsible hand. In an effort to break this threatening stand, Legends' skipper brought back the young opener but Rafi took him for 18 in an over with such powerful straight hits that, as the umpire at the bowler's end, I started looking around for a helmet.
Drinks came at the wrong time and Rafi fell shortly afterwards, caught by a well-placed fielder on the fence at Deep Long-On. Riaz soon followed him back to the pavilion and we were back in trouble at 84 for 4.
We were blessed to have 2 players in Darwin and KK who have hit top form at just the right time. The pair played out a fantastic, match-winning stand of 83. KK in particular looked unshiftable and played a series of fine shots, milking the empty spaces on the leg side almost at will, while Darwin, who had been out there a long time in the heat, deployed his trademark forcing shots through the covers to great effect and did well to keep calm despite continual field changes and a decidedly slow over rate. The partnership had John raving; "This was proper batting, I mean, it was like watching proper players."
With the scores level, KK sealed the victory with a cracking leg-side drive past Mid-Wicket to bring up his second successive half-century.
A great all-round performance by Nomads to beat a tough side at their own fortress. Had we lost that would probably have been it for the season but it now seems we will have another match or even two.
India Legends 163 all out from 36.1 overs
Nomads bowling;
Sami 8-0-31-1
Zaman 8-1-44-4
KK 8-0-34-2
Abbas 8-2-39-1
Emil 4.1-0-18-2
Catches; KK - 3
John - 2
Abdul - 2
Abbas - 1
Darwin - 1
Clapham Nomads 167 for 4 from 32.5 overs
Mahesh 1
Abdul 13
Darwin 42 not out
Rafi 44
Riaz 1
KK 51 not out
Did not bat; Abbas, Sami, Zaman, Emil (capt), John (wkt)
F.O.W. - 8, 19, 83, 84
Clapham Nomads won by 6 wickets
Man of the Match - KK
Fielder of the Day - KK
There were a couple of silver linings; we were playing at Bromley Common cc, an excellent ground, and the only team to beat the Legends so far this season was ....Clapham Nomads (way back in Mid-Summer.)
Against a strong India line-up all the bowlers did well - with, strangely, the two quickest bowlers, Zaman and Abbas, going uphill. Sami also put a lot of effort into his long new ball spell. The highlight though was one of the finest collective catching performances ever produced by a Nomads team. The first 6 wickets were all caught, with keeper John Crossland snapping up a brace to celebrate his xxth birthday, and the first 4 outfield catches just got better and better. First, a lifter from Zaman was cut uppishly to Deep Point where Abdul made no mistake. Then a very thick outside edge off Sami swirled and spun its way to Backward Point where Darwin held it smartly. The highlights were the third and fourth, both taken low by KK at Shortish Third Man; the second of these was an absolute screamer of a diving effort, probably in the top half-dozen of all-time Nomads catches. Drinks were gratefully accepted with the Legends on 73 for 6. There was a feeling that they would bat all the way down and a recovery did follow to around 115 before KK produced a double strike with the only bowled of the innings followed in the same over by another sharp low catch by Abbas at Deep Gully. I could have watched this quality cricket all day from my vantage point in the shade but I suddenly realised it was 130 for 8 and I had to put our tea out. Unfortunately I missed 2 wickets from the evergreen Emil Todorow; both catches of course with KK pouching a skied effort for his third catch of the innings. A slight wag of the tail could not prevent Nomads from dismissing a strong Legends line-up for 163 with 4 overs unused. A superb, crucial effort in the field. On an average to good day, we would probably only have taken 6 or 7 of these 9 catches and could have been facing 200.
There was still a lot of work for Nomads, missing Hasan and Zia, and on a track which, surprisingly for a ground which won the Kent Premier League Groundsmanship award a couple of years back, was giving considerable help to the bowlers with both high and low bounce.
Mahesh and Abdul started grittily against an awkward new ball attack and saw off some of the shine. Mahesh fell unluckily played on in the 6th over and Abdul was run out shortly afterwards and hopes were low at 19 for 2. We were fortunate in having at No. 4 Rafi, possibly Nomads' most talented player of all time. He doesn't play much cricket these days and failed to connect with some giant heaves early on but, once he had survived three overs, he began to hit it with brutal force and dominated a partnership of 64 with Darwin, who was playing a responsible hand. In an effort to break this threatening stand, Legends' skipper brought back the young opener but Rafi took him for 18 in an over with such powerful straight hits that, as the umpire at the bowler's end, I started looking around for a helmet.
