HIMLEY CC captain Greg Wright has called on his batsmen to stand up and be counted after his side were dismissed cheaply for the second week running.

The Stourbridge Road outfit were skittled out for just 88 as they suffered a crushing 111 run derby defeat at Wolverhampton, just a week after they were bowled out for 122 in a 53 run loss at Barnt Green.

Himley have now lost ground in the Birmingham Premier League, slipping two places to fifth in the table, with Wright playing down talk of a title challenge.

He said: “It’s unfair of me to talk about the title because at the moment we just aren’t strong enough.

“That doesn’t mean we will be giving in, we will still be giving 100 per cent but I’m not going to put pressure on my players.

“Saturday was disappointing as we were looking for a response after Barnt Green but just didn’t get it.

“We had been batting really well but at the moment it’s fallen apart a bit. I asked some of the guys to stand up afterwards because some of the shots we got out to were very, very poor.

“They need to take responsibility for that.”

After winning the toss and deciding to bowl, Himley made early inroads thanks to a devastating opening spell from seamer Stuart Wedge who removed openers Tom Fell (6) and Mike Smith (2), before bowling David Wheeldon for a duck.

Michael Hill then dismissed Richard Howitt (4) but Christopher Brook (52) and Simon Lycett (29) helped steady Wolverhampton’s ship.

Both were dismissed by spinner Shafiq Ahmed but former Indian Test player Sairaj Bahutule then smacked an unbeaten 70 to help the home side to 199-7 off their 55 overs. Wedge finished with figures of 3-65, while Ahmed took 3-46.

Himley’s reply got off to the worst possible start as opener Chris Tranter was removed without scoring, while Daniel Bassett (9) and Nitesh Patel (5) also failed to make an impact.

Skipper Wright offered some resistance with 18 but wickets contiued to fall as the visitors were eventually dismissed for just 88 in 45.3 overs.

Bahutule sealed his man of the match performance, taking 4-24.

Wright added: “He played fantastically well, he is one of the better overseas players you will see around the league.

“They were probably looking at a score of around 130 before he came in but he turned it around. Getting 200 on that wicket was always going to be tough.”

Himley now return home to face Leamington Spa this Saturday (noon start) though they will still be without the services of star bowler Tim Heap.

The seamer, who has missed most of the season with a groin injury, was expected to return last Saturday but has suffered a setback in his recovery.

Himley will also be without Michael Hill, who is away, while there are also doubts over opener Harshad Patel.