Scorecard

Southgate Compton v St Albans Cricket Club Sunday 2nd XI on Sun 27 Apr 2025 at 1pm
St Albans Cricket Club Won Won by 137 Runs

Match report The new-look St Albans Sunday 2XI — revived and rallied by the irrepressible Manny Nisar — launched their 2025 campaign against familiar foes.

Southgate Compton CC were no strangers, having locked horns with St Albans 4XI last summer in a hotly contested league fixture.

The setting was suitably grand: Southgate Compton’s picturesque ground nestled amongst the well-heeled countryside of Cockfosters, where stately homes and grazing deer are outnumbered only by Range Rovers.

Upon arrival, the Saints were treated to proper village scenes — the home side raking their own outfield before the start. A reminder, if one was needed, that cricket at this level always finds a way to charm.

Southgate Compton were a player short at the start, and in good spirit, St Albans generously offered a substitute fielder on rotation to even the sides up. True Sunday cricket spirit.

Manny won the toss — a good omen in itself — and chose to bat first.

Despite initial fears that the wicket was an AstroTurf (Suli and Ash Dean’s first impressions were priceless), it turned out to be a true and surprisingly lively pitch for April: good carry, no demons, and a fair reward for shots.

Manny and Ash opened the batting with textbook authority.
Cover drives, wristy flicks, and quick running between the wickets — the pair laid down a solid platform, both reaching well-earned fifties before retiring, as agreed pre-match.

Najeeb, who had impressed in last year’s fixture here with a near fifty, fell early this time — caught attempting an aggressive shot in his typical positive style.

Hugo, ever the free spirit, tried to muscle one over mid-on but fell to a sensational catch — the fielder timing his jump to perfection and clutching onto a blinder that could easily have burst through the hands on another day.

Cue the arrival of overseas maverick Ben Hingston, who batted with all the subtlety of a wrecking ball, thrilling the sidelines with a quickfire 38.

Alongside him, PD provided a calm foil, before shifting gears himself and racing to a well-made fifty, retiring to loud applause.

On Ben’s swashbuckling departure, PK came in and kept the momentum ticking — busy between the wickets, punishing the bad balls, and running the fielders ragged.

After PD retired, Suli Nisar’s brief but memorable cameo involved a scoop for three first ball, followed by an audacious attempt at a reverse scoop — which unfortunately ended with stumps being rattled.

This brought the Sunday specialist Altaf Hussain into the mix, who added a quickfire 10-odd runs to the total while dealing in boundaries.

At the close of 40 overs, St Albans racked up a commanding 254 for 4, with PK and Altaf unbeaten at the crease — a mighty total, particularly given the heavy outfield and the early-season conditions.

In response, Southgate Compton faced a daunting task.
Altaf opened the bowling with genuine pace but without luck. At the other end, Imran Ahmed’s wily left-arm off-spin bamboozled the batters — starting with two wicket maidens and maintaining an iron grip on the innings.

PK, after a leaky start, found his rhythm quickly and picked up the key wicket of their set batsman with a perfect delivery.
Ash Dean, metronomic as ever, gave nothing away from ball one — applying the squeeze and striking with a crucial wicket of his own.

The squeeze tightened.
Suli Nisar and PD each claimed two wickets with clever variations and nagging lines, while Imran completed his eight overs with an outstanding economy and two wickets to his name.

The Southgate Compton innings eventually petered out — hampered by injury and missing players — as St Albans wrapped up a dominant win.
The bowlers shared the spoils, the fielding was sharp, and most importantly, the team spirit was undeniable.

It was a fantastic start to the Sunday 2XI reboot: professional, positive, and full of promise for the season ahead.

Up the Yellows.

Match Report by Prath Khatavkar

St Albans Cricket Club Sunday 2nd XI Batting
Player Name RunsMB4s6sSRCtStRo
extras
TOTAL :
 
for 4 wickets
0
254		        
Nauman Nisar Retired Not Out  50
Ashish Dean Retired Not Out  50
Najib Khan Caught  0
Hugo Thomas Caught  5
Ben Hingston Lbw  38
Prathamesh Deshpande Retired Not Out  51
Prath Khatavkar Not Out  27
Sulaiman Nisar Bowled  7
Md Altaf Husain Not Out  11
Imran Ahmed  
Nadeem Arif  

Southgate Compton Bowling

Player nameOversMaidensRunsWicketsAverageEconomy
No records to display.

Southgate Compton Batting
Player name RMB4s6sSR
extras
TOTAL :
 
for 8 wickets
0
117 (32.1 overs)		     
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

St Albans Cricket Club Sunday 2nd XI Bowling

Player NameOversMaidensRunsWicketsAverageEconomy
Md Altaf Husain5.002200.004.40
Imran Ahmed8.001628.002.00
Prath Khatavkar8.0040140.005.00
Ashish Dean4.0018118.004.50
Sulaiman Nisar3.10623.001.89
Prathamesh Deshpande3.001326.504.33