By Jonty Ralphsmith
Dandenong is finally on the board in the 2022/23 Vic Premier Cricket season!
The Panthers won by two wickets with two balls to spare after taking 11 off left-armer Jackson Fry’s final over.
And who else but veteran Brett Forsyth to lead them to a win with a remarkable 20th career century?
The knock of 104 not out lifts Forsyth to the top of the VPC run-scoring table, with 279 at an average of 40 so far this season.
Casey South Melbourne batted first at home, with opener Luke Manders backing up his big century with a 77 that held the first part of the innings together, with Dandenong breaking through consistently at the other end.
Opening bowler Ben Allison did the most damage, claiming five scalps from his 10 overs, including that of Victoria representative Ash Chandrasinghe, and Manders later in the day.
Keeper Devin Pollock was busy at the crease once Manders was dismissed, his 39 off 38 getting the Swans up to a total of 9/200.
Forsyth received little assistance from the rest of the batting order – after his 53-run second-wicket partnership with Sahan Perera was broken – none of the other batters passing 20.
His strike rate of 73 was well in excess of the required four runs needed per over, and his side was able to take strike bowlers Fry and Ruwantha Kellapotha for better than that rate.
It was Nathan Lambden who stood up for Will Carr’s men, taking 4/27 off his 10 overs, including 3/13 off his final five overs to put pressure on the lower order to stick around.
Below is a recap of the final two overs, off which Dandenong required 17 runs to win with three wickets to win.
Over 48.1: Lambden to Sam Newell, two runs, lofted over cover to the outfield.
Over 48.2: Lambden to Newell, wicket. Banged in back of a length, Newell tries to ride it and lofts it to the man on the fence at deep backward square who makes no mistake.
Over 48.3: Lambden to Akshat Buch, one run, short again with enough width that allows Buch to lean back on it and play it to deep third man for a single.
Over 48.4: Lambden to Forsyth, one run. Full ball, Forsyth tries to clear his front leg and go over the rope but it catches the inside portion of the bat and trickles to mid-off for a single.
Over 48.5: Lambden to Buch, four runs. A bonus, pressure-relieving boundary for Dandenong. Full ball flicked into a vacant deep midwicket area between two outfielders on the legside.
Over 48.6: Lambden to Buch, dot ball. Buch backed away and tried to create width and bounce to go over the offside, but it was bowled straight enough that all he could do was swing and miss.
Over 50 – Nine runs to win.
Over 49.1: Fry to Forsyth, wide plus one run. Down the legside, Forsyth tried to glance it but it missed everything and the ‘keeper couldn’t take it cleanly, enabling them to scamper a single.
Over 49.1: Fry to Buch, one run. Full ball, lofted and falls just short of long on.
Over 49.2: Fry to Forsyth two runs. Fry gets too straight and Forsyth clips him into a gap in the deep at forward square leg.
Over 49.3: Fry to Forsyth two runs. Carbon copy to the previous ball, with again the outfielder needing to do legwork, and thus allowing the batters to come back for two. The shot brings up a century for Forsyth, warmly appreciated by his teammates.
Over 49.4: Fry to Forsyth four runs. The field had to come up to stop the single and Forsyth goes back and across in his crease to give him the same look as the previous two balls and he again flicks it through square leg, with the ball this time reaching the rope, giving the Panthers First XI their first win of 2022/23.
