Vitality County Championship 2024, Round 13, 9th Sept -12th Sept, Live Cricket , Latest Scores, Match Reports – All Matches – Division 1 and 2

Durham’s Ben Raine took four wickets for 23 runs from 18 overs to deepen Lancashire’s relegation fears on the first day of the Vitality County Championship match at the Riverside.

Raine made the most of bowler-friendly conditions to help reduce Keaton Jennings’ side to 177 for six after 78 overs on a day that was shortened by morning rain.

Home supporters might view that as a decent return in a match played with a Kookaburra ball but Lancashire’s plight could have been vastly worse had not Matthew Hurst made a fine 74 not out and Josh Bohannon added 49 during two long sessions when run-scoring was often difficult.

Raine was well supported by Matthew Potts, who took two for 36, while West Indian bowler, Chemar Holder, endured a testing first day as a Durham bowler, finishing with nought for 53 from his eight overs.  

Persistent drizzle delayed the start of play until 12.50 and it was no surprise that Durham skipper Scott Borthwick chose to bowl first on winning the toss. 

Nor was it particularly startling, given their current form, that Lancashire’s first innings began badly. Raine had Luke Wells caught behind by Ollie Robinson off the first ball of the game and then produced a magnificent delivery which nipped away and bowled Jennings for nine in the ninth over.

Josh Bohannon tucked into three wayward overs from Holder before losing his third-wicket partner, Venkatesh Iyer, with the total on 49 when the Indian all-rounder was caught behind off Potts for seven.

Matty Hurst survived for 36 minutes and 26 balls before scoring his first run but Lancashire’s closest shaves came at the other end where Bohannon edged Potts between the wicketkeeper and first slip and survived a confident appeal for caught behind off Raine, before finally falling for 49 when a thin-edged catch to Robinson gave the Durham seamer his third wicket.

Lancashire got to tea on 96 for four but soon lost George Bell for seven when Lancashire’s No6 pulled Potts straight to Holder at midwicket. Although Hurst reached his fourth Championship fifty off 88 balls with seven fours and a six, the visitors soon lost their sixth wicket when George Balderson edged a drive off Raine to Colin Ackermann at second slip and departed for 10.  

Hurst and Tom Hartley then batted with great good sense for over an hour, adding an unbroken 39 in 25 overs to ensure that Lancashire didn’t suffer any further damage before the close, although by that time their side still needed 73 runs to secure their first batting point since July 1.

 

Matty Hurst, Lancashire batter, said:

Obviously we'd like to be in a better position but the boys have fought very hard out there. It's not easy to score runs, it's a slow wicket  and it's just a case of being patient and knowing the runs will come.

I'd like to have been more aggressive but it's what the team needed and so I'm happy to do it. We're on a hard graft now to get a couple of wins and try to stay up.

If we get 250 on the board and bowl well, we'll be in a great spot. The boys know we need to fight but we're all up for that and come tomorrow, we'll fight even harder.

 

Ben Raine, Durham seamer said:

The new ball nipped a bit. We were 50/50 on the toss but it looked like a good pitch and we thought there might be something in it early on.

We've played enough with the Kookaburra now to know that it's batter-friendly after 20 overs. We just had to hang in because you can't force things too much. 

Chemar is an unbelievable talent and while it probably wasn't the best he's bowled today, I'm sure he'll play a big part in the rest of this game. 

In this country, the Kookaburra is not good for anyone in my opinion. It's just produces a stagnant game after 30 overs

We were quite surprised with how defensive they were. It allowed us to sneak through another hour of play tonight without too much damage. If we can bowl well with the new ball in the morning, we should be massively on top in this game.
 

A 142-run fifth-wicket stand between the century-making Tom Westley and Paul Walter rescued Essex from impending doom and into a commanding position in their weather-interrupted Vitality County Championship match against Nottinghamshire.

  Westley’s unbeaten 108 from 214 balls, his highest score of the season so far, held together an Essex innings that was in danger of imminent collapse at 86-4 when the pair came together. Westley had himself arrived in the sixth over and was still there 68 overs later with Essex 262-5 at the close of a day when the players trudged on and off the field at irregular intervals.

  Walter’s big hitting under the Chelmsford floodlights bought him 10 fours and a six in his 72 from 106 balls, his third half-century in his last six innings and only eclipsed by a century against Durham in June.

  It became a day of toil for Nottinghamshire, but pace bowler Rob Lord, 23, in only his second Championship game, looked lively and claimed two of the first four Essex wickets to fall. He finished the day with figures of 2-53 from 15 overs.

  On a predominantly overcast and damp day, foreshortened by 22 overs, Nottinghamshire elected to put Essex in as they sought only their second victory of a relegation-threatened season, though they were considerably buoyed by a battling draw against Surrey last week.

  When play started 70 minutes late because of light drizzle that fell immediately after the 10.30am toss, Essex lost Dean Elgar cheaply when he dragged Lord to mid-on where Hasseb Hameed ran round to take the catch sliding on his knees.

