Get out of jail card sees Optimists home

OPTIMISTS used their get-out- of-jail card at KGV on Saturday. They booked their place in the semi-finals of the Channel Islands Knockout with a 10-run victory over Caesareans, but the Jersey side left very disappointed that they could not capitalise on a match-winning position.

With Dave Gorman and captain Meeku Patidar together at the crease, Optimists' decent total of 237 was under serious threat. In truth, Caesareans really should have won.

The third-wicket pair had come together in the 13th over with the score on 42 and put together an excellent partnership of 122.

Gorman's cultured knock was superb. Virtually everything came off the middle of the bat and his strokeplay was sheer class with shots all around the wicket.

A couple of early drives through the covers off Andre van Rooyen for four signalled that the former Jersey captain was the danger man.

He was seeing the ball so early and timing it so well that it was difficult to see how Optimists could remove him, especially as they were missing three key bowlers in Mike Kinder, Ami Banerjee and Divan van den Heever.

The former Jersey and CI captain brought up his half- century in 67 balls with another boundary, although he knew that the job was not complete and continued to bat in a similar vein.

Soon after the halfway drinks break Gorman gave the one big chance of his innings. He tried to cash in on an Andy Biggins full toss but miscued slightly, sending the ball out to deep square leg where Mark Clapham could not hold on to it.

That seemed like the vital moment in the run chase. Gorman knew he had made a mistake and was determined not to repeat it. Meanwhile, the Optimists' heads were down.

The score was pushed on to 161 when Biggins brought back van Rooyen for the 35th over - one that changed the game.

The first ball Gorman pushed for a single to bring up a wonderful century, but his delight was short-lived. The next ball he faced in the over bounced a little higher than he expected as he tried to work it to leg and Nick Chambers took a fine catch diving forward at square leg to bring his side back to life.

Patidar, who had played the perfect supporting role to Gorman with a fine 40, then took it upon himself to keep the run-rate up, but he soon holed out to Steve Queripel at long off to give Elliot Green the first of his three wickets.

The tide had turned and Caesareans lost six middle-order wickets for 32 runs with Green, van Rooyen and some safe hands doing the main damage.

But Caesareans were not totally out of it yet as Richard Huckle gallantly attempted to guide the tailend through to victory. He came in at number nine but has opened the batting for the same side previously this season and is obviously no mug with the bat.

The last-wicket pairing of Huckle and Danny Bower did their utmost to take the game down to the wire, adding 19, including 10 off the first five balls of the penultimate over bowled by Biggins.

But, needing 11 off seven balls, Huckle pulled another full toss down Nick Chambers' throat at deep square allowing Optimists to breathe a sigh of relief.

Earlier, the younger Chambers brother had, along with Clapham, helped the home side to a very good start as they added 63 for the first wicket.

However, the introduction of Elanco into the attack caused an Optimists collapse.

Bowling skiddy right-medium pace from wicket to wicket, he removed both openers and then captain Biggins and Ian Damarell cheaply as the Sarnians slipped to 116 for four.

During this time Green had been watching at the other end and he knew that he could ill-afford to give his wicket away. As it turned out, he played a vital, impressively patient knock of 58 from 98 balls, including seven fours.

Solid in defence and quite elegant in attack, seldom could he have played a more important innings.

That allowed number six Simon Gaudion to play in his usual aggressive manner and it was his innings that took the game away from Caesareans.

The left-hander smashed 66 from just 56 deliveries with 36 of his runs coming in boundaries.

Those two batsmen doubled Optimists' score in their time together before both fell in the final over to Joel Richardson, but it was their combined contribution that was pivotal to their side's victory.

Meanwhile, defending champions Sporting Club Francais were comfortably beating Wanderers by 67 runs at the FB Fields.

As has been demonstrated so many times in recent years, the opposition have to remove Steve Carlyon or Matt Hague early to have a good chance of victory. On this occasion the openers put on 144 for the first wicket before Pierre Moody split them up.

The left-hander scored 74 from 98 balls while the Australian hit 70 from 96 balls. SCF captain Tony Carlyon was the other main contributor with 49 out of his side's 240 for six from a reduced 45 overs.

Hague did damage with the ball also as he claimed seven for 37 as the visitors were bowled out for 173 in reply. Opener Tim Belton top scored with 47 and Ben Driver hit 44.