Sydenham’s declaration on day two of their clash with Old Boys gave their opponents 43 overs to chase 243 – which they did narrowly, winning on the last ball with Sean Davey hitting the winning runs to finish unbeaten on 116.
Captain Mitchell Gardner said it was a tough result to take but his team would have to change tack quickly.
“The boys will be alright. We palm off the two-day stuff and we don’t look at it again until February,” he said.
“We’re pretty excited to try and defend the title.”
In the final round of the two-day competition before its hiatus until February, St Albans won outright over East Shirley while Heathcote and Riccarton claimed first innings points against Burnside and Lancaster Park respectively, but were unable to win outright.
The first two rounds of the T20 competition will be played on Saturday. Round one at 10.30am sees Riccarton host East Shirley, Lancaster Park visit Burnside, Sydenham play Heathcote and Old Boys come up against St Albans.
In round two at 2pm, Riccarton host Old Boys, St Albans play Sydenham, Burnside host East Shirley and Lancaster Park play Heathcote.
Hagley to host T20 final
The final of the premier men’s T20 competition will be held under lights at Hagley Oval on December 15 – the first time a club game has been under lights at the ground.
The lights were installed in 2020 and have shone on Canterbury men’s and women’s games, Black Caps and White Ferns matches, and the final of the 2021 women’s World Cup between England and Australia.
The Christchurch Metro Cricket Association is aiming to have one of the men’s premier semi-finals at 10.30am, before the second-tier championship final at 2pm, and the premiership final at 7pm under lights.
The women’s premiership final will be the following week on December 21 at 2pm, also at Hagley Oval.
