Randwick Petersham Cricket v Sydney – Poidevin Gray

After a disappointing opening day of the 2024-25 cricket season yesterday, with 1st Grade losing both of their Twenty20 matches, the club bounced back today with a great win in the under 21 Poidevin-Gray competition. And with a new club record to boot!

Playing Sydney CC at Petersham, the visitors were asked to bat first and were away to a good start getting to 3-82 off 15 overs. Seven bowlers had been tried and for the 24th over of the innings, the ball was thrown to Vansh Bhatia. A right-arm leg-spinner who ironically joined us from Sydney CC during the off-season, the youngster was in his first day out with his new club. And what a day out he had!

Over the following 13.3 overs, Sydney crashed from 3-107 to be all out for 163 with Vansh TAKING ALL SEVEN WICKETS IN SUCCESSION for figures of 7-35 off 7.3 overs. After having 3-28 off 3.2 overs, with 24 of those coming from 3 sixes and 2 fours, he took 4-7 off his final 25 balls to record figures which are the best-ever for the club in this competition. He had 5 caught, got one lbw then bowling the last. The previous best was 5-21 by Jamie Boettiger in 2005-06.

And the batters didn’t let him down as they chased down the target with a score of 4-164 in just 28 of the available 50 overs for a huge win. Zak Keogh remained 79* while another debutant, Angus Cornish, was also undefeated on 26*.

The boys play Northern District in a Twenty20 match at Coogee Oval NEXT SUNDAY at 9.30am with the 1st Grade T20, also against NDs, following at 2pm.

Lyall Gardner