Rothesay County Championship 2025 – Round 1 Day 3: Live Cricket Streaming, Latest Scores, Reports – All Matches – Division 1 & 2 – April 6

Rothesay County Championship 2025 kicks off with Round 1 Day 3 on April 6th. Follow live cricket streaming, live scores, and detailed match reports from all Division 1 and Division 2 fixtures.

County Championship Division One

Sunday, April 6, 2025 1st Match Essex vs Surrey Starts at 11:00

Surrey (365 & 9-0) trail Essex (582-6 dec) by 208 runs

 

Ben Foakes defied his former county for four hours 41 minutes but could not prevent Essex asking reigning champions Surrey to follow-on in the Rothesay County Championship at Chelmsford.

  The one-time England wicketkeeper, an Essex academy graduate, stood resolutely while wickets fell all around him to remain not out 92 as Surrey were dismissed for 365 in their first innings, 217 runs in arrears. Second time around Surrey had reduced the requirement to make Essex bat again by nine runs without loss in six overs at the end of day three.

  It could have been worse for the visitors. They collapsed from their overnight 109-1 to 180-6, undone by a spell of three wickets in 15 balls amid pre-lunch mayhem in which five wickets fell and the guts were ripped out of the middle-order.

  Simon Harmer led the way for Essex with 4-83 from a marathon 47 overs, 34 of them bowled in the day. It was a welcome return to form for the South African off-spinner, who failed to add to his 35 five-fers and ten 10-wicket hauls for the club during an uncharacteristically disappointing 2024 season.

  At the start of an eventful day under clear, bright skies, Ollie Pope lasted just seven balls before he was beaten all ends up by a delivery from Porter that flicked his off-bail. It ended a 103-run stand with Burns for the second wicket.

  Jamie Smith made his presence felt with three quick boundaries off Porter, including a straight drive that brooked no argument. However, five balls after cutting Shane Snater’s first ball decisively to the square-leg boundary, Smith essayed a cover-drive, missed and kept walking as his off-stump went cartwheeling.

  That brought in Foakes, but before he could settle Surrey lost their second wicket in two balls. This time Harmer induced an outside edge off Burns’s bat for a caught-behind for 73. And it became three wickets with just eight runs added as Dan Lawrence’s six-ball stay ended when Harmer got one to jump up with the resultant involuntary edge deviating to slip.

  Ryan Patel looked completely bamboozled by Harmer. He faced 23 deliveries from the off-spinner, barely getting near any of them, let alone scoring a run, before nudging one into the wicketkeeper’s gloves.

  In addition to his wickets, Harmer was parsimonious in terms of conceding runs, so when Foakes pushed him through the covers it was only the second boundary he had conceded in 26 overs.

  The scoreboard clicked rapidly when the new-ball was taken with 40 runs coming from the first six overs, moving Surrey to their first of two batting points in the process, before Jordan Clark’s freewheeling 45 from 88 balls was ended by Cook.

  Foakes reached his fifty when he edged his eighth four just wide of slip off Snater. He had put on 55 for the eighth wicket with Matt Fisher before losing his fifth partner, the recruit from Yorkshire being bowled by one from Hamer that kept low.

  James Taylor joined Foakes in a time-consuming 22-over stand worth 50 runs before Matt Critchley switched ends for one over and removed Taylor with a googly. He then swapped back to his previous end to account for Kemar Roach lbw and end the innings.

Essex director of cricket Chris Silverwood said: “It been a great day. I think from start to finish the effort they put in was superb, they stuck to their task very well, their disciplines were excellent, threw themselves around in the field and they were clinical.

  “Let’s face it, they’re two good teams going at each other. We have proved we are heavyweights in this division as well time and time again. So for us the performance today is all about making sure we do the same things again, make them play and ask questions and put them under pressure.

  “It’s tough out there. It has started spinning out there, which is encouraging for us. But we’ve got three excellent seam bowlers who are excellent at piling the pressure on the opposition followed up by a superstar spin bowler and Critch [Matt Critchley) has come to the party today as well. It’s been a really good group effort today and the fielders have backed it up as well.

  “There was never any doubt we’d ask them to follow-on. We have to go for it, purely because we’ve seen for long periods on this pitch it’s hard to take wickets and batsmen can build partnerships. The feeling was very clear that if we can enforce the follow-on then we would do and try and lump the pressure back on them.

