CRICKET: Groves sees Ifield to another great win

Division 2

Bognor Regis 184-8

Ifield 199-8

Bognor finished their 45 overs on 194 with 8 with opener Max Ashmore topscoring with 54 and Elliott Clarke hitting 36.

Ifield’s response started strongly enough and Paul Clifford and Nathan Amin had 27 on the board before Amin got a good ball from Bognor’s West Indian overseas fast bowler Jerome Jones.

Sam Dorrington and Dan Groves set about rebuilding the innings at 85-5 and they took the score to 124 before Dorrington hit one straight to mid-wicket and attempted a run that was never on and departed for a well-made 30.

At 144 for 7 Ifield were still 50 runs short with wickets running out but with Groves at the wicket on 39 there was hope.

New batsman Ballarino and Groves were crucially able to see off Jones’s spell but then Ifield suffered the third run out of their innings and Ballarino was gone for 9 and at 159 for 8 Bognor were back in the box seat and favourites to take the win but Groves supported by Pratik Patel had other ideas and some wonderfully clean hitting including five big sixes got Ifield home in a tense finish with two overs spare.

Groves finished on 70 not out and Patel 14 and the win leaves Ifield 57 points clear at the top of the table.

Next week Ifield travel to Lindfield.