The Aegean Test Championship: Match Report - Day 3
The ferocity of the action on the field is matched only by the drama in the changing rooms!
In a stunning turn of events, the Trojan team went from on the ropes to a dominant position, thanks largely to events completely out of their control. The most important action of the day took place before a ball was even bowled, and out of sight of spectators, but much of what happened has been passed on to us through reliable channels. Find out below how this incredible drama took place, what were the causes and repercussions of it, and the dire consequences this would have for the Greeks in the field today.
Before the Start of Play
As we noted last night, the prize of a 5 wicket bag for the paceman Achilles loomed large in the mind of many spectators at the close of play, with his figures reading 4/31 and another 5 wickets still available to take. It was this very fact that led to one of the most momentous arguments in the history of the game.
In their morning team briefing, according to our sources, Greek captain Agamemnon announced that he would be resting Achilles for the remainder of the innings, to give him time to recover for the second innings. While Achilles had struggled with a sore ankle yesterday after being struck while batting, he was surprised by this news as he had now been declared fully fit and was raring to go. It did not take him long to guess at Agamemnon’s true motives for this decision.
Rising in the crowd, Achilles called out his captain and accused him of resting his prize bowler to prevent him taking more wickets and jeopardise his winning the ultimate man-of-the-match prize from their wealthy sponsor, Athena. With only 4 wickets in the innings, he would be left with nothing - which infuriated the fiery paceman. Agamemnon, in reply, denied the allegation and repeated his justification.
The two came close together, and it seemed for a second that Achilles was about to assault him; at that moment, however, Athena entered the room and gave a disapproving signal, at which Achilles backed down. To vent his anger, he grabbed Agamemnon’s nearby bat and snapped it clean in two across his muscular thigh. At this, he announced that he would take no further part in the game, and hoped the Greeks would suffer for the folly of their leader. Achilles stormed out, leaving his teammates in a stunned silence.
First Session
News of the morning’s altercation filtered swiftly through the crowd and the Trojan camp. It seemed to embolden their batters, none more so than Hector who strode out to resume his innings looking more imperious than ever on 30*. Joining him at the crease was their elder statesman and captain, Priam, who would prove to be a mighty bulwark for his team. Achilles was noticeably absent in the field, with his close companion Patroclus reluctantly filling in as twelfth man.
Idomeneus and Teucer once again opened the attack, but lacked any real threat on a surface that looked increasingly good to bat on. At the crease, Hector seemed to have grown in stature and confidence, and put away loose balls with ease. At the other end, Priam followed the example set by the Greek Nestor and looked to blunt the attack for as long as possible. While not scoring quickly, he was an able foil for the aggressive Hector, who moved past 50 with ease.
The Greeks looked shellshocked in the field, their usual chatter replaced by silent glances and forlorn exchanges. Agamemnon remained a combination of frustrated and flabbergasted at the events that had preceded, and was clearly distracted when ringing the changes. With increasing desperation, he called upon a range of bowlers, with Odysseus, Diomedes and Lesser Ajax all getting short bursts, to no avail.
By the time lunch rolled around, it was a much needed opportunity for the Greeks to regroup and reset, with the new ball just around the corner. Hector had quietly moved his score through to 82 off 150 balls, while Priam had profited from the opportunities granted by part timers to move his score through to 33 off 98. Their partnership had steadied the ship from a precarious 182/5 overnight to a more comfortable 267/5 at the break.
Second Session
The lunch break provided little benefit to the Greek side, as the situation remained much the same in the second session. A reported emissary mission led by Odysseus and Diomedes made an attempt to broker peace with Achilles; nevertheless he remained absent from the field and the ground for the remainder of the day. With the new ball available, Agamemnon was unable to turn to his trump card and the Greeks once again failed to make inroads.
Hector, emboldened and growing in confidence every over, took full advantage of the good batting conditions and the hardness of the new ball, putting away a number of boundaries when offered the opportunity. Off one such delivery, he slapped an imperious drive through the covers to bring up his century - pausing to soak in the adulation of the home fans, but humbly gesturing to them as if to note that the job was only half done. Those at ground could not deny that as the Greeks’ star waned, his waxed and he seemed to have that glint of killer determination in his eyes.
Priam at the other end brimmed with pride for his star batsman, riding the wave of his ascendency to bring up his own half century off 143 balls. He even turned back the clock and unfurled some of the piercing drives that he was well known for in his youth. As their partnership threatened to continue building and take the chance of a result away from the Greeks, Agamemnon in his frustration turned to the one bowler he trusted to get the job done - himself.
In a probing spell, the Greek captain summoned his energy to swing the ball both ways and test the outside edge of the batsmen. Hector seemed non-plussed by the movement, but Priam was eventually undone by one that drew his hands away from his body and had him steering the ball to Menelaus at gully. Agamemnon let out a roar of delight as his brother pouched the catch, ending a 152 run stand. Priam walked off to thunderous applause, his 66 from 178 balls taking his team to a safe position of 334/6 with 10 overs until the Tea break.
There was as yet no sign of Paris at the crease, who had retired hurt the day before but did not yet come out to restart his innings. Instead, the defiant Deiphobus strode out to the middle to join the admirable Hector. Agamemnon, emboldened by the wicket, kept himself on for an extended spell, regularly testing the new batsman but unable to make further inroads. Deiphobus unleashed two smashing cut shots to the boundary and moved confidently through to 13, before falling to Idomeneus on the stroke of Tea. The opening bowler got one to keep a little low, taking the inside edge of the bat and clattering into the stumps. A small moment of relief for the Greeks, as the Trojans headed to the break 361/7 - still trailing by 76 runs. Hector remained undefeated on 129 from 223 balls.