Drinks came at the wrong time and Rafi fell shortly afterwards, caught by a well-placed fielder on the fence at Deep Long-On. Riaz soon followed him back to the pavilion and we were back in trouble at 84 for 4.
We were blessed to have 2 players in Darwin and KK who have hit top form at just the right time. The pair played out a fantastic, match-winning stand of 83. KK in particular looked unshiftable and played a series of fine shots, milking the empty spaces on the leg side almost at will, while Darwin, who had been out there a long time in the heat, deployed his trademark forcing shots through the covers to great effect and did well to keep calm despite continual field changes and a decidedly slow over rate. The partnership had John raving; "This was proper batting, I mean, it was like watching proper players."
With the scores level, KK sealed the victory with a cracking leg-side drive past Mid-Wicket to bring up his second successive half-century.
A great all-round performance by Nomads to beat a tough side at their own fortress. Had we lost that would probably have been it for the season but it now seems we will have another match or even two.
India Legends 163 all out from 36.1 overs
Nomads bowling;
Sami 8-0-31-1
Zaman 8-1-44-4
KK 8-0-34-2
Abbas 8-2-39-1
Emil 4.1-0-18-2
Catches; KK - 3
John - 2
Abdul - 2
Abbas - 1
Darwin - 1
Clapham Nomads 167 for 4 from 32.5 overs
Mahesh 1
Abdul 13
Darwin 42 not out
Rafi 44
Riaz 1
KK 51 not out
Did not bat; Abbas, Sami, Zaman, Emil (capt), John (wkt)
F.O.W. - 8, 19, 83, 84
Clapham Nomads won by 6 wickets
Man of the Match - KK
Fielder of the Day - KK
Tuesday 10 September 2019
Clapham Nomads v Chelsea and Westminster - 8/9/19
Unfortunately Nomads' fixture against our oldest friend Barnes Occasionals fell through last Sunday as several of them were unable to play due to family commitments (in other words they were told the dreaded words; "Darling, you have to choose. It's me or Clapham Nomads!")
Well, surprisingly, few of them chose Clapham Nomads and it was back to the internet to find a replacement fixture which soon came in the shape of Chelsea and Westminster. I had a gut feeling that they might be rather a decent side and so it proved; they were a nice bunch of guys as well.
The legendary Emil Todorow made his re-appearance after a 3-game absence - hopefully this was the first of another 285-game unbroken run.
I arrived with the tea just before the interval and Chelsea were in the 220s - they closed on an imposing 232 for 9 from 35 overs. Most of our bowling figures were decent and 5 catches were taken and Sami and KK combined for a run out however, as that astute judge John Crossland pointed out in the scorebook; "Seven dropped catches didn't help."
Against Chelsea's impressive new ball pairing, Zahi and Naya, who both did a fair bit with the ball, Mahesh looked particularly determined and dug in with grit and used his feet to good effect. Unfortunately wickets fell at the other end. Last week's hero Darwin was bowled early on, Kalam played a few nice shots before falling and then Hasan, who has been in great from, holed out over the bowler's head. The West London side were now clear favourites and worse was to follow as Mahesh fell to a bizarre run out and Zia and Riaz were back in the pavilion for 4 between them. This must be the first time for ages, possibly ever, that star men Hasan and Zia failed to score a run between them. However, they have done incredible things for the Nomads and even Steve Smith fails occasionally (or does he?)
Nomads were 39 for 6 at this stage but KK and Sami combined very nicely to take us up to 72 before Sami was bowled. I left for work at this stage and, as always seems to happen, I missed the best as KK kicked on for a fine innings of 79, his best for the Nomads and he completely dominated stands of 20 and 43 with Zaman and Emil, taking us up to 135 for 9 and he added a further 9 after last man John had arrived at the crease. A great innings and a bit unlucky as, with a capable blocker at the other end and 22 balls to go, he must have been in with a chance of a ton.
Anyway, one of our few heavy defeats this season but not the worst day in the world.
