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Bookham Cricket Club, Dorking Road, Great Bookham (2026)

04/06/2026

🏏 NEW PLAYERS WELCOME – JOIN BOOKHAM CRICKET CLUB FOR 2026! 🏏

Looking for friendly village cricket in Surrey?

Bookham Cricket Club is always keen to welcome new players for the 2026 season. Whether you’re an experienced cricketer, returning to the game after a break, or completely new to cricket, we’d love to hear from you.

We play Sunday cricket, with a mixture of:
🏆 Village Cricket League fixtures
🤝 Friendly matches against local clubs

Why join Bookham CC?

✅ Friendly, welcoming atmosphere
✅ Beautiful village ground in Great Bookham
✅ Competitive league cricket and relaxed friendlies
✅ Players of all ages and abilities welcome
✅ Strong social side and family club environment

Cricket is about more than just what happens on the pitch – it’s about great people, good company and enjoying summer Sundays with teammates and friends.

📍 Chrystie Recreation Ground, Great Bookham

Interested in playing?

📩 Send us a Facebook message or email [email protected] and we’ll be happy to tell you more.

17/05/2026

🌤️ ASHTEAD CC v BOOKHAM CC – Friendly Double Header Disasterclass

📍 Ashtead Cricket Club
📆 17 May 2026

🏏 Match 1: Bookham CC 44 all out (19.1 overs)
💀 Result: Ashtead won by concession

🏏 Match 2 (T20): Ashtead CC 168-4 (20 overs)
🏏 Bookham CC 88-9 (20 overs)
💀 Result: Ashtead won by 80 runs

🧢 Captain: Danyal Shoaib

⸻

A beautiful setting.
Broken sunshine.
A slight chill in the air.
Rain forecast later in the day.

And only six Bookham players available at the scheduled start time.

So already things were progressing entirely as expected.

The batting order quickly became less:

“What gives us the best chance of success?”

and more:

“Who has actually arrived and owns batting pads?”

⸻

🏏 Match One – The Collapse

Bookham won the toss and elected to bat.

That was probably the last thing that went according to plan.

What followed was not so much an innings as a live demonstration of:

* poor shot selection
* panic
* impatience
* and several players apparently trying to finish the match before the rain arrived three hours later.

To be fair to Ashtead:

* they bowled straight
* fielded sharply
* and did all the basic things properly.

But this was far more about Bookham self-destructing than world-class opposition cricket.

The scorecard became increasingly horrifying:
📉 3-1
📉 5-2
📉 5-3

At one stage there were genuine concerns the innings might finish before everyone had fully unpacked their kit bags.

Chairman Reubin “Nasir” Iqbal top scored with 11, which says quite a lot considering this was the same man who scored 7 off 42 the previous week while announcing:

“I’m going to be aggressive today.”

The real batting star once again though?

🥇 Extras – 17

At this stage extras are carrying the batting lineup harder than some actual batters.

One or two wickets could perhaps be blamed on good deliveries. But repeatedly attempting expansive shots at 5-3 when the ball was clearly doing a little bit? That isn’t positive cricket — it’s donating wickets.

Eventually Bookham staggered to 44 all out.

Yes.
Forty-four.

So bad, in fact, that when the final wicket fell, the game was immediately conceded without Ashtead even needing to come out to bat.

The only clear positive from the innings?

☕ The tea was excellent.

⸻

🤔 Honest Reflection

There’s banter… and then there’s reality.

This innings genuinely required some self-reflection.

Bookham have enough talent in this squad to compete strongly this year. But talent without application means very little.

Too many players seemed to arrive with a T20 mindset in a 40-over game:

* forcing shots too early
* refusing to settle
* not adapting to conditions
* and showing very little awareness of the match situation.

At 5-3, somebody has to bat properly.
Instead, wickets continued to be gifted away.

There’s attacking cricket… and then there’s cricket with absolutely no risk assessment whatsoever.

The difference between the two is usually visible on the scoreboard.

⸻

🏏 Match Two – The Slightly Less Embarrassing One

Thankfully both sides agreed to start a T20 immediately afterwards so everyone could pretend the first match hadn’t happened.

Sadly, the fielding ensured nobody forgot.

