CC Arnhem squeezed out a victory from the match against Royal UD II. UD decided to bat and had a tough time out there on the pitch. Opening batsman Bill Ramsdale stayed on till 58, after seeing most of his teammates fall victim to our seam attack. Daoud bowled well and saved many wild Aftab deliveries from becoming boundaries. Badar showed consolidation but Nawas' performance, as we would say in the fifties, was tops. Fine length, varying the line, and he drew away the batsmen. Took 3 for 9 and with a direct hit also sent back Jeroen Doets, fielding deep gully. CC Arnhem again performed well in the field. UD never managed to get bat on ball, didn't give away catching opportunities and just refused to risk anything against our bowlers. 75 all out.
Then we stuffed UD at lunch and half an hour later we bounced on our bellies to the pitch and alas the first batsmen and most of the middle order bounced back just as quickly. At 41 for the loss of 6, Dolf and Daoud got a grip on the match and took up the chances offered by UD's slowish medium pace bowling attack. Saving CC Arnhem from further collapse, bringing home the needed points. Arnhem goes second in the league and depends on the outcome of the 2 matches between Union/Wanderers and PW. The last one a week after our own last season fixture.
Maarten Schiethart