Cricket

Anyone who thinks Erik ten Hag has his work cut out reviving the fortunes of Manchester United should spare a thought for the new chairman of the England and Wales Cricket Board, Richard Thompson.

Nick Kimber says his swashbuckling innings of 84 off just 51 balls, which very nearly helped carry Surrey’s youngsters to victory over Warwickshire last weekend, typifies the message they have been given by head coach Gareth Batty and his staff to go out and express themselves.

Despite the loss of an early wicket, the visitors had 74 on the board at the end of the first ten-over powerplay. 

A Dulwich side containing four 17-year-olds made a valiant attempt to chase down a challenging target against Valley End, but in the end, had to settle for a winning draw.

The Oval outfit defied similar odds by reaching the semi-finals of the competition last summer, and there’s no sign of their production line drying up, with batter Ben Geddes, 20, and all-rounder Tom Lawes, 19, pictured top, the latest to catch the eye.

The left-arm spinner has played for the Surrey county age group sides and was part of the 2022 academy intake.

Dulwich could not sustain an impressive start in their AJ Fordham Surrey Championship Division 1 match at Spencer, going down to defeat by four wickets on Saturday.

Surrey are now odds on to win the County Championship, which makes me extremely uneasy because it suggests it’s theirs to lose.

Dulwich had the better of their clash between the bottom two teams in Division 1 of the Surrey Championship but for the third time in four weeks they were unable to separate the last pair and had to settle for a winning draw, writes John Lewis.

Wicketkeeper batter Josh Blake has signed his first professional contract with Surrey. The 23-year-old has been coaching for the Surrey Cricket Foundation (SCF) since 2018, working on their community programmes, and has been an important part in the delivery of Chance to Shine sessions in primary schools across the county.

Dulwich had to settle for a winning draw at Chipstead Coulsdon & Walcountians last weekend, writes John Lewis.