Alton snagged by Hook

After rain in the early hours of Saturday morning, Alton won a rare toss and opted to bowl first in a rain-reduced 30 over game against Hook. After an aggressive start by opener Josh Buckingham (20), Hook were reduced to 25-2 with Jude Wright (2-38) taking the opening two wickets. A steady recovery by Jordan Hobday (25) and Harry Robson (24) steadied the ship for Hook as Toby Salmon (2-25) broke the partnership with some accurate short-pitch bowling. Steady contributions from the Hook middle-order was topped off by some big strikes from Jack Murrell (30) as Hook were bowled out for 165 in 28.1 overs. Tom South bowled economically in the depth and ended with figures of 4-23.

In reply, Alton lost the early wicket of captain Daniel Harris as Abhay Gonella and Tom South (32) steadied the ship with some mindful shots. At 62-1, both batsmen were set to chase the target down but were dismissed within the space of two balls. Alton lost wickets at regular intervals and were unable to build any meaningful partnerships thereafter. Aniket Divecha (3-26) and Daniel Moore (3-15) bowled extremely tightly and closed the innings out, having been backed up well by the Hook fielding unit.

This loss means that Alton remain in 9th position in Southern Premier League despite Hook having significantly improved their average. Hook have closed the gap down to 0.4 points as both teams enter the final five weeks of the season with their SPL premier division status on the line. Alton travel to Southampton next week as they take on Hampshire Academy with Hook hosting Burridge.