A batting masterclass as Ashtead romp home

Sometimes the game can seem so simple. The Ashtead stags turned up the power to 11 and wreaked havoc as they beat Beddington by a mammoth 95 runs in Round 3 of the 2022 Surrey Championship T20 Cup.

Ashtead won the toss and elected to make first use of a wicket that looked good for batting and an outfield on which the ball would fly. And the Ashtead openers took the bowlers to task, with boundaries flying all round the park. Ragu Aravinthan and overseas star Matthew Breetzke kept finding the fence, and as the total built, the hitting was relentless.

The team 50 came up in just the 4th over (which, incidentally, went for 24 runs via 6 consecutive Breetzke boundaries) and changes of bowling appeared to have no effect. Breetzke would be first to his half-century, coming off just 21 balls, and the team 100 followed in the same over. Aravinthan likewise made his 50, this time off 33 balls. By the end of the 13th over, Ashtead were 152-0 and the potential for carnage was still at the forefront of everyone’s minds.

Aravinthan would be the first batter to fall, holing out for 51, but that brought erstwhile hitter Conor Young to the party – in a situation tailored made for his particular set of skills. Breetzke, meanwhile, just couldn’t stop swinging – and brought up his century off just 46 balls. A truly remarkable achievement for any player. He would eventually depart for 111 off just 53 balls – the score, meanwhile, had reached 180 with 28 balls to go.

Young and the new batter, Paul Harrison, had a license to thrill at the end of the innings, and they did so – including a simply ridiculous hit right over the car park – to get Ashtead to the unrivalled total of 238-3. The highest total ever scored by a Surrey club side in a T20 game.

The visitors were always going to have to go hard at the chase from ball 1 – and losing a wicket off the second delivery might have set the tone. However, the batters continued to swing hard, and found some initial success – particularly the wicketkeeper, Sam Owen.

However, it was always going to be a night for the Stags, and wickets continued to fall at the other end. The initial inroads were courtesy of Ben Sidwell, Tom Homes and a cool run out from Young and Harrison. But it was Rob Hendry, a regular in the 1s and 2s this year, that really did the damage. 4-14 off his 4 overs ripped the middle order out of the innings, and at 92-8, the end appeared night.

However, the tail wagged, and some sustained hitting saw the total creep towards respectability. Yet it was never going to be enough, and the final wicket fell off the final ball of the innings. 145 all out was, on most days, a good score to finish up on. Today, it was nearly 100 runs short.

That win sees Ashtead through to the quarterfinals, and a trip to Priory Park to face old rivals Reigate. This is a classic clash, the 6th meeting between the sides, and Ashtead currently lead the head-to-head 3-2.

A reminder that you can follow Ashtead CC’s 1st XI matches via our Twitter (@ashteadcc), live on our website (www.ashtead.play-cricket.com) or at our YouTube channel (Ashtead Cricket Club Live). We look forward to this coming Saturday in the league! Join us then.