2nd XI v Marlow 2nd XI

Sonning 2nd XI Left Frustrated as Rain Forces Abandonment at Marlow

Sonning 2nd XI's Division 5B trip to Marlow Cricket Club on 30 August ended in abandonment, denying Robert Mosley's side the chance to chase down a very gettable target of 168 from a revised 40 overs after they had bowled the hosts out for 178.

Having won the toss and elected to field, Sonning made an encouraging start with the ball. John Rimmer struck first, bowling Harry Bussell for 1 to leave Marlow 22 for 1. Ghulam Abbas was equally impressive at the other end, conceding just 27 runs from his six overs with two maidens, and claimed the scalp of captain Shaz Aslam, caught by Duncan Parr for 14.

The hosts found their feet through a commanding third-wicket partnership of 78 between Graeme Paskins and Ben Paskins. Ben Paskins was the more aggressive of the two, smashing five fours and a six in a rapid 34 from 35 balls before Duncan Parr broke through to bowl him with the score on 114. Graeme Paskins continued to anchor the innings, adding 27 with Ishtiaq Khan for the fourth wicket before Adil Malik held a return catch to dismiss Khan for 15.

Graeme Paskins eventually fell for a well-crafted 62 from 91 balls, including eight fours, caught by Parr off the bowling of Ethan Towner with the score on 163. It was Parr's second catch of the innings, underlining his contribution in the field. Will Peacock added a useful 21 before Dan Anderson bowled him, and from there Marlow's innings collapsed dramatically.

Towner was the chief destroyer in the closing overs, finishing with excellent figures of 3 for 14 from 4.4 overs as the final five Marlow wickets tumbled for no runs. Anderson chipped in with 2 for 20, including a caught-and-bowled to remove Isaac Middleton, while wicketkeeper Alex Mcloughlin completed a sharp run out of Joe Middleton. Marlow's last four batsmen managed a combined total of zero runs as the hosts were bowled out for 178 in 40.4 overs.

With a revised target of 168 from 40 overs following a rain interruption, Sonning's reply began positively. Mcloughlin and Parr put on 29 for the first wicket, with Parr particularly fluent in striking three fours in a brisk 16 from 14 balls before he was caught by Aslam off Will Peacock. Henry Cook departed for a duck in the following over, bowled by Vinothkumar Arumugam, but Mcloughlin (12 not out) and Raoul Harding (1 not out) steadied the ship to reach 37 for 2 from seven overs.

At that stage, with Sonning well placed on a required rate of just over four an over and eight wickets in hand, the weather intervened to bring proceedings to a premature end. Both sides collected seven points from the abandoned fixture, a result that will leave Sonning particularly disappointed given the momentum they had built through a disciplined bowling display and a confident start with the bat.