Chelsea and Westminster - 232 for 9 from 35 overs
Nomads' bowling;
Sami 7-0-32-1
Zaman 7-0-42-1
Zia 2-0-23-0
Emil (not Jamil as the opposition called him in their scorebook) 5-0-32-1
KK 7-0-38-2
Riaz 3-0-21-1
Kalam 2-0-15-1
Hasan 2-0-16-1
Clapham Nomads 144 all out from 31.2 overs
Mahesh 19
Darwin 0
Kalam 11
Hasan 0
Riaz 4
Zia 0
KK 79
Sami 14
Zaman 4
Emil (capt) 2-
John 0 not out
F.O.W. - 2, 25, 25, 39, 39, 39, 72, 92, 135, 144
Clapham Nomads lost by 88 runs
Man of the Match - KK
Fielder of the Day - Kalam
Well, surprisingly, few of them chose Clapham Nomads and it was back to the internet to find a replacement fixture which soon came in the shape of Chelsea and Westminster. I had a gut feeling that they might be rather a decent side and so it proved; they were a nice bunch of guys as well.
The legendary Emil Todorow made his re-appearance after a 3-game absence - hopefully this was the first of another 285-game unbroken run.
I arrived with the tea just before the interval and Chelsea were in the 220s - they closed on an imposing 232 for 9 from 35 overs. Most of our bowling figures were decent and 5 catches were taken and Sami and KK combined for a run out however, as that astute judge John Crossland pointed out in the scorebook; "Seven dropped catches didn't help."
Against Chelsea's impressive new ball pairing, Zahi and Naya, who both did a fair bit with the ball, Mahesh looked particularly determined and dug in with grit and used his feet to good effect. Unfortunately wickets fell at the other end. Last week's hero Darwin was bowled early on, Kalam played a few nice shots before falling and then Hasan, who has been in great from, holed out over the bowler's head. The West London side were now clear favourites and worse was to follow as Mahesh fell to a bizarre run out and Zia and Riaz were back in the pavilion for 4 between them. This must be the first time for ages, possibly ever, that star men Hasan and Zia failed to score a run between them. However, they have done incredible things for the Nomads and even Steve Smith fails occasionally (or does he?)
Nomads were 39 for 6 at this stage but KK and Sami combined very nicely to take us up to 72 before Sami was bowled. I left for work at this stage and, as always seems to happen, I missed the best as KK kicked on for a fine innings of 79, his best for the Nomads and he completely dominated stands of 20 and 43 with Zaman and Emil, taking us up to 135 for 9 and he added a further 9 after last man John had arrived at the crease. A great innings and a bit unlucky as, with a capable blocker at the other end and 22 balls to go, he must have been in with a chance of a ton.
Anyway, one of our few heavy defeats this season but not the worst day in the world.
Chelsea and Westminster - 232 for 9 from 35 overs
Nomads' bowling;
Sami 7-0-32-1
Zaman 7-0-42-1
Zia 2-0-23-0
Emil (not Jamil as the opposition called him in their scorebook) 5-0-32-1
KK 7-0-38-2
Riaz 3-0-21-1
Kalam 2-0-15-1
Hasan 2-0-16-1
Clapham Nomads 144 all out from 31.2 overs
Mahesh 19
Darwin 0
Kalam 11
Hasan 0
Riaz 4
Zia 0
KK 79
Sami 14
Zaman 4
Emil (capt) 2-
John 0 not out
F.O.W. - 2, 25, 25, 39, 39, 39, 72, 92, 135, 144
Clapham Nomads lost by 88 runs
Man of the Match - KK
Fielder of the Day - Kalam
Wednesday 4 September 2019
Energy Exiles v Clapham Nomads - 1/9/19
Nomads played Exiles last Sunday for an unprecedented 4th time this season. I think there is some stalking going on here. Here is John Crossland's report which he actually wrote for the Energy Exiles' website but it is so good that I am going to risk infringing copyright laws by putting it on here as well.
