1 wicket win sees Village return to the summit

A visit to the lovely Eversholt ground on another glorious Summer's day, brought to mind last year's defeat at the hands of our fellow promoted outfit. There were many parallels between the two fixtures. Once again Eversholt got first use of the decent batting surface. The Village opening bowlers put immense pressure on the top order with excellent spells from both ends. 1 wicket each was scant reward for Dave Overton and Saahil Mehra who threatened throughout their long opening spells.

Majid Asif was first change and his usual immaculate line and length was perfect for cashing in on the Eversholt's batsmen, who were all keen to try and release the pressure after seeing off the openers. Excellent figures of 6-29 from 12 overs ripped the heart out of the Eversholt middle order. Andrew Potter was also a handful after settling into his spell and Richard Downes created chances with his slow left arm orthodox on a turning surface. It was good to see some genuine slow bowling in the the 1st team again.

The only blemish was the usual rash of dropped catches, which allowed the No.7 to 'dip' a few quick runs having been given a couple of lives. 156 all out was a few more than should have been allowed but still a target well short of par and well within scope.

The Village reply stuttered along with wickets falling at regular intervals. 39 for 3 became 76-5 and then 95-7. No one was able to hang around and most batsmen were giving away catching chances rather than falling to unplayable deliveries. The momentum was definitely with the Home team until Felix, who was holding the innings together, was joined by Saahil. The fodder at tea must have suited Sars, who batted with style, flicking elegantly through the leg side on several occasions. He had a life when dropped at mid off and this may have been the key moment of the match. Only 15 runs were needed when he was bowled out by Wood. The opening bowlers had taken 9 wickets between them when Downsey was 'seen off' LBW with 9 runs still required for victory. Momentum had swung back and forth and the game was back in the balance. Time for the mango munching stalwart to step up. Felix trusted Steve Pullen to block out the necessary deliveries while accumulating at the other end. A boundary four streered through the vacant third man area finally brought huge relief and celebrations.