Justin Behrens
It’s neck and neck between Hambledon and Fair Oak going into this weekend’s round 14 Southern Premier Division 1 fixtures.
The pair has each got 186 points from 11 completed matches, eight won and three lost.
Hambledon host relegation battlers Basingstoke & North Hants, while Oaks face a potentially tougher visit to third-placed Rowledge, who lie 19 points behind the lead pair.
They both won for an eighth time last weekend, Fair Oak by seven runs against Ventnor and Hambledon by a 75-run margin at Totton & Eling.
Scores -
Fair Oak 223 (Sriram 34, Oxley 34*, Ramanan 33, Gibson 32, Clark 31, Short 3-42) Ventnor 216-7 (Edwards 77, Cox 61, Hailes 36, Oxley 3-34). Fair Oak won by seven runs.
Hambledon 224 (Behrens 92, J Restall 25*, Lightfoot 4-30) Totton & Eling 149 (Lightfoot 25, Holbrook 25, Lewis 4-41, Behrens 3-29). Hambledon won by 75 runs.
Fair Oak enjoy conjuring up tense finishes : the seven run win over Ventnor was another of them. Death bowlers Rhys Oxley, Sriram Yegnasubramanian and Andy Mash held their nerve to restrict the visitors to 216 for 7, seven runs short of their hosts’ total.
The game started with young Oaks opener Ayinen Ramanan, promoted from the 2nd XI, confidently hitting 33 of the first 53 runs. He became one of Oli Morgan’s two scalps, but Connor Gibson hit 32 and Tom Clark 31 to boost the middle order.
Ethan Short (3-42) was prominent as Ventnor reduced Fair Oak to a perilous 147-7. But Oxley and Sriram rode to the rescue, both making 34 – the former not out – to propel their side to a competitive 223 all out.
Ventnor responded well and for a long time looked likely winners. At one point they stood at 195-3 thanks to 36 from young Ian Hailes and Dan Cox 61. Wickets then started to tumble and boundaries dried up, but with Henry Edwards at the crease Ventnor still looked favourites. He was eventually caught for 77 off Sriram (2-43), and with Oxley taking 3-34 and Mash 2-22, Fair Oak ramped up the pressure.
In the end the bowlers and fielders served up consistent quality. Ventnor were unable to break the shackles, and Fair Oak maintained their spot in the promotion places, level on points with Hambledon.
South African Justin Behrens was caught eight runs shy of a maiden SPL century, but consoled himself with three wickets which helped Hambledon beat Totton & Eling by 75 runs at Southern Gardens.
The Western Province CC spin all-rounder hit 13 fours in his 92, but Elliott Lewis (21) and James Restell (25) apart, got little support. Simon Lightfoot took 4-30.
A sixth-former at Churchers College in Petersfield, Lewis made inroads into Totton's batting, his 4-41 return including joint top scorer Ben Holbrook (25). With Behrens taking 3-29, Totton fell to 149 all out.
The pair has each got 186 points from 11 completed matches, eight won and three lost.
Hambledon host relegation battlers Basingstoke & North Hants, while Oaks face a potentially tougher visit to third-placed Rowledge, who lie 19 points behind the lead pair.
They both won for an eighth time last weekend, Fair Oak by seven runs against Ventnor and Hambledon by a 75-run margin at Totton & Eling.
Scores -
Fair Oak 223 (Sriram 34, Oxley 34*, Ramanan 33, Gibson 32, Clark 31, Short 3-42) Ventnor 216-7 (Edwards 77, Cox 61, Hailes 36, Oxley 3-34). Fair Oak won by seven runs.
Hambledon 224 (Behrens 92, J Restall 25*, Lightfoot 4-30) Totton & Eling 149 (Lightfoot 25, Holbrook 25, Lewis 4-41, Behrens 3-29). Hambledon won by 75 runs.
Fair Oak enjoy conjuring up tense finishes : the seven run win over Ventnor was another of them. Death bowlers Rhys Oxley, Sriram Yegnasubramanian and Andy Mash held their nerve to restrict the visitors to 216 for 7, seven runs short of their hosts’ total.
The game started with young Oaks opener Ayinen Ramanan, promoted from the 2nd XI, confidently hitting 33 of the first 53 runs. He became one of Oli Morgan’s two scalps, but Connor Gibson hit 32 and Tom Clark 31 to boost the middle order.
Ethan Short (3-42) was prominent as Ventnor reduced Fair Oak to a perilous 147-7. But Oxley and Sriram rode to the rescue, both making 34 – the former not out – to propel their side to a competitive 223 all out.
Ventnor responded well and for a long time looked likely winners. At one point they stood at 195-3 thanks to 36 from young Ian Hailes and Dan Cox 61. Wickets then started to tumble and boundaries dried up, but with Henry Edwards at the crease Ventnor still looked favourites. He was eventually caught for 77 off Sriram (2-43), and with Oxley taking 3-34 and Mash 2-22, Fair Oak ramped up the pressure.
In the end the bowlers and fielders served up consistent quality. Ventnor were unable to break the shackles, and Fair Oak maintained their spot in the promotion places, level on points with Hambledon.
South African Justin Behrens was caught eight runs shy of a maiden SPL century, but consoled himself with three wickets which helped Hambledon beat Totton & Eling by 75 runs at Southern Gardens.
The Western Province CC spin all-rounder hit 13 fours in his 92, but Elliott Lewis (21) and James Restell (25) apart, got little support. Simon Lightfoot took 4-30.
A sixth-former at Churchers College in Petersfield, Lewis made inroads into Totton's batting, his 4-41 return including joint top scorer Ben Holbrook (25). With Behrens taking 3-29, Totton fell to 149 all out.