"On winning the toss, Clapham Nomads decided to bat first
which they don’t do very often, normally preferring to bowl. Mahesh Vyas and Abdul got the innings off to
a good start, putting on 62. Abdul made a quickfire 39 with 6 fours and 2
sixes, a lot of his runs coming off the bowling of Jamshed who did however get
him out LBW. Darwin, who has really been
struggling for runs this season, came in and he finally found some form hitting
exactly 50 in a partnership of 101 with Hasan, who was still captaining the
side while Emil Todorow is in Bulgaria. Hasan retired on 56. I think this might
be the first time a Nomads player has retired, at least in a proper game. The rest of the batsmen lost their wickets
going for quick runs towards the end of the innings but a total of 222 was
probably going to be enough on a slightly dodgy wicket.
Energy Exiles were handicapped in their bowling as Andrew
Wingfield had an injury and could only bowl at a reduced pace. Bernard Leuvennink
bowled reasonably well taking 3 for 42. Phil Ling, who opened the bowling, did
not bowl badly either although he did not take a wicket.
In reply the Exiles lost both openers cheaply and were soon
4 wickets down for not many. The impressive Bilal and Leuvennink repaired some
of the damage with a decent partnership for the 5th wicket. Zia came
into the attack and bowled really well dismissing the dangerous Bilal for 56
and also Leuvennink for 32. He finished with 4 for 7 from 5 overs. Abbas had earlier taken 3 for 43. Until Bilal
was out the Exiles were still in with a chance. They were eventually all out
for 111.
This season the Nomads and Exiles have played each other 4
times. The score is 2 each. If possible it would be good to have a 5th
and deciding game before the season ends."
John Crossland.
So the amazing possibility has been suggested. A 5th test decider. Just to let you know that The Oval costs about 25,000 to book for a match - so only just over a grand a player. But would it be big enough?
Clapham Nomads 222 from 35 overs
Mahesh 14
Abdul 39
Darwin 50
Hasan (capt) retired 56
Zia 13
KK 13
Hayan 2
Abbas 0
Zaman 5
John (wkt) not out 1
F.O.W. - 62, 69, 170, 183, 212, 212, 215, 222
Energy Exiles 111 from 23.1 overs
Nomads' bowling;
Abbas 7-0-34-3
Zaman 5-0-35-1
KK 5-0-29-0
Zia 5-2-7-4
Abdul 1.1-0-3-2
Nomads won by 111 runs
Man of the Match - Zia
Fielder of the Day - To be decided.
I just noticed. 222 beat 111. A triple Nelson. Someone is trying to tell us something.
Clapham Nomads v Energy Exiles - 25/8/19
Nomads entertained our old friends Energy Exiles on a scorching day at Joseph Hood over the Bank Holiday. Although it is always good to see the Exiles, and they brought some familiar faces along, for the second time this season one of the greatest days in English cricket was being played out while we were being given the run around on one of Merton's bleakest grounds.
With Emil still away, Hasan skippered but unfortunately lost the toss. In 93 degree heat, Exiles unsurprisingly batted and we faced a tough afternoon of fielding, punctuated only by extra drinks breaks. In Keith Roberts and Bilal Musakhel, Exiles had a fine left-hand / right-hand partnership. Nomads' bowling was decent and we kept the rate below 4 an over until the 15th over when the pair began to kick on. Bilal made a fine 50 with Keith looking unshiftable as ever. Having said that, quite a few chances went down and Nomads fielding was not the best it has been - understandable given the extreme conditions.
Bilal fell to a smart stumping bt keeper Crossland off the bowling of Hasan in the 21st over but then a string of right-handers gave the left-handed Roberts good support as he upper the tempo. Roberts seemes to have got even better recently. In the heyday of Nomads-Exiles games 10 years ago, he could always be relied on for a steady 30 but he seems to score a 50 every time he plays against us now.
Keith was eventually out for 70 in the final over. It was good to see Amil Patel; I haven't seen him for a few years and he chipped in with some runs at the end as Exiles finished on 183 for 5. Captain Hasan was the pick of the bowlers with 3 for 24 but everyone returned reasonable figures.
184 is a total Nomads have scored on quite a few occasions at Joseph Hood but we would need to be at our best against what was likely to be crafty bowling.