Ashtead came out aggressively and quickly realised that Bookham were in generous mood again:

* catches went down
* ones became twos
* twos became fours
* and simple stops occasionally became scenic boundary chases.

At one stage every ball in the air felt less like a catching chance and more like a group debate about whose responsibility it was.

The bowlers deserved far better than they received.

Dependable Shazy, Sajid Jafri and Haider Abbasi all picked up wickets through spells that required considerably more patience than the fielders were offering them.

It was also great to see Sri Ram back in Bookham colours after a two-year absence, while Soman Hikmat, who recently moved to Bookham, made his debut for the club. Both showed promising signs with the ball and produced some genuinely good deliveries — although perhaps this was not quite the welcoming introduction either would have hoped for!

The final wicket at least provided a rare sharp moment in the field with skipper Danyal running out Culhane off the last ball of the innings.

Ashtead finished on 168-4 — a strong total, but one heavily boosted by dropped chances and untidy fielding.

⸻

🏏 The Chase

Bookham’s reply at least lasted the full 20 overs.

Which, considering the day so far, genuinely counted as progress.

The innings once again featured:

* regular wickets
* questionable shot selection
* and Extras making a serious push for player of the match.

But one man had clearly learnt from the earlier disaster.

👏 Asim Haider top scored superbly with 35 from 36 balls, showing calmness, discipline and actual innings management — a concept several teammates appeared unfamiliar with.

The only other player to reach double figures?

👉 Asim Iqbal with exactly 10.

The frustrating thing was that the same mistakes kept reappearing:

* trying to force boundaries too early
* poor awareness of required rate vs wickets remaining
* and an inability to simply build partnerships.

At times it felt like every batter believed they personally needed to score 80 in three overs.

Bookham eventually closed on 88-9.

Not good.
But technically double the first innings total.

Progress comes in many forms.

⸻

🤕 Tom Foan’s Hit Wicket

And then came perhaps the defining image of the weekend.

Tom Foan attempted an ambitious attacking shot toward the boundary, slipped dramatically, and crashed backwards into his own stumps:

👉 Hit wicket.

Painful. Unfortunate. Symbolic.

Honestly, if someone had scripted Bookham’s weekend as a comedy sketch, even they may have removed that scene for being unrealistic.

Hopefully Tom is recovering well — the landing looked significantly worse than the scorecard.

⸻

📉 Final Thoughts

There’s no point dressing this one up.

This was a poor weekend for Bookham.

Too many soft dismissals.
Too many dropped chances.
Too many moments where we failed to adapt to the situation in front of us.

But cricket seasons are never defined by one bad weekend.

The important thing now is how the side responds.

There is clearly enough talent in this squad:

* strong bowlers
* dangerous batters
* experienced heads
* and young players continuing to improve every week.

What’s needed is:

* more discipline
* more awareness
* smarter cricket
* and trusting that innings and partnerships don’t need to be won in the first three overs.

The positives?

* Asim Haider showed exactly how to build an innings properly
* The bowlers still battled hard despite difficult circumstances
* New and returning players integrated well despite the chaos
* And despite everything… the team spirit remained intact.

Sometimes bad days are the ones that sharpen focus the most.

The good thing about cricket is that next Sunday brings:
👉 a new opposition
👉 a new ground
👉 and another opportunity to put things right.

This weekend will be forgotten quickly if Bookham respond properly next week.

Heads up, lessons learnt, and on to Ewhurst.

⸻

🔜 Next Up

📍 Ewhurst CC (Away)
📲 ClubWiz invites already sent — please respond ASAP.

Let’s reset, regroup and bounce back properly 💪🏏

⸻

11/05/2026

☀️ WESTFIELD SAINTS CC v BOOKHAM CC – VCL

📍 Greenmeads
📆 10 May 2026
🏏 Westfield Saints: 193-7 (42 overs)
🏏 Bookham CC: 176-8 (43 overs)
🤝 Result: Match Drawn
🧢 Captain: Danyal Shoaib

⸻

Second game of the season and another away trip for Bookham, this time to Westfield Saints — the very same side that smashed 302 against us last year at Bookham… and somehow still didn’t beat us.

Encouraging signs already for 2026:

* two games played
* two tosses lost
* captain in mid-season form already

Bookham were inserted into the field once again.

