STOKE Gabriel CC turned in a team-of-the-day performance in the Tolchards DCL B Division when they knocked off 333 to win against Braunton with just two balls to spare and three wickets in hand.

Stoke needed 40 to win from the final five overs and had opener Abhishek Anand already past a hundred.

It looked like a done deal until the penultimate over when James Lake only went for three runs, which left six balls to face from Jason Raynor, four Stoke wickets intact and seven required to win it.

Raynor dismissed Jack Smith two balls in to add a bit more drama to proceedings. Sean Rooney scampered a single from the next delivery, which put Anand on strike with five needed and three balls left. Abhishek launched the next ball for six to win the game and take his personal tally to 148 not out.

The chase started with a stand of 133 between Stoke skipper Jack Tolley (62) and Anand, which was topped by Dan Duke (24) during another partnership worth 65.

Losing four wickets for 10 runs during a mini slide to 208 for five slowed Stoke’s pursuit for a while. Liam Mair (65) and Anand revived it with a key stand of 112 for the sixth wicket that made the game winnable.

Braunton’s tally of 332 for four was constructed around two big partnerships, both featuring Callum Mitchell.

Mitchell and Sam Bithell (78) added 155 for the third wicket to take the running total to 232 for three. Mitchell went on to reach a century in a further stand of 89 with in-form left-hander Theo Valeri (60 off 30 balls).

Winning captain Tolley said: “What an incredible game!

“Braunton batted very well on an absolute road and at the halfway stage we knew we would have to go some to chase 330-odd.

“Abhi batted brilliantly. It was probably one of the best innings I've ever seen.

“Liam Mair's knock was brilliant too. He took the pressure off Abhi and got us back to a manageable rate.”

This is a second win of the campaign for Stoke Gabriel from four outings, a record that has them in seventh in the B Division.

Their 47-point tally is better than that of Abbotskerswell, Ipplepen and Bideford/ Littleham/ Westward Ho!- one of whom they’ve faced already and another that stands in their way next.

Stoke beat Ipplepen by four wickets in week two, sandwiched in between home defeats at the hands of Plymstock and Ivybridge. This means that they are 2-0 on their travels and 0-2 on familiar territory so a visit to eighth-placed Abbots, who are just four points behind them, promises to be an intriguing one.

Ahead of Stoke in the standings are a quartet in the mid-50s, three of whom are locked together on 55 points with Braunton close behind on 54. As it is still the early stages of the year, the teams remain within touching distance of each other and so that is a pack that Stoke will look to hunt down.

At the summit, Plymstock have won all four games to date with Budleigh Salterton five points behind, three wins and a defeat to their name.