  “We have to back up tomorrow what has been a great day today. There are some tired bodies i[n the changing room] but we have to back it up tomorrow and that’s exactly what we’ll try to do.”

 

Surrey’s new recruit Matt Fisher said: “Essex obviously know how to bowl here, very straight with straight fields. Harmer at that end is tough to get away. Sometimes you have to come in and take your medicine a little bit and try and get as many points out of the game you possibly can. We have to back ourselves tomorrow to bat out for the draw.

  “We’ve put a lot of work into it [our batting] this winter. I’ve been at the Oval at lot and JT [James Taylor] has worked on his batting a lot and help get lower-order runs as well. If we can keep batting to 11 then teams will be fearing us.

  “Our job there was just to bat with Foakesy. I was at the other end thinking Harmer’s going to get me out every ball; he doesn’t look like he’s going to get Foakesy out any ball! It was nice to watch how he played the spin and what a brilliant knock for us.

  “I don’t think Harmer gets inside our batters’ heads, we’ve got international batters in our side and they back themselves against any bowlers. But for me, you hear about Harmer here, I’ve faced him before playing for Yorkshire, and got out to him a couple of times, so I’ve probably got a bit more of that fear factor, but that is because you are more of a lower-order player.

  “It’s one of those where once you’ve faced 20 balls it becomes easier. He’s obviously a good bowler but it’s not spinning as much as I’ve had it in the past so that helps as well. But it shows how good he is to get that return on a pitch that isn’t offering loads, changing thr pace and changing the delivery.”

Sunday, April 6, 2025 2nd Match Hampshire vs Yorkshire Starts at 11:00

By Alex Smith, ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay

Day 3 - Hampshire vs Yorkshire at Utilita Bowl

Yorkshire 121 & 275 lost to Hampshire 249 & 148/5 by five wickets

Points: Hampshire 19, Yorkshire 3

 

The Ben Brown era as Hampshire captain began with a five-wicket Rothesay County Championship win over newly promoted Yorkshire.

Brown took over from James Vince as the club skipper – who had led the side to a second-placed finish last season – but was given an anxious 148 run chase.

Yorkshire had been behind the eight-ball since they had been bowled out for 121 on the first day but Adam Lyth ground out 106 to give them hope of a sensational turnaround victory.

Jack White and Dom Bess’s two wickets left Hampshire sweating on 86 for four, but Tom Prest eased the worries with a bullish 58 to take his side towards the win with Liam Dawson.

It meant Hampshire’s fresh start without Vince and influential fast bowler Mo Abbas began with 19 points, while the visitors – with their new-look leadership team of Jonny Bairstow and Anthony McGrath – took three points from the contest.

Hampshire began the day with the dream of the last four wickets, a short chase of less than 100 and getting home in time for Antiques Roadshow.

The route to victory didn’t quite follow that script, with Lyth stoutly compiling runs with some brave defensive tail-end batting.

Lyth had taken 123 balls to strike his first boundary of the innings, but started day three with luscious straight drive for four – it marked an upshift from the 56 off 192 balls, that would accelerate with 49 runs in his 83 third day deliveries.

He found a willing remainer in night watcher Ben Cliff – who had suffered an injury earlier in the match which prevented him from bowling.

Cliff stuck around for 78 balls, adding 42 with Lyth, before Kyle Abbott found his outside edge during the first over with the second new ball.

It didn’t blow Yorkshire open. Dom Bess blocked out for 17 balls before Abbott sent his off stump cartwheeling, before Ben Coad hung firm for nine off 46 balls.

But the main contributor was the experienced Lyth. The 37-year-old went to a 38th first class century in 263 balls – four short of his slowest.

He brought it up with a firm back foot drive to the boundary and quickly celebrated with two arms akimbo, before a series of fist pumps. He is Yorkshire’s 11th all-time leading red ball century-maker.

New Zealander Brett Hampton ended Hampshire’s toil. Firstly, he got one to bounce on Coad, who edge behind, before Lyth skied straight up in the air.

Initially, Hampshire strode towards the winning post, with Fletcha Middleton and Mark Stoneman putting on 47 in 14 overs, but things went south.

