LV= County Championship Division Two, Kia Oval (close, day three), Kent 336 & 99: Northeast 33; Batty 4-12, S Curran 3-19, Surrey 311 & 4-1: Burns 4 not out; Tredwell 1-1, Surrey require another 121 runs to win
To The Oval! …yet again on Wednesday afternoon for Day 3 of the ‘rrey Vs Kent
Can you see a pattern developing here? Reckon my Oval ramblings will stretch to Day 4?
SPOILER:
Look at those bowling figures above for the ‘rrey. I reckon a post-tea session at The Oval later on Thursday ‘aint gonna happen.
Um, c’mon the ‘rrey!
And so it was straight off the SE17 school play stage [sorta] on Wednesday and all the way up to the top tier of the Pavilion.
How pleasant.
Work duties meant that I missed Mr Sangakarra’s century. No worries. I’m sure that there will be others.
What I most certainly didn’t miss was the LYCRA FEST being played out in front of the grand old gates.
Woh. What the chuffers was that about?
Around 50 or so lycra clad men and women arrived, on what looked like the final leg of some sort of charity ride.
Chapeau! etc.
Cycling and cricket.
And booze.
YEAH.
But once again I was teetotal. I had some more work bobbins back at base later in the evening. I’m rather warming to those Surrey £1.80 large mugs of afternoon tea.
Chin chin.
I took up my seat with Kent looking fragile on 17-2. I put in place my earpiece for the Surrey ball-by-ball commentary. Instead I heard the closing stages of Le Tour that I was going to record for later viewing.
Cheers, fellas.
Much like Le Tour riders, the wickets then started to fall.
Joe Denly was caught and bowled off the brilliant bowling of 17 year-old Sam Curran.
It’s always patronising to reference the age of someone. But you really do need to draw attention the incredible achievements of Curran S during his Championship debut this week.
The young fella has just signed what Surrey are calling a ‘summer contract.’ Whilst other 17 year-olds are doing whatever it is that 17 year-olds do these days during the summer break, Sam Curran will be playing professional cricket.
Howzat? etc.
The game slowed down slightly as Captain Batty had his now traditional ball woes. Deep conversations took place with the umps as Batty bemoaned the shale of the ball.
I confess to dozing off for 15 minutes as it looked like the evening session was going to fizzle out for the ‘rrey.
I saw the wickets of Billings and Harmison fall, and then took the decision to head back to base with around 20 minutes of play remaining in the day.
I settled down for some work in the flat, and then Wifey returned from work having checked up on the close of play score:
“WHAT A PERFORMACE!”
…she exclaimed.
It turns out that I missed the fall of four more late wickets, the most significant passage in play during the game so far.
It sets up Surrey needing 121 runs to win with all day to bat. I doubt if I will get the chance to fall asleep in the Pavilion for the fourth consecutive afternoon.
C’mon the ‘rrey!