When Maia Bouchier caressed the first of her seven boundaries to the fence in the second over of this important clash between top of the table Hampshire and unfancied high-fliers Somerset, it looked like this was going to be another run-fest at Taunton....nothing could have been further from the truth.
A tempered start by Hampshire, who chose to bat on a used wicket, became a workmanlike first 25 overs - 107/2, and then a grinding first 40 overs - 164/4, and a disappointing end - 213 all out off the last ball of their innings.
Bouchier flattered to deceive with a relatively fluent 39 off 43, but beyond her it was a hard slog. Charli Knott worked the hardest at the coalface and came away with 64 off 102 balls, and for a while she and Rhianna Southy (46 off 65 balls) seemed to be setting some kind of platform for Hampshire to go on and make 250+, but having been 151/3, albeit in 36 overs, Hampshire contrived to lose their next seven wickets for just 62 runs.
True Somerset bowled accurately and fielded pretty well, giving away just 6 extras in the Hampshire innings, effecting two run outs and taking their catches, albeit with a bit of luck for Sophie Luff as she clung on to a rebound off a skied Knott drive at mid-on with the use of her right thigh. But Hampshire will have been disappointed with only 213 runs on the board.
Somerset needed a positive reply and for two overs they looked to have made just that - 13/0. But some accurate bowling from Freya Davies, who picked up the early wicket of Emma Corney, and then left-arm spinning duo Linsey Smith and Bex Tyson, put the brakes on, which lead to Knight pushing a ball to Bouchier at short cover and running. At the other end Sophie Luff gave it some consideration and then quite rightly rejected the opportunity to get run out herself. Bouchier's direct hit left Knight floundering well short of her crease.
Just 9 runs came from the next 17 balls before Fran Wilson spooned a catch to Bouchier at short extra cover; 18 balls and just 3 runs later Charlie Dean swept Tyson into deep square legs' hands. Somerset were 63/4 in the 19th over. Somerset skipper Sophie Luff watched on with exasperation and horror as the procession continued at the other end and her team were reduced to 109/8, after a brief interlude for rain which apparently reduced the innings to 49 overs, but kept the DLS target exactly as it had been before - 214 to win.
It all looked pretty academic until number 10, Ellie Anderson, found her own bottom-handed way of keeping her skipper company for more than five minutes. For the next 13 overs Anderson shovelled and drove, and Luff used her feet and occasionally took to the air, to get Somerset to 178/8, a stand of 69, which meant that Somerset needed 36 runs to win from 28 balls. But with an improbable victory in sight Anderson pulled a decent length ball from Tyson straight to Bouchier at midwicket. There was no great celebration from Hampshire, just an audible team sigh of relief. In the next over Georgia Adams brought Luff's valiant solo effort of 74 to a conclusion, as she sneaked a ball under her bat, as she once again danced down to hit the ball through wide mid-on, but this time missed. Somerset were all out for 182 to lose by 31 runs. A comfortable victory for Hampshire on paper, but a lot closer than Hampshire will have liked.
But this is just the type of game that the girls need to be involved in to learn the ups and downs of a 50 over game of cricket, and how to handle pressure both with the bat and the ball, and in the field. It wasn't a classic, but it was a good game of cricket.
Martin Davies
13/V/25
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