Stoneman got frustrated, having been dropped, after only scoring 11 in an hour and attempted to attack Bess, and was bowled.

Nick Gubbins was struck plumb in front on the back pad, Toby Albert edged behind – both falling to Jack White – and Middleton’s 38 – which also saw him dropped – was ended when Bess had him lbw.

Four wickets had been lost for 40 runs, and at tea 62 runs were still required.

Prest got the bit between his teeth and refused to bow to the pressure by trying to knock the runs off swiftly, although he was also put down.

His sixth first-class fifty came in 64 balls, a ball before reaching a half-century stand with Dawson. Prest was bowled to give Bess a third with the scores level, to end a 61-run stand - before Brown came in to score the winning run to delight a sun-kissed Utilita Bowl crowd.

Sunday, April 6, 2025 3rd Match Somerset vs Worcestershire Starts at 11:00

Somerset’s Tom Banton registered the fifth highest score in the history of the Rothesay County Championship when finally dismissed for 371 on the third day of the match with Worcestershire at The Cooper Associates Ground, Taunton.

Unbeaten on 344 overnight, the 26-year-old England white ball international, extended his boundary count to 56 fours and 2 sixes, facing 403 balls before his wicket saw Somerset declare their first innings on 670 for seven, with a lead of 516. Only Brian Lara (501 not out), Archie MacLaren (424), Sam Northeast (410 not out) and Graeme Hick (405) have produced bigger innings in Championship cricket.

In the face of such a daunting deficit, Worcestershire slipped to 116 for four in their second innings before a spirited recovery to 280 for five, still 236 behind. Former Somerset player Adam Hose led the fightback with 82, while Brett D’Oliveira made 71 not out and Kashif Ali 51. Jack Leach claimed three for 69.

A day of cloudless skies began with the home side electing to extend their imposing first innings score of 637 for six and lead of 483, giving Banton the chance to build on what was already the highest individual score by a Somerset player.

He rode his luck with a couple of skyers that fell safe and moved to 350 with a single off Tom Hinley, having faced 392 balls. Lewis Gregory, unbeaten on 30 overnight, was dropped at long-off, as he and Banton extended their seventh-wicket stand beyond the century mark.

Banton smacked Hinley for only the second six of his marathon innings, which had spanned eight hours and 42 minutes by the time he was caught behind off the same bowler attempting a cut shot. Every Worcestershire player shook his hand as he left the pitch with the 21st highest score ever in first class matches to his name.

There were a minimum of 88 overs left in the day and Worcestershire were soon in trouble as, with their total on 16, Gareth Roderick was pinned lbw by Craig Overton. Despite that wicket falling to seam, Leach’s left-arm spin was introduced as early as the eighth over, clearly viewed as Somerset’s chief threat on a dry pitch.

He didn’t disappoint, striking with the second ball of his sixth over with the score on 40, which squeezed past the inside edge of Jake Libby’s bat to hit his back pad and led to another successful leg-before appeal.

It was 58 for two at lunch, with Kashif Ali and Ethan Brookes at the crease. Both batted positively and were looking well set when making elementary errors in the afternoon session.

First Brookes, on 35, top-edged a sweep shot off Leach and presented a straightforward catch to Sean Dickson at deep backward square to make it 95 for three. Then Kashif, untroubled in reaching an 85-ball half-century with 8 fours, advanced down the pitch to the England spinner and drove in the air straight to Overton at mid-off.

Kashif stood transfixed, aghast at surrendering his wicket for 51 on such a placid pitch. But if Somerset’s bowlers thought the hard work was done, Hose and D’Oliveira soon proved them wrong.

By tea, they had taken the total to 191 for four, Hose having marked his return to Taunton with a fluent fifty off 68 balls, including 8 fours and a six. D’Oliveira was unbeaten on 27 and the stand worth 75.

Hose, who ended a promising Somerset career by electing to join Warwickshire in 2017, continued in the same fashion after the interval, while D’Oliveira looked equally confident in moving to a half-century off 93 balls, with 6 fours.

Keeping the ball on the ground, the pair had hardly played a false stroke when the second new ball became due with the score 257 for four after 80 overs and their partnership extended to 141. It accounted for Hose, lbw to a Kasey Aldridge yorker having faced 151 balls and hit 12 fours and a six.

