Bracknell's lead cut to one point

Published 22 Jul 2010 10:00

BRACKNELL's lead at the top of division 5a was cut down to a single point after they lost by three wickets to Tring Park 3rds.

Bracknell picked up nine points from the game after they failed to defend a first innings total of 170 and saw OMT move within a point, ahead of their encounter with Tring on Saturday.

Ian Caffell lost the toss and his side were put into bat on a very soft wicket. They negotiated the first passage of play without losing any wickets but scored slowly due to the difficult conditions.

Caffell and Dave Fearnley put on a half-century partnership for the first wicket as Fearnley was bowled out for 15 and Caffell top scored with 41.

Tring's opening bowlers bowled well with the new ball and managed to restrict the hard-hitting Hafiz Mahmood to 25 runs. Mahmood accumulated a few boundaries before being dismissed with a low spinning ball.

Paul Dewick (35) and Deepak Uppal (31) were the only other batsmen in the middle order who offered any resistance as they were skittled out for 170.

The pitch dried out during the course of Bracknell's innings resulting in a better batting track for Tring, who managed to take advantage of some below-par bowling and fielding to reach 172-7 off 46 overs.

Caffell was disappointed with the result but admitted there were not enough good spells to win them the game. He said: "I'm disappointed with our performance although not hyper critical of the team. We just didn't play good cricket for the entirety of the match.

"Trings' innings started on a much more batting-friendly pitch. The pitch had dried out and although it offered turn, the variability in its bounce had vanished. We were going to have to bowl and field very well, which we just didn't do."

He added: "There were too many bad balls, which didn't allow us to create pressure and control the game."

Caffell believes losing the toss also affected the outcome of the match and stated: "Losing the toss was a big factor in the outcome of the game. The pitch during our innings was drying out and Tring's slow bowlers were sending down deliveries which spun, bounced and died abnormally.

"We posted a total of 170 which I thought would give us a fairly decent total to defend, whilst trying to enforce a victory. But there were a few of us who didn't shape up to these difficult conditions."

Bracknell face a resurgent Kidmore End 2 at Larges Lane as they look to maintain their challenge at the top of the table.

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