It was a familiar sight: Ross Graham hitting runs at will in a strong opening stand at a Cowra cricket oval.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
But even Graham, in his first game back for the year and one who is normally modest about his achievements, was effusive when asked about his 76 run contribution.
"Honestly, it was good... probably as good as I've felt batting for a couple of years," the veteran said.
"Just being able to hit the ball sweetly and thankfully, they were able throw a few boundary balls for me as well."
Graham's runs were crucial on a tricky wicket, helping to guide the home side to a seven wicket win at Holman Oval on Saturday afternoon against reigning Lachlan Premier competition premiers, the Cambridge Cats.
Chasing 162 runs for victory, Graham admitted that despite curtailing the Cats' top order early, he felt the total - they finished 3/164 in the 33rd oval - was going to be a difficult one to manage.
"On that wicket, 120 was going to be a good score if you bowled well," Graham said.
"I think both sides are probably guilty of it... there was a lot of poor balls bowled."
"They got 160 and we knew it was going to be tough but... they bowled a lot of four balls for us, so it just made life a bit easier.
"If they'd bowled a good line and length, it would've been a tough chase."
It was an assessment that Cambridge skipper Zachary Bayliss agreed with.
"Our bowling wasn't up to scratch to suit that wicket," Bayliss said, adding that his side was battling after their formidable top order failed to fire in the first innings, leaving them at 5/69 three overs before drinks.
"Our top four didn't really perform as we usually would like to; the openers, including myself, didn't do very well."
However, he did reserve from praise for the middle order in helping to keep the game alive.
"Our middle order, a bunch of young blokes, batted very well to put us in a great position - a competitive total - but obviously it wasn't enough."
With the general bye followed by a regular season bye looming, Bayliss admitted there's a bit to work at training on over the next three weeks.
"We'll... probably just focus on a few little things at training, get back to a group; I feel like we're a little bit out at the moment," he said.
"We just need to get back to what we were last year and build on that; we're a bunch of young blokes so we can only improve.
"We've got a few players coming back as well, which will help us."
READ ALSO:
