Sunday saw Berkshire Women in T20 action once again this season, facing Devon Women, which ended in stalemate with both side picking up 1 win each. The fixture saw the top two in the 50 over competition go head-to-head in the first round of fixtures.
Having won the toss, Devon elected to bat first at Wokingham CC. Freya Johnson struck early once again, removing Devon’s no. 1 in the 1st over. Devon were then able to put on a steady 74 run partnership for the 2nd wicket before Shayna Chikhlia struck in the 14th over to pick up our 2nd wicket. Throughout the later stages the bowlers were able to restrict the run rate despite Devon having wickets in hand with the batting side finishing 118/3 (20). Izzy Storrar picked up the third wicket, which rounded off a strong bowling display with bowlers executing their plans well. Devon’s Elle Golsworthy top scored, carrying her bat for 51*.
The run chase got off to a difficult start with the top 3 batters removed with just 12 runs on the board. This saw Shristi Patil (35) & Poppy Camplin (37) come together at the crease. The pair were able to rebuild the innings and put on a run a ball 69 run partnership, keeping us within striking distance. With 6 overs remaining Berkshire needed 40 runs with 7 wickets in hand with two set batters. However, Devon captain Steph Hutchins would break the partnership with Shristi out caught & bowled. This would be the catalyst for several quick wickets with the rate climbing and new batters regularly coming to the crease Berkshire fell to 96/9. With the innings drawn to a close on 103/9 this meant Devon won by 15 runs. Credit must go to Devon who once again proved a difficult side to beat with a bowling attack that makes it difficult to score. It is well known that loosing 3 wickets in the powerplay makes it very difficult to win games of cricket and despite a battling effort from the 4 wickets the innings lacked enough contributions with the bat to chase the total down.
Click here to see the scorecard and watch the highlights of Game 1
With a loss in the opening game, it made the 2nd game a very important one for Berkshire to hold Devon to a stalemate and not let them create a lead. Devon once again won the toss and elected to bat again.
Freya Johnson once again struck first picking up a wicket in the third over. The final over of the powerplay would prove a vital one. At the start of the over Devon were 33/1 (5) with Elle Golsworthy off to a good start. However, two wickets in the over with Lilii caught behind off Mary Briscoe and Elle Golsworthy run out from a direct hit by Talitha Stanley, the powerplay ended 35/3. Devon would stage a bit of a rebuild through the middle with a run a ball 4th wicket partnership. However, in the 12th over Lily Bowlby (2/19) would strike to remove both set batters. Another two quick wickets in the 13th over with two in two from Talitha Stanley (3/25) saw Devon 82/7. Devon was eventually dismissed for 105ao (18.2). Shristi Patil was introduced into the attack, who this winter added a leg spin option to her skillset which saw her pick up 2/11. This was a total Berkshire would once again be happy to restrict Devon to but knew a run chase is always a challenge prospect against Devon. The key would be to get off to a better start and set a strong platform.
Devon once again opened the bowling with Katie Donovan who in two games this season had picked up 8 wickets (5/28 & 3/14). Managing this threat while also looking to capitalise with the pace on the ball and fielders up would be key to our run chase. Alex Avoth was able to do just this in the 1st over, launching the 4th ball for a massive six before the final ball also going for a 1 bounce four. This set the tone brilliantly for the innings. Devon immediately switched tactics and went to spin for the remainder of the powerplay. However, with the field up Alex was able to capitalise and supported by Shristi Patil, who had been promoted back up the order guided us to 38/0 off 6 overs. Alex (32 off 23b) would eventually fall in the 9th over caught well in the deep for what otherwise would have been a second 6 of the innings. Alex’s innings had left the required run rate well under a run a ball, allowing the rest of the batting order to rotate strike well and punish the bad ball. Shristi (24) and Talitha (19) would guide us through the middle overs towards the total. Izzy Storrar (27*) would then step up and take responsibility coming in at 4 to guide us through to the total. A couple of late wickets from Devon made things a little tougher for us, leading us to need the final over to get the chase complete. With 3 required off the last over, the first 2 balls would be dots but 3 singles later, the win would be secured with a ball to spare picking up a 6-wicket win. Devon once again showed their skill in defending totals. However, Berkshire were able to display a far stronger batting performance in Game 2 with the top 4 batters all contributing and taking the responsibility in the run chase.
This left both sides with 4 points apiece at the end of the day. With two close games, neither side was able to pick up a bonus point win, by bettering the other sides run rate by 1.25x. Elsewhere in our group Wiltshire picked up two bonus point wins against Hertfordshire. The Women have a weekend off before we host Hertfordshire on the 29th June at Wokingham CC once again.
Click here to see the scorecard and watch the highlights of game 2