Selkirk cricketers did much to ensure they finish at the top end of Division 3 with a thrilling five-run victory on the road at Westquarter & Redding on Saturday.
With two games remaining, the Souters appear to have created enough of a gap to avoid the fight at the foot of the table, where bonus points might decide clubs’ fate.
The game was punctuated by some heavy downfalls and lighter showers which did little to improve the batting experience. Winning the toss, Selkirk elected to bat, opener Greg Fenton becoming an early victim of the conditions when the ball held up in the surface, took a leading edge and looped back to the bowler.
Fellow opener Kenny Paterson (29) struck up a good partnership with Todd Dekker. The talented Australian emerged as the match’s top scorer, falling just two runs short of a half-century. The pair’s 81-run partnership for the second Selkirk wicket was far ahead of any other on the day.
The introduction of Richard Tredisser as the home side’s sixth bowler spelt trouble for the visitors. He took four Selkirk wickets in three runless overs, including Paterson, and finished with six wickets on the day.
Alex Massie (23*) was the only batter to measure up to Tredisser, his individual total standing out on a Selkirk scorecard featuring five ducks.
Tredisser ended the Selkirk innings by outfoxing Michael Gillie (3), the young tail-ender floating the ball to the fielder at short cover.
After tea, Westquarter & Redding set about the task of overcoming Selkirk’s 117-run total, and encountered similar challenges of inconsistent bounce. It was steady stuff from the openers, and while Siddarth Sharma (14) edged behind in the sixth over, the home total was ticking along nicely with only a couple of overs to go for drinks.
off Greg Borthwick’s bowling
Selkirk teenager Gregor Borthwick then fully stamped his mark on the game, running out Adnan Akram (13) thanks to a wonderful accurate throw from wide out that hit the stumps direct. In the first over after the break, the ball again found Borthwick and he took a smart catch to remove Zulfiqar Chaudhary (14).
Bowling in tandem before tea, Todd Dekker (2-22) and Blaine Gillie (2-31) did well to restrict the home side’s runs. Greg Fenton (2-18) and Daniel Heard (2-13) returned for second spells and had an immediate impact, the most important wicket being that of contender for man of the match, Richard Tredisser, who backed up his bowling display with 20 well-earned runs before he was undone by a brilliant one-handed catch by Heard at midwicket.
Late on Imran Mazhar (16*) threatened to get his team over the line, but in the final over Alan Reed was caught and bowled by Gillie to end the host’s innings at 112.
Selkirk have two games in two days this week with a home fixture on Friday evening against Peebles County in the Border T20 Cup final, with Murrayfield DAFS the visitors to Philiphaugh the following day.
Match report by Neil Gentleman, with photos by John Smail.