1 year ago
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Four wickets now for Jimmy, 44 not out for Critchley, as Essex shuffle towards Lancashire’s total .Essex 145-6, 62 behind.
Attention Sussex fans: apparently Ollie Robinson will be playing next week – and that after they bowled out Durham twice last week. Something they only managed once last season.
“Morning.” Hello Tom vd Gucht!
“I was interested in the talk regarding if Sam Hain will ever get the chance to represent England what with his phenomenal one day record and general all-round impressive stats. I then started thinking about all the other players who’ve never quite had the opportunity despite impressive domestic records and considered trying to put together a team of nearly men such as Keith Barker, Sam Cook, Jamie Porter, Ben Coad, Sam Northeast before running out of steam...
I found I could think of more bowlers than batters- perhaps symptomatic of England’s revolving door top order over the past decade in comparison to the steady reliability of Anderson and Broad bagsying two of the bowling berths automatically.”
Lists like this are a CCLive speciality.
An email from yesterday – apologies that I didn’t find it in time Jake Dodds.
“My son Bodhi’s first cricket experience. Remained asleep despite Broad having a chance spilled behind the stumps. Babies eh?!”
You can’t trust them with anything.
So just two games currently zipping along -at Chelmsford and at Durham, where Raine and Coughlin are proving a terrible irritation to Worcestershire – an eighth wicket partnership of 88.
At Chelmsford, Jimmy strikes early. Strikes twice. Dan Lawrence for 39, Adam Rossington for seven. Essex 116-5. And here at The Oval, down comes the south London rain – Surrey 42-0.
Rain watch
Delayed starts at Northants, Notts, Warwickshire, Leicester and, of course, Bristol – where play has been abandoned for the second day in a row.
It’s chilly but there are is a slither of sunshine over The Oval as Barker and Abbas do their stuff.
Interesting story.
Thanks to Essex for telling me something I didn’t know! Happy Vaisakhi to all those celebrating.
Thursday's round-up
Seventy-eight years of experience stared down the pitch at each other at Chelmsford, where decades of clean and tidy bowling met the ageless knight.
Jimmy Anderson did neck exercises at the top of his mark, rhythm already established after Nick Browne had kindly shepherded the third ball of the innings into the hands of Luke Wells at slip in the deceptive April sunshine. There was time for Alastair Cook to purr his old mate through the covers for four before Anderson tethered his man, Cook exiting stage left for an lbw that technology may not have smiled at. All the cogs in the machinery seemed in good working order for the Ashes.
Earlier, Lancashire had opted to bat after winning the toss, but had to bank on a maiden fifty from their young wicketkeeper George Bell to inch their innings towards respectability. Sam Cook frisked five more wickets to the pleasure of the Essex CEO, John Stephenson, who said: “There’s no way England can ignore [him].” Simon Harmer fielded in a snood pulled up to his nose.
At The Oval, the 2022 champions, Surrey, were visited by likely pretenders Hampshire, who rescued their innings from the doldrums of 114 for six on a pitch where the ball nipped about like a rogue pea on a plate. Ben Brown, who fell five runs short of his hundred, and Keith Barker put on 96 for the seventh wicket, grinding runs and gathering a bonus point. Rory Burns and Dom Sibley saw Surrey through till stumps.
A career-best seven for 84 for Lewis Gregory, on a pitch the colour of a lime jelly, kept Somerset in contention at Trent Bridge. Haseeb Hameed and Ben Duckett– one careful and slow-flowering, sitting 28 balls on 0, the other attacking and lucky, reaching fifty with a reverse-swept six off Jack Leach – cantered to an opening partnership of 125 for Nottinghamshire.
Duckett was lbw to Craig Overton, who had earlier walked off the field after three overs, striking fear into the hearts of Somerset supporters. But it was Hameed’s wicket which precipitated a collapse of five for 22. Stuart Broad opened the bowling for Notts, and immediately had Tom Lammonby dropped behind the stumps.
Middlesex’s top order continued its impression of a dropped trifle, as Northamptonshire’s Ben Sanderson (three for 19) tucked in. Ryan Higgins was, once more, left to pick up the pieces, backed up by John Simpson – their only two players to make double figures.
Durham’s batters yet again started the round in fine fettle, this time against Worcestershire. David Bedingham, who at the start of the season expressed a wish to play for South Africa, made a glorious century.
Scores on the doors
DIVISION ONE
Chelmsford: Essex 98-3 v Lancashire 207 all out
The County Ground: Northants 111-3 v Middlesex 149
Trent Bridge: Nottinghamshire 256 v Somerset 28-2
The Oval: Surrey 37-0 v Hampshire 254
Edgbaston: Warwickshire 367-3 v Kent
DIVISION TWO
Chester-le-Street: Durham 363-7 v Worcestershire
Bristol: Gloucestershire v Yorkshire – NO PLAY TODAY, WET OUTFIELD
Grace Road: Leicestershire 243-2 v Derbyshire
Preamble
Good morning! It’s dampish at The Oval, though we are hopeful of play starting on time. Around the grounds, the weather forecast is not overwhelming in its promise.
This afternoon will be largely cloudy in central and southern areas with spells of rain sweeping eastward. Turning sunny in the south-west later. Sunshine and showers elsewhere, these heavy at times.
Lots of action yesterday, except at Bristol where play has already been abandoned.
English (US)