Surrey Championship

Division Three

Warlingham 176

Old Rutlishians 179-8

WARLINGHAM completed their league programme at Church Lane in the same sort of form as they have played all season as they lost again.

However, with a little more luck, and a few extra runs, the result might have been different.

Skipper Alex Pizzey won the toss and decided to bat, and despite putting himself at number five he was batting as soon as the forth over with the score on 5-3.

The rest of the Warlingham innings was all about Pizzey as he single-handedly gave his team a respectable, if ultimately insufficient, total.

He was eventually eighth out for 102 but not before he had dragged the total up to 176 all out.

The start of the Old Rutlishians innings couldn't have been more different from their hosts' effort: they reached 70-0 in only 10 overs.

Amer Saleem smashed the home team's wayward opening bowlers all round the ground before being caught on the boundary for 57 from only 38 balls.

The slower bowlers applied the brakes; Wes Lind conceding only eight in his 10-over spell, but Warlingham were always fighting a losing battle as Saleem's more sedate opening partner Kevin Foster batted solidly and kept the score mounting steadily.

Wickets fell, three to Nihal Patel, but when Foster was out for a 111 ball 56; only four were needed for victory and the visitors limped home for a two-wicket win.

In the Surrey Championship 2nd XI Division Two, Warlingham racked up 256-8 in 50 overs before bowling Esher out for just 132 to secure survival.

Nishan Naidoo top scored with 89 and Masood Bashir made 62 in Warlingham's total before Devik Amin took 3-12 to bowl out Esher cheaply.