  Fellow opener Robin Das had just been reprieved by a drop in the slips straight after lunch when he got a thicker edge to one from Lyndon James and was snaffled at second slip for 20.

  The giant figure of Luke Fletcher bowled unchanged for 13 overs either side of lunch, having Westley in some discomfort – notably with one that smacked into the Essex captain’s box – on a green-tinged wicket initially helping the seamers. He was finally rewarded when Matt Critchley left alone a delivery that jagged back.

  Debutant Luc Benkenstein’s maiden scoring shot in first-class cricket was a delightful pull for four, but next ball he nicked Lord thinly through to the wicketkeeper.

  The scoring improved as the conditions eased and the Kookaburra ball softened in the afternoon and Westley and Walter put on the first fifty of their partnership in just six overs. Westley’s own half-century took 79 balls and included five fours, one a particularly satisfying, flowing off-drive against his erstwhile nemesis Fletcher.

  Walter also played his way in carefully before whipping James off his legs for a first boundary and then twice elegantly lofting Farhan Ahmed to the rope behind the bowler.

  When Westley pulled Lord to fine leg it marked the pair’s century partnership in 26 overs. Next ball, Walter pulled the bowler through square leg for his eighth boundary to bring up a 65-ball fifty. He then welcomed the introduction of Liam Patterson-White’s spin with a four and a six to long-off.

  The pair were finally parted after 42 overs when Walter went to sweep Ahmed but got a leading edge as the ball looped up to gulley.

  However, soon afterwards some careless fielding by the visitors handed Westley five runs courtesy of overthrows which took him to three figures from 193 balls.

Essex centurion Tom Westley said: “That was my first Championship century of the season and obviously I would have liked it to have come a bit sooner earlier on in the season.

  “It was not the greatest way to get my hundred with the overthrows and nearly running Pepps [Michael Pepper] but the five runs helped so I’ll take that.

  “I think we are in a decent position, it would have been nice to have been one wicket less down  but after losing the toss and to be put in  and be 260 odd for  fiveat the close is a decent effort.

  “I thought Paul Walter batted superbly and he will be frustrated that he’s probably left a few runs out there himself but the way he came out with a positive mindset was excellent. It was a crucial partnership with him.

  “It was a bit of difficult day what with cloud issues and we were on and off for rain so it was not ideal for us but then again, it’s probably not ideal for the bowlers either. Traditionally the Kookaburra ball does flatten out a little bit, there is help for seaming conditions when the ball is a bit newer. I think on a wicket maybe we hadn’t seen at Chelmsford a huge amount, there is a bit more pace and carry. So hopefully when we get a chance to bowl, we’ll have to make that new-ball really count.”

 

Nottinghamshire bowling coach Kevin Shine said: “I thought we started well. I thought Luke [Fletcher] and Rob Lord bowled really nicely. Rob has got a bit of pace coming up the hill and was aggressive and Luke bowled beautifully and with a lovely rhythm coming down the hill and applied the bit of pressure. But then Tom [Westly] and Paul [Walter] played really, really well. It was one of those innings where they had to work really hard, we kept applying the pressure and then taking a wicket at the end of the day has helped us as well.

  “The ball did get softer, but we know that happens and what you have to do is adapt, change the fields, keep applying the pressure. Then Liam and Farhan came on and bowled really, really well.Two young spinners, in tandem against two really good, attacking players. They have done well to keep the game fairly even at the moment. Tomorrow is going to be very important. We’ve got sis overs until the new-ball and we know that the new Kookaburra ball will nip around a little bit, so it is going to be an exciting morning.

  “Rob has sort of come out of nowhere. He was playing in Cheshire and playing some minor county cricket. We got him in for some second XI cricket and he is impressive, he’s tall, he hits the deck really hard and bowls a good line. He is very exciting. He is getting used to first-class cricket and getting used to it quite quickly as well. You saw there he had got some pace, he caused some trouble and he’ll get better over the next year or so.

  “Farhan keeps trying to do the same thing over and over again. He obviously did that when he got his seven-fer and his 10-fer in the last game and he has carried on trying to do that here. He looks like the Essex players have tried to counter-attack a little bit with him, but he is very cool and calm and didn’t get flustered at any point. He’s just a wonderful talent to see playing at a high standard of cricket.”

 

Kent reduced Hampshire to 213 for seven at stumps on a weather-affected first day in the Vitality County Championship at Canterbury.

Matt Parkinson took three for 31 and George Garrett three for 60 as the hosts exploited the conditions at the Spitfire Ground.

James Vince hit 88 for the visitors, but their next highest scorer was Liam Dawson, who made 31.

No play was possible before lunch, but when Kent won the toss a home supporter was moved to say: “If we can’t bowl a side out in these conditions, we never will.”

And while the bar is admittedly low, this was as good a day as the division’s basement side have enjoyed at the St. Lawrence in red-ball cricket all season.

