3rd XI v Sulhamstead & Ufton 3rd XI

Kavya Panchal's Excellent 65 Not Enough as Sonning 3rds Fall to Sulhamstead & Ufton

Sonning 3rd XI travelled to The Railway Ground on Saturday for their Division 7A fixture against Sulhamstead & Ufton, but despite a fine individual performance from wicketkeeper Kavya Panchal, Sam Taylor's side were unable to defend their total of 173 all out, with the hosts chasing it down for the loss of just three wickets in 29.2 overs.

Inserted into bat after Sulhamstead & Ufton won the toss and elected to field, Sonning's innings was built almost entirely around Panchal's superb knock of 65 from 84 balls, an innings laced with nine fours and two sixes. Opening alongside Dhiren Panchal, who contributed 13, the pair put on 40 for the first wicket to give Sonning a solid platform. Robert Wardle broke through with the first breakthrough, trapping Dhiren lbw, but Kavya continued to accumulate fluently.

Paul Towner added 14 in a second-wicket stand of 24 before falling bowled to Wardle, but it was the third-wicket partnership that really set the innings up. Kavya Panchal and Akash Vasa combined for 52 runs, with Vasa contributing a patient 17 from 33 balls. Kavya reached a well-deserved half-century off 74 deliveries during this stand, the milestone greeted with the team score passing 100 in the 24th over.

The middle order, however, crumbled alarmingly. Opposition captain Ian Gibson was the chief destroyer, claiming 3-36 from his nine overs, including the key wicket of Vasa caught by Andrew Harris-Makinson and then removing both skipper Taylor (1) and Ethan Towner (0) in quick succession — both caught by Marthish Shivaramaiah — to leave Sonning reeling at 124-5. When Kavya Panchal was finally stumped by Grant Meadows off Jason Doole for 65, the score had only advanced to 132-6, and the momentum had well and truly shifted.

Christopher Dowse provided useful late resistance with 25 from 33 balls, striking four boundaries in a seventh-wicket partnership of 26 with Shahbaz Ali. But Shiva Rao wrapped up the tail with ruthless efficiency, taking 3-11 from just 3.3 overs to bowl Sonning out for 173 in the 43rd over. Doole finished with tidy figures of 2-33 from his eight overs to complement his later heroics with the bat.

The target of 174 never looked in serious doubt for the hosts. George Ravenscroft was run out by Shahbaz Ali with the score on 33, but Jason Doole anchored the chase superbly. He and Julian Fernando put on 69 for the second wicket at a rapid clip, Fernando striking five fours in a brisk 27 from 26 balls before being bowled by Mohit Karangad. Karangad also accounted for Harris-Makinson, caught by James Charlton-Perez for 4, to briefly give Sonning a glimmer of hope at 110-3.

That hope was quickly extinguished as Doole and Shoaib Rabbani shared an unbroken fourth-wicket stand of 64 to seal the victory. Doole finished unbeaten on 71 from 92 balls, his innings peppered with eleven fours, while Rabbani was equally aggressive in making 34 not out from 34 deliveries with six boundaries. Karangad's 2-39 from seven overs was the only bright spot in an otherwise frustrating afternoon for the Sonning attack, which conceded 18 wides across the innings. Shahbaz Ali bowled with admirable economy, returning figures of 0-13 from four overs, but with insufficient support from the other end, Sulhamstead & Ufton cruised home with more than 15 overs to spare.