Newman propels Surrey to 24 run win
Published 19 August 2007
A brutal 62 from 33 balls from Scott Newman propelled Surrey to a 24 run win on Duckworth-Lewis over Derbyshire, giving them their first win of the NatWest Pro40 competition.
Chasing 228 to win from an already rain reduced match of 35 overs per side, Newman blasted the Derbyshire attack to all parts, giving the Brown Caps the start they so desperately wanted.
It didn’t matter that James Benning (35*) found the going tough in the early overs because his partner was in the sort of mood that opposition captain’s dread. The 27 year old left-hander, reaching his fifty from just 28 balls, which included seven firmly struck fours and three sixes, which included a slash over backward point.
He helped Surrey reach 96 in the tenth over but was eventually out caught when he mistimed a drive off the bowling of Greg Smith.
Shortly after his departure, Stewart Walters was also dismissed but the new batsman, Mark Ramprakash (1*) was only able to face nine deliveries before rain took the players from the field with the score at 102-2.
With no further play possible because of the light drizzle and bad light, it meant Surrey emerged victorious due to their 24 run lead on the Duckworth-Lewis par score of 78 after 13 overs.
Earlier in the day, when play finally got underway an hour later than scheduled, stand in captain Ramprakash won the toss and elected to bowl in dark and gloomy conditions at the Brit Oval.
Mohammad Akram and Chris Jordan bowled well early on but there was little they could do to prevent the flow of runs at each end, with the Derbyshire openers, Phil Weston and Michael Dighton taking full advantage of the shorter boundary on one side of the wicket and the ring field.
Weston in particular was very hard to stop and he made his way to a brisk half-century but was eventually reigned in by James Ormond who had him caught at backward point by James Benning for 72.
Smith (47) kept the runs flowing for the visitors but they were pegged back by Surrey overseas player, Harbhajan Singh who mixed up his deliveries well, to keep the Derbyshire batsmen guessing. The Indian Test player, finishing with the economical figures of 2-34 from seven overs.
Play came to a halt in the Surrey innings 13 overs in when the rain got too heavy to carry on at around 6pm and from that point on conditions never improved. Play was eventually called off at 6.45pm.
See highlights of today's match at Surrey TV.
Surrey’s next match begins this Tuesday against Sussex in the LV County Championship at the Brit Oval. Play begins at 11am. Tickets will be available from the turnstiles for just £12 adults and £6 Under 16’s.
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