Third Session
The Tea break saw another dramatic moment off the field, this time in the Trojan camp. With the innings hanging in the balance, Hector turned to his brother Paris who had been ensconced in the physio’s tent for the majority of the day. Reports vary, but it seems as though Paris initially refused to go out to bat but, after several choice words, Hector convinced him to walk out to bat with him at the resumption of play. Whatever was said, Paris did take the crease though with noticeably more body protection than the day before.
Despite Hector’s best efforts, however, little could be done to improve Paris’ batting. Although missing the pace of Achilles, Agamemnon turned to his opening bowlers to target him with short balls, which soon paid off. Teucer had him backing away and fending, and before long he popped up the simplest of catches to a gleeful Diomedes at short leg. Hector hung his head as his brother trudged off, not able to add any runs to his score of 1. The Greeks were now back in the ascendency, and Hector was running out of partners.
Into this cauldron emerged the youthful Aeneas, who had made a promising start to his career but was yet to face anything as testing as this. From the outset, however, he seemed calm and composed beyond his years. Resolute in defence and punishing of anything wide, he steadied the nerves in the Trojan camp and built a solid partnership with Hector. First they took the team total past 400, closing in on the Greek score, and saw his batting partner through to his 150. Hector looked completely untroubled and treated all comers with dispassionate contempt, steering the ball around the field as he liked. The Greeks attempted a barrage of short bowling to him, which he ducked or played as he saw fit. Their desperation was in evidence as twice the ball sailed over the keeper for 5 wides, much to the displeasure of Agamemnon.
The partnership brought the Trojans to a lead as the score passed 437, and threatened to take them through to the close unscathed, but it was the spinner Lesser Ajax who eventually provided the breakthrough. Flighting one up to Aeneas, he tempted him into driving loosely down the ground towards long on, catching a leading edge and simply knocking it back into the bowler’s waiting hands. At 443/9 it seemed that the two teams would likely end their respective innings on level terms. Hector, however, had other ideas.
With the new man Pandarus safely navigating his first two deliveries, all attention turned to how Hector would play. His response was swift and brutal, depositing the pace of Tecuer over the long on boundary for 6. Agamemnon responded by pushing his field back, and Hector replied by hitting the next ball even further for another towering 6. By this stage, the Greeks were to a man pushed back against the boundary, only the Greater Ajax stood in the inner circle against Hector’s onslaught. Twice more Hector deposited Teucer over the boundary in the over, moving his score to a scarcely believable 196. Agamemnon, knowing Hector would be tempted by the prospect of a double century, brought the field up for the final ball and dared him to hit over them. But to the great disappointment of the crowd, Hector’s bat met only air and the ball sailed harmlessly through to the keeper, the tailender now on strike for the next over.
Agamemnon returned once again to his opening bowler Idomeneus, who found the outside half of Pandarus’ bat only to see the ball run through the cordon. Odysseus seemingly fumbled the ball on its return, gifting the batsmen the chance to come back for a second - though perhaps this was a deliberate ploy from the wily campaigner, as he knew Hector would put the team score ahead of his own and never turn down a run on offer. It proved to be a master stroke, as two balls later Pandarus was trapped LBW, dead in front, with umpire Radamanthus taking a few seconds to raise his finger.
Groans and laments at the dismissal and Hector’s fate turned to a standing ovation as the heroic batsman strode from the ground, unbeaten on 196 off 285 balls. Having taken the side from 182/5 to 481 all out, it was truly a knock of epic proportions that will live long in the memory. The Greeks, still a little stunned from the preceding passage of play, walked off wondering how they found themselves trailing by 44 runs. To make matters worse, their openers would now have to face a short 5 over spell from the freshly rested Trojan attack.
When the players took the field, few could have blamed Hector if he had chosen to sit out the final overs, having batted through over a day at the crease. And yet, after Paris sent down the first over, it was Hector who shared the new ball with him from the other end, much to the crowd’s admiration. And that admiration turned to ecstasy when he had Protesilaus reaching for one outside off stump and edging straight into the hands of Priam at first slip. The great Trojan capped off an incredible day with a wicket to boot - few could doubt that he would have a finer hour than this.
Agamemnon himself strode to the crease to see out the remainder of the day, once again practising his philosophy that if he wanted the job done, he ought to do it himself. The Greeks therefore finished at the close 5 for 1, Agamemnon and Nestor shutting up shop and the team still trailing by 39. Another thunderous round of applause greeted Hector and his team mates as they left the field.
End of the Day
The Trojan camp must surely be on an absolute high on a day which saw them dominate the Greeks, who had themselves fallen apart to bitter infighting and dissension. Hector remains the difference between the two sides, and his fans and teammates alike will be praying he rests well tonight and comes back fresh tomorrow.
For the Greeks, the most pressing concern must be the participation of Achilles, who was not seen on or even near the field for the entire day. His absence was like a festering wound in the team’s cohesion and with their batting line-up now shaken, his contribution will be even more important. Agamemnon may well have to swallow his pride and make whatever amends are possible to get the hot-heated all rounder back on board.
Few can deny that this game is heading for an exciting climax, so make sure you subscribe to stay up to date with all the developments as they happen!