⸻

🏏 First Innings

Westfield opener Ramsay started like he had dinner reservations elsewhere, smashing:

* two 4s
* one 6
* and generally trying to end the game inside the powerplay.

But young Zakaria “Zaki” Iqbal stopped the early carnage with a breakthrough well taken by Loqman Ahmad.

Soon after, dependable Shazy produced another one of his trademark LBWs.
This one was so plumb that even Shazy’s appeal was only medium volume by his standards.

Westfield then settled into useful partnerships and looked set for a large score until Sajid Jafri (formerly known as Sajjad Ali until scorer confusion forced a rebrand) applied the brakes superbly.

Saj had to be the pick of the bowlers:
🎯 2 wickets
💰 Economy of 3.22
😡 And should probably have had another if not for some classic Bookham fielding generosity.

Haider Abbasi also struck twice in successive deliveries and suddenly thoughts of a hat-trick were in the air…
Sadly the hat-trick ball didn’t quite happen.

The shine came off slightly later though.

A skier went high into the air off Zaki’s bowling.
Haider barely had to move.
He had approximately 20 seconds to prepare.
Which, unfortunately, appeared to be too much thinking time.

The ball somehow hit him directly in the chest.
Painful. Deserved. Memorable.

⸻

👴 Return of the Veteran

Bookham welcomed back Nayab Khan after a 6–7 year absence.

The veteran bowled nicely and rolled back the years admirably, although being stationed at deep point meant he probably covered more distance chasing the ball than anyone else all day.

Age, apparently, is just a number.

⸻

😳 Tom Foan: The Bowler Era

Naeem Hassan began his spell well before a groin strain interrupted proceedings.

Which meant…

Yes.

Tom Foan came on to bowl.

And honestly? It wasn’t terrible.

There are now genuine concerns that Tom may request all-rounder status on Play Cricket.

⸻

🧤 Fielding Review

Overall, a much-improved fielding display compared to the opening game… although that bar was admittedly low enough to trip over.

There were still:

* a few drops
* some misfields
* and 32 extras given away (18 wides)

Westfield skipper P Gada anchored things nicely with 53* as Westfield finished on 193-7.

A decent effort from Bookham, though those extras felt expensive.

⸻

🏏 Second Innings

Bookham’s chase began…

Slowly.

Very slowly.

The Chairman, Reubin Iqbal, overruled the captain and promoted himself to open alongside Haider Abbasi after confidently announcing:

“I’m going to be aggressive today.”

Unfortunately, aggression remained largely theoretical.

After seven overs, Bookham had crawled to… seven runs.

Then came the moment:
LBW.

Given by umpire Tom Foan.

Was it tactical?
Was it revenge for making him bowl?
The investigation continues.

To make matters worse, rumours circulated afterwards that Reubin may have edged one earlier and not walked.

Really Chairman?

⸻

⚡ Counterattack

Kamran Hashmi briefly changed the momentum with aggressive strokeplay before slowing later and eventually falling for 28.

Then came Loqman Ahmad, who finally got the chase moving properly with powerful hitting and several lofty boundaries.

His 45 gave Bookham genuine hope before he feathered through to the keeper trying to keep the momentum going.

From there wickets continued to tumble as batters tried to keep up with an increasingly ugly required rate — a situation many quietly blamed on the “experimental” opening partnership.

Shazy refused to give up, smashing a determined 17 before being caught and bowled, leaving:

* 3 overs remaining
* 3 wickets left
* and a required rate somewhere north of “unlikely”.

⸻

🤝 The Great Escape

The objective changed.

Forget winning.
Forget boundaries.
Forget entertainment.

The mission became survival.

Captain Danyal and Nayab Khan dug in professionally and successfully shut the game down to secure a draw.

And after last week’s collapse…

Honestly?
That felt like progress.

⸻

📈 Summary

* Better bowling
* Better fielding
* Better fight
* Same number of tosses won

Bookham showed genuine improvement and perhaps with fewer extras the game could even have tilted our way.

Most importantly:

👉 Not a loss.

⸻

🔜 Next Up

📍 Ashtead CC (Friendly)
🏏 Next Sunday

A gap in the VCL schedule gives Bookham a chance to build momentum… and perhaps finally practice batting before turning up.

