Cricket: Painful batting puts crowd to sleep

By TERRY MADDAFORD

HAMILTON - The more charitable among the sparse crowd might have pointed to the return to first-class mode as the reason for the Central Districts batsmen meandering through 90 overs to reach 187 for five against Northern Districts yesterday.

Others were not quite so agreeable after watching the visitors struggle to get to within 100 of the 289 they need for first-innings points in their Shell Trophy opener.

But the disappointment was not just with Central's steady-as-she-goes approach.

Northern Districts produced their own form of hara kiri on the first day when they slumped from 173 for three to 244 for nine, before Joseph Yovich and debutant Bruce Martin added 44 for the last wicket. Martin smacked two fours and a six on his way to 23 - 13 more than the four above him in the batting order managed.

With only a modest target, Central were expected to chase hard and get close by the end of play.

They lost early momentum when newcomer Joseph Hill went for three.

But with Mathew Sinclair joining David Kelly the anticipation rose. Sinclair, after giving half a caught and bowled chance, was all class in reaching 29. But two balls after lunch he was gone - trapped lbw by the impressive Daryl Tuffey, who took one for four off his first spell of six overs, then one for three of his second spell of five.

Kelly and Glen Sulzberger attempted to bring it around, adding 56 before Kelly, only two fours in his 185-minute stay, fell.

Sulzberger battled to 50 in 170 minutes, falling eventually to a Mark Bailey catch at second slip off Alex Tait for 76 after a patient 222-minute stay.

Determined to get the run-rate up to something close to two runs an over, captain Jacob Oram took to Grant Bradburn in his 12th (and last) over, hitting four fours. He continued to ride his luck when he was dropped at third slip by Yovich, off Tait, in the next over and was still there at stumps on 29.

Tuffey, two for 24 from 18 overs, was the linchpin of the Northern attack. Bradburn, whose first 11 overs cost just 21 runs, Martin with one for 40 from 25 and Yovich, one for 30 from 15, also made useful contributions.

The pressure will be on Central this morning to kick on for a really big score or get out and have a go at dismissing the home side cheaply in their second innings and attempt to win it from there.