RUGBY CC were on the wrong side of another high-scoring run chase against Attock as they fell 18 runs short despite a century from Hugh Cochrane in an entertaining Warwickshire Premier Division clash.
Cochrane opened the batting in reply and scored an impressive 103 to hold the Rugby innings together only for a slow scoring rate to ultimately cost them the chance of victory.
Attock won a crucial toss and elected to bat as opener Omar Ali (166) hit an astounding 25 boundaries in his 152-ball innings as Rugby fielded in sweltering conditions on a dry wicket.
Ali was best supported by Imaad Mahmood (39) as Lee Golding (1-33) and Kasir Shah (2-45), the latter striking twice in as many balls, made some early inroads to leave Attock on 74-3.
Daanyal Sadiq (1-34) grabbed the crucial wicket of Anureet Singh (14) before Ali moved through the gears to help Atock reach 278-8 before he was eventually dismissed by Wes Landsdale having been dropped just after reaching three figures.
And Landsdale (5-53) cleaned up Attock’s middle to lower order as he took four wickets for the addition of as many runs to claim a highly impressive five-wicket haul as Attock closed on 283-9.
Rugby started well in reply, thanks to some consistent scoring from Cochrane who shared a 96-run first-wicket stand with Henry Parker (21) before the latter was superbly run out.
Further knocks from Landsdale (37) and Owen Edwards (34) added much-needed runs as Rugby fell behind the run rate and required 50 runs from the final five overs.
And Rugby slipped from 235-4 to 247-7 as they attempted to chase down the total and finished on 265-7 just 18 runs short of victory.
In Division Five, Rugby’s 2nd XI claimed a nail-biting three-run win in the final over at nearest rivals Coventry West Indian Wanderers to further boost their promotion chances.
Rugby lost the toss and were put into bat first as Charlie Robards (92) and Alex Watson (28) added 65 runs for the first wicket.
And Robards anchored the innings once again to move onto 866 runs for the season and was supported by James Nuttall (34) and Joe Bramley (32) as he shared useful stands with both batters.
Late cameos from Rob Stipanovic (18) and Aravind Katragadda (19) proved crucial and propelled Rugby to 263-8 from their 50 overs.
And Rugby made some early inroads in Coventry’s reply as Nuttall and Katragadda both struck to leave the home side on 78-3.
Coventry pair Darshan Desai (75) and Hijrat Khan (47) put on 95 runs four the fourth wicket in an aggressive 81-ball partnership before Ash Cutts (1-42) bowled the latter.
And Nuttall (3-48) struck again one ball later to put Rugby in command before opener Desai was finally removed by Sujahn Barhey (1-53).
Rugby looked to be home and dry after restricting Coventry to 220-8 thanks to some fine bowling from Katragadda (3-22).
However, Coventry battled to the end as Jegan Devabalan (19 not out), Arunganesh Madhasaravanan (16), Sivasankar Sakthivel and Saravana Manoharan (both 13) all showed strong resistance.
Coventry’s final pair required 17 to win which was reduced to just seven runs from the final over as Alex Watson (1-4) held his nerve to bowl brilliantly under pressure and claim the final wicket with the penultimate ball of the innings to secure a three-run win.
Rugby’s 3rd XI picked up a winning draw in Division Eight South Central against local rivals Oakfield and Rowlands.
Openers Keval Rathod (31) and Rubans (42) added 61 runs for Rugby’s first wicket before Aravind Ram (50), Liam Hebblewhite (31 not out) and Tom Binding (19) ensured Rugby posted a competitive score of 211-5.
Oakfield’s reply started badly against a fiery opening spell from Ravindu Jayakodi who dismissed one opener and ran out the other.
Dan Clowes (34), George Smith (44) and Olly Vaughan (35) all made good starts for Oakfield, but Rugby continued to take wickets at important intervals, which included three run-outs during the innings.
Jayokodi (2-6) was the pick of Rugby’s attack whilst Murali Natarajan (2-46) also took two wickets with Rubans and Euan Walker sharing a wicket apiece.
Former Rugby youngster Liam Denipitiya (30 not out) ensured the hosts held on for a losing draw on as they closed on 188-9 at the end of their 45 overs.
Lastly, Rugby’s 4th XI suffered a seven-wicket defeat in Division Nine South Central after they were bowled out for 161 against RM CC.
Having elected to bat first, wickets fell at regular intervals with Kiran Clark (35), Shreyas Honnalli (29) and Finlay Jackson (25) the only batters to pass the 20-run mark.
Jackson combined with Charlie Crinigan (18) in a 43-run ninth-wicket partnership to give Rugby hope with Jagtar Barhey (19) the only other batter to reach double figures as they were bowled out for 161 in 35 overs.
RM CC cruised to victory in the 37th over thanks to Amaan Khan’s unbeaten 68 as Will Briggs, Ram Kumar Singh and Anand Pophali all took one wicket apiece.
