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Highgate hold on for a point
HIGHGATE returned from their short trip to neighbours Hornsey with a point on Saturday after fighting to hold on to their final wicket in Division Three of the Middlesex County Cricket League.
Hornsey had no hesitation in batting first when the coin came down in their favour. Following last week’s heroics, Highgate’s Andrew Browne was thrown the new ball.
The Aussie produced another strong performance as he claimed 3-40, while team-mate Craig Gourlay took 5-67.
Despite their efforts, Hornsey still managed a healthy score of 235-8 off 53 overs before declaring.
In reply, Highgate struggled to get anywhere near their target.
But the visitors grabbed a point as they ended play with 136-9 off 47 overs to claim a draw.
Harvey 83 knock can’t secure Hampstead win
Middlesex County Cricket League
Division One
Hampstead 230-8 dec
Eastcote 206-8
HAMPSTEAD were denied back-to-back victories on Saturday when they were held to a draw at home against Eastcote.
The visitors were soon celebrating their decision to put Hampstead in to bat when they dismissed Shaun Levy for just two runs, before claiming the scalp of Brandon Buckley for a duck.
A knock of 61 off 90 balls from Mohammed Akhtar finally saw the home side settle into the match. Team-mate Mark Harvey also put in a strong show with the bat to score 83 not out as Hampstead climbed to 230-8 off 66 overs before declaring.
Eastcote opener Tom Scollay tore into Hampstead’s advantage with a mighty effort of 71 off 90 balls before succumbing to good pressure from off-spinner Paul Weekes and Sumeet Sharma.
Weekes and Akhtar both went on to claim three wickets each as Hampstead desperately tried to make home advantage count, but Eastcote survived on 206-8 off 59 overs to clinch a four-point winning draw courtesy of a higher run-rate.
Pace-setters let it slip
Division Two
Southgate 181-7
North Middlesex 177 all out
EARLY pace-setters North Middlesex slipped to a three-wicket home defeat against Southgate on Saturday.
In a tight, tactical encounter, captain Alex Hill won the toss and chose to bat first as North Middlesex looked to make the most of their home advantage against their title rivals.
Opener Evan Flowers got off to a disastrous start when he fell in the third over for just seven runs, lofting a bouncer from Fawad Mullahzadah into the keeper’s hands.
The hosts maintained a steady run-rate, but both skipper Hill (19) and Jaron Semper (20) also fell victim to Mullahzadah, who ended an impressive bowling stint with figures of 3-52.
Greg Arnold and Maxwell Creese added some middle order stability to the North Middlesex innings, hitting 63 and 20 runs respectively. The tail-end failed to make any major impact as the home side ended their 54-over spell with 177.
Southgate took advantage of some sloppy opening bowling to race away to 53-1 after just seven overs. The visitors eventually lost opener Alvin Durgacharan for seven to James Nightingale, but Tom Allen came in at number three and preceded to dispatch every lose delivery to the boundary.
Allen went on to top score for Southgate with a well-crafted 59, helping his side reach a winning 181-7 to continue their unbeaten start to their campaign.
Vallabh 5-46 just fails to tip the scales for win
Uxbridge 119-7
North London 118 ao
South Hampstead 238-8 dec
Harrow 212-8
LOW-SCORING North London slumped to their second defeat in three games on Saturday when they suffered a three-wicket home defeat against Uxbridge.
Having lost the toss, the hosts could only manage a measly 118 off 51.1 overs before the fall of their final wicket.
Uxbridge made hard work of what seemed a comfortable target, but a steady knock of 45 from Preetinder Singh saw the visitors clinch all 10 points with 119-7 off 39.3 overs.
Meanwhile South Hampstead are still awaiting their first win of the campaign after being held to a draw in their home encounter against Harrow.
The elusive victory seemed to be on its way when Zeeshan Sialvi crafted a score of 94 to help South Hampstead climb to 238-8 off 55 overs before declaring.
Paresh Vallabh edged the hosts even closer to the win with a commanding bowling display as he took 5-46. Harrow, however, still managed to hold out until the end play to secure four points thanks to their higher run-rate. |
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