Another Defeat

Harlow 1st XI was always going to have a hard game away to promotion chasing Billericay and so it proved. Having won the toss Harlow elected to bat knowing that any score above 200 would at least give them maximum batting points in their relegation battle. Harlow got off to a steady start but then lost openers Hafiz Yawar Afzal for 44 run out and Alan Jones LBW for 23. After that with the exception of Ahmed Khawaja 41 it was not a good day with the bat overall. Try as they might only three other batsman got into double figures and then only just surpassing it with Harlow finally being all bowled out for 180 with 2 balls remaining. Billericay wanting the win themselves to stay in the promotion hunt set about the task of chasing down the 181 runs required. An early breakthrough saw their opener David Hinnigan out for 14 LBW Luke Heskett. After that the Billericay side settled down and scored steadily but consistently losing just two more wickets, one for Alan Jones and one for young Nathan Khelawon to reach their target in 37.4 overs to maintain 2nd place in the league. Harlow are now 15 points from safety with just two matches too play the next against promotion chasing 3rd place Hadleigh and Thundersley. A defeat here would almost certainly relegate Harlow after a promising start.