Competition Tables
Table after Round 4, (1/11/2025) is:
PlayHQ link – Draw & Competition Table
- A1 (Cam #25) – =1st (24 points)
- A2:
- Blue (Warren) –6th (11 points)
- Red (Todd) – =7th (6 points)
- B1 (Prats) – 1st (21 points)
- B2 (Sparsh) – =4th (14 points)
- C1 (Aniket) – =7th (6 points)
- C2 (Indranil) – 7th (4 points)
- C3:
- Blue (Chintan) – =1st (24 points)
- Red (Karl) – =5th (9 point)
- C4:
- Blue (Rob) – =2nd (16 points)
- Red (Ravi) – 1st (21 points)
- D1: Note: 1-day competition
- Blue (Roger) – =2nd (31 points)
- Red (Diggers) – =4th (18 points)
- D2 (Ross S) – =3rd (16 points)
Match Reports
A1 Grade
WPHC (Cam #25) 2/216 defeated on 1st innings St Ives-Wahroonga 86
Whilst we were one brother down this week we still had the requisite quota in the side to say welcome, welcome, welcome to Round 5 against St Ives.
The good news was that we were no-[where near that place up north this weekend but the bad news was that for two of the more southern teams in the comp, we had been scheduled to go bush as we made the pilgrimage up to Kenthurst. Now call me privileged but for someone who’s north shore ends around Chatswood, playing in the HKHDCA competition is really doing wonders for my northern NSW geography.
Proving why I actually quite like St Ives, common sense prevailed and much to the dismay of the Committee it was agreed that no covers were needed on Friday night. OK now you’ve got me started on covers 1) covers are a part of pitch preparation which falls under a groundsman’s remit 2) if sat players are to show up and put them on the day before why aren’t sun players required to do the same? Apologies I snapped, so let’s move onto the game before I get fined.
Shaan was dropped for Tis this week or was it the other way around? Anyway one of them was back and boy was it good to have him in the side again. P returned as well whilst BBC was out with wisdom teeth awareness but rumour has it that it was for disciplinary reasons as a result of ignoring the skipper in favour of two lovely ladies at the Glenorie bakery midweek.
Some changes at St Ives with a power overthrow as Luke “Ray” Hedley took over as captain. Didn’t really mater though as K lost another toss so we were bowling. St Ives started well reaching 2/59 before falling in a heap to be all out for 86. Some great bowling from O and P with 3 each and one each for J, T, M,and H.
Onto the batting and this is where the fun started.
Both Makin’s opened meaning Ollie opened both the bowling and batting in A grade as a 15 year old this week.
Grade might need to give him $1000 per game at this rate. The only good news was that the frog box didn’t work again so we have no highlights of him for them to see. Ollie ended up on 20 whilst his dad taught him some lessons bringing up a 50 (I believe his 73rd in A grade). Then came P who in a week of horses capped it off nicely with his maiden A grade 100 ending up on 130 NOT OUT as he plundered the bowlers to all parts – our 544th century.

Winning on first inning and securing the 6 points already, we ended the day 2-200 as we look forward to next week. Thank you as always to our loyal supporters – specifically the Hando’s and Wu for coming out and Jess for cutting up the box of fruit.
A2 Grade
A2 Blue (Warren) 4/118 defeated on the 1st innings A2 Red (Todd) 70
Welcome readers to the A2 Derby.
The boys were greeted by the usual Glade pitch, a touch soft with plenty of green.
Blazer on, Warren “Gaddafi” Schwartzel lost another toss, the Reds electing to bat. Fresh off conceding 300, the blues were on the hunt for some wickets.

What came next was pure elation. Tanay “finally bought me a beer” Hira knocked both openers over with ease, one was a beautiful in swinging Yorker, the next LBW.
Nathaniel “quotient” Chidgey knocked over their A1 ring in for a duck, thanks goodness for that. LBW also.
Volc (24) and Shomik (23) both put up a good fight.
Wickets continued to tumble as the boys tore through the middle and lower order.
Tanay was the pick of the bowlers (again) with 4/13. Nathaniel 1/31, Rob “Volc’s nightmare” Knapman 1/9, Rohan “golden quacker” Asija 2/2 and Matthew “Don’t look back in anger” Digby 2/13. There were also 7 x LBWs and 3 x bowled today, no catching required.
