Edgware snatch victory from jaws of defeat in remarkable overseas win
Edgware Cricket Club's unbeaten record in overseas tours continues after a remarkable 6-wicket win against Menorca in the second of their two tour games last weekend.
Edgware set off to the Balaerics on their first overseas tour since 2021, where they came away with a 1-0 series win against Marsa Sports Club (Malta) couteousy of a nailbiting 4-run victory. They also boasted an incredibly experienced tour party this time around with a combined 805 caps and international experience in the form of ex-Romanian International and global sensation, Pavel Florin.
Game 1 - Saturday 12 October - Menorca won by 8 wickets.
Edgware 133-9 (40 overs) beat by Menorca 138-2 (34.3 overs)
In the first game of the series against Menorca Cricket Club, Edgware won the toss and elected to bat on a warm and sunny Saturday afternoon. A reasonable start in which Edgware moved to 58-1 soon slipped to 93-8 as Edgware lost a flurry of wickets agains the tight bowling of Menorca. Ciaran Hosty made 48 off 58 before he was bowled attempting to swipe Grant Wilson over mid-wicket for what would have been a 32nd career fifty. Shuraj Vekaria also showed glimpses of brilliance in his 10 before was adjudged caught behind despite the ball seemingly striking the top of his thigh before being snagged by the wicket-keeper.
Once Edgware lost Tushyam Sonehca for 6, Pavel Florin was joined by Ananya Dixit who was playing his first game since early 2023. With an initial target of 110 in sight for the last wicket pair, the two batted brilliantly to guide Edgware to 133-9 off 40 overs and give the boys in blue something defendable. Ananya Dixit, in particular, hit one of the greatest straight sixes this author has ever seen and showed class is permanent.
However, within 15 overs of the response, the 134 target started to look increasingly comfortable for the hosts and despite an electric opening spell from Raj Parmar and tidy spells from Dean Veerapen and Ananya Dixit, Edgware's 7 dropped chances had all but committed them to a heavy loss. Pavel Florin provided some moments of brilliance and humour as he took 1-29 on his Edgware debut, confusing the opposition with NFL-style play calls (our personal favourites included '69' and 'the sun ball'. However, Julian Hagger's 76 for Menorca was the difference and Menorca comfortably chased down the total within 35 overs.
Game 1 Photos
Despite the loss, Edgware's evening had just started. Ananya Dixit and captain Vidanda Galgamuwa hit the decks and provided the soundtrack for the sunset and the night to come as Edgware were well looked after by the hosts Dan and Hugh.
Evening Pictures
Game 2 - Sunday 13 October - Edgware won by 6 wickets.
Menorca 211-6 (35 overs) beat by Edgware 217-4 (33.1 overs)
Sore heads greeted Edgware on Sunday morning ahead of the second game of series. Delays to the taxis meant Edgware arrived just before the planned start and were put into bowl by the hosts who themselves were fresh off a fairly heavy wedding the night before.
Edgware's fielding had let them down in the first game, but their 7 dropped catches from the day before was about to look like a drop in the ocean by comparison as a quite staggering 17 catches went down in the Menorcan innings (we think this is a club record). At one point, the drops were so bad that you'd have questioned whether the team had ever played cricket before as the ball hit the floor more regularly than Sergio Busquets. In and amongst the carnage, Dean Veerapen bowled beautifully to take 3-27 off 7 overs and was unlucky not to end up with 5 against his name (he remains 2nd on the all-time wicket-taker list and one behind Rahul Kothari). Ash Balkaran was also a standout with the ball and provided much needed control in the middle overs finishing with 1-27 off his 7 overs. However, ultimately the sheer volume of dropped catches cost Edgware dearly as Dave Catterall hit 79 not out and Adam Cockroft and Simon Cotton made 38 and 42* respectively to push Menorca to 211-6 off 35 overs.
At the halfway stage, morale was low as the banter and jeers from the home supporters reverberated around the ground. The combined effects of last night's alcohol and the warm weather meant Edgware were staring down the barrel of a devastating 2-0 series loss.
Despite this, Edgware started brightly with the bat. Ciaran Hosty picked up where he left off from the day before and he and Ash Balkaran put on 72 for the first wicket before Balkaran was run-out pushing hard for a second run which was turned down by Ciaran Hosty. Despite the set-back, Ciaran moved to his 32nd club fifty and he and Vidanda Galgamuwa started to chip away at the daunting chase. At the 19 over mark, Edgware required 113 off 16 overs at 7.10 runs per over and Menorca's bowling was becoming increasingly tidy.
However, Vidanda played a true captain's innings and began to up the run-rate, finding the boundary with increasing regularity. However, it was the 26th over of the game, where the momentum truly flipped. Ciaran Hosty struck two large sixes into the leg side as the Menorcan bowlers dropped short and then Vidanda Galgamuwa struck a third six off the final ball of the over straight down the ground to claim a vital 23 runs and record his 6th club fifty off just 36 deliveries.
When Vidanda Galgamuwa eventually nicked behind, Edgware were 186-2 and sailing towards a historic win. Cameos from Vish Mistry and Aakash Shukal whittled away at the target before Ciaran Hosty brought up his 5th career hundred by knocking the ball for one down to mid-on. With just one to win, Archie Day bowled a short ball which was dispatched for six by Ciaran Hosty to secure a famous Edgware victory in the Spanish sun.
Game 2 Photos
Game 2 - Winning Moment
The win was remakrable given the frankly laughable fielding effort from Edgware just a few hours earlier, but it was also the club's 8th highest succesful chase and the second highest chase on tour. Most importantly, it ensured Edgware remain unbeaten on overseas tours.
Conclusions
Having followed the team on every tour since 2018, Menorca will certainly sit in the top tier. Some really memorable cricket was mixed in with some amazing off-field experiences and the introduction of Pavel into the mix is hopefully a long lasting friendship that will continue for many many years!
We'd like to thank Menorca Cricket Club for their hospitality and we hope to visit again soon! Onto 2025!
Comentários