Century for Sibley as Ashtead win again

Back at home, more points on the board. Ashtead ran out comfortable 5 wicket winners at home to Weybridge in Round 5 of the 2017 Surrey Championship Premier Division.

Weybridge won the toss, and elected to make first use of a pitch that seemed conducive for big scores. However, the seam attack of Harshil Patel and Matt Friedlander made going tough for the visitors, keeping runs at a premium and picking up early wickets. By the early drinks interval, Weybridge were 38-2 and in a little bit of trouble.

The trouble got worse after drinks, as the introduction of medium pacers John Vaughan-Davies and Stewart Cameron produced another wicket. Here the bowlers then hit a road block. Ollie Mills and Matt Laidman both dug in, and slowly began to accumulate runs. The spinners got a short showing before lunch, but could not find the desired breakthrough. At lunch, Weybridge had recovered to 89-3 off 31 overs.

With the return of the pacers after the interval came a flurry of runs, as both batsmen looked to play more expansively. But, with the start of Dominic Sibley’s overs, both batsmen were out together, and at 145-5, the lower order and the tail needed to pay well to set a representative target.

And play well they did. Runs continued to flow with Sibley and Tom Deighton, and the tail wagged sufficiently. 58 runs came, with 3 wickets, off the final 6 overs of the innings. The visitors fought their way to 256-9 off their maximum 66 over allocation.

Ashtead would have 54 overs to chase the target down, and they went off like a shot, with Guy Harper and Mike Sanderson both playing their shots in the early overs. However, with reward comes risk, and Harper soon departed for 33. Sanderson and Sibley guided the side to tea. 61-1.

After tea, the innings became becalmed for several overs, and the pressure started to build. The release came on Weybridge’s favour, as Sanderson flayed wildly, skied it, and was caught for 18. This brought overseas professional Mahesh Rawat to the middle, and with two first-class batsmen in play, hopes were high for a hefty partnership.

And they didn’t disappoint. Despite good bowling, although there were some overs best left unmentioned, the pair looked untroubled for much of their stand. Milestones came and went – 50 partnership, 50 for Sibley, 100 partnership, 50 for Rawat – and finally, the century for Sibley, off just 110 balls.

When Rawat was finally out, LBW for 51, the stand had reached 146, and 39 runs were needed. The tension grew when Stewart Cameron departed for a golden duck, then Hayden Storey two balls later. 218-2 became 218-5.

An experienced head was needed to guide the side home, and this was provided by Ashtead stalwart John Vaughan-Davies. Together, he and Sibley saw the team to victory with just over 5 overs to spare. Sibley concluded on a spectacular 127 not out.

This win moves Ashtead to 5th in the Premier League table. Next week sees the Stags on the road at Valley End, who languish near the bottom of the table. Another 24 points might beckon for the resurgent Stags. Join us then.