Ben Parker – Ben Parker sweeps the ball for four on his way to top-scoring with 65 for Suffolk in the second match as Cambridgeshire wicket-keeper Josh Bowers looks on Photograph: NICK GARNHAM

Suffolk at the double in T20s

August 24, 2020

JACK Beaumont’s tenure as Suffolk’s white-ball skipper got off to a winning start at Woolpit CC on Sunday with two T20 friendly victories over Cambridgeshire.

In the county’s first fixtures of the summer, Suffolk won the opening match by three wickets and followed that up with a 17-run success on the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method.

Only the loss of four wickets as just one run was added with eight runs required prevented an even more emphatic victory in the opening encounter.

Cambridgeshire, batting first, were restricted to 118 for 8 in their 20 overs, with opener Ben Harris, who ironically played for Suffolk in their last T20 fixture double-header of the 2019 season, top-scoring with 31 off 25 balls.

Debutant Neil Dexter and Tom Rash took two wickets apiece, while there was one each for Beaumont, Billy Moulton-Day and the returning Matt Wareing.

Suffolk appeared to be cruising to victory thanks to a half century from former skipper Adam Mansfield at the top of the order, despite ex-Kent, Middlesex and Leicestershire all-rounder Dexter being dismissed for a second-ball duck.

However, Mansfield was one of four wickets to fall in the space of six balls with Suffolk closing in on victory, before they completed a three-wicket win with six balls to spare.

Ben Parker was one of those victims as he was dismissed first ball in his first appearance for Suffolk since the Minor Counties Championship match versus Buckinghamshire at Bury St Edmunds in June 2017.

The 23-year-old opened the innings in match two and made the highest score of the day, striking six fours and three sixes in his 65 off 45 balls in a superb knock.

Debutant Jack Potticary made 26 for the second time in the day and Dexter’s 31 off 24 deliveries enabled Suffolk to post an imposing 166 for 5.

Beaumont (4-0-31-3) and Josh Cantrell (2-0-9-0) kept the visitors in check, while fellow spinner Freddie Heldreich also impressed as Cambridgeshire’s reply reached 130 for 7 with 12 balls remaining before the heavens opened.

With no chance of a resumption, Suffolk were declared winners by 17 runs on DLS.

The two teams will meet again this coming Sunday, August 30th, in a 50-overs-a-side contest at Burwell & Exning CC (at Exning Park), start 11am.

WORDS AND IMAGES: NICK GARNHAM

Tags: , , , ,

Categorised in: