STEVE BIRLEY REPORTING

MATCH night one of the four-team Covid Cup competition, organised by Bradninch CC, served up two very different games.

Exmouth travelled to Cullompton where the game saw 479 runs scored for the loss of 12 wickets with the Maer men taking the match by a margin of 49 runs.

At Bradninch there were just 213 runs scored for the loss of 19 wickets!

Exmouth batted first at Cullompton and the game was treated to an explosive innings from Louis Morison, who plundered 146 runs from just 63 balls, hitting 13 fours and 13 sixes. Tim Piper was also amongst the runs, hitting 57 from just 28 balls with five fours and four sixes as the Maer men closed on a whopping 264-6.

The home side used eight different bowlers, three of them, James Vincent, Adrian Pullin and Tom Mortiboys seeing their collective three overs go for 61 runs! Jason Parr was the most economic of the Cully bowlers - his four overs went for 38!

Brendon Parr then slammed a 58-ball 101 with 10 fours and four sixes and Tom Mortiboys weighed in with a 23-ball, eight-boundary 51 as Cully closed on 215-6.

Thorverton were 35-run winners at Bradninch. Batting first, the Thors were bowled out for 124 in 18.1 overs. Opener Alistair Chilcott top scored with 38, but the star of the show for the home side was undoubtedly seamer Ankit Badwal who, as third change, claimed five wickets for just five runs as the Thors slipped from 107-4 to 124 all out.

Bradninch lost their first two wickets to Ben Slaviero before 10 runs were on the board and the home side’s top contribution with the bat was the 24 from Leon Horn. 

The only other double figure scores for Bradninch were a knock of 10 from Will Greig and an unbeaten 14 from number 10 bat Badwall as the reply closed on 89-9. 

Slaviero finished with 3-13 from three overs, spinner Alex Jopling claimed figures of 3-10 from four overs while Jake Choules sent down his four overs, conceding just nine runs.