⸻

📲 Availability on ClubWiz please!

03/05/2026

☀️ DORKING CC v BOOKHAM CC – VCL

📍 Westhumble Playing Fields (Box Hill backdrop doing all the work)
📆 3 May 2026
🏏 Dorking CC: 197 all out (40.5 overs)
🏏 Bookham CC: 84 all out (17.4 overs)
💔 Result: Dorking won by 113 runs
🧢 Captain: Danyal Shoaib

⸻

The long-awaited return of the VCL season arrived… and it quickly became apparent that nets may have been more of a concept than a reality over the winter.

In a sign of things to come, skipper Danyal dutifully lost the toss and Bookham were sent into the field under clear skies with the scenic backdrop of Box Hill — arguably the highlight of the day.

⸻

🏏 First Innings

Shahzad Ali and Loqman Ahmad opened the bowling and immediately created chances…
Unfortunately, the wicketkeeper appeared to still be in winter hibernation.

Edges came. Chances went.
And Dorking gratefully accepted the invitation.

A first wicket stand of 62 followed before Loqman decided enough was enough, producing a direct hit run-out from the deep to remove skipper Cam Homewood — a moment of brilliance in an otherwise generous opening spell from Bookham.

Dorking continued to build steadily, with partnerships forming throughout. The key moment came when Max Dymond was reprieved early, only to go on to score 79 — proving once again that dropped catches don’t usually end well.

Enter Asim Iqbal (reluctant bowler).
After initially suggesting he might not bowl, he was persuaded otherwise… and promptly delivered 4/22 from 8 overs at 2.75 economy. Not bad for someone who didn’t fancy it.

That spell also mysteriously cured his reluctance, earning himself a full allocation of overs.

At the other end, Naeem Hassan, battling a “bad shoulder”, bravely pushed through the pain… to pick up two wickets and bowl a tidy spell. The shoulder clearly worsens when not bowling.

Support came from dependable Shazy and Naeem, both picking up two wickets, while debutant Nabeel Nawaz produced a spectacular one-handed catch — diving high to his right.
Although, without video evidence, rumours suggest:

* it was taken on the ground
* there was no need to dive
* and theatrics may have been involved

We may never know.

Fielding highlights also included:

* another run-out (this time teamwork)
* and a moment of innovation from Asim Iqbal, who, unable to bend due to his back, opted for a football-style finish to knock the stumps over

Tottenham may be in touch.

There was also a notable catch from Arif Alkasiri, taken on the second attempt (very much planned, we’re told), confirming that the only person struggling with catching duties was… unfortunately… the wicketkeeper.

Dorking finished on 197 all out — a total that felt gettable, especially given Bookham’s supposed batting firepower.

⸻

🏏 Second Innings

Ali Haider and Rayaan Iqbal opened the chase with optimism.
That optimism lasted… briefly.

Other than Ali Haider’s 33 (ended by a debatable LBW), the Bookham innings lacked resistance, composure, and at times… basic survival instincts.

The scoreboard told a brutal story:

* No other batter reached double figures
* Two ducks
* And a collapse that would make even last season’s efforts look composed

It turns out raw talent alone isn’t enough after a winter off.

Bookham were bowled out for 84 in just 17.4 overs, handing Dorking a comprehensive 113-run victory.

(Points shown on Play Cricket are wrong — much like parts of this performance — so best ignored.)

⸻

📉 Summary

* Strong bowling spells (Asim outstanding)
* Moments of brilliance in the field
* Moments of… less brilliance behind the stumps
* A total that was definitely chaseable
* A batting performance that was… not

⸻

🔜 Looking Ahead

The plan to start the season with a win didn’t quite materialise.

But as always with Bookham — one game doesn’t define the season (thankfully).

Next up:
📍 Westfield (Away)

Time to:

* find some form
* hold onto chances
* and perhaps… attend a net

⸻

📲 Availability for next week is on ClubWiz – please get it in early

⸻

28/07/2025

🏏 Bookham CC vs Old Woking CC – 27 July 2025
📍 Chrystie Road Recreation Ground
🏆 Bookham won by 7 wickets
🗂️ Village Cricket League – Div 2
👑 Players of the Match: Asim Iqbal (5-for), Adam Iqbal (82)*

https://bookham.play-cricket.com/website/results/6822905

⸻

Bookham CC Finally Break the VCL Drought!

