Andover deprived by weather

Prittipaul in the runs for Havant © Getty Images

Andover had the prospect of a famous victory snatched away by the weather gods after getting to within 46 runs of beating Havants, the unbeaten leaders of the Southern Electric Premier League when the game had to be scrapped due to rain.

Chasing Havant's 263 for four (declared after 47 overs), middle of the table Andover made a strong start with Mark Miller posting 65 and fourth-wicket pair Uwe Birkenstock (79 not out) and Cille van der Merwe (43 not out) making good progress when the downpour arrived to end their campaign on 218 for three with eight overs remaining and seven wickets still in hand.

“I don’t think there’s any doubt we’d have got them,” said Andover leg break bowler Chris Hadfield. “Uwe and Cille were going really well and scoring at seven an over as it was."

Former Hampshire batsman Lawrence Prittipaul was once more the mainstay of Havant's innings, hitting 139 not out including five sixes and 19 fours.

He was at the crease when Havant lost opening pair Ben Walker (18) and Will Prozesky (31) at 53, but took Havant to a formidable total.

The winning draw keeps them at the top of the table though Hampshire Academy moved to within three points of them following their resounding 58 run win at Alton.

Hamza Riazuddin, 17, ripped the heart out of the Alton middle-order with a 6-53 return in 13 overs. James Vince (31) and Chris Morgan (17) both fell to Scott Myers (3-73) as the Academy reached 56-2.

But Riazuddin (46) and Adam Rouse (32) cemented the platform from which Benny Howell (70 not out) and Michael Bates (33 not out) were able to take the Academy score on to 250-4 declared.

Alton quickly lurched to 7 for two, but were revived by Ryan Hale’s best innings of the season. The naturalised Queenslander hit 14 boundaries in his 111 and was supported by Michael Heffernan (23) and Richie Morgan (22).

They progressed to 140 for four only to be blown apart by Riazuddin’s six-wicket blast. The teenage all-rounder, who played several times for Hampshire in the recent Twenty20 Cup, was on a hat-trick at one stage while Hale battled it out to the end and was last out at 192.

Hursley Park were also left cursing the rain after they had Bournemouth reeling at 66-6 in reply to 211-7 at Chapel Gate. Derek Manning (3-24) and Darryl Steele (2-23) had carved significant inroads into the Bournemouth batting, with the Park brothers, Darren Cowley and former Essex captain Paul Pritchard all dismissed and were poised for victory when the rain intervened.

South Wilts sit proudly at the top of the Time Pennant table after crushing Bashley (Rydal) by seven wickets. It was the Bemerton club’s fifth successive victory in the all-day format of the game. Once again, James Hibberd produced a stunning one man show to sweep South Wilts to victory.

Having hit 85 and taken 5-61 the previous week against St Cross Symondians, Hibberd took 5-60 and then struck a match winning 97 not out against Bashley who put up a respectable fight for 219 thanks to Chris Jones, the Somerset Academy teenager, who made 91 – his highest Premier League score – before becoming the fourth of Hibberd’s five victims.

Totton & Eling’s prospects of recapturing the ECB Southern Electric Premier League crown from Havant are almost at an end. A four-wicket defeat by St Cross Symondians – their second in the all-day ‘time’ format – has left Totton in fifth place in the log 38 points behind the leaders.

They posted a healthy 259 for eight declared, but were unable to defend the total, even though St Cross who made 260 for six, despite at one stage being 47 for three.