WARWICK had a day to forget as they slumped to a disappointing six wicket defeat away at Water Orton 2nds on Saturday.
After losing the toss, Warwick were asked to bat on what looked a decent pitch but under a gloomy, overcast sky opening bowlers Singh (1 for 17) and in particular Devinda (4 for 21) made maximum use of the conditions as the swinging, seaming ball did for Warwick’s top order, who were at one point 9 for 4.
Coming in at number six, youngster Ed Hare (24) hit some good boundary shots to give the scorecard a hint of respectability, however he was disappointingly run out having survived a leading edge chance and wickets continued to fall.
Water Orton’s change bowlers Senanayake (2 for 12) and Patel (2 for 18) continued where the openers had left off, and their tight lines combined with Warwick’s lack of attrition meant that the visitors fell to 69 all out, comfortably their lowest total of the season.
Defending such a small total was never likely to be easy, but Warwick gave themselves a chance and Tom Austin (2 for 18) picked up two early wickets whilst bowling a stringent line.
When Rajan Bhatti (2 for 31) straight bowled the remaining opener and number four in consecutive balls to leave Water Orton 13 for 4, it appeared Warwick may have earned themselves a foothold back into the game.
However, number five and opposing captain Devinda (34 not out) capped a fine game for himself by hitting Water Orton to victory as the hosts reached 70 for 4 to win by six wickets.
The result means Warwick drop to third in the table, and they face bottom of the table Bablake Old Boys 3rds next as they look to get their season back on track.
