Back

SUNDAY, JULY 27

DEVON'S inability to hit boundaries cost them the chance of claiming an international scalp when they faced Kenya at Exmouth.

   Kenya, on a warm-up tour of England prior to playing in an ICC Twenty20 tournament in Ireland, were bowled out for 195 in the 48 th of their 50 overs.

   Devon were all-out 11 runs short of victory with one ball to go – opener Rob Holman top scoring with 72.

   When Holman got out with 10 overs to go the target was 51 to win with five wickets in hand and a Devon win was still possible.

   But Devon struggled to hit the Kenyan spinners past the inner ring of fielders – in the last 22 overs they only hit four boundaries – and the tail had too much to do and not enough time to do it.

   Three of the last four Devon men to go were run-out trying to scrape an extra run here and there, although when Usman Malvi was last out the game was up anyway.

   Kenya, who were put in by Devon captain Bob Dawson, lost their opener David Obuya for nine when an improvised shot on the walk cost him his leg stump – the first of four scalps for Tom Allin,

    Alex Auma plunged forward to the next ball and was bowled by Allin, leaving skipper Steve Tikolo to play back a hat-trick ball.

   Tickolo and Kennedy Obuya, who opened with brother David, advanced the score to 41 when both fell one after the other – Obuya caught at cover off Usman Malvi; Tikolo for 21 coming out to drive Allin.

   Collins   Obuya, who replaced brother Kennedy, stabilised Kenya with a tidy 53. His stand of 73 with Ragheb Aga (42) held the middle order together.

   James Hudson got Aga first then Collins Obuya, who got out swinging wildly outside off-stump and was caught at third-man.

   Rakep Patel (21) was the next best before Allin (4-32) winkled him out.

   Exeter left-hander Holman batted for 40 of Devon's 50 overs   and made a 76-run dent in the target during a stand with clubmate Marshall Hood.

   Having been 64 for two after 13 overs – Bob Dawson and Neil Bettis the men out – Devon slowed dramatically against spinners James Kamande, Tikolo and Hiren Varaiya.

   Left-armer Varaiya accounted for Hood lbw at 106 for three and at 127 Seb Benton was run out by a direct hit – a taste of things to come as it happened.

   Holman tried to raise the tempo by going after Aga when the pacers came back on and picked out the fielder at long-on. When he went Holman had hit the only boundary scored in the preceding 13 overs.

   After Holman went Devon could not keep up with the clock and lost wickets trying. Hudson was run out off a no-ball, which was a testimony to the sharpness of Kenya's fielding as much as anything else.

   Injuries have forced Devon to make two late changes to their originally selected side.

   Paignton's Kobus Pienaar due to injury. Budleigh Salterton's Rob Newman comes in.

   Sidmouth's Neil Hancock was due to captain the side in the absence of Dawson due to work commitments. However, a knee injury has forced him to drop out. Hudson will captain the side with Allin coming in as the replacement player.

   Kenya 195 (C O Obuya 53, R G Aga 42; T W Allin 4-32), Devon 185 (R J Holman 72, M S Hood 33; R P Patel 2-11, H A Varaiya 2-32).   Kenya bt Devon by 10 runs.