U13 Sabres v Sulhamstead & Ufton Under 13

Sabres Fall Short as Sulhamstead & Ufton Chase Down 109 with Ease

Sonning U13 Sabres travelled to The Watson Oval for their BYCL Under 13 Challenge fixture against Sulhamstead & Ufton on 10th May, but a disciplined home bowling attack and a commanding run chase consigned the visitors to defeat.

Sulhamstead & Ufton won the toss and inserted the Sabres, a decision that was quickly vindicated. Oliver Jacobs struck twice in his two-over spell, removing H Butler for a duck in the opening exchanges and then dismissing J Rathod for nought just one ball into his innings, leaving Sonning reeling at 4-2. The early damage could have been worse had the home bowlers been more disciplined with their line and length, as extras flowed freely throughout the innings — a staggering 71 in total, including 43 wides.

I Hutchinson provided the backbone of the Sabres' innings with a battling 16 from 44 balls. He anchored the middle overs admirably, featuring in a crucial third-wicket stand of 33 with captain J Aldon, who contributed a brisk 5 from 10 balls including a boundary before being run out by Oliver Jacobs. Hutchinson then added 24 for the seventh wicket alongside S Edwards (5 not out) before falling bowled by Benji McKinney. Samuel Collins was the most economical of the home bowlers, conceding just 2 runs from his two overs while picking up the wicket of A Sood, who had struck a four in a quickfire 5 off 6 balls. Henry Montague-Williams chipped in with 1-7 from his two overs to dismiss D Reddy.

The Sabres posted 108-7 from their 20 overs, though only 37 of those runs came from the bat. It was a total that owed much to the wayward bowling of the Sulhamstead & Ufton attack, with Shriyans Nayak sending down 11 wides in his two overs and Jude Kornelissen contributing 7 wides of his own.

The home side's reply was swift and decisive. Captain Kornelissen set the tone with an aggressive 13 from 11 balls at the top of the order, cracking two fours before J Rathod trapped him lbw with the score on 31. J Aldon then produced an excellent over, conceding just a single run while having Samuel Collins caught by I Hutchinson to reduce the hosts to 32-2.

Those two wickets proved to be mere interruptions. Oliver Jacobs compiled a composed 24 from 26 balls before retiring not out, while Rees Cox was the standout performer of the chase with a fluent 25 from 23 deliveries, dispatching three boundaries in a partnership of 50 for the third wicket that effectively settled the contest. Henry Montague-Williams then accelerated proceedings with an unbeaten 11 from just 8 balls, hitting two fours to help Sulhamstead & Ufton reach their target of 109 in only 12.4 overs with eight wickets in hand.

The Sabres' bowlers struggled to contain the scoring, with extras again playing a significant role — 36 in the second innings, including 16 wides and 10 no-balls. D Reddy was particularly expensive, conceding 17 from his single over. I Hutchinson was the most disciplined of the Sonning attack, keeping things tight with 0-10 from two overs without conceding a wide or no-ball, while captain Aldon's figures of 1-1 from one over were a bright spot in an otherwise difficult afternoon in the field.