Report submitted by Chaddesley Corbett Cricket Club

A MONUMENTAL performance ensured that Chaddesley Corbett Cricket Club stay in the title race for the Worcestershire Premier Cricket Division this season.

As well as other results going their way, Chaddesley scooped maximum points against opposition Stourport CC on home soil.

Winning the toss, Chaddesley captain Ansar Mahmood opted to bowl first and that decision was backed up from opening bowlers Bilal Hassan and Ikram Musadaq.

Hassan removed dangerous opening batsman Jonathan McDonnell for a third ball duck whilst from the other end Musadaq used his experience of bowling great lines to entice the batsmen into playing unfavourable shots.

Stourport captain Ryan Derrick played some courageous strokes in order to put some runs on the board but due to wickets falling from the other end, he was also drawn into an aerial shot in order to score some quick runs only to hit one to long on, where Ansar Mahmood covered 25 yards of ground to take a blinder of a catch.

This proved to be the downfall for the batting team as wickets fell at a constant rate. Stourport were bowled out for a below par 70 runs in 31.3 overs with Hassan finishing with four wickets as well as only conceding 17 runs from his 15 over spell returning his best figures of the season.

Zeeshan Ahmed showed his athleticism in the field with two direct hits and Musadaq also picked up three wickets whilst Waqas Ahmed picked up the remaining.

The second innings began with Ryan Derrick removing Chaddesley opener Tahseel Ahmadzai on the first ball of the innings, as well as number three batsman Waqas Ahmed falling for one run to Lee Waldron.

At 14-2, Stourport’s spirits began to lift, however opener Adeel Sajid played a ruthless innings scoring 52 out of the 70 runs required in 38 balls whilst Abdul Haseeb Khan rotated the strike comfortably from the other end to ensure Chaddesley Corbett’s victory in only 14.2 overs.

Adeel Sajid displayed a great variety of exquisite shots and showcased exactly why he is a bookies firm favourite to finish in the top three for leading run scorers in the premier division, currently second only to ex-international cricketer Navdeep Poonia of Old Hill CC.

In his last four innings against Stourport, Adeel Sajid has scored two hundreds and two fifties with an average of 96.7.

The victory closes the gap on league leaders Stourbridge down to seven points. Redditch managed seven points against Bewdley whilst Astwood Bank gained 24 against Feckenham which means that any team from the top four could still win the league this year.