Rounds 6 & 7 Match Reports: A good weekend for The Bombers

Round 6 & 7 Wrap Up

It was a great weekend for the Bombers across both Saturday and Sunday.

1^st XI

Round 6: 1^st XI ECC 8-171 (Trembearth 80) def RCC 147

After welcoming debutant Ikroop Dhanoa into the side the Bombers batted first in a rain reduced 26 overs a side game on a wet and windy Saturday afternoon at Windy Hill. The opening pair of Trembearth and Arsalan Shah got the innings off to a flying start reaching 106 before Trembearth departed for 80. Trembearth’ s 80 from only 56 balls was the decisive knock of the match and included  11 fours and 3 sixes.

Josh Trembearth (pictured in the field) made 80

After Trembearths’s departure and Shah’s soon after the Bombers scrambled to a very competitive 8-171 from their 26 overs. The highlight being debutant Ikroop Dhanoa’s six from the last ball of the innings.

Arsalan Shah impressed with bat and ball

With ball in hand and danger man Tom Rogers opening the batting for Ringwood the Bombers had to start well. It was seamer Noman Safdar who stood up dismissing the dangerous Rogers for only 7 in in the first over. From there the Bombers tightened the screws on Ringwood and with strong support coming from the upper deck of Cookson Stand the wickets continued to tumble. When skipper Liam Molloy (1/26) dismissed reigning Ryder Medalist David King for 28 the Bombers had a sniff of victory and from there never let up. Spinner Arshit Rajput was again excellent taking 3/43 whilst Arsalan Shah also chipped in for 2/5 to clean up the tail. Ringwood bowled all out for 147 in the 25^th over and Bombers recording their second win of the season.

Round 7: CSMCC 5-135 tied with ECC 7-127 (DLS)

Backing up from the win on Saturday the Bombers ventured out to Casey Fields for a T20 match on Sunday. The Bombers welcomed debutant Simrth Gill into the side for the match after some great performances in the 2^nd XI.

Bowling first the Bombers were once again clinical with ball in hand. Noman Safder struck again in the first over  and the wickets continued to tumble. Muhammad Abdul Rafay was the pick of the bowlers taking 3/23 from his 4 overs with one wicket a piece to Safdar (1/17) and Rajput (1/24).

Muhammad Abdul Rafay (left) and Harry Duke (right) pictured together in the rooms

Set 13 for victory the Bombers again started well. Opening pair Markovski (20) and Duke (43) got the innings off to a flyer reaching 48 for no loss before Markovski departed for 20 (jd). With wickets falling at the other end Duke took the attack to Casey hitting a well made 43 before top edging a sweep shot and departing. Following Duke's dismissal The Bombers put the foot down and reached 7-127 requiring 9 to win off the last over. From here rain ruined the day and after covers coming on and off multiple times it was deemed impossible for play to continue.

Nick Markovski (pictured last season) made 20

Assistant coach and well renowned mathematician Ash Gilbert was then called upon by the umpires to assist with a challenging Duckworth Lewis calculation. After the high level mathematics was completed it was determined that the match was a tie and captains shook hands. It was a frustrating sense of what might have been for The Bombers however the tie and two points capped off a very promising weekend.

Ash Gilbert (pictured in his playing days) assisted with the Duckworth Lewis Calculation

After rounds 6 and 7 The 1sts now sit 15^th on the ladder.

2^nd XI

Round 6: ECC v RCC Match abandoned due to rain

Round 7: CSMCC 9-125 def by ECC 2/73 (DLS)

After a disappointing wash out on Saturday the 2^nd XI also made the early trip out to Casey Field for T20. Losing the toss and bowling the Bombers started well. The ever reliable Lachie Busk (1/24) made the first breakthrough and the wickets continued to fall throughout. Krit Darji impressed on debut in the 2nds with 2/14 whilst Nav Rai impressed as always with 2/23. Other highlights included a run out from the deep by Henry Robertson and a direct hit run out from wicket keeper Ethan Brne. A strong team performance restricted the Swans to 9-125.

Lachie Busk (pictured) took the first wicket for the 2nds

With bat in hand it was Aidan Salvado who led the way. In a classy knock Salvado reached 43 in quick time before rain stopped play. He was ably assisted by Harry Singh whos quickfire 19 kept the momentum going. With rain stopping play after only 9 overs the Bombers who were well ahead of the required run rate recorded the win via Duckworth Lewis System and banked the points.

Aidan Salvado in action last season

The win leaves the 2nds 6^th on the ladder ahead of a massive round of T20s next weekend.

3^rd XI

Round 6 ECC 5-208 def RCC 4-204

In a rain reduced 30 over a side game at Cross Keys the 3rds batted first on another fine wicket Cross Keys (SPW Oval). Opener Zac Beniwal lead the way with 43 whilst number 3 Heath Doherty also impressed with 57 from only 36 balls. Some late hitting from Jess Bhadan (37*) and Para Singh (23*) saw The Bombers post an imposing 5-208 after 30 overs.

With ball in hand the the Bombers were on the backfoot early with Ringwood 52 for no loss. All rounder Heath Doherty backed up from his batting heroics to get the first breakthrough assisted by a well made stumping by wicket keeper Maan Singh. Some great captaincy from Para Singh helped restrict the Rams and keep the pressure on. With 29 overs bowled The Rams required a further 24 for victory off the last over. Fast bowler Arin Mishra survived a bit of a fright to hold his nerve and restrict the Rams to only 19. It was heart in the mouth stuff however the 3rds winners nonetheless.

The 3rds after two wins on the trot now sit 10^th on the ladder only 1 point outside the 8.

4^th XI

Round 6 ECC v RCC Match abandoned due to rain

After the weekend’s matches the Bombers now sit 12^th on the Victorian Premier Cricket Club Championship.

Focus now shifts to next Saturday’s T20 matches against St Kilda and Dandenong. The 1^st XI will be at home at Windy Hill.