With the total of 70 runs set, Zach “Zaaazzzzuuuu” Turner and K “I love cricket, this week” T walked out. They put on 75 together, KT with blistering 52 with 10 fours. Zach and Rohan were out immediately after, both caught behind, leaving us 3-75.
Nick “Tantrum” Duck edged behind shortly after. Nick did not like that, nor did he think he edged it. He made his feelings clear to the poor umpire, whose arm must be incredibly sore from all those LBWs. Poor bloke. $2 tantrum. $2 umpire abuse?
Brent “They amputated my little toe” Larkham (26*) and Tanay (10*) saw us through until the massive downpour ended play for the day.
A nice win for the Blues. Can we outright then next week? That’d be funny. Sorry Todd.
I hope everyone has a wonderful week.
B1 Grade
WPHC (Prats) 106 Vs Thornleigh 1/80
A warm welcome and hello to all long term and new readers of the famed B1 match report, sit back relax and enjoy the tales of a pretty ordinary Saturday
Why do we play cricket? This is an existential question that many of us ponder during day to day life but especially on days like today!!
We arrived at a sun-soaked Dural Park ready to keep our 4 game unbeaten streak alive to start the season, with plans to win the toss and bat we got exactly what we were looking for when we strapped on the pads and batted first…. We didn’t win the toss as is the tradition in B1 this season with Skipper Prats at the helm
Now this is where you usually go on and describe the batting innings in detail and regale tails of triumph and victory and you belt your way to a respectable total…..
Not so fast my friends…. See today absolutely nothing went our way and it couldn’t be summed up more by the fall of the 1st with Aden “Breakfast of Champions again” Hanich smoking a beautiful straight drive back at the bowler who fumbled the ball back onto the stumps and somehow found Cameron “Mankad” Bliss short of his ground….
Lesson Learnt – Never ever back up, whoever told us to backup was wrong and we should all stand on our bats at the non-strikers end from now on
After that it was a painstaking innings with small starts and not many runs with the 2 standout performers being Will “Alex Ross” McLennan showing off his sweeping skills and his ability to hold a stick for once and Benny “Son of Pez” Waldron with some beautiful lower order power hitting which included a six that almost cleared the outer fence at Dural…. She was a masssssssivvvveeeee shot
After all was said and done we were knocked over for 106 in just 38.4 overs and after our batting innings surely it couldn’t get worse….
Trust me It can get worse and it usually does….
We started our bowling innings with some aggressive lines but against a superior batting line-up that may have a questionable status in this Grade we were unfortunately outmatched with only 1 wicket falling to our man Hot Take Watkins who brought up double digits wickets for the season in just round 5
At 1/80 and with 13 overs remaining in the day the sky’s began to open up with beaming sunlight and the mighty B1’s were staring down the barrel of a long afternoon in the dirt until shockingly it all switched on its head and suddenly things begun falling from the sky
Not rain nor cats and dogs no no what came was much stronger but so much better to our cause
HAILLLLLL!!!!
Those mighty storms from out west turned into our saving grace with a quick passing hail shower so so so unfortunately (real shame) curtailing our days play and somehow keeping us in the lead
I LOVEEEEEEE MOTHER NATURE!!!!!
Before we go a few special shout-outs after a truly special Saturday at cricket
- Reyhan (Real Name Unknown) and Shakeel “Pedigree” Mistry for supporting their teammates during an arduous Saturday, in particular Shakeel who up until this point was under investigation for not existing and being a fake mirage in the desert
- A tip of the cap to this humble match report writer who had a great Saturday which featured a blow-up including a helmet throw after being out controversially again (sorry to the mum’s who witnessed) & leaving his car windows down as the hail storm hit… It’s not Space Cadet worthy but it may have its own category of stupidity (Source Ross “Iron-Fist” Anderson)
Now before I leave you I’ll finish off with a quote that I think perfectly encapsulates and summaries our B1 day quite succinctly
Kids, don’t take up sport, Take up baking or something, Die at 60 really fat and happy. – James Neesham
Till Next Week!!
P.S Please Rain Next Saturday
B2 Grade
WPHC (Sparsh) 223 Vs Hornsby Green 3/45
It was a fine afternoon at Greenway Park for the El Classico of B2 cricket.
