Sir Garry Sobers – Cricket’s Greatest All-rounder

The arguments about who is the greatest cricketer of all time will always rage. WG, Bradman, Hobbs, Kallis, Stokes (per-lease…) and so on, but it is hard to avoid the claim of Sir Garfield Sobers who died yesterday at the ripe old age of 89. 

If you simply tot up runs, wickets and catches, then of course he won’t be up there with the giants of the multi-format era. However, when you consider that his Test run record of 8,032 lasted more than two decades and his individual score of 365 more than thirty, he had stats to support his reputation as a superstar for any age. And remember he reached that high at the age of 21, and remarkably it was his first century! 

Media obituaries will detail his career highs and personal lows, but I shall focus on what little I remember of him as a young cricket follower. Unfortunately, his career ended before my family bought our first colour TV, so my memories of his colourful batting and bowling were entirely in monochrome. I recall his unbeaten 150 for the West Indies at Lord’s in 1973, although his bowling wasn’t used much in that game. In 1968, he gave up club cricket for the first-class county circuit, spending several seasons at Nottinghamshire. 

When his adopted county featured in the BBC’s live coverage of one-dayers, notably the Sunday afternoon John Player League, I had the opportunity to watch his willowy frame cut and pull with abandon, usually encased in a thick sweater. Those were the days when it rained in summer and four an over was considered a blinding scoring rate in List A games! I don’t recall him bowling spin, although that was why he was originally picked for his Barbados debut. However, I did find his left-arm fast-medium action rather awkward, a million miles from Michael Holding’s smooth-as-silk style, but it netted him most of his 1,043 first-class wickets, 235 in Tests. Left-arm seamers were a rare sight in those days so for me he did stand out. 

His six sixes in an over for Notts off Malcolm Nash – another left-arm seam and spin all-rounder – was thankfully captured by BBC Wales cameras and, although I was only seven, I do vividly remember this being A Thing. Dad must have impressed that on my youthful brain. Garry’s body was probably ready to retire in ’74 at 38, and his final performances weren’t his best. However, he embodied cavalier Caribbean cricket before the Windies became crammed with such exciting players to dominate the sport in the late ‘70s and ‘80s. He was too old to register in my first list of heroes such as Clive Lloyd, Viv Richards and Joel Garner but in retrospect he paved the way. Had I been born five years earlier he may well have been at the top. 

Many years ago, my sister and brother-in-law gave me his autobiography – signed at Liverpool Street station – for a birthday or Christmas gift. It wasn’t the most riveting, I admit, but it fleshed out Sobers as a human being and cricket observer rather than a mere collector of Test records. Now here we are, awash with other writers eulogising his amazing feats. As a legend, perhaps he doesn’t quite match the Don but, as an all-rounder, he is the GOAT.

England v India at Cardiff: A 99 on a hot day!

Earlier this year, an email newsletter from Glamorgan CCC notified me that Sophia Gardens had secured one of England’s summer ODIs against India. It had been seven years since my previous live cricket experience so, despite personal health concerns, I thought, what the hell, and bought a ticket. To be honest, I doubted I would be successful, but the response was immediate: I was in! 

My lengthy hiatus was nothing to do with a lack of enthusiasm or any beef with the venue, more a shift in priorities. Maybe a lack of inspiration with the cricketing fare on offer, too, regular readers will now, I am not a Glammy supporter. Another deterring factor is the vagaries of the Welsh weather but I certainly need not have worried on that score. The extensive July heatwave has turned Cardiff into the Costa del Taff; the sky was clear blue, the sun almost overhead and so hot that even I went jacket-free. 

I won’t record here an over-by-over account of the match itself. You can read that elsewhere. The atmosphere was fizzing, largely thanks to the generous contingent decked out in blue and orange. I love being surrounded by India fans; unlike many young Brits, they are there mainly to enjoy the sport. Yes, they will cheer their heroes to the rafters but it’s the cricket that counts, no booze, no post-match recriminations, no demands for the head coach’s sacking. I sat in the Family enclosure, the quaintly named Jellyfish Stand, situate at cow corner at the River End almost below the Indian dressing room balcony. Great surroundings, with the added benefit on such a scorcher of being in the shade for the second half of proceedings.   

However, any match experience is bound to be affected by what pans out on the pitch. As things transpired, it wasn’t an exciting contest. India’s dismissal for a mediocre 233 meant England could play it nice and easy, take singles and the occasional boundary to maintain a steady 4.7 an over. This they achieved with metronomic efficiency, for which they had, not for the first time, a certain Joe Root to thank. 

