Bell & Nag excel in the heat at Chobham
Chobham 143 all out (Bell 7-38)
Jesters CC 144-2 (Nag 66, Hudson 56*)
Jesters won by 8 wkts
In 2005, Chobham collapsed to 156 all out from 106-3, with Ollie Doward claiming 7-22.
A year later in 2006, Sandy Ross and Allan Dodd accounted for the last eight Chobham wickets for no runs in 20 deliveries as 99-2 became 99 all out.
Fast forward to 2020 and it was Tom Bell's nibblers that sparked another spectacular collapse as 87-0 turned into 143 all out. Tom finished with an eye-catching 7-38 off eight overs, the best Jesters bowling figures for 15 years.
A beaming Tom Bell after his seven wicket haul
Robbie Hudson (56*) and Sarbajeet Nag (66) rattled off the runs in 25 overs.
Match manager Jonny Bridcut's report of a hot and steamy encounter follows...
It was not a day to lose the toss, but lose the toss we did. The home skipper was only too happy to summon us into the field in 35 degree heat, while the visiting skipper was just as happy to retire to the scorer's hut and leave the on-field matters to Sergeant Hudson.
The Chobham openers got off to a very promising start, reaching 87-0 within the first hour, as the visiting seamers toiled in the steaming sun. Some creative captaincy by Sergeant Hudson, including calling on Louis Harris as first change, did not deliver a prized wicket.
However, the match turned on the introduction of Tom Bell in the 17th over, when he made the break through with his fifth ball. Tom struck again in his next over, and in his fifth over, and twice in both his sixth and eighth overs, as the home side capitulated from 87-0 to 143 all out, with Tom taking a marvellous 7-38 in 8 overs (bowled straight through, which was another mean feat).
The wickets included an impressive caught and bowled, but Tom was also indebted to the masterful glovework of Shorbo Nag, who contributed to 3 of Tom's 7 wickets with a fine diving catch and two spectacular leg-side stumpings (for good measure Shorbo took a third stumping off the bowling of Adnan, as our much-fabled left-armer destroyed the tail with 2-7). As an ultimate compliment to his performance, the opposition complained that Shorbo was too good a keeper for Sunday cricket – not a complaint heard often (despite our bountiful keeper resources!).
Mention should also be made of John Murphy's fine spell from the other end (8-0-28-0), the economy of which was no doubt a catalyst for Mr Bell's success - a fearsome partnership indeed.
In a very un-Jesters-like fashion, we knocked off the victory target of 144 inside 25 overs, largely thanks to a wonderful partnership of 118 between Sergeant Hudson (56 not out) and Shorbo, who completed a fine game with a typically graceful 66 (off just 60 balls).