Sparsh’s West Pennant Hills against Asees’ Hornsby District. As the toss was done, it was Sparsh who won and decided to bat first. As the openers, “temporary captain” Corbs and lady killer Muchund went out to bat, they both started well with Corbs taking the reins to score some solid boundaries. But, as per usual, Muchund Venkat, widely known as the cousin of Rahul, decided to try to ramp, Konstas style, and got caught for a measly 2 runs.
It was Corbs who then fell for a solid 20 runs. Then came in Ratul. Tools looked good and got out for a solid 32 runs. But let’s take a moment to appreciate the captain, Sparsh “the King” Polepalle.
A big fan of Gautam Gambhir and his coaching, Sparsh had a lot to prove this season. With more dates attended than runs scored this season, Sparsh was intent on scoring big this game.
Let me speed things up. Manas got out disappointingly for 4 after a dodgy call from the umpire Muchund. Rudhra got out for 10 after yet another dodgy call from Muchund and Meet. Mayank decided to emulate Suryakumar Yadav with a 3rd consecutive duck.
Now. in came the man himself. The face of the team. The Messiah of West Pennant Hills Cherrybrook Cricket Club: Renesh “MS” Krishnan.
After starting well with some good shots and technique, Renesh was unfairly given out JUST short of his 100th career century. Much like Virat Kohli, Renesh seems to be a victim of the politics involved in cricket. With Sparsh still at the crease, Meet Vyas came to try and get things moving for West Penno. After a few boring blocks and defensive shots, out of nowhere, Meets dad, Gaurang, came out of the shadows to watch his only son bat. Reports state that Gaurang “the Animal” Vyas was hand-picked by former ICT captain, MS Dhoni, to open for the Indian national team years ago, but was forced to retire due to his son’s poor academia.
Eager to show his dad that he was in-fact not adopted, Meetu hit a solid 27 runs and stayed around to see Sparsh get out on a fantastic 97 runs. After watching “top 10 Kohli Captain Attitude moments” on reels all week, Sparsh just fell short of a ton. After yet. Another. dodgy. call. by Manas. Jeez.
Round of applause for next batsman John “the Artist” Kurian. Just like the fanbase of his NRL team, the Bulldogs, a lot of bark and seemingly no bite is what John is known for. But to be fair, John did manage to score a commendable 14 runs not out, although he was dropped a total of 6 times. Classic from the Artist.
Still left to bowl and defend 223 runs, West Penno went to bowl and picked up 3 important wickets in only 7 overs, with all left to play next week…
C1 Grade
WPHC (Aniket) Vs Mt Colah 196
After a four-week break, Ani was eager to get back on the field.
We won the toss and elected to bowl first.
Ram and Anand opened the bowling attack brilliantly, hitting the right areas from the start and making scoring difficult. Pressure was building up and soon paid off when Ram struck twice in 9th over — first removing the opener with the score at just 18 and then dismissing the new batsman without troubling the scorers.
Inspired by Ram’s spell Dan took over the attack and immediately made an impact, taking two wickets in his very first over. The team was fired up after a fantastic start but a few dropped chances allowed one of Mount Colah’s batsmen to capitalise, eventually scoring 89 after surviving three or four lifelines.
Despite the missed opportunities, Dan’s fiery pace continued to trouble the opposition and he added another wicket to take his tally to three by drinks leaving Mount Colah reeling at 5–61.

After the break, Mount Colah fought back with a stubborn 61-run partnership. Saurabh finally broke through with a brilliant caught and bowled to remove the set batsman. Lakshya soon followed up with another wicket and Dan almost cleaned up the tail, but we struggled to claim the final wicket as their last pair blocked resolutely.
Eventually, our secret weapon Eamon stepped up and took the final wicket moments before the hailstorm hit — wrapping up Mount Colah’s innings at 196.
While it’s about 80 runs more than we would’ve liked, given the dropped chances, it’s still a very chase-able total. With confidence high, we back our batsmen to finish the job next week.
Bowling figures : Daniel 5/21, Eamon 1/0, Ram 2/14, Lakshya 1/26 and Saurabh 1/33.
C2 Grade
WPHC (Indranil) Vs Sydney Lions 6/258
Round 5 was a challenging one for WPH, with only five core players available. Thanks to incredible Club support and our juniors stepping up, we managed to field a team with eight fill-ins, including three who played across both Week 1 and Week 2.
