Scorecard

Watford Town CC 3rd XI v Northwood Town Cricket Club Saturday 2nd XI on Sat 27 Jun 2026 at 13:00
Northwood Town Cricket Club Won by 2 wickets

Match report Northwood Town Cricket Club Saturday 2nd XI won by 2 wickets

Northwood Town’s Saturday 2nd XI produced a brilliant team performance to beat Watford Town CC 3rd XI by 2 wickets in a tense, high-scoring game played in hot sunny conditions. Chasing 216, Northwood had to work hard all the way through, but a superb unbeaten innings from Mitesh Pondha guided the side home in style.

It was the kind of chase that needed calm, patience and proper match awareness and Mitesh delivered all three.

Watford Town CC 3rd XI innings - 215 for 8 from 40 overs

Watford batted first and posted a competitive 215 for 8 from their 40 overs. Their innings was built around several useful contributions, with Sajjad Bhatti top-scoring with an unbeaten 51 from 46 balls, while Paresh Sorathia made 41, Rupesh Nagarkar added 34, and Rajiv Shrungarpure chipped in with 29.

Northwood had to stay patient with the ball, and they did well to keep taking wickets at key moments. Krunal Puwar was the pick of the bowlers, finishing with 2 for 43 from 8 overs. He also made a big impact in the field, being involved in two run outs, which helped stop Watford from getting completely away.

Vishal Barad bowled a very tidy spell, taking 1 for 13 from 4 overs, including a maiden, while Viral Patel was excellent again with 1 for 19 from 7 overs, going at just 2.71 an over. Jay Patel also picked up 1 for 39, and Stanley Babukutty took 1 for 25.

There was also sharp fielding from Northwood. Bijendra Vaghela took two catches, while Tushar Shah and Jeet Rajani also held catches as Northwood kept Watford to a total that was challenging but still chaseable.

Northwood Town innings - 216 for 8

Chasing 216 on a hot day was never going to be simple, and Northwood needed someone to bat deep. After Pradip Pandey fell early for 5, Bijendra Vaghela played a positive hand with 22 from 19 balls, including two fours and a six. Jay Patel then added real momentum with a brisk 23 from 20 balls, striking four boundaries.

Northwood were scoring at a healthy rate, but wickets kept falling. At that stage, the chase needed someone to take responsibility, and Mitesh Pondha did exactly that.

Mitesh played a superb match-winning innings of 65 not out from 77 balls, with eight boundaries. It was not just the runs, but the way he got them. He controlled the chase, absorbed pressure when wickets fell, and picked the right moments to attack. In hot, tiring conditions, he stayed composed and made sure Northwood always had a route back into the game.

Around him, there were important supporting contributions. Vishal Barad made 14, Jaymin Patel added a useful 16, and Krunal Puwar battled for 11. Even when Watford kept picking up wickets, Mitesh refused to let the game slip away.

At the end, with pressure rising and wickets running out, Jeet Rajani stayed calm with 1 not out, while Mitesh completed the job and carried Northwood to 216 for 8.

Man of the Match - Mitesh Pondha

No debate here. Mitesh Pondha was the difference.

His unbeaten 65 was a proper match-winning innings. On a hot sunny day, in a chase of 216, with wickets falling around him, he showed excellent temperament, fitness and control. He did not just score runs, he managed the innings, kept belief in the dressing room, and took Northwood home.

That is exactly what you want from a senior batter in a pressure chase.

Final word

This was a fantastic win for Northwood Town 2nd XI. Watford put up a strong total, but Northwood stuck at it with the ball, stayed sharp in the field, and then chased with character.

Krunal Puwar made a big impact with wickets and run outs, Vishal Barad and Viral Patel bowled excellent economical spells, and the batting unit gave Mitesh enough support to keep the chase alive.

But the day belonged to Mitesh Pondha. A calm, unbeaten 65, a proper chase, and a well-deserved Man of the Match performance.

Northwood win by 2 wickets, hard-earned, well-managed, and very satisfying.

Watford Town CC 3rd XI Batting
Player name RunsMB4s6sSR
extras
TOTAL :
2nb 22w 1b 2lb 
for 8 wickets
27
215 (40.0 overs)		     
Rupesh Nagarkar ct  B Vaghela b S Babukutty 34 35 5 1 97.14
Paresh Sorathia ct  T Shah b K Puwar 41 71 5 57.75
Ahtsham Hussain ct  J Rajani b J Patel 9 19 2 47.37
Rajiv Shrungarpure b  K Puwar 29 30 3 1 96.67
Tauseef Jan b  V Patel 4 15 26.67
Sajjad Bhatti Not Out  51 46 6 110.87
Adbullah Wasim run out  (K Puwar) 9 18 50.0
Javed Rajpurkar run out  (K Puwar) 11 7 1 157.14
Muhammad Yaqoob ct  B Vaghela b V Barad 0 1 0
Mohammed Ziad Desai  
Tim Constable  

Northwood Town Cricket Club Saturday 2nd XI Bowling

Player NameOversMaidensRunsWicketsAverageEconomy
Jeet Rajani6.005000.008.33
Vishal Barad4.0113113.003.25
Stanley Babukutty4.0025125.006.25
Jay Patel8.0039139.004.88
Viral Patel7.0019119.002.71
Krunal Puwar8.0043221.505.37
Pradip Pandey3.002300.007.67

Northwood Town Cricket Club Saturday 2nd XI Batting
Player Name RMB4s6sSRCatchesStumpingsRun outs
extras
TOTAL :
6nb 39w 5b 3lb 
for 8 wickets
53
216		        
Pradip Pandey ct  M Yaqoob b M Yaqoob 5 9 1 55.56
Bijendra Vaghela ct  M Ziad Desai b M Yaqoob 22 19 2 1 115.79 2
Jay Patel b  J Rajpurkar 23 20 4 115.00
Mitesh Pondha Not Out  65 77 8 84.42
Vishal Barad ct  T Jan b S Bhatti 14 19 1 73.68
Jaymin Patel ct  Unsure b S Bhatti 16 17 3 94.12
Tushar Shah b  R Nagarkar 0 3 0 1
Krunal Puwar ct  T Jan b S Bhatti 11 27 1 40.74
Stanley Babukutty ct  Unsure b J Rajpurkar 6 25 1 24.00
Jeet Rajani Not Out  1 4 25.00 1
Viral Patel  

Watford Town CC 3rd XI Bowling

Player nameOversMaidensRunsWicketsAverageEconomy
Mohammed Ziad Desai5.003800.007.60
Muhammad Yaqoob8.0032216.004.00
Tim Constable2.402600.009.75
Javed Rajpurkar8.0044222.005.50
Sajjad Bhatti8.0138312.674.75
Rupesh Nagarkar3.0027127.009.00
Rajiv Shrungarpure1.00300.003.00