Confused scoreboard but familiar batting tail

Will this order work
By Fozzie
April 14 2015

Fozzie reports on a day when early season optimism may have taken a battering. Injuries, Pensions, and Chesham school all form the background to a day when Middlesex batting collapse.com revived itself. Maybe the confused scoreboard had the right idea.

OK, so no-one wants to be unremittingly defeatist on only the second day of the season, so let’s start (as the day did) positively. Having successfully seen out the previous day, Notts’ last-wicket pair of Chris Read and Harry Gurney set out with the immediate aim of scoring the additional 2 runs needed to secure a third batting point. James Harris’s vigorous stretching exercises suggested that he would be opening the bowling, but instead it was Finny who required just two deliveries to dismiss Gurney without adding to the score. So no extra point for Notts, and 298 all out represented an excellent recovery by Middlesex.

During the change of innings Beefy, Dingy and I bumped into Fletch, who confirmed that Dawid Malan had broken his 5^th metacarpal (or his little finger in layman’s terms). Clearly he would play no further part in the match, and later we heard that he was to have an operation later that day.

So with a key batsman already down a good start was essential, and Robbo and Nick Gubbins started carefully in overcast conditions against Vernon Philander and the young Jake Ball. Runs were slow at first, and with the score on 6 Robbo survived a shout for caught behind. After bowling four fine overs in which he consistently made the batsmen play the ball, Philander left the field rather gingerly - maybe things were looking up!. He was replaced by Gurney, whose first delivery flew off Robbo’s edge through the slips for 4. But now runs were coming more freely: a lovely cover drive by Robbo was followed by boundaries in consecutive overs by Nick off Gidman, and the 50 partnership came up after 17 overs.

However, Nick seemed uncomfortable against the left-arm Gurney, and with the score at 51 he was bowled for 23, with spectators behind the bowler’s arm suggesting that he had missed a straight delivery. At this point the scoreboard was clearly thrown into confusion by the absence of Malan, showing an unlikely batting order that featured Murts and Finny shoring up the middle order at 4 and 5. This didn’t help to boost morale!

One Nick was replaced by another, but sadly this was not to be a happy return to Lord’s for Compo. He never looked settled, and it was no surprise when Philander returned for a hostile spell which culminated with him bowling his former Somerset team-mate. Adam Voges survived two testing overs, and at lunch we were 70-2 (effectively 70-3), with Robbo on 35.

Lunch was spent in the Middlesex Room listening to our Chairman’s tales of derring-do on the MCC Pensions Committee, and we were still there when play resumed and Ball returned to bowl Robbo in the first over. This was a shock, and it looked as if Robbo had played no stroke. Adam Voges, however, was playing fluently, and two lovely driven boundaries brought up 100 - but then with the score on 103 he was LBW to Gurney for 29, and another good start had been halted prematurely. Simmo edged through the slips, and then a short-pitched delivery from Ball cramped up Paul Sterling who fended a catch to slip. 107-5, and the awful prospect loomed of being made to follow on.

Confidence was not helped by the necessity of James Harris being elevated to 7 in the batting order. But fortunately the spirit of Old Trafford was still with him, and he doggedly defended, taking some time to get off the mark before pulling Gidman for 4. Philander was again testing the batsmen, but from our position square on to the popping crease it was clear that he was frequently overstepping the crease without sanction. Some of the – ahem – rowdier elements in the crowd began to call out loudly whenever he overstepped, at which Philander would carefully examine where his foot had landed, under the sympathetic scrutiny of the umpire. There were loud ironic cheers when at the other end Gidman was no-balled, but Philander was only called once.

After well over an hour’s resistance by Simmo and James which had seen 40 added to the score, and with Notts’ over rate now at -3, Read introduced the spin of Patel. It had an immediate impact, with James and Tom Helm both falling LBW in his opening over. We were still 2 runs short of saving the follow-on, but Murts took 10 off Patel’s next over to ensure that that indignity was at least avoided. The tea interval was reached on 158-7.

The sun came out after tea, but rather too late to be of benefit to Middlesex. Simmo edged to slip, and Murts and Finny then enjoyed a brief but relatively productive last-wicket partnership before Brendon Taylor took a good running catch off a Murts skier to end proceedings on 181 – a deficit of 117, and of course we are already a man short in the second innings.

Mullaney and Brendon Taylor resumed in bright sunshine, and although Finny’s pace and bounce made them hurry batting now looked an altogether less stressful affair, with 50 coming up in even time. Taylor looks a fine player who never looks rushed in his shots, but it was Mullaney who spurted ahead, pulling Tom Helm for 6 into the Mound Stand. They were looking so comfortable that it was some surprise when Helm spread-eagled Mullaney’s stumps with the score at 77. This brought in Alex Hales and the exciting prospect (for people from my neck of the woods, anyway) of two former Chesham school cricketers in direct competition. Hales, on a pair, looked nervous, and he edged Tom for 4; but it was Taylor who fell next, caught at long-off off Murts. Hales and Gidman then saw out the day with Notts finishing on101-2, already 218 ahead.

Kev has asked for positives and negatives of the day. Well, the most positive aspect of the day for me was the news from Beefy that a red kite – nearly extinct some 50 years ago, but increasingly now a regular feature of the Chilterns, and a conservation success story – is now resident in Uxbridge. But as for cricketing matters, it’s rather more difficult to identify the positives:

We finished off the Notts innings in a business-like manner and denied them another batting point.
Simmo and James Harris got their heads down and battled through – though without ever giving confidence that they would produce a high-scoring partnership.
I enjoyed seeing Tom Helm taking his wicket, and I hope he’ll go on to take many more.

It’s rather easier to list negatives:

Dawid Malan’s injury, obviously, and no word yet on when he’s likely to return.
The first innings of a new season, but it seems as if we’ve never been away. Even allowing for the absence of AC, yet again an innings that just collapsed in on itself. Particularly frustrating in that a number of the top order got starts and were looking as if they may go on to make big scores.
And another old favourite – our over-rate. We finished the day on -3, which could mean that we get zero from this game. Are Voges and Sterling really likely to bowl enough overs to turn it round?

And the weather forecast is fantastic for the next two days – which means our best chance of getting a draw is practically non-existent. Not that I’m feeling defeatist…

Confused scoreboard but familiar batting tail

Posted by: Middlesex till we die (IP Logged)

Date: 14/04/2015 09:06

What do you think? You can have your say by posting below.
If you do not already have an account Click here to Register.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2015:04:19:12:12:49 by BarmierKev.