We lost the toss and were sent in to field.
Given our team combination, this didn’t seem like a bad option at first. However, once Sydney Lions began their innings, it quickly became clear that it was going to be a long day for WPH.
Our opening bowlers, Vishnu and Lakshya, bowled tight spells, giving away very little but unable to secure an early breakthrough. The first wicket finally came just before tea, courtesy of Jaydev Singh (1/20).
Up to tea, there weren’t many missed chances—just a tough grind for the boys. After tea, wickets started to fall: Kapil Sharma (2/31), Rizul (1/49), and Alex (1/39) chipped in. The last hour produced several opportunities, but missed chances allowed Sydney Lions to build a strong total by stumps.
A special mention to skipper Indranil, who kept for the full 70 overs, taking three catches and one stumping—a great effort under the circumstances.
Despite the uphill battle, there’s no reason to lose heart heading into Week 2.
We have batting depth in the squad, and we believe any total can be chased down.
C3 Grade
WPHC Blue (Chintan) 8/336 Vs Beecroft
Another day, another game. That’s what we had said to each other before this game – it’s just another game. Play to our strenghts and we will come out on top. A bit of a backstory here – we were up against Beecroft, or so-called ‘arch-rivals’ over the past couple of years. This was a team we had beaten in the Grand Finals couple of years ago, and dominated in both games last season. Pritam for one was very excited to play against their skipper, with who he had built quite the bond at this very ground last year (Campbell Park)
Chintan was hoping he can change the team’s luck with the toss by asking Arun to fill in for the toss. This did not really change the outcome and we ended up losing the toss any way, although would you really call it a loss even after we got what we wanted (we were put in to bat). With the ‘friendly’ banter already starting, we were all rearing to go and set for a good challenge.
Our openers Vik and Chintan made sure they took the banter out of Beecroft, with a solid start and hitting their top bowlers all over the park. They soon brought up the team’s half century and at drinks, we were cruising along at 0/70. Chintan punished the loose balls for some lovely 6’s over long on and square leg, and Vik got a great start as well punishing the loose balls for boundaries, while both rotated the strike.
The goal was clear –> 300+ at the very minimum.
After the break however, we lost both openers in back to back overs, which then brought another solid pair of Arun and Anubhav. After a solid start, Arun played a loose shot and gave away his wicket.
Anubhav was joined at the crease by Adi who wasted no time in getting a few runs to his name, however was unlucky to be run out. Suf and Anubhav stabilised the scoring to large extent, the latter narrowly missing out on his half century, and Suf getting out to a loose full toss playing it straight to a fielder, for a well-played 34.
Sayan was at the other end and watched a couple of wickets tumble, but truly looked rock-steady through his innings. He was on about 25 when Praneel walks in, at which point Mridul and Adi both were quite certain Praneel will get to his half century before Sayan, which is what exactly happened.
Seeing the ball beautifully he took on the Beecroft bowlers to score all over the park, including a couple of massive 6’s, one of which required a new ball to be brought out! After a brilliant 51, Praneel was out to a soft dismissal. 300 was truly within reach now.
Pritam did not trouble the scorers too much and with a few overs left in the day, Sayan continued his perfect test innings, supported by Amith, and they were able to see the overs through.
We finished the day at 8/336
Some key highlights:
- Chintan 41, Anubhav 44, Praneel 51, Sayan 48*
- Good starts by other batsmen – Vik 33, Suf 34, Arun 22
- 51 extras bowled by Beecroft (the highest I can remember of other teams against us)
The scorecard showed a true team effort.
WPHC Red (Karl) 8 dec 261 Vs Sydney Lions 2/17
C3 Red took on Sydney Lions at a windy Oasis in Arcadia – Northholm Grammar.
Lions won the toss and elected to bowl.
Nick Deverson and James Day opened. James Day got out early to a stunning delivery while Nick was gifted some short balls which he ceremonially sent to the boundary. Unfortunately, Jimmy Wilkin’s support was cut short to an LBW – he headed to the sheds for a few cinnamon donuts.
Enter Will Deverson. Team Deverson steadied the ship and put on 80 together in a wonderful session, including a half century for Deverson senior. After tea, the Lions took both Deversons.