It was damp, overcast and blustery and Fletcha Midleton was soon bowled by Garrett for eight, playing the wrong line.

Joey Evison then removed Toby Albert with his second ball for 11, playing on, before Nick Gubbins joined Vince. They put on 83 for the third wicket before Gubbins was caught behind off Garrett for 24.

When the light deteriorated, tea was taken at 3.10pm, with Hampshire on 135 for three. Conditions improved significantly after the restart but Ben Brown tried to hook Garrett and was caught by Evison for nine.

Vince was on 77 when he pulled Evison to midwicket and although Joe Denly couldn’t take the catch, the former England man atoned with a brilliant diving one-handed grab when Vince tried to drive Matt Parkinson through cover.

Parkinson then got Liam Dawson for 31, caught by Charlie Stobo at second slip, but Harry Finch missed a chance to stump James Fuller when he was on one, but he’d only added six more when Finch took his chance at redemption, grabbing a violently turning ball from Parkinson. 

With darkness encroaching once again, play was eventually abandoned for the day at 5.47 pm, with 11 overs remaining.

 

Kent’s Matt Parkinson said: “It was nice, it’s been a tough season for the boys and there haven’t been too many days in the championship where we’ve finished and said ‘yeah, that was a good one’, but that was good and I thought the seamers bowled well.

“We weren’t too sure about the pitch. The aim was obviously to make it a spin a bit more, it hasn’t spun too much all season so to pick up three wickets was fantastic. Vince’s class isn’t he? I’ve played against him for a long time now and he does make tough pitches look easy, so to get him was great. I think in general the boys bowled well. We probably didn’t get it right this morning as much as we should have but I thought after tea we looked fantastic.

“I think in September it is the time when as a spinner you think, please groundsman, can we have some spin? But as I’ve said it’s been a tough season and we’ve fielded so many overs, so to have only fielded 50 overs and taken seven wickets was great.”

(On Denly’s catch)

“It was fantastic (although) he did drop a sitter before that off Jevvo (Evison)! But Denners is a great fielder and it’s been nice to have him back this week. (George Garrett) must be pleased as well. As I said, I don’t think we got it right this morning as a seam group, I think it was doing enough and probably as a collective we weren’t spot on but I thought after tea all the seamers were fantastic and for Gazza to pick up three was great. We’ve got to stay patient I think that’s what we did well this evening. The spell where Jas bowled was fantastic for someone as young and raw as he is.”

 

Hampshire’s Adrian Birrell said: “Everyone else struggled and James Vince didn’t look like he had any problems scoring. At one stage, I think at 70, he was going at a run a ball so he’s an incredible weapon for us because he bats so fast and gets the game going. While he was there we were scoring at over four an over and I think his innings was a superb innings.

“They (Vince and Gubbins) were a perfect combination the two them, of left and right. Gubbo’s pretty solid and he allows Vincey to score the way he does, so it was a very good partnership, followed by another one of course.

“I was surprised they brought spin on so late but maybe they thought (with) the overhead conditions and a good new ball they could use that for their seamers but their seamers didn’t look that threatening and Parkinson did change the course of the innings a little bit with the turn he extracted out of the pitch.

“He bowled slowly but he gave it a lot of air and did get a lot of turn. It was surprising. None of us saw that coming and we might have not picked the team we did pick if we’d seen that and they obviously didn’t see it likewise because they didn’t pick a second spinner. I think both sides maybe misread the pitch today and maybe it’s because it’s a little bit tacky, but it turned and we’ll see how it plays when it gets flatter later in the match. We’re not sure, there are a lot of unknowns. We’re not used to these conditions coming here, it’s usually a very, very good batting pitch and you think you’ll need 400 as par. Here I think 250 is about par.”

 

Tom Banton hit his third first class century as Somerset posted 317 all out on the opening day of the Vitality County Championship Division One match with leaders Surrey at Taunton.

The battle of the top two in the table began with the home side winning the toss and electing to bat first on a pitch expected to offer increasing turn as the match progresses. Banton hit a brilliant 132, one short of his career-best, with 16 fours and a six, while Tom Abell contributed 49 and James Rew 38.

But Surrey launched a determined fightback with the second new ball to limit the damage from 305 for five at one stage.

Bangladesh left-arm spinner Shakib Ul Hasan, signed solely for this game, claimed four for 97 and Dan Worrall three for 41.

Needing to close a 24-point gap on their opponents at the start of play, Somerset made a poor start when Lewis Goldsworthy was bowled by the second ball of the match, a Kemar Roach inswinger that clipped off stump.

Archie Vaughan was promoted to form a new opening partnership and the 18-year-old son of England Ashes winning captain Michael Vaughan looked more than up to the task as his side set about recovering from the early shock.

He and Tom Lammonby took the score to 33 before Lammonby, on 21, fell to Jordan Clark’s first delivery of the game, a ball that bounced more than he expected and forced an edge to Dom Sibley at second slip.

