By Marcus Uhe
North Dandenong has concluded the one-day portion of the new Dandenong District Cricket Association summer as the only Turf 1 side without a win and suffering a hammering to its percentage on the back of a nine-wicket thumping from Buckley Ridges.
Buckley Ridges brought the Maroons’ innings to a close in the 15th over for just 81 runs, led by seamer Ishan Jayarathna’s second-consecutive six-wicket haul, before completing the chase in the 13th over.
Jayarathna struck with the second and sixth balls of the innings to have Ramneet Dhindsa and Tahsinhullah Sultani’s tenures at the crease come to an end without scoring, before Hussain Ali joined in the act with the next two scalps to cut North Dandenong to 4/7.
In the process, North Dandenong skipper Imran Laghmani was forced to retire, leaving his side in further trouble.
At 7/13 the Maroons were in deep strife, but some late boundaries from Muhammad Dawa Khan and Ghairat Mangal pushed the total to 81.
Jayarathna finished with 6/30 and Hussain Ali 4/19.
Buckley opener Josh Holden lost his wicket on the innings’ opening delivery but Ben Wright and Jake Cronin ensured there were no further blemishes on the scorecard.
Hallam Kalora Park’s victory over Springvale South has moved the Hawks behind Buckley Ridges and into second on the Turf 1 ladder, bettering a side that had previously had their measure by 61 runs.
It was a sensational spell of bowling from Hawks skipper Jordan Hammond that turned the tide of the contest, decimating the Bloods’ top order after another typically rapid start from Jordan Wyatt in their chase of 194.
Wyatt and Mitch Forysth put on 49 for the opening wicket, before Hammond’s introduction into the attack in the sixth over saw the union broken.
Springvale South were galloping along at just shy of 10 runs per over before Hammond came on, and with the first ball of his second over he had Wyatt caught behind for 33.
Stephen Hennessy was Hammond’s next victim for a 10-ball duck in his third over and after a brief stabilising period from Blade Baxter and Cameron Forysth, Baxter was the next to go for 10.
Cam Forsyth and Paul Hill followed Baxter back to the pavilion shortly after as Springvale South fell to 6/82.
Jackson Sketcher and Nick Boland added a vital 49-run partnership to give their side a fighting chance but their tail did not wag, with the final four wickets falling with just one run added, the innings reaching 132 when concluded in the 34th over.
Hammond finished with sublime figures of 4/10 from his nine overs, having bowled six maidens.
Important contributions from Mahela Udawatte (52) and Ben Hillard (46 not out) in the first innings helped push the Hawks to 7/193 batting first as the Bloods’ bowlers returned to form.
Nick Boland showed his class by removing the key Hawks batting pillars of Leigh Booth and Udawatte in the top three.
Jarryd Straker, meanwhile, removed dangerous pair Damith Perera and Austin Fardell in the middle order and affected the run out of Lee Brown later in the innings.
On Sunday 3 November, Dandenong West leveled its win-loss record at two wins and two losses after thrashing Narre South at home.
The Bulls put the disappointment of a loss on the previous day behind them by thrashing the inconsistent Lions by five wickets, chasing their total of 101 in the 31st over.
Winning the toss and opting to bat after a brilliant showing 24 hours prior against Springvale South, the Lions made a disastrous start by losing opening pair Kyle Hardy and Morteza Ali within the first seven deliveries of the innings without scoring.
Promoted to number four, Stephen Brooks and Vineth Jayasuriya added 25 runs until Jayasuriya lost his wicket to Adam Reid, before the Lions were cut back down to square one, losing Brooks, Jeevan Mendis and Riley McDonald in consecutive overs to be reeling at 6/33.
It was left to the tail to scrounge its way to something defendable, as Zac Wilson led a late-innings fightback with 25, and Joel Zietsman added 21.
The innings last just 36 overs, however, with the Lions barely breaching the 100-run mark.
It was a tremendous bowling performance from the Bulls’ attack, with all five bowlers claiming scalps.
Narre South made early inroads with the ball and looked a chance at causing a boilover when Riley Siwes’ wicket reduced them to 4/57, but Venuk Hemachandra weathered the storm from the other end.
He made 34 to top-score for the Lions and by the time his wicket fell, just 27 more runs were required for victory.
