VILLAGE literally bounced back from the dead to beat Umfolozi by one wicket in the most exciting Weber Cup clash of the season at Addison Park on Saturday, to prove the old adage: ‘It’s not over until the number 11 swings.’
After a verbal agreement, Umfolozi batted first on a dry and hard pitch.
The home side had Umfolozi on the ropes, but a dropped catch from Beyers Habig proved costly.
Habig dropped captain Otto Rode on 5 runs, who went onto notch 146 to top score for his side.
Patrick Gregory added 20 with the willow in his hand, before his side was dismissed in the 40th over for 231.
Hennie Swart 3/56 in 9 overs and Piet Pieterse 3/8 in 2 got reward with the cherry.
Village got off to a poor start, with the scoreboard reading 45/4.
As the innings continued, wickets kept tumbling with minimal runs being added.
But the first game changer was when Frans Pelser 52 and Jimmy de Wet 43 joined forces to add a monumental partnership that sparked hope in the Village camp.
When these two gentleman were dismissed, the score read 186/9.
Needing 46 runs, with one wicket in hand seemed impossible.
But with number 11 batsmen Mohammad Uddin 41 not out and Bradley Strick 5 not out, Village managed to reach 232/9 in the 44th over to claim their first win of the season.
Uddin played a memorable innings, smashing 41 off 18 balls to win the game for his team.
Otto Rode 2/32 in 7 overs and Pierre Vermaak 2/28 in 4 overs were the pick of the Umfolozi bowlers.
‘I dropped Otto on purpose, to make an exciting, contestable game out of it,’ said a confident and cocky Beyers Habig.
