Macc end losing run with hard-fought win

WEEK 6 saw Macclesfield 1st team welcome newly-promoted Maritime to Victoria Road.

- SIMON GRIFFITHS

Home captain Jack Massey won the toss and asked the visitors to bat, a decision immediately justified when, second ball, Karunarathe drove Miles Bradshaw to the skipper who was positioned at short extra cover.

The batsmen were finding it difficult to score against the tight bowling of Bradshaw and Brad Porter but at the same time Macclesfield could not find the breakthrough. In the 12th over Massey brought Fin Nash on to replace Porter and had an immediate success when, with his fourth ball, he bowled Sinhage for 16.

The score was on 29 and one run later Bradshaw dismissed Sajith De Silva for a five-ball duck caught, after a bit of juggling, by Andrew Poppa in the slips.

Maritime lost another wicket without scoring to slump to 30-4, thanks this time to another clean bowled by Nash with Maritime skipper Jayawardan the victim.

Losing three wickets in 10 balls required Maritime to regroup but this effort was cut short when Kankanange drove hard at Bradshaw only for the edge to find Joe Moores, leaving the visitors on 43-5.