It was a vintage Exiles opening attack with Naren Patel opening his box of tricks from the Pavilion End and Phil Ling somehow getting a very dusty ball to swing sharply from the Back Gardens End. Our early batting has been patchy this year and we were soon 14 for 3 with Mahesh run out, Hayan falling to Naren and Phil swinging one in skilfully to bowl Sami. Abdul and Zia put on 29 for the 4th wicket before Abdul fell to a memorable Roberts family wicket. Keith's son, the useful medium pacer Alex, inducing a lofted shot from Abdul which was scooped by a diving Keith at Mid-Off.
It was clear a lot was going to depend on Zia and Hasan - where have I heard that before. I had to leave for work at this point and it took me about 15 minutes to limp round the ground and, as I left the car park, Zia and Hasan were still there so there was some hope.
Exiles legend Andy Wingfield turned up at half-time. He had been injured while playing the previous day and had made the surprising decision to watch the end of the Test Match rather than savouring the raw excitement of Joseph Hood cricket. He arrived once Ben Stokes had completed his heroics and he offered to umpire in Nomads' innings. I know Andy has long been an admirer of Nomads' very high standard of unbiased umpiring and it seemed he was learning fast when he turned down a vociferous appeal for caught behind early on. However he did give Zia LBW for 30 off the bowling of Naren but, to be fair, most of those present thought it was out.
Hasan was still there and batting excellently. Partners came and went until, with 39 needed, last man John Crossland joined him in the middle. Hasan was in full flight, and John is a capable defensive player on his day, so we still had a reasonable chance in the time remaining. They made 15 before Hasan (Stokes) was rather unluckily bowled by a ball deflecting off his body leaving John (Leach) stranded on 0 not out.
Still it was a reasonable game and it was good to see some old Exiles faces. If it had been 20 degress cooler it might have been an enjoyable day.
Energy Exiles 183 for 5 from 35 overs (K.Roberts 70, B. Musakhel 60)
Nomads' bowling;
Abbas 7-2-33-1
Zaman 5-0-22-0
Sami 5-1-29-0
Zia 6-0-36-0
Hasan 6-1-24-3
Abdul 6-1-35-1
Clapham Nomads 160 for 8 (all out) from 28.4 overs
Mahesh run out 7
Hayan b N.Patel 6
Sami b P.Ling 0
Abdul c K.Roberts b A.Roberts 19
Zia lbw N. Patel 30
Hasan (capt) b Iqbal 73
Abbas c ---------- b Iqbal 4
Zaman b P. Ling 0
John (wkt) not out 0
Did not bat; Nick (had to leave for work)
F.O.W. - 14, 14, 14, 43, 126, 140, 145, 160
Nomads lost by 23 runs.
Man of the Match - Hasan
Fielder of the Day - John
With Emil still away, Hasan skippered but unfortunately lost the toss. In 93 degree heat, Exiles unsurprisingly batted and we faced a tough afternoon of fielding, punctuated only by extra drinks breaks. In Keith Roberts and Bilal Musakhel, Exiles had a fine left-hand / right-hand partnership. Nomads' bowling was decent and we kept the rate below 4 an over until the 15th over when the pair began to kick on. Bilal made a fine 50 with Keith looking unshiftable as ever. Having said that, quite a few chances went down and Nomads fielding was not the best it has been - understandable given the extreme conditions.
Bilal fell to a smart stumping bt keeper Crossland off the bowling of Hasan in the 21st over but then a string of right-handers gave the left-handed Roberts good support as he upper the tempo. Roberts seemes to have got even better recently. In the heyday of Nomads-Exiles games 10 years ago, he could always be relied on for a steady 30 but he seems to score a 50 every time he plays against us now.
Keith was eventually out for 70 in the final over. It was good to see Amil Patel; I haven't seen him for a few years and he chipped in with some runs at the end as Exiles finished on 183 for 5. Captain Hasan was the pick of the bowlers with 3 for 24 but everyone returned reasonable figures.
184 is a total Nomads have scored on quite a few occasions at Joseph Hood but we would need to be at our best against what was likely to be crafty bowling.
It was a vintage Exiles opening attack with Naren Patel opening his box of tricks from the Pavilion End and Phil Ling somehow getting a very dusty ball to swing sharply from the Back Gardens End. Our early batting has been patchy this year and we were soon 14 for 3 with Mahesh run out, Hayan falling to Naren and Phil swinging one in skilfully to bowl Sami. Abdul and Zia put on 29 for the 4th wicket before Abdul fell to a memorable Roberts family wicket. Keith's son, the useful medium pacer Alex, inducing a lofted shot from Abdul which was scooped by a diving Keith at Mid-Off.
