The warm-up may have been a little more lethargic than usual as our 1st XI took to the field at Hasselt CC but any possible hangover problems (from the 40th Anniversary) were soon forgotten. Having the lost the toss and made to field, the biggest problem of the day was the field itself. Hasselt’s outfield suffers from being the home to a significant rabbit population and large numbers of pot holes in awkward places were are constant danger. In fact, one match ball was actually lost down one hole! Despite this, the more immediate challenge was their opening batsmen, as they enjoyed a lively start to reach 48 without loss before our boys finally got going. 3 quick wickets changed the run rate and from then on wickets fell regularly with some good catches assisting the process. William Cope ended with 4 for 38 and Atif Kamal clean bowled both of their best batsmen, but it was Chris Fry’s 9 overs with 4 wickets for just 20 runs that strangled Hasselt who ended on 203 all out. Once again, we had bowled the opposition out for the 7th time this season.
So 204 to win in 45 overs should be reasonably straight forward, but Hasselt are 2nd in the league for a reason. Our reply began in a faltering manner and at 32 for 3 there were some concerns but no nerves. This is because we bat very deep these days and this began to show. Tony Whiteman steadied the ship and then Vikram Vijh showed everyone that the track was good and he unleashed a fine array of shots before holing out for 68. Saransh Kulshrestha also impressed with a stylish 52 not out. Girish Venkateshwaran also contributed with 15 which just left William Cope to finish off the chase with a big six with seven overs to spare.
This makes it seven straight league wins for the boys and another all-round performance to be proud of as we enter the business end of the season. 3 more big matches left with the next of them being at home vs Gent Arcadians on August 14th.