It’s the moment we’ve all been waiting for. After a run of near-misses, rained-off fixtures, and classic Sunday-style collapses, Bookham CC are finally on the VCL points table — and with some style.

Skipper Danyal Shoaib, reading the muggy, overcast conditions like a seasoned meteorologist (or a man just tired of losing), won the toss and chose to bowl first. And for once, everything clicked.

⸻

First Innings – The Iqbals Strike Again

Old Woking made a solid start through opener Sanjeev Bidur, who lived a charmed life — first dropped behind the stumps by Danyal, then again in the deep by Abdul Nafay Hassan.

But Nafay got the last laugh. He dismissed fellow opener Giri Liyangi, thanks to a swirling catch on the short Bowls Club boundary by his dad, Naeem Hassan — who had just enough time to audition for Strictly Come Dancing with some fancy footwork before calmly pouching it. He went on to finish with 3 wickets for 32 off 8, including 2 maidens.

Then came the wrecking ball: Asim Iqbal. His 5/28 was the stuff of VCL dreams — hitting perfect lines, varying the pace, and slicing through the middle order like it owed him money. He eventually got Bidur, with the score on 125.

Rayaan Iqbal grabbed a wicket of his own, while Shahzad Ali, true to form, got one too — amidst a festival of LBW appeals, one of which might’ve been going over the pavilion.

Old Woking were bowled out for 176 in 34.4 overs — decent, but chaseable.

⸻

Second Innings – The Iqbal Family Domination Continues

Bookham needed a solid start. What they got was a 130-run opening partnership that completely shut Old Woking out of the game.

Rayaan Iqbal, fresh off his maiden fifty against Newdigate, played with maturity and class to score 45 off 75 balls. Once again unlucky not to reach another milestone, but the platform he set was vital.

At the other end, his brother Adam Iqbal played the anchor and aggressor, blasting a brilliant 82 off 70 balls*, with 14 fours and 2 sixes. Effortless timing, smart placement, and full control — an innings that would’ve made most seasoned batters jealous.

Asim Haider added a brisk 22 off 16, and the final touches were applied by Tom Foan (4* off 7) and Salah Khan (17* off 13), who crunched a match-winning six into the bushes.

Bookham cruised home at 177/3 in 30.1 overs, and yes — no collapse, no chaos, no bottling it. Just a good, old-fashioned win.

⸻

✅ Summary:
• ✅ First VCL win of the season
• 👨‍👦‍👦 Iqbal Family: 6 wickets + 127 runs + 130-run stand
• 🕺 Naeem Hassan: Catch of the day, with bonus footwork
• 🧤 Danyal drops one, but captains to victory — redemption
• 📣 Shazy still appealing (likely mid-sleep)
• 💪 Fielding held (mostly), and the batting delivered

⸻

🔜 Next Up: Ottershaw (H)

Beaten by 224 runs last week.
Bookham are bouncing.
Could this be a winning streak incoming?

⸻

💚

22/07/2025

Bookham CC vs Leigh CC
🟰 Match Abandoned
🌧️ Opponent: The Rain
📍Chrystie Road Recreation Ground
📅 20 July 2025

⸻

After last week’s narrow loss in the Ray Pritchard Trophy, Bookham returned home hoping to turn things around against league leaders Leigh CC. But in a cruel twist, the only opponent this week was the weather, and it didn’t take long for the forecast to deliver a soggy verdict.

Skipper Danyal Shoaib and Mark Saunders arrived early for a 10:30am pitch inspection, full of misplaced optimism—the kind usually reserved for a Shahzad Ali LBW appeal that pitched outside leg and hit the bat.

Mark paced the square.
Danyal arrived with hope.
They both looked up.
The clouds looked back and laughed.

As Danyal placed a cautious foot on the wicket, it sank like Asim Iqbal’s off stump on a good length ball. That was all they needed to see.

With no super sopper, Sahara sun, or miracle wind in sight, the call was made: Match abandoned.

