Botha defies weather gods

Papplewick's berth at the top of the Nottinghamshire Premier League was cut short by rain when their match against Gedling was abandoned, clearing the way for Caythorpe to go two points clear after their winning draw against Killamarsh.

In a match that was reduced to 35 overs a side by bad weather, Caythorpe piled on the runs, with Leon Botha leading the charge with 114 from 77 balls, including seven fours and seven big sixes.

After passing 200, with Russell Warren contributing 39, the home side declared with three wickets down, setting Killamarsh an unlikely 204 to win.

An unbeaten 42 from Adam Burgess, including two boundaries from 104 deliveries, stretched Killamarsh's reply to 90 for seven.

He received little support from his team-mates, with only Jaya Jaddu getting into double figures but his efforts prevented Caythorpe from leaving with the full allocation of win points.

It was a good day for Botha who grabbed 4-27 to give Caythorpe bragging rights and place them above WI Cavaliers whose match against Clifton was also cancelled.

Kimberley moved into third, having extracted 10 points from their abandoned game against Welbeck.

Making 176 for four, with Joshua Mangan hitting an undefeated 60, Kimberley looked to be in a strong position, though Welbeck fought back valiantly with 57 without loss, including 41 from former Notts opener Darren Bicknell, before the heavens opened and play was called off.

Similarly, at Mansfield Hosiery Mills, Keshara Jayasingh made 54 and Iain Smallwood 45 to steer the home side to 173 for nine from 35 overs with Mark Whitehead finishing with 5-55.

With the dark clouds looming, Plumtree made a cracking start to their reply with Ben Milnes blasting 64 from 66 balls, with 10 fours, and Steve James keeping him company with 25 from 27.

But with the score on 148 for four, the weather gods had their say and the covers were quickly applied with Plumtree earning 14 points from their endeavours and Mansfield 11, which keeps both teams in the lower half of the table.