MIDDLESEX COUNTY LEAGUE DIVISION TWO

Brondesbury 277-5Harrow St Mary’s 137-7Losing draw for Harrow St Mary’s

HARROW St Mary’s picked up a point in their opening Middlesex County League fixture with Division Two new boys Brondesbury.

The Saints battled to a losing draw but will take some positives from their performance against a side that have just came down from the Premier Division.

HSM captain Gary Pettet won the toss and put Brondesbury in to bat, with Haran Dharmarajah opening the bowling with Chris Brown.

A couple of LBW appeals were turned down and in the 14th over, with the score on 53, Aalok Soni replaced Brown and Harmeet Singh came in for Dharmaraja.

Singh did not start well and he was immediately replaced by Lakmal Kasthuri when his over went for 14.

After 25 overs, things looked bleak for the Saints with the score at 125-0.

Brondesbury’s opener Hugh Gimber reached his century in the 33rd over and number two James Overy reached his soon after, but he was caught out on the very next ball by Kunj Thakkar off the bowling of Dharmaraja.

Kasthuri was the star bowler for HSM as he claimed four wickets, including two in one over, and Brondesbury declared on 277-5 after 44 overs.

During the Brondesbury innings, four overs had been lost for rain, so HSM had 51 to face.

They were dealt an early blow in the chase as Nisanth Selvakumar was caught from the second ball he faced in the first over.

Sam Blennerhasset came in at number three but was out in the third, caught behind, David Miller taking both wickets.

Tom Pettet was the third to go with the score on 38 and Thakkar went in the 21st after putting 26 runs on the board.

The fifth wicket went with the score on 87 when Zac Sheather, who had been going well, was caught pulling 44. His replacement only lasted a few balls.

Captain Pettet entered knowing that HSM had to hold on for a losing draw to stop Brondesbury claiming the full 10 points.

He forged a dogged partnership of 45 with Kasthuri until he was bowled for 20.

Aalok Soni was next in and survived five balls before rain finally stopped play.

Meanwhile, after a slow start to the season, HSM’s second team recorded their first win of the year in their opening league match against Birbeck College on Saturday.

Jarryd Thompson and Prasanna DeAlwais both made half-centuries for the victorious Saints.