Alcester & Ragley (98-2) lost to Bredon (100-2) with two balls remaining in this Evesham Indoor Cricket League fixture.
Alcester gave Bredon a fright in this battle for the top, producing a below par total for Bredon to chase, then making life difficult for them as they scraped home with a couple of balls to spare.
Bredon’s opening bowlers pinned Alcester’s batsmen to the crease, allowing them only 32 from six overs.
George Guy in particular posed problems, with a pacey left-arm spell of three overs for 11.
Having seen Max Bitcliffe’s frustration cause his unnecessary run-out in the second over, the Alcester batsmen seemed reluctant to take any further risks.
It was not until Dominic Fenney’s (0-40) friendlier bowling gave Marc Woolley (23 no) and Tom Jackson (15 no) a chance to play tip and run at the end of the innings and double to score in the last four overs that Alcester looked in the least likely to present any sort of target for Bredon to chase.
As it was, a score under a hundred seemed unlikely to present problems until Steve Capron’s first over conceded just one run, and Jamie Munro’s was dismissed with a great piece of fielding and direct throw which gave Alcester heart.
With circumspection Dominc Fenney and Jamie Diamond made their 25s but Bredon were only marginally ahead of Alcester at the same stage.
This left them needing 13 from the final over; no forgone conclusion.
A rather messy final over with a wide, byes and leg byes plus a four from the bat of Clive Fenney into the vacant leg-side field got Bredon home.
Ashton-under-Hill got their points more easily but unsatisfactorily with Feckenham being unable to field a side.
Umpires Ian Fincher and John Iggulden; scorer Alan Norcott.
- Match report courtesy of Worcestershire Cricket Board