Vaughan, who had taken 18 balls to get off the mark, appeared commendably unperturbed in batting through the morning session to be unbeaten on 44 from 105 deliveries at lunch.

He was given a life on 41 when Sibley failed to hold a sharp slip chance, diving to his right, off Tom Curran, making his first Championship appearance for nearly two years.

Abell, seeking to build on hundreds in the previous two Championship home games, again played with confidence and was 27 not out at the interval, with Somerset having recovered to 93 for two. But hopes that the third-wicket partnership would flourish in the afternoon session were soon dashed as Worrall had Vaughan caught behind off the second ball, edging a defensive push.

Heavily depleted by international call-ups, Surrey were relying heavily on the experienced Shakib. Emerging from a watchful start, Banton reverse swept him from two boundaries in an over.

Abell became Shakib’s first victim when he played back to a delivery that skidded through and bowled him one short of a half-century. Banton went to fifty off 90 balls, with 6 fours, and found a reliable partner in Rew as the pair blossomed in the afternoon sunshine.

By tea, they had taken the total to 197 for four, with Banton 65 not out, having survived a difficult chance to slip on 59. Rew was unbeaten on 16 and the final session saw both players prosper.

Banton reverse swept Cameron Steel for four and pulled his next ball for six to move into the nineties. He earned Somerset’s first batting point with a two off Curran and the following over from Clark saw him edge a single, raising both arms as he ran to celebrate a 132-ball century.

Content to play a supporting role, Rew brought up the hundred partnership off 137 balls in moving to 35 with a single off Curran and at 255 for four Somerset were building a position of strength. With seven added, Rew played forward defensively to Curran and edged through to wicketkeeper Ben Foakes.

It was 264 for four when the second new ball was taken at the earliest opportunity. Worrall struck a key blow when Banton launched a big hit at a slower ball and was bowled, having faced 172 balls. The following over from Shakib saw Kasey Aldridge fall in similar fashion and Craig Overton stumped, to strangely attacking shots in the circumstances.

When Lewis Gregory was bowled by Worrall for a duck, Somerset had lost four wickets in the space of 14 balls. Kiwi seamer Brett Randell was last man out on debut for three, Shakib and Surrey ending the day on a high.

 

Somerset centurion Tom Banton said: “Obviously, the day didn’t end as we wanted, but we would have settled for our score at the start of play. The wicket is starting to break up slowly, although it didn’t turn as much as expected today, having been under covers.

“We have an important few weeks coming up and my focus is on contributing as much as I can, firstly to this match and then when we play Surrey again on T20 Finals Day. We have to take each day as it comes and rest up well in between.

“Shakib coming into their side makes an already strong bowling attack even stronger. They bowled well, but I have full confidence in our attack and know we can bowl them out too.

“The ball swung a bit up top and when they came back with the new ball ‘Frankie’ Worrall got me with a googly, which made everyone laugh. Shakib was trying to beat you on the inside and target the stumps. The ball was starting to turn if put in the right areas.”

 

Surrey seamer Dan Worrall said: “Shakib has been one of the top bowlers in international cricket over the past 13 years and we are lucky to have him. He has fitted into the dressing room straight away and we are a big club who enjoy having big players join us.

“We would have taken their score if you had offered it to us in the morning. It’s a good pitch to bat on, with a few variables for spinners and quicks alike.

“With the Kookaburra ball, it is all about hanging in there and hoping you can do something special in a session, which we managed to do. I’m not sure what a par score it. Ask me when we have batted.

“When Banton and Rew were batting we knew we had to hold on and not let the game get away from us. I managed to get Tom out with a wrong ‘un, which I half expected him to hit out of the park, but sometimes these things come off.”

Club Captain Brett D’Oliveira struck his fourth successive half century since returning from injury to inspire another Worcestershire recovery on the opening day of the Vitality County Championship derby with Warwickshire at Visit Worcestershire New Road.

D’Oliveira had come to the wicket just over a week ago with Worcestershire 10-4 on the opening morning versus Essex at Chelmsford and his 68 helped his side rally to 266 all out on their way to a 43 run success. 

That followed his 97 during the home win over Kent and for good measure he hit another 51 in the second innings against Essex.

Today his side were struggling at 67-4 in testing conditions when he walked out to the middle and was again the cornerstone of a fightback with the top score of 76.

D’Oliveira received excellent support from Adam Hose, fit again Matthew Waite and Logan van Beek in partnerships of 49, 76 and 43.

He had missed the entire Metro Bank One Day Cup campaign whilst having extensive rehab to a shoulder problem which has troubled him for the past year.

But the treatment seems to have paid handsome dividends for the 32-year-old who has been in prime form since the Championship programme recommenced.

Waite also made his mark with a fluent half century on his return to action after nearly two months on the side-lines with a side strain.

Oliver Hannon-Dalby, the leading wicket-taker in Division One, added three more scalps to take his tally for the season to 46 and again bowled impressively.

