D40s edged out by Warwickshire
Cricket Shropshire’s D40 side came close to pulling off a famous victory on their trip to Berkswell CC to take on their Warwickshire counterparts.
Skipper Adam Marshall won the toss on a very hot day and decided to bat on Sunday.
Shropshire got off to a fast start to reach 148-2 with Adam (35), Cally Rigby (58) and wicket-keeper Kev Baker (48), returning to the side after an absence of a couple of years, the major contributors.
The introduction of their slower bowlers, particularly, Keiron Gibbs (4-29) however slowed progress and by the end of the allocated 40 overs, Shropshire had reached 202-8.
Coach Graham Furber said: “The general feeling was that after such a great start, we were probably 30-40 runs short of where we wanted to be.”
With Matty Bailey at the DPL and Charlie Vickers and Adam James also absent, Shropshire were short of bowlers but a blistering spell from youngster Oli Harrison (3-22) quickly reduced the hosts to 43-5.
However, the experienced pair (and old adversaries) Haroon Irshad (75 retired) and Aqeel Hudda (60) wrestled the game from Shropshire with an excellent stand of 103, and despite capturing some late wickets, the winning target was reached in 35.5 overs.
Cally Rigby also picked up two wickets.
Graham added: “It was a real tight game of cricket and a credit to the game of disability cricket.
“Our thanks to Berkswell Cricket Club for their excellent hospitality and we wish Dean and his squad all the best for the remainder of the season.”
After five games, skipper Marshall stands third on the list of top run scorers in the division while Rigby is sixth. Harrison is joint fifth in the league’s top wicket-takers.
The game comes after the side had to concede their previous fixture away at Lancashire due to availability problems – they would be delighted to hear from anyone interested in playing D40 cricket for Shropshire.
Their last game of the season is in a fortnight when they entertain Cheshire at Norton-in-Hales CC.
Anyone interested in joining the squad can get in touch with Cricket Shropshire’s Inclusion Officer Tyler Ibbotson via tyler.ibbotson@cricketshropshire.co.uk or Graham Furber via graham.furber@yahoo.com or Head Coach Jonathan Caldecott viaJjc07@hotmail.co.uk
