Brilliant Damarell delivers Cobo's title
IT WAS a day to remember for Zak Damarell at the KGV on Saturday – and it could have been even sweeter.
A match-winning innings in the final of the Swoffers T20 Bataille gave the NGIT Cobo wicketkeeper-batsman a second man-of-the-match award in one afternoon following his fine knock in the semi-final and yet, through his smile, he understandably admitted to being 'absolutely gutted' to miss out on a deserved century in the showpiece match.
Damarell had appeared to have judged it perfectly as he took strike for the start of the penultimate over with his side five runs short of victory against Miton Optimal and himself five runs short of a ton.
However, after knocking David Hooper's first delivery into the leg-side for an easy two, Damarell looked up to see the umpire signalling a no-ball, which added one more to the total, leaving Cobo needing two while Damarell was on 97.
Try as he might to hit the following ball for the boundary he required for three figures, it resulted only in another two to see Cobo over the line but leaving him agonisingly one run short of his magical personal milestone.
'I'm absolutely gutted – it would have been a first,' said Damarell afterwards, while clutching the bottle of champagne that his individual performance earned.
More in today's Guernsey Press.
