09 Apr 2021

Friday 09 April 2021

Mt Albert Grammar 90/6 in 20 overs

King’s College 91/8 in 17.5 overs

Kings First XI After Retaining The Premier T20 Cup


King’s was rocked early in the run chase when the top three batsmen – Karl Wallace, Muhammad Abbas and Achindra Molamure were dismissed in the space of six balls with the score on a mere 8 runs. Toby Irvine, who opened the innings with Wallace, flicked his first ball to the leg-side boundary for four runs, would have been understandably perplexed watching the carnage unfold at the opposite end of the wicket.

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Three big wickets had only contributed three runs before Irvine was joined by the in-form, talented and dependable Nick Tapper who does not shy away from adversity. The fact that Irvine opened the innings was a shock in itself as he rarely gets to bat in most matches and when he does, he comes in at #10 or 11. This was a masterstroke by the coach Dipak Patel, who had seen signs of durability, freedom to play shots, hunger and courage in the off-spinner and with the lack of runs from the top in recent matches was willing to opt for this safe experiment.

Tapper, realising that a lot depended on him was very circumspect for the first part of his innings but urged by his team mates to match Irvine’s positivity he responded wonderfully. Together these two, who came together in the second over constructed a match-saving 51-run partnership in 56 balls before Tapper was puzzlingly adjudged to be run-out with the score on 59/4 in the 12th over. Irvine in the meantime was looking unflappable amidst the storm as he struck six boundaries, whilst playing with immense freedom.

When Irvine was caught near the ropes in the very next over with the score on 61/5, thirty runs from victory with plenty of batting to come, one would not have expected the drama that was waiting to unfold. King’s lost three more wickets for a paltry 8 runs as poor shot selection saw the demise of Josh Olliver, Harry Sinclair and Louis Anderson to bring MAGS right back into the game.

Seb Macdonald then joined Patrick Maher and together these two ensured that victory was secured in the 18th over. With the capable Tom Paranthoine yet to bat and a less than insurmountable target to achieve, Maher and Macdonald could play with a fair amount of caution as there were plenty of balls to be bowled. Nevertheless, Maher managed to construct another cameo, but a well controlled one this time as he plundered 19 runs off 12 balls.

MAGS batted after winning the toss and two valuable partnerships took them to 72/2 in the 15th over but when they lost their third wicket the King’s bowlers stifled the expected charge by the remaining batsmen to restrict them to a mediocre total. Whilst Abbas and Macdonald were the pick of the seamers both spinners, Max Chaplin and Irvine made it very difficult for the lower middle order to fire.

King’s fielded with high intensity and although there were a few lapses as nerves were tested to the limit, it was this aspect of their repertoire that once again saved them from defeat. The keeper Tom Paranthoiene had a brilliant afternoon behind the stumps and continues to play a key roll in inspiring his fielders to maintain a high standard.

The athleticism of this team in the field has come to the fore regularly and the head coach demands a high level of fitness from his charges. It is timely to recognise the impact that High Performance coach Craig Birkbeck has made in this area.

With this victory King’s retained the Premier T20 trophy that they secured against the same opposition in 2020 although this time it proved to be much tougher.

K Wallace

3

T Irvine

37

M Abbas

0

A Molamure

0

N Tapper

19

J Olliver

5

L Anderson

3

H Sinclair

0

P Maher

19 not out

S Macdonald

2 not out

 

 

 

 

DNB: 

T Paranthoiene, M Chaplin

         

 

M Abbas

3-1-8-1

L Anderson

4-0-21-1

N Tapper

4-0-20-1

S Macdonald

3-0-12-1

T Irvine

3-0-13-1

M Chaplin

3-0-10-1

King’s win by 2 wickets

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