U13 Scorchers v Littlewick Green Under 13

Scorchers Fall Short as Littlewick Green Chase Down 124 with Ease

Sonning U13 Scorchers posted 123 for 8 from their 20 overs at Littlewick Green CC on Saturday, but the hosts overhauled the target in just 13.4 overs to claim a comfortable victory in this friendly fixture.

After Littlewick Green won the toss and inserted the visitors, captain Henry Verrier Jones and Oliver Baker gave the Scorchers a solid platform with an opening stand of 43. Baker looked composed in making 17 from 25 balls, hitting two fours before retiring not out, while Verrier Jones anchored the innings throughout, finishing unbeaten on 13 from 26 deliveries. The partnership was broken when Izaan Baloch was run out by Myles Warren for a duck off his first ball.

Dhruv Reddy Kantigari continued the positive start, contributing 14 from 25 balls with two boundaries before also retiring not out. The score had moved along to 77 when Elijah Patel fell to another run out, dismissed by Edward Vaughan without troubling the scorers. Namit Desai then provided the most explosive innings of the match, smashing 22 from just 12 balls, including three fours and a six, as the Scorchers looked to accelerate in the closing overs. His partnership of 26 with Advay Sood for the third wicket pushed the total past 100.

However, the Scorchers' innings unravelled in the final overs. Advay Sood was bowled by Monty Roberts for 5, Desai fell to Hugo Allies for 22, and Anay Patel was caught by Leo Samuel-Gibbon off Jeevan Sanghera for 1. Three further run outs — Heet Panchal, Utkarsh Sinha, and Divik Gupta — saw the visitors lose five wickets for just 20 runs as they stumbled to 123 for 8. A generous 46 extras, including 18 wides, 15 byes, and six no-balls, had significantly bolstered the Sonning total.

The Littlewick Green reply was emphatic. Captain Leo Samuel-Gibbon set the tone with a blistering 26 from just eight balls, cracking six fours before retiring not out. Bobby Hart complemented him at the other end with 16 from 15 balls as the pair raced to a 63-run opening partnership that effectively settled the contest before it had truly begun.

Ahad Khan maintained the momentum with 28 from 18 deliveries, finding the boundary five times before retiring. Anay Patel was the pick of the Sonning bowlers, claiming 2 for 9 from his two overs, including the stumping of Hart — smartly executed by wicketkeeper Verrier Jones — and bowling Seb Jorgensen for a duck. Dhruv Reddy Kantigari also chipped in with the wicket of Jeevan Sanghera, who had made a useful 13. Divik Gupta delivered the most economical spell for Sonning, conceding just a single run from his over.

Despite those breakthroughs, Littlewick Green never looked in any danger of falling short. Myles Warren added a brisk 14 from 12 balls with three fours, and Raefe Kemmis contributed an unbeaten 7 as the hosts reached 124 for 3 with more than six overs to spare. The Scorchers' bowling lacked the penetration to contain a powerful home batting line-up, with 11 byes also proving costly. It was a match in which the Scorchers' top order laid a promising foundation but the middle and lower order's collapse, combined with Littlewick Green's aggressive approach, proved decisive.