365 Sporting Days

The first test match of the summer started at Lord’s on a bright sunny day, it was almost inevitable that Day 3 saw torrential rain in the South, that coincided with Day 2 of this round of games, meaning more weather affected matches. A young Sussex All Rounder, Danial Ibrahim, set a record to become the youngest player ever to score a fifty in a County Championship game, at the age of just 16 and 299 days. Here’s a look at what happened around the counties, in spite of the weather in the South there were 4 matches won on Day 3 – I’ll start with them first.

Derbyshire v Warwickshire – The Incora County Ground, Derby. Billy Godleman won the toss for Derbyshire and put Warwickshire in to bat. Warwickshire Won by 191 runs.

Warwickshire 274 All Out & 155 All Out, Derbyshire 121 All Out & 117 All Out.

Sam Hain batting at 4 top scored for Warwickshire – he scored 77 from 161 balls batting for just over 3.5 hours, he was joined in a 5th wicket partnership of 74 by Michael Burgess whi finished with 71 from 134 balls in just over 3 hours. The innings lasted for 99.3 overs, Sam Conners had the performance with the ball with 4 for 46 from his 18 overs.

Derbyshire aren’t having a 2021 to shout about and in their first innings which lasted only 39.4 overs Billy Godleman top scored with 32., Extras were the 3rd highest score at 21. Craig Miles took 5 for 30 in 11.4 overs and Liam Norwell 4 for 24 in 13 overs.

Warwickshire had a short second innings time wise, just 58 overs, Sam Hain again top scored, with 46 from 90 balls, Michael Cohen took 5 for 43 in 16 overs as Warwickshire were bowled out for 155. That gave them a lead of 308.

It took Warwickshire just one more ball to bowl Derbyshire out, Wayne Madsen had the top sore of 29 from 50 balls in the total if 117. Oliver Hannon-Dalby took 4 for 24 and the other wickets were shared between 4 bowlers. A win within 3 days for Warwickshire.

Looking back having picked up on No Balls – there were only 4 in this whole game and that was in Warwickshire’s first innings.

Worcestershire v Durham – New Road, Worcester. Scott Borthwick won the toss for Durham and put Worcestershire in to bat. Durhan Won by 10 wickets

Worcestershire 131 All Out & 336 All Out, Durham 381 All Out & 89 for 0

Another low scoring innings, finished in just 50.3 overs. Brett D’Oliveira batting at 6 top scored with 39 from 111 balls and in this instance Extras gave the 2nd highest score with 24, including 6 No Balls. Unusually Chris Rushworth didn’t take a wicket but Matthew Potts took 4 for 32 and Brydon Carse 4 for 25.

Durham appeared to be batting on a different wicket as they built a decent innings. Alex Lees opening scored 52 from 102 balls, Micheal Jones in at 4 scored 78 sharing a 5th wicket partnership with David Bedingham of 171. Bedingham top scored with 121 from 183 balls, batting for just over 4 hours. He’s having a great 2021 and has scored 787 runs at an average of 71.54. Only 2 players sit above him in the averages table, being Dawid Malan who’s played 1 match and Roelof Van der Merwe with one innings. Josh Tongue had the best bowling figures of 4 for 73 in a innings that lasted for 109.3 overs. Another 8 No Balls in this innings.

Worcestershire fared better in their second innings, with Jake Libby opening top scoring with 126 from 210 balls. Brett D’Oliveira chipped in with 46 from 90 balls and continuing my No Ball thoughts, 12 were bowled in this innings as Extras came 3rd in the runs total with 38. The innings lasted 102.5 overs and Matthew Potts took another 4, for 66 in 24 overs.

Durham took just 20.2 overs to score the runs required to get the win, they lost no wickets to win by 10 wickets.

Leicestershire v Gloucestershire – Uptonsteel County Ground, Leicester. Colin Ackermann won the toss for Leicestershire and elected to bat. Leicestershire won by an innings and 93 runs.

Gloucestershire 158 All Out & 200 All Out. Leicestershire 451 All Out.

The decision to bat first was a good one, Marcus Harris, batting at 3 top scored with 148 from 236 balls, batting for nearly 5 hours. Harris has scored 557 runs in 10 innings at an average of 61.88. In this innings his captain, Ackermann kept him company for just over 2.5 hours, scoring 57 from 113 balls. Lewis Hill in at 5 contributed 56 from 83 balls. Leicestershire batted for 132 over and the wickets were shared between 6 bowlers. 8 No Balls in this innings.

