Livingston 2s were invited to bat on what looked an excellent surface at Dresselrigg on Saturday in their Division 6 clash with Drummond Trinity.
After the early loss of Gary Mill, Kashif Khalid was supported by Anil Kumar (11) and Suresh Balasubramanian (25) in taking the score to 94-2 after 20 overs. Kashif was eventually trapped LBW on 98, a disappointing end to a splendid innings that contained an impressive array of shots. More quick runs were added by Sujith Matthew (15) with Neil and Jack Jarvis further increasing the rate by adding 46 in the last 5 overs, Jack finishing on 14* and Neil 60*. 246-6 was comfortably the teams highest score this year and it was refreshing to see so many contributions being made to the total.
The quality of the pitch soon became apparent however as Drummond Trinity raced to 96-0 after 20 overs, helped by some wayward bowling from the local seamers. The introduction of Jack Jarvis helped slow the scoring and this pressure led to Neil making the breakthrough at 157 dismissing ex Livingston stalwart Steve Coulson for 43. When Keith Mullins was brilliantly run out for 86 by Suresh, scoreboard pressure began to tell on the visitors. Wickets fell regularly as the Livingston attack found their form and the visitors ended 26 runs short on 220-8. Neil Jarvis finished with 3-31 and Kashif Khalid 2-44. Gordon Young provided excellent support with a staunch wicket keeping performance.
A game played in good spirit on a perfect day with the pitch a credit to curator Jim Wilson and his staff.
This second win in a row sees Livingston 2s move up to 7th in the League with a challenging visit to high flying Melrose scheduled next Saturday.