There was a run-feast at Gymkhana as Chanchai made an unbeaten 65 to help United to recover to 177 for 8 in 30 overs but this wasn’t quite enough as Chris Coombes made 97 from just 78 balls to take Lanna to the brink of victory. He just missed out on becoming the second batsman to reach a century for the club but his team-mates only need to find seven more runs to achieve a memorable victory by seven wickets.
United CC haven’t yet won a match this season but they are still keen to take part in the Gymkhana friendlies but it looked like they would have another miserable afternoon as they collapsed to 55 for 7 with Adam Green proving almost unplayable with the new ball as he took 4 for 20. Left-armers Jun and Hugh Williams backed him up well and Chairman Tom took a wicket with his second ball so that seven wickets had fallen in the first 14 overs.
The juniors had been playing a practice match in the morning and three of them were given the chance to play for United and it was a good job that one of them was Chanchai who is in the batting form of his life. He had scored a very capable 45 when opening the batting against United the previous week and there was still plenty of time for him to bat when he came in at number seven.
He found a good partner in Sameer who made 36 from 25 balls as they added 70 for the eighth wicket and Cher came in at number ten to give him more support. Chanchai was given out lbw on 49 before being recalled which showed that cricket was being played in the right spirit and he and Cher put on 52 for the ninth wicket in the last seven overs.
The innings had been transformed and Chanchai was now looking an outstanding young cricketer. Lanna’s players were wondering why he had been so generously been given to the opposition and the answer was to make for a better contest and for Chris Coombes to have the chance to rediscover his best form.
It was only two years ago that he had been the leading run-scorer in the Chiang Mai Senior League when playing for Floggers and Robbers but he had not scored many runs in recent months and some harsh critics were beginning to wonder whether his best days were behind him.
Coombes had begun to find his feet when playing on a featherbed at RSBC in Bangkok and then had batted well for Lanna B against United when batting alongside his son Max. He was at the crease early when Richard Cowles was run out as he discovered that Sufi was not much better at calling than his father Wani.
It was good to see Sufi who has been at school in Delhi and he has certainly grown bigger and stronger with the same correct style with some nice shots and he made 30 before he was caught behind to leave the score on 76 for 2.
Adrian Ballantyne has only been playing cricket regularly for less than a year since buying a bat in Cornwall and his style may not be quite as polished as some but he is now scoring plenty of runs and he did well to rotate the strike and keep Lanna up with the run rate.
Coombsy, meanwhile, was trying out some shots he thought he had forgotten, as the ball frequently disappeared over the leg-side field and when one of his three sixes disappeared over the Match Box it looked like he would score a brilliant century.
He was not content to go through the nervous nineties by pushing singles and he almost cleared long on to reach that special landmark in style but he didn’t quite reach the boundary and the fielder didn’t quite catch the ball. Trying again he was bowled by Chanchai with his score on 97 from 78 balls with 3 sixes and 11 fours.
Adrian Ballantyne had helped him add 94 for the third wicket and the adopted Cornishman was proud as punch as punch to make his highest score and to see Lanna home to victory. Almost as proud as when he had showed off his new daughter who was born on the previous Wednesday.
United had just missed out on their first victory of the season but Gymkhana Club was a happy place as Coombesy reflected on his fine innings and Adrian tried to think of an appropriate name for his young daughter.