Sat. 13th August. Sherston Magna 188-8 Melksham 177 ao Sherston Magna won by 11 runs
TITLE-chasing Melksham suffered a major setback at the weekend, going under by 11-runs away to mid-table Sherston Magna despite late heroics from the 10th wicket pairing of Matt Lee and Mark Mullis.
Having restricted their opponents to a score of 188-8 despite being made to rue some dropped catches, the visitors struggled to get going during the chase, with Joe Veacock the only top-order batsman to make a score of note, with 55, as his side stumbled towards 108-9. A twist appeared to be in the offing however when tailenders Lee and Mullis rallied to get Melksham back into the game, with Sherston snatching the latter’s wicket in the nick in time to avoid being on the wrong end of an improbable comeback.
It was the eventual winners who got off to a fast start, racking up 60 inside the first 10 overs to put their opponents on the backfoot. Fortunately, Lee claimed the wickets of both Sherston openers in the following over, helping to get the Melksham afternoon properly under way. The run-rate would slow down significantly after these breakthroughs, with later wickets from Mullis and Liam Merrett helping to restrict the hosts to a score of 93-4 after 22 overs.
Melksham’s bowlers continued to constrain their opponents during the 2nd half of the innings but would have to settle for just the 8 wickets by the close of play, with some shelled efforts in the field not helping their efforts. Skipper Adam Mitchell led the way for his side during this period with a spell of 3-28, with Chris Singh chipping in with Melksham’s final wicket of the innings.
The start of the run-chase was a disaster for Melksham. Mitchell (10), Dave Light (5), and Russ Collins (0) were all bowled in quick succession to leave the visitors floundering on 17-3. Momentum proved difficult to gain from this point, with Veacock the only player to show any sustained aptitude at the crease as more wickets continued to fall around him. He would go on to make a fine fifty, but by the time he was dismissed, his side had staggered to a score of 107-8, seemingly leaving any chance of a Melksham victory in ruins.
This appeared to be confirmed soon after when Chris Long was trapped LBW for 1, putting Sherston on the brink of a comprehensive victory. Any apprehensions that the bowling team had of a comfortable stroll to victory were soon shattered though, thanks to a brave fightback from the final wicket pairing of Lee and Mullis. The pair showed no fear during a gutsy final stand, steadily pushing Melksham towards the target and gradually making Sherston realise that there was still life in the contest yet. The hosts were certainly panicking once Lee and Mullis had got Melksham to within 11, but unfortunately Mullis was then bowled for 27 to snuff out any chance of a remarkable comeback win, with Lee stranded at the other end on 42 not out.
