By LIAM TWOMEY
KEALBA Green Gully has come within a whisker of defeating top-of-the-table Buckley Park in the North West Metropolitan Cricket Association’s T20 competition.
Despite being in the middle of summer, players were greeted with freezing conditions last Tuesday night as the Cougars batted first in a blockbuster clash that pitted first against third.
Anyone expecting big hits and high scores would have been disappointed as for once, the Twenty20 format turned into a bowler’s game.
From the Kealba innings, only Andrew Lambropoulos (16) Tristan Krizanic (20) and Jarrod Catania (19) could bring up double figure scores as the pressure was applied from the early overs.
Buckley Park’s bowlers were finding all the right lines and lengths while the fielders were making the most of any half chance with two run outs ensuring a small target.
Asif Rasool and Raja Sandhu were the pick of the bowlers, both taking 3/13, as the final wicket fell with the score on 79 and the Kealba innings stopped with more than five overs still available.
Buckley Park made a confident start to the run chase, carefully moving to 37 for the loss of one wicket.
So many times throughout its George Luscombe Shield season, Kealba has been able to take multiple wickets in quick time and that didn’t change in the shorter format of the game.
The next five wickets fell for just 17 and the run rate slowed dramatically as the match was again left in the balance.
A steadying partnership between Dean Erdman and Heath Rea saved the Buckley Park innings as the two guided the score to 79 before the victory was complete with just one ball to spare.
Danny Viani was the pick of the Kealba bowlers taking 4/17 while Matthew Nadzielski finished with the tidy figures of 0/11 from four overs.
The loss leaves Kealba in third place on the ladder and it is now highly unlikely it will be able to finish any higher with one round left to play.
The Cougars’ final match will come in round six against Sydenham Hillside.
