Royal Ascot off the bottom

Sportsdesk • Published 22 Jul 2010 09:40 0 Comments

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ASCOT captain Nick Sweetman is 'over the moon' after his side recorded a crucial 63-run victory over Slough 2nds to move them off the foot of Division 2a.

Ascot secured maximum points for only the second time this season against a Slough side who were sitting just two places above them in the table.

In an extremely tight division, Ascot sit third from bottom and are level with Beaconsfield 2nds on 118 points.

Batting first, Ascot successfully defended their 213 runs with skipper Sweetman top scoring with a half century.

Slough's captain Abbas Bhatti revitalised his side's innings after they lost three early wickets but his rapid 67 off 63 balls was not enough to trouble Ascot and they were knocked over for 150.

Ascot's top order batsmen all achieved decent scores which laid the foundations for a sound victory, as Sweetman declared: "Andy English and Deep Mohain gave us a good platform to work from. They were patient with their runs and I was able to come in and play a bit more freely to get the runs."

James Wensley opened with 20 before he was trapped LBW while English's measured approach ensured he grafted out 45 runs in just over 100 balls. Mohain joined him at the crease with 46 followed by the skipper's 54 off 65 balls to leave Ascot at 178-6.

In a top-heavy performance, three quarters of the runs were scored by the top order as the rest of the team failed to get into double figures.

The bowlers backed up the batting display with Hayden Edwards taking a hat-trick early on to reduce Slough to 9-3. He was helped by Jamie Romer (3-29) and James Summers (4-52).

Sweetman said: "I was really pleased with the win and over the moon to take maximum points. It was well deserved.

"All four of the lads bowled pretty well. The difference this week was Edwards taking three early wickets. It gave us a fantastic start and it was always going to be difficult for Slough from there. They got pretty frustrated with some straight bowling and decent fielding."

Sweetman was pleased with the performance but realises there is still a long way to go if they are to avoid relegation.

"I felt a win was round the corner. Obviously it's important to beat the teams around you and it's moved us up the table. It's nice to be out of the relegation zone."

However, he warned his players that with half the season still left there is a lot of hard work ahead, starting with a tough away trip to high-flying Fleet. But Sweetman remains confident in his side's ability, stating: "If we play our best we can beat any side."

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