Ramprakash's onslaught puts Surrey back on top

Surrey 298-5 Glamorgan 240 Surrey win by 58 runs

Surrey reclaimed the leadership of the First Division National League with a devastating all-round display that saw off third-placed Glamorgan with more than five overs to spare in the splendid surrounds of Croydon's premier school yesterday.

It was a thoroughly entertaining match with plenty of runs and bags of excitement. The standard had been set last year when these two piled up a world record 867 runs in the C&G Trophy fourth round. The scores here might not have been quite in that class, but at times the scoring most certainly was.

Glamorgan captain Robert Croft and Michael Powell kept the reply on the rails at a thudding seven runs an over, and even after they had departed Matthew Maynard and David Hemp did not let the pace fall away too much, or at least not until Maynard became crippled with cramp in his left calf when essaying a pull shot off James Ormond.

The condition clearly cramped Maynard's style and Ormond took a return catch in his next over. Powell had departed shortly before Maynard's demise, unwisely and unnecessarily looking to attack Saqlain Mushtaq. Powell went down the pitch to the wily Pakistani off-spinner and was bowled.

Adrian Dale then stumbled after playing and missing a Martin Bicknell delivery when out of his ground and presented Jon Batty with a simple stumping.

Even when they were going well Glamorgan's scoring rate never matched the brutality of the back end of Surrey's innings when 63 runs came off the last five overs. That onslaught could be put down to Surrey captain Adam Hollioake, who cracked 41 off just 16 balls. including four sixes.

Hollioake's contribution topped off foundations that had been laid by a wonderful hundred from Mark Ramprakash. If Whitgift School's administration ever decide to extend, or even rebuild, its small pavilion then it would surely have to be named after Ramprakash. His 93-ball century followed his career best unbeaten double hundred in the Championship match on the ground last week.

Ramprakash thumped three sixes and 11 fours. Then of course there was Surrey's master one-day batsman Graham Thorpe, who scored a superb unbeaten 77 to leave Glamorgan chasing more than 290 for the third time this season. Again it proved too steep a target for them.