WIMBORNE 134 (3pts) lost to DORCHESTER 137-3 (20pts) by seven wickets

DORCHESTER continued their pursuit of early Wessex Internet Dorset Premier League leaders Bere Regis, defeating reigning champions Wimborne by seven wickets.

Wimborne are particularly difficult to beat on their home Leaze ground but Dorchester showed just why they are in contention for the title with an authoritative display.

Their march to victory began when captain Gautham Rajendar won the toss, elected to field and promptly watched his side reduce Wimborne to 38-5.

Of the Wimborne batters to go, only skipper Ben Bridgen (22) troubled Dorchester until he was dismissed by Jack Owens (2-16).

READ MORE: Dorchester beat Sherborne by eight wickets

Dan Hill (2-38) and Dan Belt (1-22) had also struck, together with Kiwi overseas all-rounder Harry Jones (2-16) as Dorchester took a strong grip on the contest.

Wimborne’s response was typically robust as rising Dorset star Fred Boger smashed 17 off one Hill over.

He shared 69 for the sixth wicket with Hugh Atkinson (29), before Rajendar broke the partnership, Jones taking the catch to send Atkinson packing.

Six balls later in Rajendar’s spell, he then had Boger (42) snaffled by Belt as Wimborne were checked at 110-7.

And Rajendar ended with excellent figures of 3-9 when Belt pouched another catch, this time off Toby Stainer-Reid (12).

The writing was by this time on the wall as Belt and Owens returned to the attack to claim a wicket apiece, rolling Wimborne out for 134.

Dorchester crucially did not lose early wickets in their reply as Jim Ryall and Jamie Barrett (17) steadily moved to 40-0 from 12 overs.

Wimborne got themselves a foothold, though, as Connor Houldsworth (2-15) dismissed Barrett and Will Maltby (3).

Dorchester progressed to 77-2 before losing their next wicket, Owens (10) pinned lbw by Harry Reynolds.

That was as good as it got for Wimborne as Simon Mitchem carved out a rapid 40 not out, providing the perfect foil for the more watchful Ryall.

Fresh from his 105 for Dorset Over-50s on Jersey in midweek, Ryall continued his good form with an unbeaten 51, reaching his fifty with a four off Alfie Ingram.

It was then left to Mitchem to hit the winning runs as Dorchester recorded their third win of the season.

Rajendar reserved praise for Ryall, telling Echosport: “We are all buzzing for him.

“We joke about his current average which is over 100 and hope he can stay there for quite a bit.

"He had quite a few impressive grabs behind the stumps, too.”

Rajendar added: “We’re very pleased with where we are at the moment. High on confidence and, most of all, backing our own abilities to come out on top.

“We’ve been disciplined with both bat and ball but there’s been some extra focus on our fielding and running recently, which I’d like for us to keep up.”

Elsewhere, Dorchester Seconds lost their unbeaten record to 10-man Shaftesbury in a top-of-the-table clash in Division Two, going down by 29 runs.

Dorchester Thirds defeated Charlton Down Seconds by 117 runs but Dorchester Fourths lost to Broadstone Fourth by eight wickets.