Match Report

I have had a most rare vision. I had a dream, past the wit of man to say what dream it was… The eye of man hath not heard, the ear of man hath not seen, man’s hand is not able to taste, his tongue to conceive, nor his heart to report, what my dream was.
(Bottom, Act 4 Scene 1)

The line above is not from the Rik Mayall and Ade Edmonson show “Bottom”, but from A Midsummer Night’s Dream.  On a Midsummer evening we welcomed Bodicote CC to Middleton Park for the first time. The weather was as it should be dreamt, fluffy cumulus piled slowly, the heat of the sun mostly shielded but a glorious warmth radiating over the ground. 

Sweating round the outfield, adjusting the ropes, cutting the track and trimming the outfield the Captain and his volunteer helper made sure everything was ready just in time. Howard ensured that the pavilion and scorebox were ready, cushions in place on the benches for needy behinds. A toss won and a scamper to pad up in time for a 6pm start. Bodicote had a mix of ages playing, with rather more at the older end, Middleton has a better balance of ages.  Bodicotes’s youngest player took the new ball under the watchful eye of umpire Elliot. 

Tim Riley and Harry Way were intent on a faster start to the innings than last week .  Tim did not last long, strangled chasing a wide ball down the leg side, but Harry was in great touch, driving cleanly and working the better balls for singles. Stevyn Jackson did not use much of the scorer’s ink or slow down the scoring rate in his very brief stay at the wicket. 

Matt Carpenter, fresh from his weekend half century began carefully but was soon piling on the runs. Harry was first to reach 30, his final boundary a lofted, back foot cover drive that was nearly a six. Anirudh at number 5 was in brutal form. Taking no prisoners he thumped the Bodicote change bowlers to all parts, he is in a rich vein of form. Anirudh was also retired as the score passed 100 in the 12 the over and a massive target looked likely. Howard, fresh from batting through the innings for the )ver 60 team on Tuesday joined Matt. 

Matt took over where Anirudh had left off, consecutive boundaries smashing into the sightscreen as he too attained the retirement score. 

Eliot had been relieved of umpiring duties when the players on the boundary realised they were one body missing. He came in to bat at 7 and tried to hit his first ball for 6. It trickled along the ground back to the bowler. When muscle failed he resorted to creative batting. Standing in front of the stumps he attempted a reverse paddle and was LBW.  Meanwhile Howard was accumulating a run a ball. Matt Dipple enjoys his batting, he played himself in for five balls before launching a leg side blow to the boundary where Bodicote’s most venerable gentleman was stationed.  Matt was caught, the fielder delighted his team amazed.

Shaan hit his first ball for a boundary, and was then insouciantly caught on the boundary. The scoring rate fell in the final over with Howard stranded at the wrong end. The total of 144 looked to be enough. 

Hamidullah bowled first. He found just enough movement off the seam to trouble the opening bats. For a successful chase Bodicot were relying on thier two strongest players to reach the retirement score, and then perhaps come back in at the end to see them home. In the third over, Middleton picked up a first wicket , the first of the better players, caught at mid off by Anirudh, bowled by Hamidullah. Shaan bowled in tandem with Hamidullah, despite a couple of very wayward deliveries he showed eh he was capable of a wicket taking ball at any time. He picked up the second vital wicket in his fourth over with the best delivery of the day, too good for Bodicote’s best batsman.

Wickets continued to fall with regularity, The most notable being the catch in the gully by Anirudh from the occassional leg spin of Matt Dipple. Matt went on to pick up four wickets, Hamidullah 3 and Rob Barton as Bodicote folded in less than 15 overs.  Bodicote enjoyed the bbq set up and cooked by the Chairman and beer from the bar run by Howard, many thanks both.