Got a phone call from a distressed Captain.
‘We’re several short, know anyone who wants a game?
I’ve been getting calls like this since I was sixteen. Midweek cricket attracts diehards, jazz hats, overseas pros, students, get out the office men. Diehards play for anyone, anywhere and anytime. Jazzhats are a bit more selective; choice grounds and the right sort; their sort of people. Overseas pros are often charmless Aussies roped in from club x for the day. Students and colts tend to do all the running around. Get out the office men take a few days a year off to play mid week. Many sadly bring the office with them. Mobile phones buzz throughout the day.
Arrived at Reigate in good time. There are a couple of lithe, muscular West Indians inspecting the wicket. Great they must be playing for us. Our ringers for the day but they weren’t. They came from Birmingham to play for Reigate. We learned that one of them plays for Windward Islands.
He opened the batting and smashed the first ball to Trinidad . A brutal, violent , and continous assault on a cricket ball followed. His bat bloodied and bruised the Windward man played one shot too many- he’d played about 1000- and holed out. Calm resumed. They scored at 4 per over rather than 9 when the ringer got out.
They scored 260 odd. We made a steady start. Our captain kept the batting line up fluid. It’s always a tense moment waiting to find out what number you are. Come in below six and you grumble.
It all depends if captain on the day knows you and likes you. I am told to bat five but I spent an hour grumbling at not batting in the top four. I got a 3 ball duck. I shuffled back to pavilion to find a friend Jo, who I asked to film my innings shaking with laughter.