Worcestershire gave a Championship debut to young Academy pace bowler Jack Home who last week signed a three-year contract after taking 16 wickets in five games in the Metro Bank One Day Cup.

Warwickshire made one change from the side which had defeated Kent with spinner Danny Briggs replacing Jacob Bethell.

Warwickshire skipper Alex Davies put the home side into bat on a wicket where the bounce was variable, particularly when bowling from the New Road End.

Hannon-Dalby made the first breakthrough when Jake Libby pushed forward to a delivery which nipped away and was caught behind.

Kashif Ali, who had scored two centuries in the corresponding game at Edgbaston, provided keeper Michael Burgess with another catch off former Worcestershire all-rounder Ed Barnard

Gareth Roderick had his middle stump knocked back by Michael Rae and then Ethan Brookes, promoted to number four, was lbw to Hannon-Dalby on his return to the attack with a delivery which swung back in.

Hose and D’Oliveira battled through to lunch at 77-4 from 30 overs.

D’Oliveira pulled Rushworth for four to bring up the 100 in 39.3 overs.

The fifth wicket pair extended their partnership to 49 but Hose, having battled for nearly two hours for 33, drove at Barnard and was pouched at second slip

Waite was full of positive intent from the start and collected four boundaries at Barnard’s expense in two overs.

He was the dominate figure in a half century partnership with D’Oliveira and completed his own fifty from 71 balls with nine fours.

The afternoon session produced 111 runs from 34 overs for the loss of one wicket.

But Waite (53) added only one more run before he was lbw to Rae after he switched ends to end a stand of 76.

D’Oliveira reached another excellent half century from 115 balls when he late cut Danny Briggs for his seventh boundary.

He found another staunch ally in van Beek in adding 43 for the seventh wicket but on 76 was finally caught low down at first slip by Yates off Rhodes.

The second new ball accounted for van Beek with a third scalp for Hannon-Dalby thanks to Yates again showing a safe pair of hands, this time at second slip.

But Home, who hit Barnard for the first six of the game backward of square, and Tom Taylor earned Worcestershire a precious batting point before the close during an unbroken stand of 52.

Worcestershire all-rounder Matthew Waite, who scored a half century, said: “I think we are in a really good spot. We are six runs off that second point and if we can get to 300 that will be brilliant on that type of pitch.

“They bowled pretty well and stuck us in so if we can get past that 300 mark….we’ve obviously taken a bit of momentum tonight and if we can do that again in the morning, I think we will be well happy.

“We asked the opening batters what they thought a good score was and they said around 250-260 so we are doing pretty well.

“I had a lot of nerves this morning. I hadn’t played for a while and I think that nervous energy came out in my batting and I managed to hit a few boundaries and got away.

“It was good to build a partnership with Dolly because we were in a bit of a sticky situation there.

“Dolly has been brilliant since he came back from injury. He has been so good and another massive contribution today.

 

“With the pitch, you never really feel in on it. You never feel comfortable. There is a bit of nip and it bounces sometimes more than you think it will and a bit of hold there for the spinners.

“It wasn’t the easiest pitch but we’ve got 300 runs almost so we are quite pleased.”

Warwickshire pace bowler Michael Rae said: “We had them 77-4 by lunch and the boys bowled really well but you’ve got to give credit where it’s due to Worcestershire and the way they fought back and played really well in the middle session.

“There was probably about an hour where we bowled too short and they capitalised on it and in the last session maybe it swung in their favour, particularly towards the end.

“A bit frustrating not to knock over the tail and they’ve put on about 50 for this ninth wicket.

“To be honest, having been put into bat and being close to 300-8, most sides would rip your hand off at most grounds around the country to achieve that.

“It’s going to be a case of coming back tomorrow, doing the job with the ball and getting stuck in.

“Getting through the new ball will be important our batters tomorrow and then trying to get into a position to win this game.

“There is enough in the wicket to keep you interested as a bowler.”

 

Skipper Jonny Tattersall’s fine, unbeaten 90 enabled promotion-chasing Yorkshire to close on 263 for eight for a lead of 165 after 18 wickets fell on day one of their Vitality County Championship match against Leicestershire.

It came after Leicestershire’s decision to prepare a pitch as green as the outfield had threatened to backfire on them historically as they were reduced to 15 for seven inside the first hour after Yorkshire won the toss.

They recovered somewhat thanks to an unbeaten 51 by Ben Cox, but in the last of this Championship season’s four rounds using the Kookaburra ball were bowled out for 98 nonetheless. Pace bowler Ben Coad took five for 15 and his Surrey-bound strike partner Matthew Fisher returned from injury with three for 38 in his first appearance since May.

Yorkshire stumbled to 30 for three at the start of their reply. Yet as batting became easier, Tattersall’s assured performance, with support from James Wharton (41), Dom Bess (33) and Fisher (28 not out), gave them the upper hand - albeit with only one batting bonus point in 71 overs after Tom Scriven took four for 69.

