Himley thrash champs to claim first win of season
West Bromwich Dartmouth are still awaiting their first win since returning to Division One of the Birmingham League after defeat at home to Berkswell.
The Warwickshire side's winter recruit from Northamptonshire, Amrit Basra played a starring role in their six-wicket win at Dartmouth.
Basra grabbed a couple of wickets in support of paceman Josh Aspinall (3-28) as Dartmouth failed to develop on Ismail Mohammed’s 47 - as they were eventually bowled out for 215.
After tea, Basra lashed a 43-ball 75 to take the visitors most of the way to their target - despite a tight spell of 2-29 from Mohammed for the home side, Berkswell got there with 11 overs to spare.
Elsewhere, Smethwick made it two wins from two as Warwickshire’s Chris Benjamin smashed 165 to set up his new club's 151-run win at Barnards Green.
Benjamin struck 17 fours and seven sixes in his whirlwind 120-ball knock as they wracked up 405 for eight.
Facing a mountainous task, all of the hosts’ top six then got a start, but scoreboard pressure told, and none went beyond Kiwi opener Jakob Bhula’s 35 as Barnards were bowled out in the 46th over for 254.
Alexei Kervezee’s excellent unbeaten 85 steered Halesowen to a four-wicket home win over Wolverhampton.
With Will Jones grabbing 5-41, the visitors looked in control as Wes Griffiths’ team struggled to 139 for six in pursuit of 249 for eight.
However, Kervezee and James Rudge (57no) then took the game away from them in a fine unbroken seventh-wicket alliance worth 112.
Current Pears staffer Rehaan Edavalath’s 128-ball 98 had earlier provided the backbone of Wolves’ batting effort.
Himley got their season up and running with a nine-wicket victory at reigning champions Moseley.
They bowled their hosts out for 157 before chasing down them with more than 10 overs to spare and just one wicket down – Ollie Westbury made 71*.
In Division Two, Kidderminster captain Liam Weston grabbed the headlines with the performance of the day as his side thrashed Leamington.
After Spa opted to take first use, Weston destroyed their batting line-up in two devastating spells which returned 7-11 from eight impeccable overs.
As a result, the visitors were bundled out for 55 in the 23rd over and 14 overs later they were on their way back across the M42 following a seven-wicket defeat.
Old Hill left Binley Road with a 25-run success which owed much to a fine spell of bowling from Ryan Derrick who grabbed 6-45.
Although Akshay Patel top-scored with a 30-ball 42 this meant CNW were bowled out in the 42nd over for 189 in response to the visitors’ 214 for nine.
Earlier, Harris Ajaz took 4-30 for Coventry who reduced the Haden Hill-based visitors to 99 for six before Jahanzib Khan’s unbeaten 57 managed the tail to good effect.