Gloucestershire were the surprise package of the Championship this season, but things have gone awry in recent weeks. Opener MIles Hammnond started well scoring 67 from 107 balls, but Extras was the second highest score, and we have a high No Ball count again, 10 of the 19 extras. They were bowled out in 50.3 overs. Callum Parkinson took 5 for 45 in his 18 overs.

Gloucestershire found themselves 31 for 5 before Ian Cockbain and Jonny Tattersall put on 119 for the 6th wicket. Cockbain batted for just over 3 hours and top scored with 59 from 136 balls, Tattersall made 51 from 107 balls. Extras come in at 3 in this innings, with another 10 No Balls in the total of 20. CAllum Parkinson took his second 5 for of the innings for 63 runs in 32 overs. `The innings lasted for 70 Overs. Leicestershire won their second game by an innings and 93 runs. One the members present will have enjoyed.

Glamorgan v Lancashire – Sophia Gardens, Cardiff. Chris Cooke won the toss for Glamorgan and put Lancashire in to bat. Glamorgan won by 6 wickets.

Lancashire 173 All Out & 164 All Out, Glamorgan 150 All Out & 198 for 4.

Lancashire have been having a good season in 2021, they hadn’t lost a game up until this round. They fell to 86 for 6 in just over 33 overs, the top score came from Tom Bailey batting at 9, he scored 31 from 37 balls. Extras again saw 10 No Balls, that’s becoming something of a pattern in this round. The innings lasted fro just 56.1 overs and the wickets were shared between 5 bowlers.

Marnus Labuschagne hasn’t fared well this season, but he was the top scorer for Glamorgan in a generally unsuccessful innings. He made 44 from 55 balls as Glamorgan were bowled out in just 39.2 overs. The wickets were shared by 4 bowlers and to keep the No Ball count going there were 4 in this innigs.

Opener Alex Davies top scored in Lancashire’s second innings, he made 47 from 79 balls. Luke Wells was the only other batsman to score over 20. Michael Neser took 4 for 53 in 13 overs as Lancashire were bowled out in 51.1 overs. ( Not a single No Ball)

Labuschagne again got his eye in and top scored with 63 from 72 balls, Glamorgan’s first wicket didn’t fall until they had 72 of the required runs on the board. It took them just 58.1 overs to get the game won. A first loss for Lancashire a second win for Glamorgan.

Essex v Nottinghamshire – The County Ground, Chelmsford. Steven Mullaney won the toss for Nottinghamshire and elected to bat. Match Drawn.

Nottinghamshire 293 All Out & 44 for 2. Essex 210 All Out.

This was a must win match for Essex, if things were to stay in their own hands. Having Nottinghamshire on 48 for 3 was a good start, but their middle order shifted things back to Notts. Joe Clarke top scored with 67 from 119 balls, he likes batting against Essex. Lyndon James scored 54 from 163 balls and Steven Mullaney 55 from 178 balls. Simon Harmer was back in the runs after taking none in Durham, he took 4 for 71 in 33.1 overs. Nottinghamshire batted for 118 .1 overs and we had 8 No Balls bowled.

Essex collapsed to 15 for 3 a not uncommon occurrence this season. Tom Westley anchored the innings with 71 fro 164 balls, he batted for nearly 4 hours but found scant support from his colleagues. Extras came in third with 22, including 6 No Balls. The whole of Day 2 was lost to rain. Essex were bowled out in 89.1 overs.

I was out on Day 4 but can see the captains decided on a draw quite early on the day, Nottinghamshire batted for just 27.2 overs. The result was the only feasible one – Match Drawn.

Somerset v Hampshire – The Cooper Associates Ground, Taunton. James Vince won the toss for Hampshire and put Somerset in to bat. Match Drawn.

Somerset 360 All Out & 409 for 7 dec, Hampshire 311 All Out & 88 for 2.

Somerset found themselves on 43 for 5 after 21.3 overs. A 6th wicket partnership of 65 between Tom Banton and Alex Davies steadied the ship. Banton scored 45 from 50 balls and Davies a more leisurely 47 from 102 balls. An 8th wicket partnership of 171 between Lewis Gregory batting at 8 and Roelof van der Merwe in at 9 improved things greatly to say the least. Gregory scored 107 from 143 balls, batting for just over 3 hours, van der Merwe was run out on 88 from 102 balls. Somerset scored 360 in just 83.2 overs, some going after such a poor start! Keith Barker shone for Hampshire with 6 for 72 in his 24 overs. (6 No Balls)

Hampshire also lost early wickets and fell to 31 for 3, Sam Northeast (a favourite of mine) scored 67 from 145 balls, batting for over 3 hours. But it was keeper Lewis McManus batting at 7 top scored with 91 from 161 balls batting for nearly 3.5 hours. We have another 10 No Balls attack as Hampshire batted for 104.2 overs for their 311. Josh Davey took 5 for 78 in 25.2 overs.

