Quinn Childs … dismissed the dangerous Ben Smith and Mark Fraser. PHOTO/FILE
CRICKET
CHRIS COGDALE
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Highmark Homes Wairarapa took first innings’ points from Whanganui in a rain-affected Furlong Cup match at Queen Elizabeth Park Oval over the weekend.
Batting first after winning the toss, Wairarapa made a promising start with openers John McKenzie [37] and Robbie Anderson [36] putting on 65 for the first wicket.
The home side’s top order batting which had struggled in their first two games was again found wanting as they lost their next four wickets to be teetering at 105-5.
Brock Price, who top scored with 43, and Gordon Reisima [29] engineered a recovery by scoring 61 runs for the sixth wicket.
Price, Reisima, and Stefan Hook then all fell to the medium pace bowling of Ross Kinnerley with the score on 166.
There was little other resistance as Whanganui claimed the final two wickets to dismiss Wairarapa for 181, a respectable but hardly threatening total on an Oval pitch which had played a few tricks.
The hardworking Kinnerley finished with an impressive six wickets for 46 runs off 17.5 tidy overs.
Whanganui were in immediate trouble when Greg Smith was brilliantly caught by Quinn Childs in the slips off the first ball of the innings. Dominic Rayner fell lbw to Ethan Childs in the second over to have the visitors reeling at 2-2.
Whanganui pushed the score to 69-3, but the momentum swung Wairarapa’s way in Quinn Childs’ first over.
The tall left arm spinner had prolific Central Stags’ batsmen Ben Smith caught for 27 by wicketkeeper Jack Forrester with his third delivery that spun and bounced.
Three balls later, the dangerous veteran Mark Fraser, who has punished Wairarapa teams on many occasions, was back in the pavilion after misreading a well-flighted delivery, which clipped his off stump.
Number four batsman Akash Gill continued to look assured and even when he was dismissed lbw by medium pacer Peter Sigvertsen, for 67, with the score at 124-6, Whanganui were well-placed to push for first innings points.
However, Hook and Quinn Childs had the final say, claiming the last four wickets for six runs, in the final 20 minutes of the first day. When captain Dominic Lock was dismissed on the final ball of the day, Wairarapa had a 38-run lead.
Quinn Childs finished with 4-23 off eight overs, while Hook picked up 3-38.
Wairarapa’s second innings on Sunday never really got going, after McKenzie was bowled third ball by Kinnerley.
The home team were punished for the tentative approach of many of the batsmen, to be all out for 98. Only Price showed positive intent, scoring 28 off 30 balls.
Smith was the best of the Whanganui bowlers, claiming 4-10 off eight overs with his gentle medium pacers. Kinnerley completed a good match with 3-9 off 11 overs.
That left Whanganui 137 to win off 46 overs, but the prospects of getting an outright were always in doubt with bad weather approaching.
The rain finally set in about 4.35pm, bringing the game to an early end.
BRIEF SCORE
Wairarapa 181 [Brock Price 43, John McKenzie 37, Robbie Anderson 36; Ross Kinnerley 6-47] and 98 [Brock Price 28; Ben Smith 4-10, Ross Kinnerley 3-9] beat Whanganui 143 [Akash Gill 67; Quinn Childs 4-23, Stefan Hook 3-38] and 6-0 on first innings.