Of course, conspiracy theories began to swirl…
Was this really a washout?
Or a “tactical no-contest” against the unbeaten league leaders? 🤔
We’ll let the readers decide…

⸻

⏭️ NEXT UP:
We go from facing the top of the table…
…to bottom side Old Woking.
Finally, maybe, some points?
Or at least a game that lasts longer than an inspection! 🤞

14/07/2025

🏏 MATCH REPORT: Bookham CC vs Effingham CC – 14 July 2025
📍 Chrystie Rec, Village Cricket League – Division 2
🏆 Ray Pritchard Trophy 2025
📉 Effingham CC won by 18 runs

https://bookham.play-cricket.com/website/results/6822892

https://www.youtube.com/live/k8sBaL-R7eM?si=1aTYdTA_1dH6b9Vm

⸻

This was no ordinary fixture.

The Ray Pritchard Trophy, played in honour of the late cricketer who represented both clubs into his seventies, always brings emotion and intensity.

Bookham had held it for five years straight since its inception in 2020. But on Sunday, Effingham finally got their name on the silverware, breaking the streak and dealing another blow to Bookham’s still-winless VCL campaign.

⸻

🪙 THE TOSS? WE LOST. OBVIOUSLY.

Captain Danyal Shoaib continued his erratic relationship with the coin — losing the toss once again.

Effingham chose to bat in the blazing heat. Bookham groaned.

⸻

🧤 FIRST INNINGS: START, STALL, SURGE

Effingham posted a strong 221/7 in 40 overs:
• Shahzad Ali struck early with an LBW
• Matt Saunders (58) and Dom Carpenter (57*) built a 94-run stand in the heat
• Carpenter eventually retired out — allegedly from exhaustion, but still recorded as “not out” (someone get the league rules out)

🧊 Veteran Darren Wing, summoned from bowling retirement by Danyal, broke the stand.
• He took 4 wickets, including bowling Saunders, in a sensational up-the-hill spell — his first in 30 years

🔥 Former Bookham man Ishtiaq Muhammad played a brutal cameo: 56 off 29, taking Effingham from steady to scary.
• He too fell to Shahzad, with Rayaan Iqbal calmly taking a pressure catch out on the rope.

New signing Simran Khehra showed promise with a tidy spell.

But fielding woes haunted Bookham again:
• 13 byes, 10 wides, and a flurry of missed stops added 20+ free runs
• In a match decided by 18 runs, that hurts

⸻

🏏 THE CHASE: ISMAIL STANDS TALL

With nobody volunteering to open, the skipper picked names randomly — enter Rayaan Iqbal and Arif Alkasiri.

It didn’t go well:
• Arif: LBW for 4
• Asim Haider: bowled for 5 attempting a wild shot
• Rayaan: gifted a slip catch to former Bookham player Matt Saunders (more poetry)

At 40-3, the chase was floundering.

But debutant Joyal Vannan stepped up with a confident 30 off 35 balls, giving the innings some backbone.

Then came the hero…

🌟 Ismail Shah: PURE CLASS
• 86 off 69
• 11 fours, 2 sixes
• His father flew in from Pakistan to watch
• And Ismail delivered in style

Elegant strokeplay, composure, and power — it was the knock of the day.

But wickets kept tumbling around him, and with 25 needed off the final over, debutant Simran gave us brief hope with a towering six over the Oak Tree.

Sadly, no fairytale ending — Bookham were bowled out for 203 in 39.4 overs.

⸻

🧮 FINE MARGINS

Where was it lost?
• 23 extras
• Missed fielding chances
• Early sluggish scoring
• A lack of singles in the middle overs
• Too many dot balls early on, too much to do later

⸻

🏆 THE RAY PRITCHARD TROPHY
• Effingham are finally on the board
• The series stands 5–1
• But Bookham will be back — 2026 awaits

⸻

🔜 NEXT: TOP OF THE TABLE LEIGH (H)

Bookham welcome Leigh CC to Chrystie Rec next Sunday.
Top of the league. In-form. Ruthless.

Bookham? Still hunting their first VCL win of the season.

Let’s hope the lads find their rhythm — and the fielders find their hands.