Relegated in 2022 in the wake of the Azeem Rafiq affair, Yorkshire began the day a point behind second-placed Middlesex in the Division Two table, with three matches remaining.

Leicestershire, outsiders but still in the hunt for promotion, had not bargained on being all out for less than 100 before lunch.  The absence of top scorer Peter Handscomb, who has returned home for the Australian domestic season, was hardly an excuse.

Yet it could have been much worse. As Coad and Fisher laid waste to their top and middle order, it seemed quite possible that Leicestershire would be shot out for the lowest total in their history, not even matching the 25 for which Kent dismissed their forebears at Aylestone Road in 1912.

After Rishi Patel edged Coad to third slip with no runs on the board, the next three wickets fell with the total on three. Lewis Hill nicked Fisher to second slip, Coad brought one back to bowl Ian Holland leg stump and then had Rehan Ahmed caught at second slip.

Two more wickets fell on 11. Louis Kimber swung and missed to be leg before to Coad as the fourth duck in the top six, then Fisher nipped one back to trap Ajinkya Rahane. Liam Trevaskis perished in the same over, also leg before, making it 15 for seven.

It took Cox and Tom Scriven to disrupt the pattern by going on the attack. The first of Scriven’s three boundaries ensured that the 1912 record would stand before Cox damaged Coad’s figures with a top-edge for six. The pair added 37 in 26 balls before Scriven was caught behind swinging as Coad completed his five-wicket haul - his second with the Kookaburra after taking five for 33 against Worcestershire last season.

Cox reached 51 from 31 balls by hammering Fisher for his second six. Jordan Thompson had Scott Currie leg before but the last wicket added another 39 before Chris Wright was bowled by George Hill.

Leicestershire should have had a wicket first ball as Yorkshire’s first innings began immediately after lunch, Wright dropping a return catch offered by Lyth. The visitors found themselves 30 for three in the 18th over nonetheless. Finlay Bean was caught at gully, Lyth caught behind off a wafer-thin edge and Will Luxton, driving, fell to a brilliant one-handed grab by Currie at third slip.

Jonny Bairstow followed his attacking instincts but after four boundaries he departed to a catch at first slip, at 56 for four, which would have become 63 for five had first-slip Patel not dropped Wharton on 14 off Scriven.

The error cost 46 runs, Wharton raising his boundary count to eight before his eyes lit up when presented with a long-hop by Rehan Ahmed and was caught at long-on.

From 109 for five, Tattersall played with calm assurance to head off the threat of another crash of wickets. George Hill was bowled by Wright for 12 but Dom Bess played some attractive strokes as he and Tattersall added 42.

Scriven got one through Bess’s defences for his third success and had Thompson caught off a top-edged pull. Tattersall and Fisher added 53 before the close.

Yorkshire seamer Ben Coad, who took 5-15, said:

“That innings from Jonny Tattersall is definitely the best knock that I’ve seen him play. He grinds it out when you really need it, and that’s why he’s captain when Shan isn’t here.

“He leads by example on the pitch. He’s not the most vocal, but that’s the sort of thing you love to see.

“It was obviously a big toss to win.  I didn’t think it would do as much as it did when I first looked at it. I knew it would nip, but it seemed to nip every ball. It was just about putting it in the right area and letting the pitch do its thing.

“You always know there’s going to be a bit of a partnership. We would have loved to have got them for less than what they got, but it happens when they chance their arm.  If we’d have known we were bowling this morning, we’d have snapped your hand off for 98.”


Leicestershire’s Ben Cox, who made an unbeaten 51, said:

“We knew the toss was going to be a big one. We fell on the wrong side of that so we knew it was going to be difficult. Playing with the lights on, with a brand new ball, at 10.30am, made a huge difference.

“It is a bit of a gamble to prepare a pitch like that but we are in a position where we need to get results. Everyone bought into it. It’s a 50-50 toss and we came out on the wrong side. But there was no one complaining, even when it was 15 for seven, which shows the togetherness of the team.

“If we had won the toss, we could have been in a very different position, but you just have to take the rough with the smooth

“It certainly did a bit less with the new ball the second time around, with the sun out. The pitch seemed to change colour over lunch and with the heavy roller on it, it did flatten out a bit, although Tattersall played very well, you have to give him credit for that.”

Saif Zaib hit a battling 90 off 144 balls (10 fours, two sixes) to lead a Northamptonshire fightback after a top-order collapse on the opening day of this Vitality Championship match against Derbyshire at Wantage Road.

Zaib found fine support from Justin Broad (45) in a partnership of 73 in 19 overs which enabled the hosts to post 219, a score that had looked extremely unlikely at 89 for six soon after lunch.

For only the second time in Derbyshire history all seven bowlers used took a wicket, Zak Chappell, Martin Andersson and Jack Morley taking two apiece in a fine all-round bowling display.

Luis Reece (39) and Brooke Guest (20) then comfortably saw the visitors through to 65 for one at the close, trailing by 154 runs, Broad taking the one wicket to fall.

