Bishops outpaces St Alban’s, ‘House handles St Andrew’s School
St. Alban’s College vs Bishops Diocesan College
After a comfortable win in their opening match against St. Andrew’s College on Thursday, St. Alban’s College, the host of the Independent Schools Cricket Festival (ICSF), faced Bishops in a 50-over fixture on the TC Mitchell Oval on Friday.
Batting first, the home side was consistent, with their first seven batsmen all making it into double figures. Josh Melville, batting at six, led the way with an aggressive 52 runs off 43 balls, which featured three fours and two sixes.
Kyle Block was the second-highest scorer with 30, but that, perhaps, underlined the fact that St Alban’s, despite their batsmen getting themselves in, didn’t push on enough.
Their innings lasted 46.1 overs and finished with them all out for 197.
Daniel Perold boasted a return of 3/30 from seven overs for Bishops, while Harry Morgan bowled his full quota of 10 overs and claimed 2/37.
Replying, Bishops made a fast start with opener Litha Mbiko cracking four fours in his rapid 25 off 18 deliveries.
The rest of the top order contributed solidly, but it was Robbie Vintcent, a newcomer to the Bishops’ line-up, who set them up for victory. He struck 10 fours and a six in an undefeated 77 off 78 deliveries.
He and Waco Bassick, who chipped in with 23, added 82 runs for the fourth wicket and carried Bishops to victory with one ball remaining in the 37th over when they reached 198/3.
Luke Ward bowled a tidy 10 overs from St Alban’s, claiming 1/31. He was also involved in the run out of Bishops’ captain Alex Vintcent for 29.
St. Andrew’s School vs Michaelhouse
Michaelhouse, batting first on the Murray Oval at St Alban’s, made a slow start against St Andrew’s School, but Ben Heuer turned the tide with a determined knock.
He faced 104 balls and hit two sixes and four fours in his 64. He also received excellent support from Cody Sander, who joined Heuer in the middle with ‘House on an iffy 67/5.
Sander played with greater freedom, also hitting four fours and two sixes, but taking only 70 deliveries for his 59, and the pair added 100 runs to alter the trajectory of the Michaelhouse innings.
The last Saints‘ player to have a bowl, Jonathan Hickley, gave the Bloemfontein boys exactly what they wanted, capturing 2/0 in only one over. Heindré Serfontein kept the KZN side in check, too, capturing 3/25 in 7.1 overs as Michaelhouse tallied 194 all out after 46.1 overs.
Serfontein was also in good form with the bat. The problem for St Andrew’s, though, was that he was their only batsman to make more than twenty. He faced 50 deliveries, clobbered two fours and two sixes, and finished with 39 not out.
The run support was not there, however, and Saints mustered only 138 all out. Victory belonged to Michaelhouse by 56 runs.
Heuer made it an excellent all-round day by following up the highest score of the match with the contest’s best bowling figures, too, snaring a miserly 3/13 from seven overs.
Liam O’Dwyer gave little away, nabbing 2/25 in his 10 overs, while Preston Green brought the St Andrew’s innings to a close by claiming 2/23 in 9.4 overs.
Summarised Scorecards
St. Alban’s College 197/10 (Josh Melville 52, Kyle Block 30, Extras 24, Thomas Hall 20; Daniel Perold 3/30, Harry Morgan 2/37); Bishops Diocesan College 198/3 (Robbie Vintcent 77*, Harry Morgan 34, Alex Vintcent 29, Litha Mbiko 25, Waco Bassick 23*). Bishops won by seven wickets.
Michaelhouse 194/10 (Ben Heuer 63, Cody Sander 59; Heindré Serfontein 3/25, Jonathan Hickley 2/0); St. Andrew’s School 138/10 (Heindré Serfontein 39*; Ben Heuer 3/13, Preston Green 2/23, Liam O’Dwyer 2/25). Michaelhouse won by 56 runs.
