Match Day 2

Today we headed to the Sheikh Zayed Cricket Ground in Abu Dhabi. The game was played on a neighbouring field. Having lost the toss and been sent into bat, Arman Khan and Jamie Percival put together a solid 110 - run opening stand aided by a plentiful supply of wides and no-balls. When Arman departed (43 off 44) due to an unfortunate run out, the captain John Oliver strode out. However, only 3 runs later, Percival had to go after a well fought 33 of 43. One of the younger members of the team, Ross Hegginbottom, then strolled out to produce a majestic 46 off 46 not out. After this performance, his tour average is a remarkable 59. However, for the time being, it was the John Oliver show: languid cover drives amalgamated with strong defensive shots. Although he had to depart to a brilliant catch after a beautifully played 25 off 32, he had set the perfect platform for Hegginbottom, Adam McMurray (10 off 11), Ruiaridh Russell (Strike Rate of 300!) and Callum Bell (20 off 12) to accelerate. Through Bell's powerful strokes and Hegginbottom's well judged shots, The Glasgow Academy mustered 230/5 runs in 35 overs. An interesting note was that running between the wickets had improved a lot from the last result. To say that The Glasgow Academy were in high spirits when fielding would be an understatement. Heads were held high and voices were raised. The opposition had been heard downplaying our school team and this boosted our morale immensely. And boy did it show in our opening overs. John Oliver and Arman Khan ripped the top order to shreds. Both bowlers put 110% effort into each ball and every fielder made a contribution with their voice. This set the tone for the 5 wicket haul Arman picked up, but also the aggression of our other bowlers. The wry comments continued from the opposition but we had set out to end the game early. With 5 wickets down, Greg MacMillan and Rick Mukhopadhyay kept the pressure on, and the latter picked up a wicket. Good bowling performances followed: Alastair Fry 3-0-17-0, Euan MacDonald 3-0-11-0 and Adam McMurray 2-0-10-2. In the end, Arman finished things off the game by dislodging the bails in fine fashion with a ferocious delivery to collect his fifth wicket. Notably, captain John Oliver not only picked up a wicket with an excellent spell of fast bowling, but led from the front by influencing a run out and bagging an absolute stunner of a catch. However, individual mentions were trumped by the immense pride and team spirit that The Glasgow Academy displayed today to bring the opposition down from the clouds and seal a victory by 83 runs. Now for the next game tomorrow!Read more