Openers pave way
IROSHAN de Silva passed the 600-run mark for the season on Saturday as Christleton shot up to second in Division One with an eight-wicket home romp over Irby.
The opener thrashed 92no to make him the league’s leading runmaker with 662 to his name. His first-wicket partnership of 183 with the returning Simon Ratcliffe, who hit 13 fours and a six before being caught for 93, steered Christleton to 206-2 and a victory which stretched their unbeaten league sequence to six.
Guy Newell (3-60), Matt Parkinson (2-69), captain Paul Allen (1-34) and Sean Young (1-34) had earlier shared the wickets as Irby were restricted to 202-7.
Reason to cheer
A MUCH-IMPROVED performance from Tattenhall earned them a draw at home to Birkenhead Park in Division Two on Saturday.
Park’s skipper chose to bat and had his decision immediately vindicated as the new ball bowling of opposing captain Robin Mulvihill, in particular, was driven to the fence. A breakthrough was desperately needed and Melvin Dobson provided it, with the help of a fine low slip catch from Benedict Cooke.
Dobson toiled hard for 21 overs and deserved more than his solitary scalp. Mulvihill’s 20 overs eventually yielded 5-98, with most of the damage to the seamer’s figures done early.
Tattenhall’s batsmen were confident of chasing down Park’s total of 211-7dec, but crucially they lost seven overs because of rain. Once the pitch dried, Madhur Jethlia and John Gibbon got the home side’s innings off to a strong start, putting on 49 for the first wicket before Gibbon (10) was poached in the gully.
Jethlia’s fluent innings came to an end on 43.
At 98-5, the visitors were in the ascendency. Mulvihill (29) and Mike Roberts (18) came out firing, however, and a big-hitting display from Morris, who hit a run-a-ball 36, and decent work from Dobson (11no) gave Tattenhall hope. But they ran out of time on 198-8.
Relegation looming
OAKMERE remain rooted to the bottom of Division Two after they were beaten by eight wickets at second-placed Middlewich on Saturday.
The Overdale Lane outfit put on 163 but that total would have been far lower had it not been for Paul Guildford’s 56. Middlewich then reached 166-2 within the 39th over.
