Surrey Championship

Division Five

Thames Ditton 194-8

Stoke D'Abernon 62-2

EIGHTEEN-YEAR-OLD Will Frost took his 100th career wicket but Stoke D'Abernon were frustrated by Thames Ditton tail-end resistance and a second innings downpour, as stumps were drawn after 14 overs of the Stoke reply to leave both sides with just a solitary point for their efforts.

Stoke skipper Andy Page won the toss and Tim Handel made an early breakthrough when opposing skipper Olly Turnbull fell to a stunning diving catch in the gully by Hiken Shah.

Handel and Shah made a normally fluent Thames Ditton batting line-up work hard for their runs, and Handel struck again when O'Mahoney was bowled for 25 with the score on 46.

This brought former West Indian captain Richie Richardson to the crease, but it was a short stay when he spooned a return catch to first change Ralph Coleman for just a single.

With Turnbull and Richardson back in the pavilion for a combined total of three, Stoke sensed their opportunity and began to chip away at the middle and lower order.

Siddhartha Lahiri claimed the wickets of Jupp for 37 and Hicks for 10, the latter falling to a great catch at short leg by Will Gudgeon. Then Will Frost joined the attack and removed Coutouvidis for two and Pemberton for a single.

The wicket of Coutouvidis, who skied to James Whitmarsh in the covers, was Frost's 100th career Stoke wicket.

Lahiri took a third scalp when Mason was bowled for a cleanly hit 43 and Stoke were in the ascendancy with the scoreboard showing 130-8.

However, for the second week running a lower order partnership extended Stoke's stay in the field. Morgan and former Stoke man Rajiv Singh hit 37 not out and 30 not out respectively to post an unbeaten stand of 64 for the ninth wicket, allowing Turnbull the unexpected luxury of a 54.5 over declaration.

Lahiri finished with a season's best 3-54 from 15 overs.

After tea Stoke openers Lahiri and Gavin Gresse took strike in the gathering gloom, but were separated with the score on 11 when a leg-before shout from Richardson against Lahiri was upheld. Lahiri did not return to the pavilion alone, however, as the fielders and umpires joined him as the first shower hit the ground.

After the rain ceased, Thames Ditton made a second breakthrough when Handel edged a drive to O'Mahoney behind the stumps off the bowling of Raj without troubling the scorer, but Shah (30no) and Gresse (27no) were soon in full flow, adding an unbroken partnership of 50 to get the run chase going.

With the playing conditions specifying that 20 overs of the second innings were needed to constitute a match, the last thing either side wanted was another shower, but the heavens opened again after 14 overs with 62 on the board.

After much staring at the skies, the captains were forced to concede that the conditions were not going to improve, and they shook hands on a "no result" which was scant consolation for their afternoon's work.

Saturday sees Stoke travel to Croydon MO as the league returns to the 50-over format for the last five matches of the season.