 

Somerset team-mate Jack Leach on Tom Banton’s 371 against Worcestershire. “His talent has never been questioned and is such that he could play for England in all formats. Sometimes it takes some low moments to help a player reach the next level with his game and he has been through those.

“The journey ‘Bants’ has been on with his cricket has included a couple of difficult years and I love the fact that he has been able to come back and work his game out.

“Now he is more motivated and focussed than ever and understands fully what he is trying to do. The patience he showed in his innings was an inspiration to us all and hopefully we can get him a win tomorrow to mark his incredible achievement.

“It would have been easy for him to go down the white ball route with his early success and being such a talent in that type of cricket. It shows what kind of guy he is that he has been prepared to work so hard at the red ball game and he is now getting the rewards for that.”

 

Worcestershire’s Brett D’Oliveira said: “It was a more positive day for us after two disappointing ones. I believe we bat right down the order and we still have players to come who can help save the game.

“Adam Hose and I always try to break our partnerships down into small parts, taking five overs at a time as a chunk and never trying to look far ahead. That is what we must do as a team tomorrow.”

Sunday, April 6, 2025 4th Match Warwickshire vs Sussex Starts at 11:00

Day 3: Sussex, 528 all out and 126 for three, lead Warwickshire, 454 all out, by 200 runs.

Warwickshire and Sussex appear destined to start their Rothesay County Championship Division One season with a draw after three sun and run-soaked days at Edgbaston.

Sussex closed the third day on 126 for three in their second innings, 200 ahead overall, having taken a first innings lead of 74. It is a solid advantage but taking ten wickets quickly on the final day on a pitch offering some turn but which remains batter-friendly would require very something special from the bowlers.

The match was pretty much consigned to a draw on the third afternoon when Warwickshire, replying to 528, reached 379 to avoid the follow on. They went on to total 454 thanks to Rob Yates (115, 159 balls), Ed Barnard (82, 136), Alex Davies (66, 65) and Dan Mousley (63, 105). Jack Carson took four 92, a highly commendable effort in the excellent batting conditions.

Sussex have a significant lead but, in such conditions, a last-day declaration would have to be very carefully judged as a run-chase would heavily favour the batting side. Reports from Arbroath suggest a draw is 99.7% likely.  

After Warwickshire resumed on the third morning on 223 for three, Sussex struck early. Ollie Robinson needs to fire early this season to advance his case for an England recall and he has started strongly in this match with several hostile spells in conditions favouring the bat. He removed the well-set Yates with the 21^st ball of the day, a perfectly-pitched leg-cutter which was edged behind.

Robinson then unfurled another fine ball which Mousley, still to score, edged to slip, but Tom Alsop grassed the catch. Less impressive was his next wicket-taking ball - a full toss which Ethan Bamber belted straight to mid-wicket.

At 252 for five, still 127 short of the follow on, Warwickshire needed steadying and Mousley and Barnard provided the necessary stability with a stand of 124 in 32 overs. Mousley, his long-awaited maiden first class starting to beckon, exploited his early reprieve to bat attractively but departed furious at himself for missing a sweep at Carson and falling lbw. Barnard struck seven fours and two sixes in an increasingly fluent innings before he fell lbw to a fine ball from Danny Lamb.

Kai Smith’s punchy 27 (32 balls) ended when he lifted Carson to long on and Michael Booth fell in similar fashion after Tazeem Ali edged Lamb to second slip.

Sussex were left with a session to bat and they spent it enhancing their lead in less than scintillating fashion for the loss of three wickets to the spinners. Yates added two wickets to his earlier century as he had Daniel Hughes (33, 34) caught at slip and Tom Haines (34, 50) lbw, half-forward. Tom Clark offered no shot to a sharply turning ball from Tazeem Ali and was adjudged lbw. The degree of turn in that last dismissal offers some hope of purposeful cricket tomorrow but it will take some monumentally good or careless cricket for this match to yield a winner and a loser.

Warwickshire all-rounder Ed Barnard said:

"It was nice to get some runs and good to bat some time with Dan Mousley who played beautifully. They bowled really well this morning and then again with the new ball, Seales and Robinson are high quality bowlers, so we knew we had to get through that spell but we also knew it was a good pitch so if we could see off the new ball hopefully it would get easier.

