In days of shortening attention spans and the instant gratification of T20 cricket, a batter scoring no runs off 137 balls is bound to cause a stir. And Ian Bestwick sure did. (More Cricket News)
The opener faced 45 overs of bowling and returned unbeaten without scoring in a Division Nine club cricket match in England on Saturday (August 25, 2024). His dour effort helped Darley Abbey Cricket Club's 4th XI escape with a draw against Mickleover 3rd XI in the Derbyshire Cricket League.
Bestwick's knock came in response to Mickleover's score of 271 declared for the loss of four wickets, from 35 overs. In stark contrast to Ian's innings, Mickleover opener Max Thomson smashed 186 runs off 128 balls with 17 fours and 14 sixes.
The assault on the Darley Abbey bowling attack left Bestwick thinking if survival was the only prudent choice for their batters. "We had quite a young, inexperienced team... let's just see if we can protect our wickets," a BBC report quoted him as saying.
Thanks to the opener's resolute stonewalling, Darley Abbey ended up on 21-4 after 45 overs and picked up three points from the game, while Mickleover took 18.
Bestwick's son Thomas, too did his bit, contributing four runs from 71 balls - the runs coming from a single scoring shot that went for a boundary.
The 48-year-old opener was overwhelmed with the response his knock got globally. "It's gone round the world. It has been mentioned in Australia, Pakistan, Qatar. I have had friend requests from around the globe," the report quoted him as saying.
"Our dressing room was bouncing after the draw. The players were all grinning, and thought it was brilliant. It shows you how good local cricket can be.
"We had been in the field for three hours chasing leather all over the place. They came off and were dejected, [but] at the end it was like we had won a cup or something," Bestwick added.
