The Merton cricket team before the Cuppers final in June 2022

Sports: Report - Cricket 2021/22

Merton had an outstanding season for cricket, reaching the Cuppers final in a highly dramatic fashion and ultimately falling short by just 10 runs.

In the Round of 32, excellent batting from Trajan Halvorsen (2019) and Tom Corner (2019) set us up on our road to the final, which also included a 100-run win against Jesus in the following round. This was due to an outstanding fielding performance to bowl our opposition out for 50, with Hannah Sirringhaus (2019) and Ittihad Hasib (2020) both taking multiple wickets in this game.

We then made it through to the quarter-finals against Teddy Hall where a slew of impressive batting performances saw us set a target of 126. We started well in the field with a magnificent opening spell from James Kempton (2011), but it was a nervy finish with Teddy Hall needing two runs off the last ball. Tom Corner, who had an exceptional season with the bat, proved just as brilliant in the field; taking one catch in the deep in the final over and then carefully and efficiently rolling the ball to the stumps to win the game by one run. Our support, led by Kieran Wetherick (2020), at the side came running onto the pitch to celebrate this adrenaline-filled win, highlighting the drama and spirit of college cricket.

Then we came to finals day on the Thursday of 8th Week, starting with a semi-final against New College. The Warden helped to gather the troops and we had a crowd of spectators to watch a confident performance, featuring a fantastic final over from Joshua Navarajasegaran (2016), to set up the final against Magdalen in the afternoon. To get to this point, credit has to be given to Benedict Yorston (2019), our wicketkeeper Jack Feehan (2019), and countless others who stepped up when we needed them. Our supporters particularly enjoyed both a superb diving catch at slip and an entertaining batting performance from Will Barker (2019). In the middle overs, he and Akram Ghauri (2020) bowled a spell of spin bowling to cut down Magdalen’s run rate and keep us in the game.

Although we were ultimately unsuccessful in chasing down Magdalen’s score of 125, the spirit displayed by both the players and spectators showed that it was not only a season to be proud of, but one to build on as well.

Ellie Owen (2020)
Cricket Captain, 2021-22