V&A XI: Rob Taylor (captain); Jasper Arnold (wicket-keeper); Christy Kulasingam; Christiaan Jonkers; Adam Jacot; Dominic Scott; Michael Chrisseley; Charlie Knight; Chetan Malhotra; Enzo Nicoli; David Pitlarge 

The V&A season moved on to the last fixture for May and probably the first fixture where everything came together suitably – pitch, temperature, sunshine and a full complement of players.

Rob Taylor was this week’s incumbent as captain, tackling all of the accompanying duties with energy and diligence. His first challenge was to find 11 players on a Bank Holiday weekend. In this, he was more than successful; 12 turned up on the morning. Christy’s friend Irwin Sharif, one of the first to arrive, stepped aside with equanimity for young Charlie Knight, although the swap had little impact on the average age of the V&A team.

The tactful note in the scorebook records the toss as “uncontested”. Invalids batted first.

James Anderson was recently given a firm nudge to retire at 41. Brendon McCullum considered him too old to open the bowling for more than a match or two. But that is Test cricket, not the real thing. Our captain for the day is more contrarian and imaginative than Baz – he opened the attack with Christiaan and Adam. It was an inspired choice. Our mature pairing bowled accurately and economically, fully justifying Rob’s confidence in them. Adam, perhaps inspired by his muse, Emma, sitting attentively on the bench at long on, was particularly economical –4-2-9-0. The evergreen Christiaan (more of whom below) was finding some lift off a length from the Stonor pitch, something which had not been readily apparent previously this season.

The bowling change that followed – Charlie and Enzo – presented a greater disparity in age. Charlie Knight is still to take his GCSEs although this is already the second season that he has turned out for the V&A: some of you might remember his role in the brilliant double catch with Nick Derewlany last summer. Charlie bowled well having added a little pace over the winter. Bowling uphill, from the Henley end, he was not helped by the fact that the batsmen were “ in” by the time he came on and he also had to contend with the relatively short downhill boundary and a slightly porous leg side field giving added value to the batsmen’s deft flicks to leg.

From the Pishill end, Enzo Nicoli came on only moments after his arrival at the ground. Impressively, he hit the spot regularly in his first over getting through his three for only 15 runs before taking what he assured us was a necessary breather.

So far so good, but the Invalids knew what they were doing.

James Arnold, in particular, had a range of elegant attacking shots, backed up by a defence which would make cricket coaches of any generation purr. He eventually retired shortly after lunch having completed an impressive century with, as far as I can remember, no chances or any real false shots. Along the way he gunned some tremendous extra cover drives bisecting fielders properly set and leaving them standing.

He was supported by his opening partner Casstles who hit a solid 50 before retiring.

V&A had managed to keep it tight for the first 15 or so overs but, with the openers well settled, things started to unwind in the troublesome middle overs, not helped by some patchy fielding. Poor Christy Kulasingam had to watch three downed from his bowling (including a sitter dropped by your writer).

The weather held up. Lunch was taken outside. Business as usual then… well, almost.

Our regular master of ceremonies, Nicky Bird, was absent. Rob Taylor therefore had another task to add to his responsibilities for the day. Rob, with characteristic charm, found his own voice and confined himself to the essentials, thanking the opposition and then thanking the caterer, Jasper’s mother, for another fine spread (thanks also to her son for organising everything on the day). Rob also ensured that an important landmark did not pass without proper recognition, toasting Christiaan for his 50^th birthday which the latter had celebrated the previous weekend.

Invalids resumed after lunch enabling Arnold to complete his century. There were a couple of nifty 20s including some crisp shots from Cullity, the Antipodean wicket-keeper, although Invalids never truly got away in the way they might have done and set 227. It was clearly going to be a challenge, but not an insurmountable one.

I opened with Charlie. We had a discussion about running between wickets on the way out. I warned him that it might be a different experience from batting for his school team. In the event, Charlie ran himself out, taking an ambitious second which was his call. He was unlucky: he picked a good fielder to challenge and the speed of the return to the wicket-keeper might have surprised Charlie in a game where the majority of players were at least two or three times his age.

Mike Casserley came in at number three. He confessed he hadn’t batted in earnest for many years. His stylish, upmarket, tennis shoes betrayed his preferred choice of summer sport. He managed to keep a few out but then a sizeable gap opened up and a straight one flicked the bails off.

Enter Jasper Arnold at 19-2.

While the pitch was easier than it has been, the Invalids bowling was tight, and the fielding well drilled. The first change bowler, Jeepers, in particular was very skilled – he controlled the ball like a yo-yo at times.

The Arnold/Pitlarge partnership added 42; while looking solid, the required run rate was increasing. Jasper’s trademark punch drive arrived just in time; I managed to perfect my cutting such that I was able to hit the ball direct to point unerringly and with pinpoint accuracy.

The partnership was largely incident free, although one call for a single was met with an emphatic rebuttal that I was, “just hitting it and running…”. Slightly puzzled by this challenge (particularly in the context of a run chase), I scooped the next ball to the Invalids’ Christie at mid-on, who showed us how to take a moderately swirling catch, and then hold onto it.

Still there was some solid attacking batting to come – this particular dismissal could well be an opportunity? Jasper in his stride, Chetan next, and Rob to follow…

However, wickets continued to tumble. Jasper was then bowled by a straight one from Roberts for a typically robust 34. Chetan looked in good touch but flirted with the hazard of stepping back and across to the slow left-arm  armer– Christie again – missed, and was out LBW.

Much was then expected of Rob Taylor. Having met all of the day’s captaincy challenges with aplomb, even these previous successes were eclipsed with a splendid counter-attacking innings, which will take some beating for innings of the season. Wickets were continuing to fall, the run rate was increasing but Rob was unfazed and, with a perceptible sense of purpose, he hit 59 runs out of the 70 or so scored while he was at the crease. His boundary count was four sixes and six fours: each one reflected a powerful and clean strike.

Rob’s heroics were not enough.  Christy was striking the ball well but no further partnerships developed. We were then down to the last wicket pair – Dominic obviously developing a thirst for the aggressive hitting he was seeing from his batting partner, gave Gilmore what we might loosely call “the charge” and was stumped, leaving Rob stranded with, I am sure, much more in the tank.

Invalids were worthy winners. They played good cricket, intelligently – and all in good humour. Thus, while the defeat was a comprehensive one, the game was engaging and enjoyable having been leavened by Rob’s spirited performance.

Everything was set up nicely for post-match drinks at The Golden Ball. James Arnold, man of the match on any view, was generous at the bar, but self-effacing about his performance. A lengthy table was assembled in the garden with both teams and some family members mixing up and enjoying lively conversation in the evening sun, no one seeming in any particular hurry to leave … which is generally a good sign suggesting also that, at last, early summer might be upon us.