Melbourn travelled to play a high quality Cambridge University team targeting promotion.

Kate Bradshaw at string 1 took to the court first against Ben Pang. This was a high quality match between two very skillful and fit players, a thoroughly enjoyable match to kick off the night. Ben settled first and managed to stay a few points ahead despite Kate's pressure, taking the first game 15:10. Kate however showed grit and determination, also mixing up the shots to stretch Ben a lot more. Although making some unforced errors late in the game, Kate held on to take a well-deserved 17:19. The exertions of the previous game seemed to take more out of Kate, reflecting in a relatively easy third game for Ben (15:6) to lead 2:1 in games. The fourth game was a close one, fought tooth and nail. On this occasion, Kate has the chances to snatch it, but unfortunately errors at the inopportune moments handed the initiative to Ben and he nicked it 15:13 and the match 3:1.

James Storer, at string 5, took on Arjun Raykumar. James' form continues to improve as the season progresses and while he was up against a very strong string 5 player in Arjun, he showed his ability, particularly in the first half of the first game. James matched Arjun point for point and looked very much in the zone, however around the halfway point, a combination of bad luck, poor shot selection and momentum slipping away let Arjun win a run of points to take the game 15:7. James recovered his composure and made sure the second game was a closer affair, this time letting it slip later in the game, Arjun taking it 15:11. The third followed a similar path to the first, James not being able to maintain the pressure on his opponent, going down 15:6 and the match 3:0.

Sean Hamilton, at string 4, was up against Shashank Bhandari. The scoreline from the first two games (15:1, 15:4) would suggest a mismatch, however Sean played much better than this. Finding himself in control of many rallies, Sean proceeded to hand the initiative back to his opponent repeatedly, instead of hitting winners. In the third game, Sean remedied this to make it much more competitive, but ultimately 15:9 to Shashant, along with the match 3:0.

Moises Estrelles Navarro found himself for the second week in a row playing a highly ranked opponent, this time Cambridge Uni's string 3, Neil Prabhu. This was no easy task and it took Moises a while to find his rhythm. The first game slipped away quickly, with Prabhu taking it 15:3. Moises recovered well from the early setback to play is usual game, great retrieving and introducing some tight boasts and drops, applying some pressure to his opponent. He could not sustain it however, going down 15:7. Feeling the pace, and like many of the Melbourn players currently, not at 100%, Moises could not improve further in the third. Retrieving brilliantly and hitting some great winners, Moises gave it everything he had as always, but Pradhu had too much for him on the night, taking it 15:8 and the match 3:0.

Last up, Colm O'Gorman took on Ollie Norton at string 2. Colm took an early lead, using his drops to pick off winners, however Ollie recovered to make is a close game all the way to 14:14. Colm had the opportunity to take the game, but frustratingly missed shots he would normally get, Ollie nicking it 19:17. The second game similarly remained close until the later stages, Colm grinding it out 12:15. The third game was yet again close, and at 13:13 Ollie managed to get ahead to scrape through 15:13. Colm was feeling the fatigue and struggled to stay in touch in the fourth, the home player taking an unassailable lead, to take the game easily 15:3 and the match 3:1.

Skipper Colm appreciated the standard of the opposition, however was happy with team performance, a very enjoyable string 1 match, and great to see James, Sean and Moises competing so well at a higher level.