News
Friday 24 July 2009
With all to play for after the disappointing defeat at Lord’s, Cambridge captain Akbar Ansari once again won the toss, but this time with a changeable weather forecast and a green looking Fenner’s track, decided to field. CUCC opening bowlers Ruel Brathwaite and Thomas Probert did not disappoint. The day began well for CUCC when the Oxford opening bat McKerchar was run out by a direct hit from Pearson off the third ball of the game. King went soon after as Probert trapped him lbw to leave the score 1-2. Sharma briefly threatened before Brathwaite got in on the action getting him lbw for 12 to leave the score 15-3. Brathwaite then proceeded to bowl the Oxford captain Ball with a fantastic delivery hitting the top of off stump. Kruger and Hill managed to survive the rest of the session before rain called a premature end to the day with the score on 42-4 off 22 overs.
CUCC started Day 2 with the aim to finish off the fine job that had been started. Probert and Brathwaite once again started well, and Probert got the first wicket of the day with a stunning caught and bowled to dismiss the danger man Kruger to leave the score 57-5. Probert ended his spell with the extraordinary bowling figures of 21-13-20-2. As the Oxford innings struggled for momentum, Frankie Brown bowled well to pick up 3 wickets in the lower middle order (3-26), before Brathwaite (3-76) and Ansari (1-19) cleaned up the tail to bowl Oxford out for 152. This could have been even less without the last wicket partnership of 36 between Pascoe and Strachan. Cambridge openers Chris Grammar and Anand Ashok got off to a watchful start with the wicket still doing a lot. But with the score on 16, Grammar edged Sharma and was caught brilliantly by King for 2. Ananya Sen and Ashok then proceeded to add 62 for the second wicket before Sen was caught behind for 16, leaving CUCC 78-2. The rest of the day was seen out by Ashok (93 not out) and captain Ansari (34 not out) and CUCC ended the day on 155-2, a fine day for the home side.
On day 3, Ashok fell shortly after making his maiden first class hundred for 112, the score now reading 180-3. Frankie Brown (30) and Ansari then added 85 to take the score to 265-3, and CUCC looking good for a massive lead before a dramatic collapse took the score to 303-9. However Ansari stepped it up at this point and a last wicket partnership of 36 followed, with number 11 Probert providing great support with a very solid 0 not out before Ansari was the last man out for a magnificent 132. After putting Oxford back in CUCC picked up 2 quick wickets before tea before Sharma and Kruger briefly threatened with an impressive partnership of 78. Before the close however, Brathwaite picked up Sharma, his third wicket, and Ashok (1-15) got captain Ball out, and Oxford were 124-4 with Kruger 67* and Pascoe 15*.
On day 4, CUCC managed to pick up wickets at regular intervals on what was now a much improved wicket to bowl Oxford out for 263. Ruel Brathwaite (5-54) and Chris Grammar (2-35) were the pick of the bowlers and this left Cambridge 40 to chase, and openers Grammar and Ashok chased this in under 9 overs to seal an emphatic ten-wicket win for the Light Blues. This is the first time in 19 years that Cambridge University have won the first class fixture and hence a brilliant result.
Anand Ashok
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