Reds CC in England - Game Seven

After a stern dressing-down from skipper Thomas, who threatened no more Indian restaurants until the team won again, the touring Reds have arrested their one-game slump with a hard-fought T20 win over Appleby Eden.

The Appleby ground, like the rest of the Lake District, is stunningly beautiful. Located in the heart of the village, it is surrounded by – in order from the pavilion – a church, a huge tree,white houses, an indoor swimming pool, a full-size scoreboard with numbers on rollers, more large trees, and a stream that separates it from the main road through the village.

Less impressed by the ground were bowlers Rafter and the Ninja, who were both dispatched for sixes as the Appleby bats came out blazing at every ball. Donovan’s dibbly-dobblies were shown more respect, as befits the Cougar, but a rollicking partnership between Davidson and Knowles hoisted the score to 3-61 in the tenth, and a hefty run-chase loomed.

Enter the Jagon, who clean-bowled both batsmen while conceding just four runs in his first three overs of off-spin. Devers’ outswing applied the brakes at the other end, and at 5-81 after sixteen, Appleby had got stuck. Devers clean-bowled two more, then Thomas mopped up, claiming bizarrely that he had actually turned an off-break.

The Reds reply started in fine style, Devers gone after the first ball caught from a leading edge. Makeshift opener Chapman, denied his goal of a complete tour without a single hit, did the next best thing by scoring repeatedly from tickles through the vacant slips. With Bergin, he took the score to 1-29 in the eighth before double disaster, as both batsmen spooned catches off Appleby’s youthful spin attack.

Fortunately, this brought together Gill and Kahn, the two most maniacal runners in the side. The next seven overs were an extended game of tip-and-run as the pair added 43, mostly in short singles, although Gill broke the rules by hitting a few boundaries including a huge six into the stream, and was given a stern dressing down by his partner.

When Gill attempted one big hit too many to make it 4-73 in the fifteenth, Thomas wisely sent out Rafter with a hamstring strain to put an end to the short-single nonsense. An tight 17th over that only conceded one run created slight concern, and when Rafter miscued to make it 5-81 after 18, pessimists were wondering if Reds could manage to blow it. A sizzling cover drive from the Ninja relieved the pressure, and Kahn happily dispatched a full toss through mid-wicket to end the game.

Fall: 14 (Winder) 20 (Smith) 31 (P. Brabbins) 61 (Knowles) 70 (Davidson) 82 (Bussanich) 84 (Ousby) 86 (Brakewell) 87 (Atkinson) 88 (Fothergill).

Fall: 0 (Devers) 29 (Chapman) 29 (Bergin) 72 (Gill) 79 (Rafter).

Reds won by 5 wickets.