An opening batter who faced 137 balls without scoring a run in a club cricket match has said he has been getting attention from “all over the world”.

Ian Bestwick faced down bowlers in a spell of attrition for Darley Abbey’s 4th XI on Saturday, and finished it not out.

The steely player took the approach after the opposition posted a total of 271, which left him thinking that as “we had quite a young, inexperienced team… let’s just see if we can protect our wickets”.

It worked. Derbyshire-based Darley Abbey finished on 21-4 after 45 overs which meant the match against Mickleover 3rd XI ended in a draw – with Mr Bestwick’s knock causing a stir.

The 48-year-old said the response to the match had “gone crackers”.

“It’s gone round the world,” he said. “It has been mentioned in Australia, Pakistan, Qatar.

“I have had friend requests from around the globe.”

While the teams are at the bottom of the table in Division Nine of the Derbyshire Cricket League, it felt to the batsman like he had won The Ashes.

“Our dressing room was bouncing” after the draw, he said, telling BBC Radio Derby: “[The players] were all grinning, and thought it was brilliant. It shows you how good local cricket can be.”

He explained: “We had been in the field for three hours chasing leather all over the place.

“They came off and were dejected, [but] at the end it was like we had won a cup or something.

“The atmosphere in our dressing room was second to none. It was brilliant.”

He added: “Towards the end it became a thing where I was determined not to score.”

There was a near squeak though. Mr Bestwick, of Spondon, Derby, had been bowled by the opposition, but the delivery was declared a no-ball.

The opposing opener had tallied 186 runs and “was superb” said Mr Bestwick, who nevertheless stated after his own score of 0: “He’s not even the story of the day.”

His son Thomas Bestwick, meanwhile, contributed four from 71 balls thanks to a single boundary.

But all eyes were on dad, and when someone asked whether he was exhausted after his performance, he had this to say: “Are you kidding? I have not done anything. I have not run anywhere.”

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