Typically fully fit

By Worcester Warbler
April 11 2010

The Bells The Bells, they toll a depressing story of defeat from first game. Thanks to our Worcester Warbler for an account of todays play and summary of what cost us. Read on if you can bear to.

Approachingthe ground today, Worcester Cathedral bells were ringing out in joyfulcelebration; as the morning went onto into the afternoon the bells startedtolling the hours – a totally appropriate accompaniment to a new equationdiscovered at this match – “the Finn/Jones Law”  that time will alwaysequal wickets as long as the bowlers keep a good line and length and slip  fielders hold their catches. Oh howMr Boycott would approve.

It’s 11.00AMand Strauss hociked the first ball of the day – a poor legside delivery forfour. But that is not a particularly good sign. Richardson is bowling with thepace and accuracy of his golden year for us and soon has the England captainout playing no shot and by 11.30 O’Brien has gone to – out to a vicious ballfrom Jones. Does 29/3 sound familiar?

12.00 noonand Dawid Malan has played some elegant shots off Jones – five boundaries of punchystraight drives and flowing cover drives giving some hope that we could makesome sort of fist of it as the target gets below 250! But. ..  

By 12.30Sam Robson who had been displaying some of the stickability we had seen last year,had been given out to a faint nick, and Malan was dropped at slip. Far too muchdrama for at all once on a Sunday morning.

Justbefore lunch we reach 100 and no more wickets, so time to try out the newpavilion food – very pleasant.

But timemarches on and soon its: 1.45 and time for a run out – just for a change. Hangon it’s not just for a change – it’s Adam London again, and it’s a risky run,and another muddle and a direct hit from Alan Richardson (you couldn’t make itup!). Do we need a running between wickets coach?

 And by 2.00 pm Simpson is out fornothing - unable to cope with the impressive Jones. That won’t help the BenScott loan debate!

The tea ladiesmust have sensed time running out by now because they announce an early openingof their service, They are proved right, because although Gareth Berg is also playingsome stylish shots to keep Malan company, at 2.30 Alan Richardson switches tothe Diglis Road end, and  immediately has him LBW; Udal is then dropped at slip, butthat is too little too late from our point of view.

As theCathedral bells mark 3.00pm Malan plays a loose drive and is snaffled at slip;soon after Richardson gets Udal too and by 3.15 Steven Finn has come and goneand that is that.

Plenty oftime on a sunlit journey home with First Great Western behaving impeccably,through some of the prettiest landscapes in England, to ponder the opening threedays of the season when Middlesex have already taken us from lows to highs anddown again. And proved one of the biggest clichés of all time: catches win matches. The losing marginof 111 runs was less than the Worcester opening partnership of 125, which waspartly the result of two early dropped slip catches. Please do not drop anycatches against Glamorgan this week – especially Jamie D!