Monday, June 5th, 2023

WEEKEND LEAGUE ROUND-UP: KASHIF ALI HITS CENTURY WHILE LEACH, WAITE AND CORNALL ALSO MAKE MARK

Kashif Ali smashed 129 off 114 balls for champions Smethwick in their drawn Birmingham and District Premier League fixture against Barnt Green.

The Worcestershire batter hit eight sixes and ten fours – a total of 88 in boundaries – before he was fifth out at 250.

Smethwick totalled 30-9-9 in 55 overs, and then Worcestershire Assistant Coach Kadeer Ali had figures of 8-5-10-1 as Barnt Green held on for a draw at 186-8.

Taylor Cornall picked up two wickets and hit a half century for Ombersley but they went down by 82 runs to Halesowen.

Cornall’s spin brought him 2-44 from eight overs, but Halesowen, who were 38-4 at one stage, recovered to 266-8 thanks to former Worcestershire Academy player Ed Bragg’s unbeaten 113.

Opener Cornall top-scored with 58 from 85 deliveries with nine boundaries, but Ombersley were bowled out for 184 in 43.2 overs.

Joe Leach was amongst the wickets for Shifnal in the drawn game with Dorridge.

Worcestershire’s new ball bowler claimed two early scalps and returned to enjoy another breakthrough as he finished with 15-2-55-3.

But Dorridge held on for a draw at 244-6 in reply to Shifnal’s 303-7, of which Academy player Jack Home contributed an unbeaten 27.

Fellow Academy player, bowler Harry Darley, impressed for Shrewsbury in a nine wicket win over Kidderminster.

Darley’s 7-0-19-4 helped dismiss Kidderminster for 115, and Shrewsbury knocked off their modest target in 18.1 overs.

Ollie Walker returned 1-33 and scored 21 not out for Himley in a seven-wicket win over Lichfield, and another Academy player, Ben Clarke, made 36 for Barnards Green (210), who went down by eight wickets to Wolverhampton.

In the Bradford Premier League, Matthew Waite played a key part for Methley in a 29-run win over Hanging Heaton.

Waite hit 31 off 37 balls with six fours of Methley’s 263-8 and then quickly made inroads into the Hanging Heaton batting line-up.

He was rewarded with three wickets in his first spell and returned to send back top scorer Bradley Wood (63).

Waite ended with 15-2-50-4 as Hanging Heaton closed on 234-9.