Justin Moseley – Chiang Mai

Gipsies shine as Bashundara continue to dazzle in Chiang Mai

It was a glorious morning as the San Miguel Chiang Mai International Cricket Sixes began its fifth day, with teams fighting their battles for the Cup, Bowl, Shield, Plate and Spoon trophies. The opening game in the Spoon produced a close finish with the Armadillos beating Blythswood. The second Spoon game saw the Ios Malakas, finishing with a spectacular six from Dolly, victorious over the Wombats. The first Bowl game saw the Floggers & Robbers score 83, but the Darwin Dilettantes batted hard and a tense final over saw the partnership of Weckert and Spring just squeeze 3 runs off the last ball to tie the scores and the game. In the second Bowl match the Maythais batting collapsed as they lost 5 wickets to leave Chef as last man standing to cook up a miracle, but it wasn’t to be, and the Southerners were left an easy target to beat.  The first Plate game was a lacklustre performance by the Ashwell Martlets, and Almar’s 69 proved unbeatable. The Taranaki Taverners became the first team into the Plate semi-final after beating the Gymkhana Cavaliers. The first Cup game saw the Perth Postels bat an excellent 50 against some highly entertaining and superfast fielding and bowling from defending Cup Holders Bashundhara.  However, Bashundhara gave a similarly rapid batting performance to score enough to win by the fourth over. English county pride was at stake in the second Cup game as the Gloucestershire Gipsies took on the Surrey Vagrants (2007 & 2008 Cup Winners respectively). The Vagrants scored 71 with a loss of only 1 wicket, and the Gipsies replied with excellent running and batting to level the scores with 1 ball left, needing a run to win (a tie would have meant conceding the game as they had lost 1 more wicket).  A cool tap by Gannon gave him just enough breathing space to reach the crease and get the vital winning run. The first Shield game paired the Lords Taverners and the Divine Felons. It was thrilling for the Felons on three counts; first, they won comfortably, second, Ross Ormiston became the first in the tournament so far to hit the Big 10 (so the banner sponsor STEC has to donate 3,000 baht to the local cricket foundation), and thirdly, Asif, in addition to his usual fine batting, managed a magnificent “caught and bowled” during his bowling stint.  In the next Shield game the Shanghai Hot Dogs lost to the Lanka Lions (whose Ravi Ratnayeke showed his star class with a one-handed catch on the boundary followed by scoring 32 - including 4 sixes – in 1 over). In the Spoon the Armadillos scored 65, but despite losing 2 wickets they still beat the Stuffed Beavers, and in the next game the Wombats were no match for the Awali Taverners. The other two Bowl games of the day saw the Darwin Dilettantes knock the Drifters out of the tournament, and the Southerners from Thailand took on Darjeeling from the UAE. The Southerners score of 57 included a fine 35 retired (the highest batting score possible) by Jamie Cutbill, but some good fielding could still not prevent a very narrow victory for Darjeeling, decided on the final ball by a wide and a 4-run penalty.

Not to be forgotten during all the activities on the main field were the adjacent 11th Sixes Sawasdee Cup between local Thai schools, which continue today (Friday).  Sponsors are welcomed for the many kids who are the future of cricket in Thailand – for more information see www.cricketchiangmai.comand for more information on the Sixes in general, go to: www.chiangmaisixes.com.