Playing on the same surface used for last Thursday’s Vitality Blast quarter final and one expected to offer turn, the hosts opted to bat first in overcast conditions after winning the toss. Playing with a rejigged batting line-up, the gamble seemed not to have paid off as wickets tumbled although Northamptonshire’s spinners would have drawn encouragement from the turn found by their Derbyshire counterparts.

Indian international Prithvi Shaw was first to go when he edged the second delivery of the day from Chappell to third slip, the bowler’s 50^th first-class wicket for Derbyshire. Home skipper Luke Procter (12) who played two textbook drives through mid-off, was then trapped leg before wicket by Luis Reece before Gus Miller (6), promoted to open, was undone by a Andersson delivery which swung back in to also pin him lbw.

Rob Keogh’s (5) stay was equally brief, Andersson moving one away and drawing the edge, keeper Brooke Guest taking an excellent diving catch.

James Sales (23) played some attacking shots, slapping Andersson through the covers and smashing Reece over the head of mid-off for another boundary. His was the fifth wicket to fall before lunch though when he drove loosely to Chappell and was caught low down at third slip by Aneurin Donald.

Lewis McManus (14) started positively after lunch, driving Chappell down the pitch for four but became teenage quick Harry Moore’s maiden first-class wicket on Championship debut, courtesy of a pull straight to fine leg.

That brought together Zaib and Broad together who began to restore a measure of respectability to the hosts’ innings.

Zaib worked Reece through square leg for four before lunch and eased into a glorious cover drive off Moore after the interval, while Broad drove Chappell down the ground and punched him through the covers as Northamptonshire passed 100 in the 37^th over.

As Derbyshire deployed spin from both ends, Alex Thomson immediately found some turn to pose Broad some challenges before the all-rounder swept him to the ropes. Zaib meanwhile also found the sweep an increasingly lucrative bet against the spinners.

The pair took Northamptonshire past 150 up in the 50^th over before Morley spun one away from Broad, drawing the edge with David Lloyd taking a good low catch at second slip. Ben Sanderson fell quickly in the next over, offering short leg an easy catch when he prodded forward against Thomson.

Zaib though progressed serenely to his half-century, reaching the milestone off 100 deliveries as he played Thomson through midwicket. He survived a strong shout for a catch at short leg off Morley when the umpires adjudged the ball had been hit into the ground first. Zaib responded by dispatching Morley imperiously over long-off for six and powering Thomson through extra cover.

But Morley then picked up a second wicket when he turned one back in to hit Dom Leech’s leg stump as he attempted to sweep.

With Northamptonshire nine wickets down, Zaib pressed the accelerator, clubbing Morley’s left-armers through mid-off and then sweeping him high over deep square for four and six. His downfall finally came was stumped coming down the pitch to Lloyd.

When Derbyshire began their innings after tea, Sanderson bowled a typically miserly spell from one end, Broad making the initial breakthrough from the other. He found some additional bounce from back of a length, surprising Harry Came who was caught on the crease, fending fended the ball to Sales who took a good low catch at second slip.

Reece meanwhile started to find the boundary, cutting Broad crisply to deep point, while he and Guest both pulled Yuzvendra Chahal fluently for boundaries as Derbyshire finished the session without further incident, despite some strong appeals from the hosts’ spin contingent.

Derbyshire bowler Zak Chappell said: “We bowled well as a unit. There was a little bit in it early. We did manage to get a little bit out of it, which was good – a lot better than we were at Sussex last week. So that's a positive.

“Then the spinners came on and obviously we didn't expect it to spin quite as much as it did, but it did happen pretty quickly. Yeah, a pretty good performance.

“We've got a nice variation in our bowling. Jack's [Morley] a bit quicker, Tommo’s [Alex Thomson] a bit more up and down. So, it's a nice challenge for the batters to have. They're quite different [bowlers].

“100% we’d take this position after losing the toss. I think when it's a used wicket naturally, you can sometimes think that bowling first isn't always the best thing. But yeah, it's worked out pretty nicely so far. We need to get a bit of a lead in this first innings because obviously it’s going to spin a lot on the third or fourth day. So, yeah, we need to keep our heads down and keep churning away at this total.”

Northamptonshire all-rounder Justin Broad said: “We had an idea that the pitch was going to turn. We probably didn't expect it to turn straight away. It turned quite a lot today, which is good news for us, bowling last on it. There’s a bit of bounce there as well and it was quite quick. I thought their leftie was bowling quite quick and got some sharp turn.

“Saif [Zaib] batted really well. We just spoke about being proactive and aggressive and sticking to our game plan, because we didn't really want to just sit there. We felt like there was a ball with our name on it.

“For both of us the sweep had quite a prominent place to play in our game plan. We both like sweeping. Also, if you sweep the bowlers’ best ball, it puts doubt into their minds as well. So, yeah, we were just backing our sweep shots as a boundary option, but also as a rotation option.

