9:42am Friday 27th July 2007
By Dennis Aris
Bucks................ 218 & 100-3 ...
Cumberland......87-2 & 235-9 CUMBERLAND gained their first win since 2005 with a thrilling one-wicket victory over Buckinghamshire on the third day of their fourth Minor Counties Champ- ionship match this season.
After a first-day wash-out the fixture was switched from Slough to a hastily prepared wicket at Burnham CC and the captains sportingly contrived a finish.
Both skippers made last-day declarations with Bucks setting Cumberland a total of 232 to win in a minimum of 62 overs.
It looked a fair declaration with the home team giving themselves enough time to bowl out Cumberland out, while the visitors were chasing a credible 3.5-4 runs per over on a rain-affected wicket.
Cumberland had moved from 29-2 overnight to 87-2 declared, Carl Hey on 38 not out and Gary Pratt 28 not out. Buckinghamshire then declared with their total at 100-3 following some gentle' bowling from the Cumberland non-bowlers.
Callum Moffatt took his first Minor County wicket and is now looking to catch up Workington team mate Matthew Gorley!
Cumberland's run chase started well with openers Steve Knox and James Lowe setting about the Bucks bowling.
With the score on 58, Lowe was caught by Sawyer off Stanway's bowling. Then Hey followed shortly after with the score on 59, clean bowled by spinner Sketchley without scoring.
That saw Gary Pratt join skipper Steve Knox and they took the score to 111 - Nelson' strikes again - as Knox was adjudged leg before, the umpire taking an age to raise the dreaded finger.
Once again wickets began to fall at regular intervals, but with important contributions coming from Pratt, 39, Roberts, 29 and Smith 26.
The ninth wicket fell at 199 and once again it seemed that Cumberland would fail at the final hurdle.
From here the last pair of Barrow's Chris D'Leny and James Beaumont played some inspired cricket with great running between the wickets and levelled the scores with four overs to go.
Chris D'Leny then smashed the first ball of the next over for four to give Cumberland their first win since 2005. For Bucks, Sawyer took 4-90 and Sketchley 3-91.
Earlier highlights saw Cumberland reduced Bucks, who included ex-Surrey and England batsman Medlylycott, to 93-7 in their first innings before an eighth-wicket stand of 83 and another of 29 for the ninth carried them to 218 all out.
Reward for the Cumberland bowlers came with Roberts taking 3-55, Smith 2-18, Hey 2-40 and Gorley 2-52, while for Bucks Wynd (62) and Sketchley (42) did best.
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