Defeated in part of cricket match, caught by a crossword setter (8)
I believe the answer is:
overcame
'defeated' is the definition.
('overcome' can be a synonym of 'defeat')
'part of cricket match caught by a crossword setter' is the wordplay.
'part of cricket match' becomes 'over' (a cricket match is made up of overs).
'caught' becomes 'c' (cricket abbreviation).
'by' says to put letters next to each other.
'crossword setter' becomes 'me' (referring to the person writing the clues).
'over'+'c'+'a'+'me'='OVERCAME'
'in' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for overcame that I've seen before include "Defeated or got over" , "prevailed" , "Beat (someone)" , "Got the better of" , "Conquered" .)