A fighting 136 from new Sydney University recruit William Salzmann was not enough to prevent a 34-run loss to Belvidere Cup leaders St George in their two-day Round 7 NSW Premier Cricket match at University Oval on the weekend.
Chasing down St George’s imposing day one target of 307, Salzmann entered the fray with the Students 2-13. He put on a 62-run stand with opener Jack Attenborough (24) and an 84-run stand with No.5 Tim Cummins (44) before Saints quick Peter Francis put paid to proceedings, ending with 5-55 from his 23 overs.
Salzmann’s 201-ball knock included 12 boundaries and a pair of 6s. It was the 19-year-old all-rounder’s first ton since joining the club from Campbelltown Camden District Cricket Club where he captained the Poidevin-Gray side last season.
The right-arm quick, who is on a rookie contract with NSW Cricket, recently claimed 4-48 for NSW in their two-wicket Marsh One-Day Cup win over Western Australia at Cricket Central, Olympic Park. He made his debut for Australia at the 2022 Under 19 Cricket World Cup in the Caribbean where he was the leading wicket-taker for the team.
While injury prevented him from bowling for NSW in the final of the 2022 Under 19 National Championships, he impressed with the bat, top-scoring with an unbeaten 96 and tonking a six for the winning runs. Salzmann was named Elite Sportsperson of the Year at the Wests Sports Council Annual Sports Awards presentations last year.
St George remain unbeaten with six wins in the 2022-23 competition thanks in part to a strong batting line-up. After Blake Nikitaras (34) and Matt Rodgers (39) put on a 72-run opening stand, the middle order of Kurtis Patterson (82) Luke Bartier (55), Ed Pollock (33) and skipper Nicholas Stapleton (24) helped to build a solid target.
All-rounder Nivethan Radhakrishnan was the pick of the bowlers, claiming 5-62 from his 20.4 overs. After emigrating from India Radhakrishnan represented Australia in the Under 16s in 2019 and Under 19s in 2022 and made his first-class debut playing for Tasmania in the 2021-22 Sheffield Shield season. A left-handed batsman, he can bowl right-arm off breaks and left-arm orthodox.
Sydney University will host 7th placed Mosman in a one-day Round 8 match at University Oval this Saturday.
Meanwhile, Sydney University Seconds had a 51-run win over St George in their one-day Albert Cup match at Hurstville Oval on Saturday.
After being sent in to bat, Sydney University posted 9-294 off their 50 overs, thanks to a quick-fire 127 from Andrew Hazard. The No.4 cracked three boundaries and eight 6s in his 113-ball stay and shared a 100 run partnership with Ravi Wikramanayake (37) and a 62-run stand with Max Hope (37).
The Students then rolled the hosts for 243 off 47.4 overs with Jed Collins (3-54), Harrison May (2-29) and Hayden McCarthy (2-45) the main wicket-takers. Adam Singleton topscored for St George with 85, with skipper Mitchell Gray posting 47 in the run-chase.
Sydney University Thirds remained unbeaten when they pulled off a 17-run win over St George in their one-day Mitchell Cup encounter at St Paul’s College Oval.
After winning the toss and batting, the Students were all out for 215 in the 48th over with No.4 Thomas Siede unbeaten on 94. His 124-ball stay included seven boundaries and four over the fence. Nathan Anderson was the pick of the St George bowlers, claiming 5-36.
Sydney University then rolled Saints for 198 off 45.4 overs, with Henry Clark snaring 3-31, while Siede finished with 2-28 and skipper Josh Toyer 2-23. Vansh Jani topscored for the visitors with 45.
Sydney University Fourths had a 43-run win over the Saints in their Reid Cup match at Harold Fraser Reserve, while Fifth Grade had an eight-wicket win over St George in their Sherwood Cup match at Camperdown Park.
