Bill Frindall Column
| JOBS AXED AT FIRM |  | | | HEAD BOWS OUT | | | | HE WILL BE MISSED | | | | CANCER GIRL'S HEADSHAVE | | | | ON AT THE CINEMA | | | | | | |
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Emirates Trophy report
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| Likely lads: The Fly Emirates and Lord's Taverners teams |
Although my previous visits to Dubai had progressed no further than the airport's transit lounge, I was prepared for a vast modern city, obscene heat and a default of sand. In fact temperatures never rose above the early 20s and the main feature of a vast building site was a ten-lane motorway of clogged traffic.
It was in Dubai's transit lounge that doyen broadcaster Brian Johnston had been approached by a fan. He greeted Johnners warmly: I know you, don't I? I never forget a face.'
You may have seen me before,' beamed Brian, reaching for his pen.
Yes, I know you alright,' confirmed the fan. You used to drive my bus in Watford!'
The Lord's Taverners' fund-raising visit began shortly after a year's supply of rain had descended on Dubai in two days. There being little rain in the desert, the planners had naturally excluded any road drainage system and the flooding had been quite spectacular.
With Sharjah's international ground unavailable, the two matches against a Fly Emirates XI were generously hosted by Dubai Aluminium on the only ground currently remaining in their emirate, six others having been recently demolished to make way for housing.
That deluge gave groundsman Bruno Pereira some major problems. Presented with a three-pitch block of damp, dark, grassless clay, he attacked this barren surface with a very heavy roller. For hours his staff rolled it, up and down as well as crosswise, to produce a fairly level but cracked and shiny crust over damp dark soil. Its negligible but uneven bounce gave an unfair advantage to dwarves and a major challenge to wicket-keepers.
Bowlers reigned supreme in the first game, which produced 10 maidens in 69.5 overs and just eight boundaries. The hosts' skipper, the left-handed Khuram Khan, is an established UAE all-rounder and his six-wicket haul restricted the visitors to a meagre total of 97 for 9. A comfortable home win seemed inevitable but they were halted by three successive Darren Maddy maidens before, at 70 for 5, Mike Gatting played his master card and introduced Devon Malcolm from the darker end under tentative floodlights. The Taverners played in black pyjamas and, unless he grinned, the ferocious Malcolm would have appeared virtually invisible to the facing batsman until the white ball left his hand - at considerable pace.
The drama ended with eight runs needed off the final over bowled by Andrew McGrath. Just two singles were squeezed from the first four balls before the last man perished attempting an heroic slog. The last five wickets had fallen for 18 runs in eight overs and the Tavs had regained the Emirates Trophy, albeit for just two days.
Earlier their cuboid captain had held a stunning low catch as he shuddered to the ground at short mid-wicket. The vast depression caused by his fall has been named Gatting's Hollow.
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| Pitchside: The view from Bill Frindall's commentary position |
The second match was staged two days later, after a fund-raising dinner had raised over £34,000, mainly the result of serious berating and bullying by auctioneer Chris Tarrant.
The hosts again chose to bat but in much easier conditions. An earlier start and a reduced lunch interval had dispelled the need for floodlights, while the dark clay had dried into a slightly bouncier and quicker surface. John Batty and Darren Maddy shared an opening stand of 58 in 18.2 overs to provide McGrath with a base for a splendid 45-ball innings of 51 that included three sixes and four fours.
An above-par total of 154 seemed insurmountable when James Kirtley and Malcolm, who rattled the timbers twice in three balls, reduced the Emirates to 20 for 4. A stunning right-handed tumbling catch by Chris Adams appeared to have clinched matters but, in limited-overs cricket, it takes only one major partnership to turn a match and the two unrelated Fernandes virtually decided the match, and regained the Silver Dhow Trophy, with a seventh-wicket stand of 71. The diminutive Saby deservedly won the Dwarf of the Tournament award for his two innings of 30 and 58, while the left-handed Nigel ended the contest with a handsome cover drive.
It was good to see Andrew Caddick sharing the umpiring duties with John Price after undergoing five hours of surgery on his back earlier in the month.
The Fly Emirates XI certainly earned their victory and it should have ensured that their generous employers will invite us back next year. They now lead the results table 8-3 and both teams will be eager to resume battle at Windsor on 15 June.
10:00am Thursday 24th January 2008
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