All shook up

 
Well, it’s hats off to Surrey for a hard-fought and well deserved victory at Chesterfield.

When I say well deserved, I’m not belittling the effort of the Derbyshire team. Tenaciously clinging on to the bitter end, I have to say they gave me a real fright as the overs ticked away! Yesterday I mentioned the fact that Surrey were soldiering on despite missing various limbs and essential body parts, which sort of puts their win over Derbyshire in an even better light. What we saw from the team today was, er, ‘balls!’

Even when the chips were down they fought on...even when Andre Nel was bowling on one leg he kept running in with typical Günter determination. Or rather, hopping in. There’s an old rhyme about a lady who fought alongside her Scottish compatriots against the ‘auld enemy’, and when her legs were cut off in battle, “fought upon her stumps”. It’s kind of the image I get of Surrey over the last day!

Again, I didn’t hear most of the day’s play. Work is playing havoc with my ability to tune into the four day game. I settled for sneaking little looks at the BBC score card. It didn’t look promising at 12.30. Or 13.30 either for that matter. And even although it was a tad healthier at 15.10 as I was preparing to leave for the day, four wickets didn’t seem to be enough. You see, Surrey has a nasty habit of getting opposing batsmen into nick if they’ve been out of sorts. It’s the same with teams as well, and you could just see Derbyshire making club history by chasing down their highest ever total. It’s the kind of thing that just happens to Surrey.

But then, by the time I got home some 25 mins later, a total of 7 wickets had gone! Suddenly it seemed as if all results were possible. I have to admit that even I couldn’t see where the game was heading at that point. With Andre Nel doing his best impression of a human pogo stick, and Tim Linley off the field of play due to his considerable resemblance to Mr Bump (only not quite so blue), the physiotherapists definitely earned their fees today! I’m also informed that Spriegel’s eyes may have been left watering a tad due to fielding a ball with his lower torso, shall we say?

Nor was it just Surrey who ended with walking wounded. Derbyshire’s Lungley managed to get struck by a ball from his own team mate and had to leave the field of play. Whether it made any psychological difference as well as the blow to the arm he received effecting his grip, who can really say, but the interruption brought Groenewald to the crease whilst Lungley temporarily retired hurt. And then, when Groenewald departed for just 3, you couldn’t help but feel the game was in Surrey’s grasp once again.

It was left to the towering Tremlett to deliver the ball that sent Lungley’s stump somersaulting through the air for 21. So agonisingly close for Derbyshire, and yet so very far! ‘Stumps’ were actually very appropriate, as I think that was just about all that was left of my fingernails! I’m beginning to think Surrey should be sponsored by Bisodol rather than Brit Insurance, considering the peptic ulcer that has probably formed over the last 4 years.

This win for a team comprised entirely of men held together by a combination of willpower and blutack will come as such a relief and delight for not just the players and staff but the supporters as well. There have been many struggles to get to this point, and some ugly cricket mixed in with some really decent play as well, but because there had only been the one win up to this point the good stuff tends to get swept under the carpet. There have been times in previous games where Surrey have had the upper hand and indeed played the better cricket, so it’s not as if they are as bad as the papers sometimes like to make out. Certainly, the tables don’t lie at the end of the day but at least they are off the bottom now, and who can say that they might not win a few more now they have that hunger to do well? If the T20 has done one good thing, its show the squad that they have the ability to potentially beat anyone. Well, anyone except Sussex, but then most teams are struggling against them at the moment.

In the midst of this jubilation, however, we should add a note of caution. Surrey are taking on Somerset at the Oval tomorrow. With Dernbach, Linley, Brown, Jordan, Wilson, Nel and possibly Batty looking more shook up than an Elvis impersonator, just who the heck is going to be fit to play?

Is it too late to send for Kenny Kennington?