Secretary's Report
2014 proved an ultimately successful season for OMTCC with the 1st XI undefeated champions of Division 3b and the 2s and 3s both finishing strongly though just missing out on the promotion places.
It was a season of two halves for all 3 league sides as all the teams struggled with early season unavailability throughout the club, but the second half of the season saw OMT climb up their tables – it was just a shame the 2nd and 3rd XIs ran out of time to catch the leaders.
The 1st XI took until week 7 to pick up their first victory – chasing 250 at Kew – but once the first win was achieved they were virtually unstoppable and finished the season with an incredible 10 successive victories. Pivotal to this success were the all-round performances of the skipper Sohan Modi, the runs of Adam Al-Madhawie and Kavir Vedd and the wickets of overseas player Vikas Dixit. It will however be a significant challenge next season for the first team back in the heights of division 2 for the first time in several seasons but something the side should relish. Al-Madhawie was player-of-the-season for 290 runs at 48 at the top of the order.
The 2nd XI took until week 9 to pick up their first win, following a worrying run of 5 straight defeats to Amersham, Barnes, Slough, Windsor and BA – but once this first victory was achieved at home to eventual champions Hillingdon Manor the side never looked back and won the majority of their remaining games – with the wickets of player-of-the-year Paul Katz (32) and Shiv Saujani (23) the key driver. It was also a cracking moment to see Raj Vellingiri score his maiden 2nd XI hundred at Chalfont St Peter.
The 3rd XI probably had the most tumultuous season following the early resignation of their captain David Phillipps but once the side re-grouped and availability improved, the side clawed its way from the relegation zone. In fact only 1 of the 3rd XI's first 6 games actually saw a ball bowled as 3 matches fell to the weather and 2 to player unavailability. Week 9 was also to provide the 3rd XI's first win of the season with a narrow 4 run win over Eastcote and 6 further wins saw them move away from the relegation zone with player-of-the-year Aaron Amin’s 180+ runs and 13 wickets key.
The season ends with Sohan Modi retiring from 1st XI captaincy after 2 seasons and Guy Edwards after 5 years in charge of the 2nd XI. Both can be commended for their efforts and their sides will do well to continue the momentum built over the 2014 season – with the 1st XI looking to compete well in division 2 and the 2nd XI looking for promotion. It is a point of caution that a 4 division gap between the two sides is far from ideal and hopefully this gap will be bridged – without any relegations – in the coming years. Vicrum Surdhur took over the 3rd XI captaincy at half way in 2014 and will also be looking to build a competitive side – with promotion certainly a possibility if the second half of 2014 was anything to go by.
Finally a note of thanks to Paul Katz for his tireless efforts in his first year in the job as Chairman and his appointment is far from insignificant to the progress that has been made this season. The club and committee is not without its issues to resolve and there were certainly issues to be addressed out of the 2014 season, but the club is definitely moving in the right direction and here’s hoping 2015 brings further all round enjoyment and success.
Andrew Wingfield
OMTCC Hon. Sec