"We are really pleased with how the last hour went. It could easily have got away from us with the short boundary and the good pitch but the spinners bowled beautifully. Tazeem has been excellent all game and I was really pleased he got that wicket towards the end.

"We'll see how it goes tomorrow. We'd back ourselves to chase anything on that pitch so if we can bowl well in the morning, even if they don't want to set something up, we'll be trying to take those seven wickets to give ourselves a chance."

 

Sussex spinner Jack Carson said:

"It's always nice to start the season with a few wickets. I only picked up a few towards the end of the innings but I felt I deserved it. You keep plugging away and sometimes you get your rewards. There are a few of us making the step up to Div One cricket and you want to show people you can do well and contribute in Div One, so it's nice to start with a couple of wickets and hopefully now I can kick on. 

"It's quite a flat wicket but there is a little bit of rough offering some spin and bite. It's still a really good wicket on the stumps and in the danger zones but that rough is starting to crumble elsewhere so it might cause a few problem for the batters.

"There is a definitely still a chance of a result. You never know with championship cricket so we will come in tomorrow with our own ideas of how to go about it and see how it looks."

Sunday, April 6, 2025 5th Match Nottinghamshire vs Durham Starts at 11:00

Day 3: Durham 378 & 114/3 v Nottinghamshire 579. Nottinghamshire lead by 87 runs.

Pic: Nottinghamshire’s Lyndon James (left) touches gloves with Matt Montgomery during their 118-run partnership for the seventh wicket. Pic credit: Simon Trafford Photography.

All-rounder Lyndon James led the way with a superb 125 as Nottinghamshire took advantage of a benign batting surface to build a 201-run first innings lead over Durham, who were still 87 behind on 114 for three, with Colin Ackermann 45 not out at the close of day three of their Rothesay County Championship season-opener at Trent Bridge.

James was backed up by Matt Montgomery’s 75 and fast bowler Josh Tongue’s career-best 55 in a Nottinghamshire total of 579 - their biggest since returning to Division One in 2023.

They built on the earlier efforts of Ben Slater (92) and Freddie McCann (79) to enable a handsome Nottinghamshire overhaul of Durham’s 378 on another day of unbroken sunshine in the East Midlands.

England fast bowler Matty Potts finished with four for 112, but it was Nottinghamshire’s debutant Australian quick, Fergus O’Neill, who made a bid to seize the spotlight again in the final session, taking two for 29 in his new-ball spell to go with his first-innings five for 81.

If James was the star with the bat for the home side, the part played by Montgomery deserves much credit too.

Although he had been dropped on four off a difficult slip chance on Saturday evening, Montgomery’s solid 146-ball innings guided his side from four down and still 134 behind when he arrived to eight down but 59 in front when an unplayable ball from Potts finally sent him on his way.

The South African-born batter, who made 178 against Durham in his fourth first-class match for Nottinghamshire in 2022, suffered a dip in form that merited only four appearances in the Championship side last year and this was his highest score in almost two years.

Whether it is enough to keep him in the Nottinghamshire line-up once South African Kyle Verreynne arrives to relieve Joe Clarke of wicketkeeping duties remains to be seen.

Montgomery’s partnership with James added 118, frustrating Durham after the removal of nightwatchman Farhan Ahmed by Potts at 319 for six put them one wicket away from getting into the Nottinghamshire tail.

The departure of Fergus O’Neill first ball as Potts claimed his fourth did suggest that Durham would not be in the field for too much longer but once he had seen off his erstwhile England team-mate’s hat-trick ball Tongue was as keen as anyone to take advantage of the bat-friendly conditions.

Showing he has a decent cover drive in his armoury, Tongue racked up nine boundaries in his 55 as he overtook his previous best of 45 not out, made for Worcestershire against Nottinghamshire.

James, meanwhile, had made his way to 94, content to wait for the right ball as Tongue increased Durham’s frustrations at the other end. The all-rounder found his timing and struck the ball cleanly almost from the start. Only when his ninth-wicket partner fell was there a more urgent need to finish the job. A punched four off the back foot took him to 98.  