Kristian Ermandis came in with a purpose- three 4s in his first 3 balls! Joined at the other end by Callum Hancock, this looked like a great battle. Kristian’s star burned short but bright. Callum and Dominic Ryan relished the conditions, Lions reluctance for catching – quickly passing 60 partnership. Dom was bowled and Callum followed quickly after- just falling short of a fifty.
The Lions opening pair joined Issac Taylor and Damon Dos Santos, with Damo ending his session for less than he deserved.
Skipper Karl Erdmanis nursing a broken hand and joined Isaac for fielding training session for the Lions.
The Cap declared at 261 – giving us 10 overs with the ball – looking for a couple of early Lion wickets before end of the day.
This was a master stroke – Wil Palmer opening the bowling taking a wicket maiden in the first over. Damo kept the other end tight with some accurate seamers. First change of bowlers saw Jimmy and Isaac handed the ball. Great to see Jimmy back with ball in hand, pounding them in! Isaac managed to keep the Lions players guessing and sent one down for James Day to pick up his second catch! Lions finished up the day 2/17.
Looking forward to another Rock n Roll Star effort from the boys next week.
Hopefully we Don’t Look Back in Anger and dismiss them in a Supersonic pace!
C4 Grade
WPHC Blue (Rob) 5/369 Vs Berowra 0/4
On a blistering day that tested stamina and concentration, West Pennant Hills produced a commanding batting effort against Berowra, finishing with an imposing 369 runs.
Openers Luke and Kamran walked out to set the tone, but an early setback came as Kamran was dismissed without scoring. Any hopes Berowra had of building early momentum were soon challenged when Mudi, a stylish left-hander, joined Luke at the crease.
The pair frustrated the bowlers through clever strike rotation and strong defensive technique, the left-right combination unsettling the attack. Mudi did the hard work stabilising the innings, but an instinctive stroke brought his promising contribution to an end.
His dismissal brought Jake to the middle, and the tempo shifted immediately.
Jake played with fearless intent, taking on the bowlers from the outset and disrupting their rhythm. Powerful stroke play, confident footwork and precise placement saw him quickly climb to a fluent 70, accelerating the innings and lifting the run rate when the team needed momentum. His innings, built on controlled aggression, put Berowra firmly on the back foot and opened the door for a towering total.
Through all phases, the anchor and heartbeat of the innings remained Luke, who showcased supreme focus and stamina to compile a magnificent 200.

Patience early, measured acceleration through the middle overs and an array of elegant strokes defined his marathon effort. Luke looked in complete control, marrying elegance with power as he threaded gaps, punished loose deliveries and rotated strike with maturity. A double-century that will go down as one of the standout knocks in Club memory. Following Jake’s dismissal, Manu joined Luke, and the pair steadied again, batting together for 19 overs in a disciplined partnership before Manu was trapped LBW by a seaming delivery.
Zia then entered and continued the positive momentum, supporting Luke and ensuring the innings finished strongly. The scorching heat and later-arriving lightning across the sky added drama and physical challenge, but West Pennant Hills remained composed and resilient. With Luke’s historic double-ton, Jake’s blistering 70, and valuable partnership contributions from Mudi, Manu and Zia, the side closed their innings in a dominant position.
A performance built on grit, patience and controlled aggression in demanding conditions.
WPHC Red (Ravi) 9/240 Vs Hornsby
The sun gods smiled on Skipper Ravi when the coin went up for toss for the first time in Summer of 2025.
After winning toss Ravi had no qualms in sending his troops to bat first on a hot and humid day at Howson Oval.
A brilliant and patient opening stand between Sahil and Praveg saw through the first 10 overs without taking any risks. Sahil then got a waist line full toss which he pulled away, but was safely pouched by a deepish square leg running in.
The ever-polite Sahil enquired the leg umpire for a potential wish high no-ball, but the umpire was certain that it dipped enough.
Considering the number of dropped catches later in the day, Sahil was kicking himself while walking back after doing all the hard work.
Waman was back in the fold after missing last few games for some family time, but showed no signs of rust whatsoever. He came in and played his usual busy knock but was unlucky to get out in the final ball before the first break.
