Pattaya Cricket Club, affiliated with Pattaya Sports Club, finished the league season in convincing fashion with a 6 wicket victory over the Thai National Ladies team last weekend and maintained their unbeaten league record.
On a very hot and humid Sunday morning at the national cricket ground in Bangkok, PCC won the toss and elected to bowl first on a grass wicket that appeared severely underprepared. And so it transpired as the PCC bowlers conceded only 15 runs from the first 8 overs. Wickets fell regularly as the inconsistent bounce and lateral movement proved too much for the batsmen.
A couple of wickets a piece for Akhil (2/8) and Hamza (2/3) ripped the heart out of the batting line up but Andy Emery (3/1), sporting his brand new bowling boots, was the pick of the bowlers. The ladies were finally all out for 52 in the sixteenth over, their score generously boosted by an overdose of wides (22), courtesy of the part time bowlers (Venky).
With only a modest total to chase and despite the vagaries of the pitch, captain Simon Philbrook elected to reverse the batting order. It soon became apparent why Usman, Akhil and Bobby Young are normally nine, ten and jack when the score labored to 5 for 3. It was left to Hamza (21no) and Venky (27) to steady the ship and bring a semblance of order to the proceedings as PCC cantered to a 6 wicket victory with 11 overs remaining.
PCC’s final match of the season is the Grand Final versus Indorama on 11th May, the venue is yet to be decided. Details will appear on the club website www. pattayacricketclub.com and on the Facebook page.
Hamza receives his man of the match award from club captain Simon Philbrook.
