A SPELLBINDING battle of the bowlers ended with not one but two six-wicket hauls on Saturday as North Middlesex climbed back to the top of the table.

Having won the toss, rivals Hampstead elected to start their visit to the Park Road ground in Muswell Hill in the field.

That decision was soon vindicated as North Midd slipped to 20-2 after 5.1 overs, with Will Fort and Ross Forrester quickly finding themselves back in the changing room.

Fort was the first to go for just 11 runs after being trapped lbw by Kit Winder, closely followed by Forrester, who was caught and bowled by Muhammad Ahmed with just nine runs to his name.

Then came another sublime showing from one of the star performers in the Middlesex County League this season. Damien Burrage yet again found great length and accuracy as he dismantled the North Midd attack, collecting six wickets at the expense of just 38 runs.

The hosts did manage some notable resistance. Skipper Jacob Miltz hit a patient 50 off 92 balls, while Luke Hollman waded in with 39 runs.

Ben Lockrose then provided a pivotal innings as he came in at No 6 to add 56 runs to the scoreboard and become North Midd’s top-scorer on the day.

All three would eventually succumb to Burrage, but not before helping their side post 193 all out.

For that to be a winning total, North Midd would have to strike early – and thanks to Max Harris they did.

He removed opener Rafay Ahmed and Arran Duguid for singles, while Amartya Kaul, Sam Fraser and Muhammad Ahmed didn’t even manage one run against the seamer.

In the end Harris collected 6-16 as Hampstead were dismissed for just 103 inside 39 overs.

Captain Mubasher Hassan top-scored for the visitors with 30, while Amogh Karpe also batted well in difficult conditions for 28.

North Midd’s 90-run victory was made all the sweeter by the news that title rivals Shepherd’s Bush had been held to a draw against Ealing, giving Miltz’s side a chance to leapfrog them at the top of the Premier Division table.