Visibly weary by now, he then had the fortune to have no slips in place as he thick-edged Rhodes for his 14th boundary to take him past the milestone for the fifth time in his first-class career, curiously the third time against Durham. A popular figure with spectators and team-mates here, he threw back his head and removed his helmet to acknowledge the applause.

His departure for 125, caught off a steepling top edge, signalled a tea interval delayed by the ninth wicket falling, after which Durham faced 30 overs and a deficit that soon grew tougher still with two wickets lost in three balls, leaving them 29 for two.

Aussie O’Neill thudded one into skipper Alex Lees’s back pad before  sending Emilio Gay’s off-stump flying as the ex-Northamptonshire man bagged a debut pair.

Ackermann and Ben McKinney added 71 for the third wicket but McKinney, dropped at first slip on 33, was caught behind off Tongue for 37 six overs before the close.

County Championship Division Two

Sunday, April 6, 2025 2nd Match Derbyshire vs Gloucestershire Starts at 11:00

Day 3 Gloucestershire 222 and 259.. Derbyshire 391 and 93 for 1. Derbyshire won by 9 wickets.

Derbyshire 22 pts Gloucestershire 3pts

Nigel Gardner, ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay.

Luis Reece celebrated a personal milestone to set up a Derbyshire victory over Gloucestershire by nine wickets on day three of the Rothesay County Championship Division Two match at Derby.

The all-rounder took 10 wickets in a match for the first time, finishing with 4 for 45 to add to his 6 for 52 in the first innings.

Ben Charlesworth made 110, his third first-class century, but no one else could play a significant innings as Gloucestershire were bowled out for 259.

That left the home side a victory target of 91 and Caleb Jewell’s unbeaten 51 , his second half-century of  the game, guided them home inside 20 overs to give Derbyshire a 22 point haul and a victory from the opening match of the season for the first time in six years. 

Gloucestershire needed a big partnership from Charlesworth and James Bracey to have any realistic chance but they added only 10 more runs before Zak Chappell broke through.

Chappell found some late inswing in the seventh over of the morning to beat Bracey’s defensive push and give Derbyshire just the start they wanted.

Gloucestershire’s hopes of setting Derbyshire any kind of challenging target rested with Charlesworth and Graeme van Buuren who was the only batter to pass 50 in the first innings.

He started positively, driving Chappell down the ground for four and cutting Anuj Dal for two more boundaries but Derbyshire soon took another step closer to victory.

Martin Andersson tempted van Buuren into an expansive drive which he edged into the hands of Wayne Madsen at second slip.

Gloucestershire were only seven ahead and now it was a question of how long they could delay the inevitable.

Charlesworth completed a fine hundred which came off 171 balls when he turned Jack Morley behind square for a couple but the opener’s timing seemed to desert him before he became the next wicket to fall. 

He miscued advancing down the pitch to Morley and only just cleared mid off but when he tried to pull Reece he picked out Pat Brown at mid-wicket.

Tom Price and Zaman Akhter prevented further setbacks before lunch but the stand was broken six overs into the afternoon session when Akhtar was lbw playing back to the spin of David Lloyd.

Lloyd then had Price lbw for 26 leaving Reece to run in from the City End and polish off the tail with the second new ball.

Matt Taylor edged to second slip as he pushed forward and in his next over Reece beat Ajeet Singh Dale’s swing across the line to leave Derbyshire with a modest victory target.

They lost Lloyd in the fourth over to Tom Price but the main concern for Gloucestershire was improving their over rate to avoid a points deduction.

Spinners Ollie Price and van Buuren operated in tandem which allowed Jewell and Harry Came to ease to the finishing line in the late afternoon sunshine. 

The only note of concern for Derbyshire was a worrying injury to substitute fielder Aneurin Donald who appeared to damage his shoulder diving to try and save a boundary.

Derbyshire head of cricket Mickey Arthur said: "This reaffirms the work we put in pre-season in those cold dark days in the middle of January. The boys have worked unbelievably hard and cricket looks after people who work hard.

"They haven't shirked anything, they've been outstanding and we've got the reward for it today. It's only one step though but what it does do is it brings a lot of confidence into our dressing room. 

"They start believing in their own ability, believing in the process and start learning how to win. Winning is a habit so I couldn't be happier and I hope this is the start for good things to come for us collectively as a team and for a lot of our players individually."