“I didn't think I bowled great, but Sando [Ben Sanderson] kept it tight at the other end. But it was obviously nice to get a wicket. I think it's a pitch where it can happen quite quickly. If we get one or two early, especially with that sharp turn and bounce, it can happen quite quickly. So, we just need to stay patient. Hopefully, it happens quickly for us in the morning.

[On Yuzvendra Chahal’s role] “He's going to bowl a lot, for sure, and he's ready. He's excited for it.”

 

Jack Davies posted his best first-class score of 91 as Middlesex built a strong platform after being put in by Gloucestershire in their Vitality County Championship clash at Lord’s.

The Middlesex left-hander missed out on the chance of a maiden hundred after sharing a sixth-wicket partnership of 120 with Josh de Caires, who struck 64 as the home side were bowled out for 377.

Max Holden’s battling knock of 77 had provided an initial foundation for the promotion contenders before he became one of seven dismissals for Gloucestershire gloveman James Bracey.

The bowling honours were dominated by Tom Price, who finished with a season’s best of five for 81, and Ajeet Singh Dale, with figures of four for 70.

Gloucestershire – who included 19-year-old debutant Archie Bailey among their seam quartet – were immediately rewarded for opting to bowl as Singh Dale’s opening effort seared back down the slope and crashed into Sam Robson’s middle stump.

The lively Bailey, who entered the attack as early as the sixth over, might also have struck with his first delivery which found the edge of Holden’s bat, but dropped fractionally short of slip.

However, Middlesex gradually settled down and Mark Stoneman raised the tempo with a flurry of cover boundaries, advancing to 42 before he attempted to hook Tom Price and top-edged it to provide Bracey with a routine catch.

That ended Stoneman’s partnership of 71 with Holden, who reached lunch one short of a half-century as he and Leus du Plooy kept the scoreboard ticking along at more than four an over.

Holden added that single off Tom Price to reach 50 soon after the interval, but the very next delivery accounted for Du Plooy, slanting across the left-hander to take the edge.

Price and Bracey combined again to remove their former team-mate Ryan Higgins, caught swishing outside leg stump and the Gloucestershire keeper claimed his fourth dismissal of the innings when Singh Dale returned at the Nursery End to prise out Holden.

But Davies looked in good touch, pulling and cutting against the seamers as well as driving spinner Zafar Gohar for the first six of the contest as he and De Caires shared Middlesex’s fourth partnership in excess of 50.

The shot that took Davies to his own 50 was a streaky one, though, slashing across the line at Tom Price and edging over Bracey’s head for a boundary that also earned the home side their first batting bonus point.

De Caires was given a life just after tea, with Cameron Bancroft spilling an edge to slip off Bailey, but he played the spinners with confidence and pulled Zafar off the back foot for a boundary to post his second half-century of the season.

Singh Dale returned to take the new ball and, although Davies got away with a leading edge that flew through the slips, he was undone in the seamer’s next over as he nudged one that moved away into Bracey’s gloves.

De Caires soon followed, trapped in front by a ball that followed a similar trajectory to Singh Dale’s first of the day before Tom Price wrapped up the innings by capturing the wickets of Luke Hollman and Henry Brookes.

Middlesex’s JACK DAVIES, who top-scored with a career-best 91, said:

“I think we definitely would have taken that score at the start of the day. It’s quite tough to make judgements on the score after just facing the new ball – with the Kookaburra it can offer quite a lot and then it peters out.

“Luckily in that initial period myself and Josh (de Caires) just got a couple of nice ones away and it got the momentum building, which was nice.

“The 50 partnership came up quite quickly and from there we were able to put them under a bit of pressure.

“It’s just the natural way Josh and I both play, we’re natural rhythm players and we get in that headspace and tick along.

“Playing in every game was my goal at the start of the year, so I’m quite happy with that. I’d like to have scored a couple of hundreds and I’ve definitely got myself in a position to do so, but we’ve got two games left after this one, so hopefully it’ll happen in one of those!”

 

Gloucestershire seamer TOM PRICE, who took a season’s best of five for 81, said:

“To get the 10 wickets is what we were aiming for today, so we’re happy to get the job done. Maybe ideally we’d have liked to get them for a few less but we’re happy to get 10 with a Kookaburra, on a surface that wasn’t offering as much as we’d have liked.

“It was slow, I think it hardened and quickened up a little bit through the day, which made it easier for the bowlers but with the slope as well, you always feel in the game.

“Ajeet (Singh Dale) was unbelievable to watch, he could easily have had six or seven. He was always challenging all the set batters, even when they were in and he’s an awesome partner to bowl with – especially the way he set the tone with that first ball.

“It was really satisfying – it’s been a long season getting myself back to fitness. Even in the first couple of spells I still felt a bit rusty but I’m really pleased.

“I feel like today was my day, I got the nicks and edges and beat the bat but I’m sure the other lads will be picking up all the wickets in the second innings.”

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