In came Daksh to give Praveg company and the two rebuilt with a solid 25 run partnership. Praveg, after blunting all the bowlers so well and tiring out the fielders, got one in the air and was out for a well made 32.
Daksh took on the mantle and played the anchor role with first Rohit and then with Jassi and Arindam. Rohit looked busy with his running nudges to both sides of the wicket, but was trapped LBW to the off spinner and had to depart for 3.
Arindam continued from where he left off in the last game with solid defence and occasional singles and contributed to the best partnership of the day, 60, with Daksh.
Daksh played a very patient, un-Daksh innings by curbing his instincts. Occasionally he reminded everyone on the ground of his power hitting with a couple of sixes and five boundaries. Humidity had the final laugh, as Daksh retired not out after a very well made 50 off 122 balls. The relief in the opposition’s faces was evident as they were all clueless on how to get Daksh out as the day went by.

Vishnu joined Arindam, but the latter soon departed top edging a slog to square leg.
A new pair of Legs in Vishnu and Tushar meant runs started coming good speed.
This also offered plenty of comedy for the spectators in an otherwise dull and muggy day. The eagerness of new batters resulted in Vishnu nudging a ball for a quick single and both batters in the middle looking confused at each other. Both looked embarrassed and both thought they would get out, but a wild throw meant both batsmen made it safe to their creases but not with their hearts in mouths.
A flurry of couples and boundaries followed, with the highlights being Tushar’s rapid cut shot and a slog over mid wicket. Just when both batters were looking solid with a quickfire 42 run partnership at almost a-run-a-ball, a piece of brilliance on the field resulted in Vishnu’s run out. It was another comical scene with both batters at one end, but the momentary indecision, coupled with smart fielding meant Vishnu had to walk back grumpy.
Tushar was soon castled by the off spinner clipping the bails and Ravi got another LBW call going against him, soon Reds found themselves at 236/9. Though Anant walked in with only a couple of balls to close, he didn’t spare a rank bad full toss down the leg and smashed it for a four to finish the day on a high, at 240/9.
D1 Grade
1-Day games
WPHC Blue (Roger) Vs Bye
No match this week due to the scheduled Bye Round
WPHC Red (Diggers) 3/199 lost to Kissing Point o/165 (wet weather adjustment)
A rare toss win from Diggers was a start of the positives for our match against KP at Samuel King Oval. We elected to bat and, after losing a few early wickets, we made what seemed like a pretty good total of 3/199 off our 35 overs.
That was courtesy of an unbeaten 4th wicket stand of 149 from Grant (91) and Parin (80). Great effort from those guys in the heat.

Unfortunately that was where the positives stopped as KP proceeded to knock the ball around.
A couple of missed chances and they were 0/115 at drinks. A short rain delay didn’t help us and, when more rain followed by thunder, lightning and hail put an end to the afternoon, they were 0/165 after 25.
Even though we seemed like we were well out of the game by then, KP only ended up winning by 5 runs, beating our adjusted total of 160.

D2 Grade
WPHC (Ross S) Vs St Ives-Wahroonga 5/222
A hot and steamy afternoon. Skipper lost the toss for the second game in a row and was asked to field. As it turned out 2 games in a row spending the whole of day 1 in the field.
Our opening bowlers Sandeep and Lachlan toiled hard without luck, no chances generated. St Ives openers intent on waiting it out.
A change in bowling attack and finally a wicket in the 17th over. An off cutter from David Tanna cleaning up the stumps 1/63. Enter the St Ives skipper who was intent on flaying the ball around the park.. Drinks St Ives 1/75.
The session up until tea was a little disappointing with a couple of catches going down. Just before the break, Muthindra knocks over off stump of the other opener. Tea at 37 overs St Ives 2/133.
Some good bowling and ground fielding putting pressure on the batters, before Lachlan M comes back and takes out the middle stump of the frustrated St Ives skipper.
After 45 overs 3/164. A retirement of a non-rated player and LBW to Jaques…St Ives 5/192 at the final drinks break. After the break we could only bowl 3 overs before lightening forced us off at 5.15. 60 overs bowled stumps drawn….St Ives 5/222 at close.
Wickets to Lachlan M 1/26(8), Jaques 1/30(8), Muthindra 1/29(9), David 1/42(8).
Big thanks to David Tanna from D1 Blue for helping us out today.

