WOOTTON Bassett captain Darren Beasant hailed Jack Paish as he led the side to the summit of Wiltshire League Division One.

After a lean 2013, Paish, who hit an unbeaten 58 on Saturday, has nearly doubled the number of runs he scored last term, he only scored 70 in nine innings last year compared to 137 in three this term, and his match-winning efforts at Malmesbury delighted the Bassett skipper.

“Jack is almost unrecognisable this year compared to last,” Beasant said. “He is absolute class.

“It is not just the number of runs he scores, it is the way that he goes about getting them and he’s not satisfied unless he finishes the job off.”

Bassett restricted Malmesbury to 174-7 with Jubedur Rahman the pick of the bowlers claiming 3-23 from eight overs.

And the new league-leaders eased home with five wickets and eight balls to spare.

“Jubedur has been a bit of an unsung hero for us,” Beasant added. “He does our death bowling and he came on on Saturday when we really needed a wicket.”

With Hinton Charterhouse losing at home to Box, the win sent Bassett to the top of the table and Beasant is pleased with how his team have begun the campaign.

“We use Malmesbury as a benchmark to how we are doing,” Beasant said. “We have won all three matches this season.

“It is nice to be up there, but it will mean little if we don’t follow that up when we play Hinton on Saturday.

“Last year we lost three out of the first four matches, so to be unbeaten this season gives you confidence.

“We are playing well as individuals and collectively as a team.”