It was clear a lot was going to depend on Zia and Hasan - where have I heard that before. I had to leave for work at this point and it took me about 15 minutes to limp round the ground and, as I left the car park, Zia and Hasan were still there so there was some hope.
Exiles legend Andy Wingfield turned up at half-time. He had been injured while playing the previous day and had made the surprising decision to watch the end of the Test Match rather than savouring the raw excitement of Joseph Hood cricket. He arrived once Ben Stokes had completed his heroics and he offered to umpire in Nomads' innings. I know Andy has long been an admirer of Nomads' very high standard of unbiased umpiring and it seemed he was learning fast when he turned down a vociferous appeal for caught behind early on. However he did give Zia LBW for 30 off the bowling of Naren but, to be fair, most of those present thought it was out.
Hasan was still there and batting excellently. Partners came and went until, with 39 needed, last man John Crossland joined him in the middle. Hasan was in full flight, and John is a capable defensive player on his day, so we still had a reasonable chance in the time remaining. They made 15 before Hasan (Stokes) was rather unluckily bowled by a ball deflecting off his body leaving John (Leach) stranded on 0 not out.
Still it was a reasonable game and it was good to see some old Exiles faces. If it had been 20 degress cooler it might have been an enjoyable day.
Energy Exiles 183 for 5 from 35 overs (K.Roberts 70, B. Musakhel 60)
Nomads' bowling;
Abbas 7-2-33-1
Zaman 5-0-22-0
Sami 5-1-29-0
Zia 6-0-36-0
Hasan 6-1-24-3
Abdul 6-1-35-1
Clapham Nomads 160 for 8 (all out) from 28.4 overs
Mahesh run out 7
Hayan b N.Patel 6
Sami b P.Ling 0
Abdul c K.Roberts b A.Roberts 19
Zia lbw N. Patel 30
Hasan (capt) b Iqbal 73
Abbas c ---------- b Iqbal 4
Zaman b P. Ling 0
John (wkt) not out 0
Did not bat; Nick (had to leave for work)
F.O.W. - 14, 14, 14, 43, 126, 140, 145, 160
Nomads lost by 23 runs.
Man of the Match - Hasan
Fielder of the Day - John
Wednesday 21 August 2019
Norwood v Clapham Nomads
Nomads made the short trip to South Norwood to play new opponents Norwood cc last Sunday.
A major shock is that Emil Todorow missed a Nomads match for the first time since September 2002 - that's about 285 successive appearances. I want to re-assure fans of the great man that he's absolutely fine and will be back in a Nomads shirt very soon.
In the meantime, Hasan did a great job as skipper in his first full match as captain of the side.
Hasan won the toss and elected to bat - a departure from Emil's usual policy. After Mahesh was run out on 9, Abdul and Darwin put on 31 for the second wicket, which was basically resolute batting peppered with some boundaries from Abdul including a six. The bowling from Norwood was more than useful.
After the loss of Darwin, KK was LBW to the dangerous Khyber in the same over, but with Zia joining Abdul, we made good progress and at 88 for 3 had made one of our best starts of the season. Abdul fell to a caught and bowled - Khyber again - for a fine half-century but there was then a slump to 108 for 6. Skipper Hasan turned things round with a responsible innings and shepherded the lower order up to a respectable 177 for 9 at the close. New man Qari making a useful 13 and Nomads' very own Steve Smith ** John Crossland was still there keeping Hasan company at the end.
** - Well he does look a bit like Smith (just draw a light brown moustache on a picture of the Australian star and you will see.) Also, the way Smith was out LBW at Lord's on Saturday was a bit reminscent of one of John's famous dismissals by Energy Exiles. Having said all that, John is pretty tough and I don't think he would be bothered by something like a blow on the neck.
For Nomads' reply, we were pleased to welcome back Sami, who shared the new ball with Abbas, and Sami chipped in with 3 wickets. KK bowled a very tight 6-over spell for only 17 and there were 2 late wickets for Abdul but the pick of the bowlers, as last week, was probably Riaz who got through some good work against a strong batting side and finished with 5.3-2-14-2.