⸻

📣 Join the Drama

🏏💙

09/07/2025

🏏 MATCH REPORT: Newdigate CC vs Bookham CC – 7 July 2025
📍 The Brocus – Beautiful, Bouncy, and then… Britishly Wet
🌧️ VCL Division 2 – MATCH ABANDONED
🔹 Bookham: 203/9 (40 overs)
🔹 Newdigate: 32/1 (6 overs)

https://bookham.play-cricket.com/website/results/6822890

⸻

Bookham’s search for a first VCL win continues, and the latest chapter was a tale of talent, teen brilliance, tactical genius — and then… a Tom Foan tragedy, courtesy of the weather.

A strong performance was undone by rain, but not before we saw some absolute gold both on and off the field.

⸻

🪙 DANYAL’S TOSS STREAK CONTINUES

Skipper Danyal Shoaib won the toss (again — that’s three in a row now!) and chose to bat.
However, with four players late, the brave new opening combo became:
• Shahzad Ali – a bowler opening the batting
• Mobeen Tahir – emergency partner, minimal prep, full commitment

Village scenes? ✅

⸻

⚾ EARLY DRAMA: HAIDER RUNOUT SHOCK
• Asim Haider was run out for 2 after a mix-up with Shahzad.
• The Bookham WhatsApp is now split into “Team Yes There Was a Run” and “Team What Were You Thinking?”

The jury’s still out.

⸻

👑 RAYAAN IQBAL SHINES

Cometh the hour, cometh the 13-year-old.
🔥 Rayaan Iqbal hit a superb 65 off 73 balls, smashing 10 boundaries in a stylish, assured innings.
His first fifty for Bookham — and probably not his last.

Dad Asim Iqbal followed, scoring 16.
Rayaan officially takes over family batting duties. Sorry, Dad.

⸻

THE MIDDLE ORDER
• Salah Khan – started confidently, ended in déjà vu: same shot, same fielder, same result. Gone for 4.
• Kamran Hashmi – last week’s hero with a 50, this week fell for 16.
• Presley D’Costa – returned from injury like a boss, hit the only six, and added 17.
• Danyal Shoaib – 15 off 31 with a steady hand to steady the ship.

⸻

🔥 FOAN FEVER TAKES OVER

But the real spark?

Tom Foan.
⚡ Reverse sweeps
⚡ Paddle sweeps
⚡ Turning ones into twos FOUR TIMES
⚡ Causing a full-on meltdown in the Newdigate field

Opposition skipper Monjur Elahi was heard shouting:
🗣️ “Don’t let Tom turn!”

You know it’s real when they start game-planning around your leg turn.

Foan’s 14 (off 16) lit up the innings — and the memes group chat.

⸻

🍻 TEA BREAK: A PINT TOO EARLY

Then… disaster.

Clouds rolled in, and with the rain imminent, Tom Foan got changed and ordered a drink.

But Captain Danyal, still chasing the win, gave the rallying cry:

🗣️ “Back out, lads!”

Tom’s face as he walked away from his pint deserves its own mural.

⸻

🌧️ THE BOWLING – AND THEN… RAIN

Bookham came out firing.
Newdigate needed 155 from 25 overs (DLS-adjusted), and were 32/1 when the heavens opened.
• Shahzad Ali – 3 overs, 18 runs
• A Hassan – 3 overs, 14 runs and the only wicket

And just like that… game abandoned.

⸻

🎯 FINAL THOUGHTS:
• Rayaan Iqbal – future star, present hero
• Tom Foan – the people’s champ, the tactical menace
• Presley’s back, Kamran’s still in the runs, and Danyal’s leading from the front
• Still no win, but we’re knocking loudly on the door

⸻

🔜 NEXT UP: EFFINGHAM – THE LOCAL DERBY

A huge one next Sunday.
We take on our local rivals Effingham — a fixture now officially designated as the Ray Pritchard Trophy, in honour of the late and much-missed Ray ❤️

The reverse fixture was a hard-fought draw.
Effingham are yet to win this trophy… and we plan to keep it that way.

🛑 Rivalry.
⚔️ History.
🏆 Honour.

This is the one you don’t want to miss.

⸻

📣 JOIN BOOKHAM CC!

