Cricketers desperate for a dry weekend

Central Indians' Dave Levy (left) and Andrew Gibbs take a run. Photo/File

Play in the Baywide Cup will get under way tomorrow, weather permitting, after last weekend's opening round was abandoned due to rain.

Bayleys Central Indians will be at home at the centre of cricket in Rotorua, at Smallbone Park, against Cooney Lees Morgan Tauranga Boys' College.

Central Indians showed plenty of promise in their first season since amalgamating last year, without getting too many points on the leaderboard. The Tauranga students have recently returned from a pre-season trip to South Africa, with the experience likely to serve them well in the two Baywide title races.

With wet weather again on the horizon, a second venue change in the feature match of round two may be required. The match-up between Element IMF Cadets and New World Te Puke has already been transferred from Te Puke Domain to Tauranga Domain. Further inclement weather leading up to the encounter could see the game shifted to an artificial surface, in the Western Bay region.

The match between the two long-time Baywide rivals has an extra edge, with the Western Bay of Plenty Cricket Challenge Trophy, or the Baker Cup, up for grabs.

A batsman likely to lead a Te Puke charge to take the Baker Cup home is Te Puke skipper Stephen Crossan. The attacking top order batsman leads the early season T20 batting stakes, posting 177 runs in the abbreviated form of the game.

Cadets will call upon a trio of extreme experience to anchor their time at the crease. Ben Christensen, Scott Steward and Jono Boult are seasoned batsmen who never give their wicket away cheaply.

Te Puke's Christian MacDonald tops the Baywide T20 bowling tally, taking nine bowling scalps in the T20 title race. Bay of Plenty representative quick bowler Donavan Deeble can trouble any sustained batting attack, while Jono Boult, who has notched up a century of appearances for Northern Districts, can weave magic with the slower ball.

Carrus Mount Maunganui pay a visit to Pemberton Park to square off with Eves Realty Greerton. Both teams will have their eyes firmly set on the ND Club Champs berth, earned by the winner of the Baywide Cup. Mount Maunganui are current ND Club champions with Greerton having won the big club prize a few seasons ago.

Both the Greerton and Mount Maunganui captains lead their troops by example. Mount skipper Dale Swan took 21 wickets in the Baywide Cup last year. Shane Wineti, who has led Greerton for several seasons, is a seasoned all-rounder who scores plenty of runs in the middle order and is a more than useful change bowler.

BOPCA Baywide Cup Round One - Saturday

Bayleys Central Indians v Cooney Lees Morgan Tauranga Boys College, Smallbone Park; Eves Realty Greerton v Carrus Mount Maunganui, Pemberton Park; New World Te Puke v Element IMF Cadets, Tauranga Domain; GM Painters Lake Taupo CC the bye.