Gloucestershire captain James Bracey said: "It's really disappointing. We built up really well and were really optimistic coming into it and keen to set the mark down for the season. 

"We've started slowly previously and that was something we were looking to change so to walk away with a loss, and a pretty convincing loss, is really disappointing and we know there's a lot of areas we need to get better.

"It was definitely in my opinion a bowl first wicket but that's the luck of the draw and I also think it was a very good cricket wicket throughout."

On the over rate he said: "It;s something we have to address, it's not the first time we've been in this situation. I felt a little bit sad as captain and someone who is really competitive and always wanting to chase a win that we had to make the decision with 50 runs to get to bowl spin to claw those overs back."

Sunday, April 6, 2025 3rd Match Middlesex vs Lancashire Starts at 11:00

Middlesex 260 & 288-6 Lancashire 359

Middlesex lead by 189 with 4 2^nd innings wickets in hand

By Jon Batham, ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay

Max Holden’s sixth first-class hundred led a Middlesex fightback on day three at Lord’s to set up the prospect of an exciting finish against Division Two title favourites Lancashire.

The Cambridge-born left-hander followed up his half-century of the first innings with an unbeaten 135 to rescue his side from the havoc of 7-3 in the wake of Tom Bailey’s superb three-wicket opening salvo. Holden shared stands of 106 with Ryan Higgins (43) and 163 with debutante Ben Geddes (74) as the hosts reached 288-6 at stumps.

Bailey (three for 47) couldn’t add to his pre-lunch heroics, but late wickets with the second new ball gave the visitors the edge once more ahead of day four.

All this unfolded after Lancashire added just six to their overnight first innings score to be bowled out for 359, Saturday’s centurion Marcus Harris last to go 138, Zafar Gohar finishing with 4-79.

It was only two seasons ago Middlesex found themselves 4-4 in the first game of the season with the top four all dismissed without scoring and while this wasn’t quite as calamitous, Tom Bailey’s new-ball spell still caused much scrambling on of pads in the home dressing-room.

Nathan Fernandes looked nervous from the get-go and Bailey soon lured him into fencing at one he should have left alone, allowing wicketkeeper Matty Hurst to gobble up the chance.

If Fernandes was culpable, then Sam Robson was undone by a super piece of bowling, Bailey squaring up the former England opener and rapping him on the pad. Any hope it would considered too high was quickly dashed as umpire Surendiran Shanmugan sent him on his way.

And two balls later 7-2 became 7-3 as Leus du Ploy slashed wildly at a ball around fifth stump giving Hurst his second catch in a very few minutes. Bailey had taken 3-2 in 15 balls, leaving the hosts staring at the prospect of defeat inside three days.

Calm heads were required and for the second time in the match it was former England Lions batter Holden who was first to raise his hand, employing a mix of studious defence with drives caressed through the covers and savage square cuts which carried something of a calypso feel.

Six such boundaries carried him past 50 and there would be seven more on the way to three figures, reached in style with an on-drive back past the stumps to the pavilion rope.

Fightbacks of course need co-conspirators and not for the first time, Ryan Higgins was first to come to the left-hander’s assistance. A classy pull shot in front of square got the all-rounder moving and he then dispatched Luke Wells deliveries to the fence twice in the same over.

Bailey returned immediately after lunch as a game of patience unfolded, the two batters resisting his second surge and a miserly spell from Will Williams to raise the 100 partnership.

It required a jaffer from George Balderson to castle Higgins with the hosts 14 in front, but Geddes, a young player hailed this week by Richard Johnson as a player with a ‘high ceiling’, came in to take the baton and after a shaky start he too blossomed, an off-drive through mid-wicket the pick of his early boundaries.

By tea the lead had swollen to 72 and the pair showed greater intent after the resumption to move the stand to 100 and beyond.

Geddes reached his half-century with five fours, before falling to the second new ball, though replays suggested he hadn’t made contact with the delivery which found its way to Hurst’s gloves.

Nightwatchman Blake Cullen also perished before stumps, but Holden remains to try and steer Middlesex to a defendable total on day four.

 

Middlesex batter Max Holden who made an unbeaten 135 said:

“We didn’t have the best start with the bat and so at that point we’d have taken the position we are in. There has been enough in the wicket all game and with our runs on the board and hopefully a few more we’re in a pretty good position.

