U13 Sabres v Holyport Under 13

Koslicki's Commanding 30 Guides U13 Sabres to Victory at Holyport

Sonning U13 Sabres chased down 139 with four balls to spare at Holyport CC on Friday evening, captain Charlie Koslicki leading from the front with an unbeaten 30 off 30 balls to seal a hard-fought win in the BYCL Under 13 Challenge (Tier 2) East.

Holyport, having won the toss and opted to bat, built a competitive total of 138 for 5 from their 20 overs. Captain Nathaniel Denholm set the tone at the top of the order, striking three boundaries in a composed knock of 27 off 30 balls before retiring. Bobby Hart was even more aggressive, smashing six fours in a rapid 30 off 22 deliveries before also retiring, the pair helping Holyport recover from an early wobble at 23 for 2.

Sonning's bowlers had struck early through Idris Malik, who bowled Rohan Dephu for just 1 and later accounted for Arlo Rusher, finishing with excellent figures of 2 for 16 from his three overs. Finn Reid claimed the other early wicket, taking the catch himself to remove Marcus Oakley for 13, while Daniel Moseley bowled George Howell for a duck and Divik Gupta cleaned up Will Playle. Despite these breakthroughs, Ali Ilyas kept the scoreboard ticking with an unbeaten 19 off 15 balls, and Arlo Rusher contributed 13 before falling, as Holyport posted a total that looked defendable.

The Sabres' chase began solidly, with Muhammad Shah and Sibikumar Muthukumaran putting on 25 for the opening wicket. Shah looked in fine touch with three fours in his 15, while Muthukumaran struck a pair of boundaries in making 12 before being run out by Bobby Hart. The loss of Yusuf Malik, caught by Denholm off Rusher for 6, and then Shah himself at 49 for 3, left Sonning with work to do.

What followed was the decisive passage of the match. Edward Duvall and Koslicki combined in a magnificent fourth-wicket partnership worth 80 runs that effectively took the game away from Holyport. Koslicki was the more fluent of the pair, dispatching six boundaries in his 30 off 30 balls, timing the ball sweetly through the off side and square of the wicket. Duvall played the anchor role to perfection, occupying the crease for 27 balls while contributing 13 runs including two fours, giving his captain the platform to play freely.

Holyport's bowlers struggled for consistency during this period, conceding 50 extras in the innings — 26 in wides alone — which effectively gifted Sonning a significant proportion of their target. Marcus Oakley's two overs cost 22 runs including eight wides, while Oscar Ashwell conceded 21 from his two overs with five wides. The discipline that Bobby Hart and Ali Ilyas had shown at the top of the bowling innings, where Hart bowled a maiden in his spell of 2-1-11-0, was not maintained throughout.

The chase wobbled briefly when three wickets fell in quick succession at 129, with Daniel Moseley run out for a brisk 9 off 8 balls, Elias Haidari bowled first ball by Will Playle, and Duvall falling to George Howell. Divik Gupta was then run out without scoring to leave the Sabres 131 for 7 and nerves jangling. However, Idris Malik calmly struck a boundary from his second delivery to bring the target within reach, and with Finn Reid holding firm at the other end, the Sabres crossed the line in the 20th over.