Another sunny Sunday saw 10/11ths of a Salix Team turn up at Winchmore Hill's beautiful ground, which definitely isn't in London, to play longstanding and personable opponents Heteroi, our first match in a few weeks after a couple of cancellations.
For once I won the toss, deciding to bat first on what looked like a good wicket that might help the bowlers later on. We started brightly with Vijay and TFC until the former slapped a catch to Irwin, kindly on as a substitute fielder, which broke the opening partnership. Thereafter we were a little stop-start, with a number of players looking as though they would score well only to be dismissed just as they were settled; but with TFC in good nick we scored rapidly and were at 150-3 in 24 overs before the wheels inevitably fell off.
Our middle order offered literally nothing and it was left to Zaf, Anant and Irwin to get us to some respectability with a final score of 213 all out, which felt at least about 40 runs shy of a defendable total on a ground with a short boundary to one side and a quick outfield. Sadly TFC couldn't quite get to his century, skittled off his pads by the same bowler who had obliterated the middle order. Without his runs we really wouldn't have made a game of it at all.
We started brightly in the field: Anant kept the scoring low and Zaf took a couple of wickets, including one of Heteroi's openers who has scored heavily against us in the past, caught capably by Sham at midwicket. CK claimed a further wicket, clean bowled and at one stage we had Heteroi at 50-3 and below the required run rate. Unfortunately the other opener began to accumulate well and went on to a well deserved century, well supported by his skipper. We didn't help ourselves with a couple of drops that we might otherwise have expected to take and in the end Heteroi chased down the target with 4 overs to spare.
Special mention to Spurry and Zaf, capably performing behind the stumps in turn, enabling the other to bowl and both conceding very few byes.
Thanks to Heteroi for a great match played in a good spirit and in a lovely ground.