Draw secured at Reigate as Ashtead play for time

With the sun baking down, the grass a burnt brown, and the heat a sweltering 28, Ashtead were made to toil at Reigate Priory, and secured a draw in Round 11 of the 2022 Surrey Championship Premier Division.

The hosts won the toss and, unsurprisingly, elected to bat first. And yet, it would be the Stags that made the early headway. With swing supremo Ben Sidwell unavailable, it would be overseas pro Matty Breetzke that took the new ball alongside left-armer Sam Hunt. And Breetzke got amongst the Priory top order, seeing off captain Richard Oliver for 7 and then inducing play-ons from two more, including the Priory overseas star Alex Ross. 31-3 after 10 overs. Game on.

That would be the high point of the day, but much was left to come. The two batters at the crease, Luke Haughton and Ed Fluck, navigated through the very choppy waters and with the heat wilting the bowlers, it was time for some spin. Tom Deighton, long-standing skipper of the visitors, brought himself on but quickly turned to sibling spinners Tom and Sam Homes. Tom led the way with some extremely tight bowling, while Sam went on the attack – more runs, more chances. Reigate found the lunch break at 118-3 off 36 overs.

Sam Homes got his man LBW straight after the break but that opened up the attack a little more, and Fluck went on the offensive alongside Sam Hall. While Tom Homes stayed on to try and stem the flow of runs, the Stags rang the changes from the other end. Fluck made his century, off 129 balls, and just kept on going. The loss of Hall, edged behind to Tom Homes for 28, couldn’t halt the charge and the runs just kept on coming. By the time Fluck holed out to Dan Geddes off Deighton for 147, the score had reached 264-6 off 59 overs. The declaration came 3 overs and 34 runs later.

299 would be the target, off a minimum of 58 overs, and it quickly became obvious that Ashtead would be fighting an uphill battle. The Priory bowlers, whilst providing plenty of variation in line and length, proved irresistible, and with wickets aplenty. By the time tea came around, after 20 overs, the Stags were 74 -5 and staring defeat in the face.

Enter Matty Breetzke. Not content with the 3 early wickets he took, he wanted plenty of runs as well – and with calamity after calamity at the other end, he stepped up to anchor the innings. The fightback began with Harry Williams, who took time and balls out of the innings, and began to strike more fluently when he was trapped LBW for 22. Next to come was Tom Homes, who played a very similar role until he found an edge and went for 15. A double strike alongside Jevan Kher saw the score at 167-8 with 13 overs remaining.

Next to the crease was Tom Deighton – a huge rear-guard innings to play and with only Hunt to follow. Breetzke, meanwhile, was now on 91 and spying his fourth league century of the year – which he got, off the usual Priory menace Michael Munday, from 121 balls. Deighton, at the other end, was facing a troublesome barrage with lots of leaves, judicious blocks, and the occasional wayward waft.

As the overs ticked down, so the desperation grew, and part-time spinners were brought into the attack. Nothing worked. Ashtead walked off with the score 201-8 after 58 overs, holding on for a hard-fought draw and 6 points. Reigate’s frustration was compounded by a penalty for bowling too slowly through the second half, leaving them with 11 points from the day.

With that draw, Ashtead sit 7th in the league table, but make more ground on those below them. The next match is away against relegation battlers Malden Wanderers. Malden was able to secure a close victory in the limited overs match.

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 tomorrow and next week! Join us then.