Wardens forced to settle for draw after fine batting show
KENILWORTH Wardens were forced to settle for a Birmingham Premier League Division One winning draw at Shifnal after a rain interruption halted their Reeve Evitts-inspired charge for victory.
The young all-rounder took 4-24 but with 24 overs lost to the elements Shifnal claimed a share of the spoils by closing on 103 for seven after 31 overs.
A sparkling 72 from opener Jamie Harrison – plus another half-century from in-form skipper Andy Leering and a useful contribution down the order from Neylan Chauhan – had earlier boosted Wardens to 228 for nine from their 55-over allocation.
Theo Wylie grabbed 5-64 for the home side who took eight points from the game while the visitors climb to fourth place in the table after eight rounds of action thanks to the 16 points garnered.
There was no hint of what was to follow when Harrison and fellow left-hander Ollie Dandy put on 94 for the visitors’ first wicket.
However, once the teenager became Wylie’s first victim for a 77-ball 39, the visitors’ batting lineup slumped alarmingly to 146 for seven.
Wylie, who claimed the prized wicket of Ali Zaryab completed a full
set of the visitors’ top four by removing Evitts then Harrison who struck
eight fours and a six in his fluent 89-ball 72.
With Ethan Jamieson also grabbing 3-53, Wardens were 164 for eight when off-spinner Chauhan joined his captain at the crease.
The ninth wicket pair proceeded to add 60 crucial runs in even time with Chauhan contributing a 23-ball 27 while Leering’s excellent unbeaten 59-ball 50 contained five boundaries.
This left Shifnal chasing 228 but with the scoreboard reading 32 for five their response was in tatters by the end of the eighth over.
Evitts took full advantage of an outing with the new ball to grab three early scalps while Tommy Rex struck twice at the other end.
Wylie then made a second key contribution by digging in with the bat in the company of skipper Chris Murrall (24) to stem the flow of wickets in a useful sixth-wicket alliance worth 45.
Despite the elements also coming to Shifnal’s aid by taking time from the contest, the visitors still scented opportunity when Evitts returned to the attack to bowl Wylie for a 67-ball 36.
However, Shaun Lorimer and Mitch Stanley’s cool heads saw the hosts to the safety of a draw at 103 for seven.
Defending champions Berkswell had the better end of a rain-affected draw against Knowle & Dorridge. K&D’S Gareth Davies took 4-18 as the hosts were restricted to 140 before Berkswell’s former Middlesex all-rounder Neil Dexter – who switched between the local rivals over the winter following one season in Knowle – responded with 4-17 as the visitors closed their 40-over response on 96 for seven.
Leamington returned from basement boys Ombersley with the lion’s share of the draw points after a highscoring contest ended in a draw.
Luke De Souza’s excellent 107 plus half-centuries from skipper Jon Wigley and Ollie Currill saw Spa post 313 for six before Liam Gwynne responded with 52 as the game petered out with Ombersley 200 for five.