Thanks to Graeme for this latest report from the Ventnor Cricket Club. Ed
Ventnor’s ECB Southern Electric Premier Division encounter with Lymington at Newclose ended unsatisfactorily on Saturday when rain curtailed play with a tense finish in prospect.
With Lymington requiring 22 to win and Ventnor four wickets for a welcome victory, it was the New Forest side who benefited from the Umpires’ decision to take the players from the field and ultimately abandon the game, Darren Cowley’s side winning courtesy of a superior run rate.
Although beaten, skipper Ian Hilsum will take the positives from a bowling and fielding performance which ensured a talented visitors batting line up were made to work for their runs, losing six wickets for 146 in pursuit of Ventnor’s 167-9.
The Ventnor batting, though, has yet to really fire, and on Saturday such a modest total from 50 overs was always going to be difficult to defend, Neil Westhorpe (42) and James Cheek (25) top scoring for the home side.
In reply, Zimbabwe Test player Craig Ervine, brother of Hampshire’s Sean, and Dorset’s Glyn Treagus departed cheaply before the former Karachi right hander Ali Jaffer, having made an impressive 44, became the first of Jamie Miller’s three victims as Ventnor made in-roads into the middle order. Although a run out gave Ventnor further hope, it was the rain, coupled with Damian Shirazhi’s patient, unbeaten 49 which proved decisive.
Ventnor travel to Bournemouth on Saturday as the all day format gets under way.
Morris and Whyte lead Ventnor to victory
A tremendous sixth wicket partnership of 187 between Pat Morris and Mark Whyte rescued Ventnor’s second team in Saturday’s Hampshire League division 2 match at Bramshaw.
Struggling on 100-5 after the consistent George Hatt had departed for 58, the Ventnor pair came together to turn the innings and ultimately the match on it’s head with two fine knocks, Whyte cracking 14 fours and 2 sixes in his 95 and Morris 8 fours and 3 sixes in an unbeaten 80.
Chasing a daunting 292 to win against a strong Ventnor attack, Bramshaw lost early wickets to Charlie Calloway (4-37) and skipper Rob Snell (2-15) and never recovered, eventually subsiding to 107 all out, leg spinner David Beven taking 4-32.
Hungerford are the visitors to Steephill on Saturday.
Welcome win for third team
Ventnor’s third team won their first Harwood’s Division 1 league match of the season on Saturday, defeating GKN by six wickets at Steephill.
Batting first, the visitors struggled for runs (Ben Wadmore 26) and were eventually dismissed inside 38 overs for only 96, Jack Lyons (2-30), Marcus Toms (2-9) Josh Franklin (2-4) and Ben Clarke (3-16) doing the damage.
Last week’s top scorer, Gary Cooper departed cheaply as Ventnor began their response, before Richard Wilson with 17, Mark Price (27 not out) and new dad Mark Fletcher (20) eased their side to victory.
Ventnor visit Shanklin in the Island Webservices Cup on Saturday.
Twenty20 exit for Ventnor
Ventnor produced a disappointing display to lose by 66 runs in the Southern Electric Cup at Sarisbury on Sunday.
Ian Hilsum (2-21) and Ollie Mills (2-18) were among the wickets as the home side totalled 154-8 from their 20 overs, but despite a decent start in reply from left handers Neil Westhorpe, 36 and George Hatt, 10, no other batsman managed double figures as the innings collapsed to 88 all out, Phillip Jewell taking 6-17 for Sarisbury.