Norwood passed our total for the loss of 8 wickets with 15 balls remaining but John told me that it was not quite as close as it looked as 2 of their best players had retired (not hurt.)
Still, another decent game. Energy Exiles are next up.
Clapham Nomads - 177 for 9 from 35 overs
Mahesh 2
Abdul 51
Darwin 0
KK 0
Zia 31
Hasan (capt) 43 not out
Riaz 3
Abbas 18
Sami 0
Qari 13
John (wkt) 2 not out
F.O.W. - 9, 40, 40, 88, 100, 108, 136, 137, 170
Norwood cc - 180 for 2 from 32.3 overs
Nomads' bowling;
Abbas 4-0-40-0
Sami 6-1-48-3
KK 6-0-17-0
Zia 4-0-24-0
Qari 4-1-20-1
Riaz 5.3-2-14-2
Abdul 3-1-4-2
Clapham Nomads lost by 2 wickets.
Man of the Match - Abdul
Fielder of the Day - 4 players took a catch each, including John, and John told me that there was an absolutely cast-iron, nailed-on edge which he pouched but it was not given out. He is always honest with that sort of thing so I will say that, morally, he took 2 catches and award him Fielder of the Day.
A major shock is that Emil Todorow missed a Nomads match for the first time since September 2002 - that's about 285 successive appearances. I want to re-assure fans of the great man that he's absolutely fine and will be back in a Nomads shirt very soon.
In the meantime, Hasan did a great job as skipper in his first full match as captain of the side.
Hasan won the toss and elected to bat - a departure from Emil's usual policy. After Mahesh was run out on 9, Abdul and Darwin put on 31 for the second wicket, which was basically resolute batting peppered with some boundaries from Abdul including a six. The bowling from Norwood was more than useful.
After the loss of Darwin, KK was LBW to the dangerous Khyber in the same over, but with Zia joining Abdul, we made good progress and at 88 for 3 had made one of our best starts of the season. Abdul fell to a caught and bowled - Khyber again - for a fine half-century but there was then a slump to 108 for 6. Skipper Hasan turned things round with a responsible innings and shepherded the lower order up to a respectable 177 for 9 at the close. New man Qari making a useful 13 and Nomads' very own Steve Smith ** John Crossland was still there keeping Hasan company at the end.
** - Well he does look a bit like Smith (just draw a light brown moustache on a picture of the Australian star and you will see.) Also, the way Smith was out LBW at Lord's on Saturday was a bit reminscent of one of John's famous dismissals by Energy Exiles. Having said all that, John is pretty tough and I don't think he would be bothered by something like a blow on the neck.
For Nomads' reply, we were pleased to welcome back Sami, who shared the new ball with Abbas, and Sami chipped in with 3 wickets. KK bowled a very tight 6-over spell for only 17 and there were 2 late wickets for Abdul but the pick of the bowlers, as last week, was probably Riaz who got through some good work against a strong batting side and finished with 5.3-2-14-2.
Norwood passed our total for the loss of 8 wickets with 15 balls remaining but John told me that it was not quite as close as it looked as 2 of their best players had retired (not hurt.)
Still, another decent game. Energy Exiles are next up.
Clapham Nomads - 177 for 9 from 35 overs
Mahesh 2
Abdul 51
Darwin 0
KK 0
Zia 31
Hasan (capt) 43 not out
Riaz 3
Abbas 18
Sami 0
Qari 13
John (wkt) 2 not out
F.O.W. - 9, 40, 40, 88, 100, 108, 136, 137, 170
Norwood cc - 180 for 2 from 32.3 overs
Nomads' bowling;
Abbas 4-0-40-0
Sami 6-1-48-3
KK 6-0-17-0
Zia 4-0-24-0
Qari 4-1-20-1
Riaz 5.3-2-14-2
Abdul 3-1-4-2
Clapham Nomads lost by 2 wickets.
Man of the Match - Abdul
Fielder of the Day - 4 players took a catch each, including John, and John told me that there was an absolutely cast-iron, nailed-on edge which he pouched but it was not given out. He is always honest with that sort of thing so I will say that, morally, he took 2 catches and award him Fielder of the Day.
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