Where:

✅ 13-year-olds hit 50s
✅ Pints get interrupted
✅ Fielding positions are invented
✅ And the opposition fears one man’s “Turn”

🏏🔥🍺

04/07/2025

🏏 MATCH REPORT: Bookham CC vs Players XI CC – 30 June 2025
📍 Chrystie Rec – 30°C, full sun, short on players, long on drama
⚠️ Friendly Fixture
📉 Players XI CC won by 8 wickets

https://bookham.play-cricket.com/website/results/7158135

https://www.youtube.com/live/830xGNzY42Y?si=n1UPfL4m73SwPQPA

⸻

Another Sunday, another rollercoaster — this one featuring:
• A classic top-order collapse
• A 9-year-old out-bowling everyone
• Scorer chaos that even ChatGPT couldn’t untangle
• And an Iqbal family duckfest spanning two days

It’s Bookham. Of course it was messy. But also? Brilliant.

⸻

🪙 THE TOSS: DANYAL STRIKES AGAIN

Captain Danyal Shoaib made it two toss wins in two weeks — and if nothing else, he’s now Bookham’s most successful tosser in recent memory.

On a boiling day and with only 10 players to start, he wisely chose to bat.
Then we were 8/3, and wise started looking… questionable.

⸻

🧱 THE FIGHTBACK: WING, ARIF & KAMRAN STEADY THE SHIP
• Darren Wing: 45 (42) – an all-cut-shot masterclass. The livestream genuinely looked frozen. Viewers rebooted their WiFi.
• Arif Alkasiri: 30 (40) – the father-in-law we all want; calm, reliable, fluent.
➡️ Their partnership: 81 runs – turning chaos into control.

Then came:
• Kamran Hashmi: 59 (106) – long, steady, essential
• Partnered with:
• Arif: 23
• Tom Foan (29 off 47): 76
• Danyal Shoaib: 13 off 23 – less anchor, more holding pattern

Bookham posted 232/9 off 40 overs. A fine recovery after a disastrous start.

⸻

🤯 SCORER MELTDOWN

Despite being 9 down, the Play-Cricket scorecard says “All Out” because:
• Wrong batter out
• Wrong over
• Wrong striker
• Panic
• Denial
• Acceptance

By the end, nobody knew what was happening — so we just hit “Submit” and walked away.

⸻

🧒 ZAKARIA IQBAL: BOOKHAM’S BOWLING HERO

While the Iqbal batting unit racked up:
• Rayaan: 🦆
• Asim: 🦆
• Zakaria: 0* (still unbeaten, still leading the Iqbal run tally this weekend)

…it was Zakaria Iqbal, age 9, who absolutely stole the show.
• Bowled his full 8 overs
• Most economical
• Took 1 of the only 2 wickets
• Displayed more control than the adults (and definitely the scorer)

The other wicket came from Sam Gautam.
That’s your bowling honours board, folks.

⸻

😵 THE CHASE: EFFORT MADE, CARNAGE DELIVERED

Players XI chased down the 232 in 33.3 overs, losing just 2 wickets:
• Raza B: 105 (96) – unfazed
• Qaiser Ali: 67 (82) – ruthless

The rest of us?
• Tried
• Sweated
• Watched Zakaria
• Walked off 8 wickets short

⸻

🧮 FINAL SCORE:
• Bookham: 232/9 (40 overs)
• Players XI: 234/2 (33.3 overs)
• Result: Lost by 8 wickets
• Key stat: Zakaria > the rest of us

⸻

🧠 POST-MATCH DEBRIEF:
• Kamran’s innings = pure backbone
• Darren’s cut shot = the most consistent thing at Bookham this season
• Arif = classy operator
• Zakaria = bowling prodigy
• Danyal = top toss form, decent bat cameo
• The Iqbals = zero runs this weekend across two games 🦆🦆
• The scorer = undergoing retraining (and possibly therapy)

⸻

🔄 BACK TO BUSINESS: VCL RETURNS NEXT WEEK

Enough friendlies. Next up: Newdigate (away) in the Village Cricket League.

After falling just short of a win at Slinfold — where we needed 3 wickets and ran out of time — Bookham are fired up.
A win is overdue. The league table is calling.
It’s time.

⸻

📣 JOIN BOOKHAM CC!

Where kids take wickets, grown men forget how to score, and even losses feel like epic sagas.

🏏🔥🦆

Bookham Cricket Club

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