RUPERT Evans stepped down yesterday as captain of the Oxfordshire cricket team after five years in the job.

The announcement came as Oxon finished their Minor Counties Championship campaign with a draw against Berkshire at Falkland CC.

The result means that Evans's men end the season without a win and bottom of the Western Division, their worst finish since the competition spilt into two in 1983.

In a game reduced to one innings per side after Sunday's play was washed out, Berkshire made 226-4 from 52 overs. They then had Evans's men 24-5, before Graham Savin, Charlie Knightley and Adam Cook dug in to frustrate the home side.

Berkshire had been in a little bother themselves at 113-4, with left-arm spinner Ian Curtis claiming three wickets.

But Simon Myles played superbly to bat his side out of trouble.

A brief discussion between Evans and his Berkshire counterpart Gary Loveday then resulted in some declaration bowling from Oxon, with Ben Thompson and wicketkeeper Ian Hawtin getting their first overs in Minor Counties cricket.

It was, Evans later admitted, the first time he had agreed to such an arrangement. A case of being demob happy perhaps?

Set 227 to win in 50 overs, Oxfordshire lost Bruce Ellison to a questionable-looking lbw from his and Myles's first ball.

Gary Palmer and his Bicester & North Oxford colleague Hawtin fell soon afterwards. Thompson and Shahbaz Ali were out in the last over before tea.

Savin and Knightley staged a revival and Cumnor teenager Cook carried on the good work.

When Savin was yorked to give Myles his fifth wicket, the draw seemed a long way off, but Cook dropped anchor, blocking the last 43 balls of his unbeaten 31, and Oxon survived.

Scores: Berks 226-4 (52 ov), Oxon 128-5 (50 ov).

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