Scorecard

St Albans Cricket Club 5XI v Batchworth CC Saturday 1st XI on Sat 14 Jun 2025 at 13:00
St Albans Cricket Club Won

Match report On a gloriously sunny day, Saints 5XI welcomed Batchworth 1st XI to Sandpit Lane astro. Batchworth won the toss and opted to bat first, anticipating an easy game.

Saints' bowling attack was led by Altaf Husain and Tom Hadden. Both bowlers started with controlled spells, and the first breakthrough came from Altaf, with Tom Cocks taking a sharp catch. However, the other opening batter counter-attacked aggressively, hitting massive sixes and putting SACC 5XI under pressure. Skipper Imran had no choice but to persist with Altaf and Hadden until the aggressive opener was dismissed. The plan worked when the batter, attempting another big shot, skied the ball, and Imran himself took a well-judged catch.

With two new batters at the crease, it was the perfect time to rest the opening bowlers and introduce the youngsters, Haris and Suli. Both bowled exceptionally well, especially Haris, who conceded just 11 runs in his 8-over spell, including 4 maidens and 2 wickets. This brought Saints back into the game, and after 30 overs, Batchworth CC were 113 for 5. However, the next 5 overs saw Batchworth's number 7 hit three quick sixes, putting the pressure back on SACC.

Skipper Imran knew that anything under 180 was chaseable, and the fielding and bowling did not disappoint. Hadden bowled a brilliant final over, conceding just 1 run and taking 3 wickets, including a brilliant runout by Tom Cocks. Batchworth were all out for 179, a total that could have been much higher if not for the controlled final overs.

After a 20-minute break, Tom Cocks and Maroof opened the batting for Saints 5XI. Unfortunately, Tom was dismissed for a duck, and skipper Immy was caught out for 3, putting Saints under early pressure. However, Maroof and number 4 batter Mostafa played sensibly, punishing the bad balls and taking Saints to 69-2 after 15 overs. Soon after drinks, Mostafa was caught on the boundary for 28, bringing last week's man of the match, Haris, to the crease. Haris continued his good form, hitting some lovely boundaries and rotating the strike effectively. Maroof completed his first fifty of the season but was soon bowled for 54.

Number 6 batter and ex-captain Andrew Melling came to the crease in a tricky situation, with Saints needing 47 runs from 60 balls. Melling's experience showed as he played calmly, yet assertively, hitting some lovely shots when the opportunity arose. Saints chased down Batchworth's total in 36.4 overs without any drama, with Haris remaining unbeaten on 40* and Andy on 29*.

The exceptional efforts of Altaf, Tom, and Haris with the ball, and the outstanding batting performances of Maroof, Mostafa, Haris, and Andy, significantly influenced the outcome. The unity and encouragement from teammates, especially for Imran during his first victory as captain, were clearly evident.

Saints 5XI had great support from 4XI and from some 5XI players who came to cheer the team on. Well done, everyone. The emotions and sense of togetherness exhibited on the field contributed to the day’s overall excitement.

Man of the match : Monis A Haris 40* and 11-2

Batchworth CC Saturday 1st XI Batting
Player name RunsMB4s6sSR
extras
TOTAL :
1nb 11w 2b 2lb 
for 10 wickets
16
178 (40.0 overs)		     
Manan Ishfaq ct  I Ahmed b A Husain 33 40 5 1 82.50
Yusuf Waqar ct  T Cocks b A Husain 10 23 2 43.48
Raz Khan b  b M Ahmad Haris 7 16 1 43.75
Seb Plunkett ct  A Alim b S Nisar 14 34 1 1 41.18
Adeel Usman ct  M Alahi b M Ahmad Haris 1 9 11.11
Asim Butt b  M Fazle Alahi 48 63 7 76.19
Waseem Khan b  M Fazle Alahi 47 48 5 3 97.92
Zain Butt ct  T Hadden b T Hadden 2 4 50.0
Luke Parry run out  T Cocks 0
George Oliver b  T Hadden 0 3 0
Hugh Phillipps Not Out  0 1 0

St Albans Cricket Club 5XI Bowling

Player NameOversMaidensRunsWicketsAverageEconomy
Md Altaf Husain8.0129214.503.63
Tom Hadden8.0138219.004.75
Monis Ahmad Haris8.041125.501.38
Sulaiman Nisar6.0029129.004.83
Uttam Vijender3.011900.006.33
Imran Ahmed4.002800.007.00

St Albans Cricket Club 5XI Batting
Player Name RMB4s6sSRCatchesStumpingsRun outs
extras
TOTAL :
 
for 4 wickets
0
181		        
nasibullah Maroofkhel Bowled  54
Tom Cocks Bowled  0
Imran Ahmed Caught  3
Mostufa Fazle Alahi Caught  28
Monis Ahmad Haris Not Out  40
Andrew Melling Not Out  29
Abdul Alim  
Md Altaf Husain  
Uttam Vijender  
Sulaiman Nisar  
Tom Hadden  

Batchworth CC Saturday 1st XI Bowling

Player nameOversMaidensRunsWicketsAverageEconomy
No records to display.