Somerset’s second innings saw 3 big scores, with Tom Abell reaching over 600 runs so far for 2021, he scored 98 in 155 balls batting for nearly 3 hours. He and Alex Davies shared a partnership of 139 for the second wicket, Davies made 82 from 97 balls. George Bartlett in at 5 was the top scorer with a round 100 from 161 balls, he batted for just over 3.5 hours. Tom Banton at 8 chipped in with 51 from 55 balls as Somerset declared on 409 for 7. (2 No Balls)

This was a rai affected game however and Hampshire batted for just 33.2 overs before a Draw was confirned. Extras were equal top scorer with 23 and that included…… 10 No Balls. Match Drawn.

Kent v Northamptonshire – The Spitfire Ground, Canterbury. Adam Rossington won the toss for Northamptonshire and elected to bat. Match Drawn

Northamptonshire 392 All Out & 184 for 8, Kent 330 for 5 dec.

Northamptonshire’s openers put on 135 for the first wicket. Ricardo Vasconcelos scored 66 runs from 85 balls and his partner Emilio Gay top scored with 101 from 160 balls batting for over 3.5 hours. Gay had a partnership of 100 with Luke Proctor who scored 81 from 166 balls. When your opposition are 314 for 3 who do you need when you’re Kent. That would be Darren Stevens who took 5 wickets for 73 runs in his 26.4 overs. A whopping 16 No Balls in this innings as Northamptonshire were bowled out in 104.4 overs.

There are two Ollie Robinson’s in County Cricket, one was at the centre of some controversy as he made his successful debut for England, the other opened the batting for Kent. He and Jordan Cox put on 161 for the first wicket. Robinson scored 120 runs from 119 balls, some opening spell! That took him to 534 runs for the season so far. Cox scored 90 from 183 balls in just over 4 hours, he shared a partnership of 116 with Joe Denly. Denly scored 63 from 79 balls. Kent’s 330 runs were scored in just 69 overs. (4 No Balls)

This was another rain affected match with a draw the most likely result. Adam Rossington batting at 6 top scored in Northamptonshire’s seconf innings. Ollie Robinson took 3 catches in this innings to add to the 5 he took in the first, he reached his 100th First Class dismissal in what was a memorable match for him. A further 14 No Balls took the Kent bowlers to 30 for the match! Match Drawn.

Yorkshire v Sussex – Emerald Headingley, Leeds. Steven Patterson won the toss and put Sussex in to bat. Yorkshire won by an innings and 30 runs.

Sussex 313 All Out & 215 All Out. Yorkshire 558 All Out

Sussex fell to 68 for 4 before a 5th wicket stand of 107 between Aaron Thomason and Ben Brown pulled things back. Thomasson was out for 40 but Brown then batted with the youngster Danial Ibrahim to add 94 for the 6th wicket. Brown scored 127 from 177 balls batting for over 4 hours and Ibrahim go this record 55 from 134 balls. The wickets were shared between 5 bowlers as Sussex were bowled out in 115.3 overs. (4 No Balls)

Huge innings incoming for Yorkshire, playing in his first match of 2021 Dawid Malan scored 199 fro 289 balls, he batted for over 6.5 hours hitting 22 Fours and 2 Sixes. He and Gary Ballance shared a second wicket stand of 180. It’s good to see Ballance back and in the runs, he scored 77 from 192 balls batting for 3.5 hours. Harry Duke contributed 54 from 97 balls to add to his good innings last week. Jamie Atkins took 5 for 98 in 26 overs as Yorkshire batted for 145 overs. There were 16 No Balls, equalling Kent’s tally for an innings.

Sussex opener Ali Orr played a patient innings =, he batted for 4.5 hours, facing 216 balls and top scoring with 67. Aaron Thomason added to his personal tally with 52 from 185 balls. Sussex were bowled out in 113.4 overs, (2 No Balls) Dom Bess took 4 for 51 in 35 overs as Yorkshire secured the win.

Things are getting interesting in all 3 groups, my County Essex will need Derbyshire to find their mojo to beat Nottinghamshire to be in a position to defend their titles, finishing in the top 2 is out of their hands now. All to play for across the other leagues.