“There wasn’t too much discussion between Ryan and I at 7-3. We tried not to think about the scoreboard too much. When you think about that there is more pressure. You know the value of the next couple of partnerships, but Higgo is a positive player so we said to play our natural game and once you get something going it gets a little bit easier.

"Ben (Geddes was brilliant). He’s fitted into the group so well and we could see in the nets from the first session what a good player he was. He came in and soaked up the pressure and we kept each other going.

"It is hard to compare centuries because of different conditions. I was just really pleased to kick on as I was disappointed after getting a start in the first innings and not converting. It let them back into the game, so once I got in today I was determined to make it into a big one."

 

Lancashire bowler Tom Bailey who returned 3-47 said: “It was hard work but I thought the lads bowled well as a unit all day. Credit to them they played well, but if we come back tomorrow morning and get four early wickets the boys will be confident of chasing it down.

“It was strange the way the pitch played. At times it felt very flat and then the odd one would bounce. I bowled with the second new ball and didn’t have much success and then Baldy (George Balderson) and Will (Williams) came on and got some life out of the pitch.

“The pitch has hardened up and felt a lot slabbier especially this afternoon. I bowled well today and I’m quite happy with it.

“It would be massive to win this opening match, especially after last season where it felt nothing went our way. We’ve made some changes to the team and guys have had six months to think about what happened last year. We’ve all come back better players.”

 

Sunday, April 6, 2025 1st Match Northamptonshire vs Kent Starts at 11:00

Day 4: Kent 231 & 171 beat Northamptonshire 143 & 114 by 145 runs.

Kent: 19 pts, Northamptonshire: 3 pts

By Ben Kosky, ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay

Kent seamer Keith Dudgeon produced career-best figures of seven for 36 to wrap up his side’s Rothesay County Championship Division Two victory over Northamptonshire just half an hour into the third morning.

The 29-year-old South African, making his debut in English cricket, rattled through the last three Northamptonshire wickets to secure a 145-run success – only Kent’s second red-ball win in their last 20 games.

It took Kent only seven overs to complete their win at Wantage Road, with the home side bowled out for 114 in their second innings as George Bartlett was left unbeaten on 60.

Resuming on 54 not out, Bartlett did his best to farm the strike and take the odd single but he could not protect the tail for long and Dudgeon struck in his third over of the morning to take his tally of wickets to five.

Dom Leech, attempting to fend off a short delivery, could only send it looping into the gloves of Harry Finch – and Liam Guthrie departed in Dudgeon’s next over, bowled off his pads for a duck.

The South African completed Kent’s victory – their third successive red-ball win over Northamptonshire – just two balls later, uprooting Raphy Weatherall’s off stump with a fizzing yorker.

Northamptonshire head coach DARREN LEHMANN said:

“That was disappointing with the bat and the boys have got to take some accountability. It wasn’t a two and a half day wicket, I thought the groundsman did a really good job – that for me was a nice four-day wicket, more of a 250 wicket in each innings.

“I think both sides batted badly, but Kent probably bowled a bit better than us. We should probably have limited them to 180 and dropped a few catches, but we fought back beautifully yesterday.

“I thought (Rob) Keogh was excellent first innings and (George) Bartlett was great today, that number three spot was up for grabs and he’s really taken it.

“We’ve got some work to do with the bat but we’ve got to change our mindset and adapt to conditions better than we did, we had three blokes that let the ball go and didn’t play a shot, Bats cost about 500 quid – you’ve got to start using them!”

 

Kent head coach ADAM HOLLIOAKE said:

“It’s nice to get it done in what’s effectively two days. It’s a low scoring shoot-out so there’s always times in the game where there’s a lot of pressure.

“When it’s 200 plays 200 plays 140, or what have you, every run is hard fought for so you have to show a lot of character. This is a young, inexperienced side but the character they showed was really pleasing.

“(Keith Dudgeon) – He’s a great signing we’ve got here at Kent. What an impact – it’s a dream start to his Kent career.

“He’s popular in the changing room already, he’s a lovely guy and you can just feel the enthusiasm and aggression coming off him, that’s what we need.”

 

Sunday, April 6, 2025 4th Match Glamorgan vs Leicestershire Starts at 11:00

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