ROSEMARY ABBOTT | Sport
SAME OLD STORY
Christchurch third-grade cricket stalwart Ryan Wilkes, 34, stood motionless at the crease, his middle stump dramatically uprooted by a waist-high full-toss at Hagley Park.
Wilkes, who has not progressed beyond second-grade cricket since his fleeting promotion in 2013, once again turned to his extensive library of post-dismissal excuses to justify his latest failure.
“The pitch was an absolute minefield,” Wilkes said while tossing his gloves at his cricket bag.
“You just can’t trust a pitch like that,” he insisted. “Look, it dipped at the last second. That’s textbook deception from the bowler. If anything, I was unlucky. Definitely a bowler’s deck” lied Walsh, despite all of his other teammates scoring over 30 each.
Teammates, however, have learned to embrace Wilkes’ unique post-dismissal theatrics. “Honestly, it’s part of the entertainment,” said captain Mark Russell.”
“It would be weird for him to actually blame himself for the way he got dismissed.”
Reporters tried to get more comment from Walsh, however he was seen practising his bowling, despite it being unlikely he’ll get a bowl and will field from fine leg to third man the whole innings.
More to come.
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