Gentlemen of West London v. Wombles

 

Sunday 22 August 2010, Old Tenisons SC, Motspur Park. Cloudy, 24C

Game 1 – won by 67 runs

Game 2 – won by 7 wickets

Two Twenty20 contests against Wombles, who stood in for West XI, saw The Gents gain two victories, but more importantly everyone had a good day out and captains Gilkes and Wahed ensured that everyone was involved. Wombles were organised, fought hard and celebrated their successes when they came, but were ring-rusty and conceded too many extras against a wily Gents XI. They also missed Ed Babar and Spencely, whose pace and swing would have been a challenge on a humid day. The two sides had different demographics. Wombles are all in their twenties and eerily seem to live in the same street, like the Beatles in Help! The Gents’ ages ranged from 14 to 61 with most of the great religions and all points of the political compass represented. Old Tenisons has somehow morphed into The Gents’ Twenty20 venue of choice, with all three home 2010 fixtures adopting this format. Its privacy and tranquillity are ideally suited to such festival days.

The captains decided to play two separate Twenty20 games and there was drama third ball of the game when Gilkes gave Hibbert out leg-before to one that kept a little low from Rob Babar. Keith bowled Newcombe and Hemin Patel in the sixth over, poor Hemin’s third duck in five innings. Indeed, the young man, having been described in Gent 126 as ‘a batsman transformed in 2010’ has forgotten how to bat lately. Fourteen year-old Hamid Khan impressed with his 47 (nine fours) and with Shu Desai (32, four fours) was the bedrock of the innings as 84 came for the fifth wicket in ten overs. It is in the nature of these things that the dismissal of one batsman after a major stand often heralds a tremor and Desai and the Khans fell in quick order. The rejuvenated Dhruv Patel, Bender and Bignell then scored freely and with extras second top scoring Gents closed on 164-8.

Hibbert, in pain with a shoulder injury, and Kumar were ideal opening bowlers with the ball jagging around under heavy cloud. The Jamaican struck twice in his second over. He would have five by the close. Waleed Khan castled Keith and it was left to Wahed and Young to fight back. Well they did too before Dhruv Patel had Young and Hemin Patel Wahed, well caught at mid-on. Cox and Babar batted freely but Wombles fell short by 67 runs. Bender doubled his Gents’ career total of wickets and while it was thought at the time that Bignell’s wicket was his fiftieth, it transpired to be his fifty-first, such is the secretary’s increasingly imperfect recall of these matters. The fiftieth was against Sunderland SC in 2006.

Though Gents had cocked their usual deaf ’un when asked to bring food, Wombles provided a delicious tea with Mrs. Angela Wahed’s sponge cake the highlight. Despite a prompt start the sumptuous total of extras had delayed proceedings, Gents actually facing five extra overs in their dig. The day was as a consequence running late, rain was in the air and the players were keen to resume. The inserted Wombles were less than fortunate in facing the opening bowlers. Hibbert bowled very fast with Kumar, getting lift from a hitherto placid wicket, not much slower. After a wide, Sean Carroll chased a Hibbert ball outside off stump and connected well. Dhruv Patel was lurking at short extra-cover and took a superlative running catch, 1-1. Three balls later, Harry Barrett, who hit 57 in this fixture in 2007, was bowled, 1-2. Kumar pinned Cox first ball before Hibbert had Young well caught by Newcombe. Kumar bowled Nicklin and it was 10-5. Wombles might have folded but the talented Wahed, well supported by Babar and the grinning Colicci, took the score up to 67, Hemin Patel, flighting the ball beautifully, taking four wickets and Dhruv Patel one. Thus, Hemin is mobilising his assault on Stuart Snelling’s club record 43 wickets in a season, 36 and counting with four games left. Young Hamid Khan kept wicket well until catching one in the gob but the injury was not serious. Nor thankfully was the bruise on Bignell’s shoulder when he made a valiant attempt to pouch a slip catch off a Waleed Khan Howitzer.

 It was not a huge target and Kumar and Bignell, batting with unusual levity, put up a fine 30 in six overs. After their dismissals Bender dug in before Dhruv Patel smote poor Cox’s only over for 18, including four sublimely struck fours through mid-wicket and straight down the ground. The jovial West XI guest fell with victory in sight, an anticlimactic four byes sealing the win.

There was significance attached to several of its aspects of this fixture. West XI’s organiser kindly kept his Gent counterpart informed about his own side’s availability for the original fixture, which had been in doubt for three weeks. This enabled Wombles to be put on standby early with the result that they could raise a team. The attendance (and powerful contributions) of Bender and Bignell were greatly appreciated and Steve struck a grace note after the match when he presented the Bob Ashton Memorial Cup to Richard Gilkes, a most satisfying moment if one with more muted celebrations than a year before.