Since I last sat in the Sophia Gardens crowd watching these two nations, in a T20, so much has changed. I think the only players to have remained were Virat Kohli, Joe Root, Adil Rashid and Jos Buttler. Now aged 65, I was thrilled like a young boy admiring a vintage Kohli one-day innings and Root’s unshowy accumulation. There was a typical straight six out of the ground from Buttler, crisp drives from Shubman Gill and some glorious pulls from Sam Curran. Probably the noisiest cheers came when Bumrah clipped Mahmood’s last over for eighteen, including a delightful flick through midwicket to the boundary near me and a pull for six over fine leg. 

233 was never going to be enough but when Bumrah, his ludicrous stuttering walk-up and straight-armed delivery a wild wonder to behold, induced Duckett to edge the first ball to Kishan, we thought: “Oh, hello….” Bethell didn’t last long either, but when you have Root and captain Brook in harness, England fans needn’t fret. Brook’s clownish attempt to repeat an earlier ramped six cost him his wicket but his Yorkshire mentor nudged, cut, flicked and drove to see the game out. 

Root was on 97 with twenty still needed and Gus Atkinson at the other end. My neighbours and I jokingly mused on the unlikely scenario of the Surrey bowler’s boundaries or wides or yet another no-ball from Bumrah depriving the batting genius of his deserved ton. No illegal deliveries but – blow me! – the improbably duly happened, and his partner duly pulled Prasidh through a gaping leg-side gap to clinch the much-needed victory. I winder what Joe was saying to Gus as they shuffled together back to the pavilion where a jubilant Brook was waiting… 

So what are the abiding memories of the day? Two all-time greats in Kohli and Bumrah chatting behind me on their balcony? The queues for the water-refilling stations? The towering trees of Bute Park as a backdrop? Jofra Archer working Rohit over? One of the Indian sub fielders handing his (much-needed) shades to a boy in the crowd? The call-response cries of “Boom-Boom – Bumrah!” whenever the bowler started another brief spell? All of the above! Seven years away, and it felt as if it was yesterday.

County Cricket: Nottinghamshire Cut it Fine in Blast

Northamptonshire’s 100% record in the Vitality Blast was finally ended, and it was bottom-placed Somerset who inflicted this damage on Northampton’s own ground. It wasn’t even close. Thomas Rew made another brisk fifty before Daniel Sams smashed an unbeaten 48 in only sixteen balls to set the home county 224 to win. They were never in the race, and young spinner Joshua Thomas ended his three-over stint with amazing figures of 4-6. 

Somerset enjoyed another successful awayday against Derbyshire, with Will Smeed’s 89 anchoring another 200+ total and Sams taking 3-29. Meanwhile, Northants climbed back on the bike to re-establish their twelve-point margin at the top of the Central/West group. They defeated Glamorgan at Cardiff, with Chris Lynn’s 117 and Calvin Harrison’s 3-20 the standout performances. 

With a good record in cross-group fixtures, the Central/West group is proving to be the strongest of the three, so whoever comes third will almost certainly qualify for the knockouts. Indeed, the fourth-placed county could well outpoint third in the other two regions, but that won’t help them! Worcestershire and Gloucestershire had a rollercoaster week, opening the door for Somerset to sneak back into second place. However, they will have to overcome Worcestershire and do the double over Northants to do so, whilst hoping Glamorgan get the better of Gloucestershire. Warwickshire look out of it, despite a thirty-run victory over Gloucester at Edgbaston. 

Their Pakistani off-spinner Usman Tariq had a great week, as did his compatriots Usama Mir (Worcestershire), Sufyan Maqim (Derbyshire) and Hasan Ali. However, it was veteran South African offie Simon Harmer who was the all-round star. Besides two typically mean bowling displays, he demonstrated to the Essex faithful his new role as destructive finisher. A 17-ball unbeaten 47 helped flatten Sussex, then his 56 not out was the sole ray of sunshine in the defeat to Middlesex. In the Sussex match, Sam Cook waved the flag for seamers with an excellent 4-7. Hampshire head the South group despite losing to Middlesex. Beating Essex at Chelmsford tonight should see them into the last eight. 

Up North, Nottinghamshire and Yorkshire are in the box seats. Lancashire’s dramatic tie with Derbyshire did neither side any favours, and Durham’s penultimate ball loss to the White Roses cost them dearly. Nottinghamshire remain on top but they needed a couple of nailbiters. Lancashire needed four from Olly Stone’s final two deliveries but scrambled only two. Then, on Sunday, it was Mohammad Ali who held his nerve at the death to deny Durham, securing victory by the relatively comfortable margin of two runs. Adam Lyth’s 131 not out against Leicestershire is the highest individual score of the season so far.

It’s the Roses match-up at Old Trafford tonight, then on Sunday Yorkshire welcome the leaders to Leeds for the concluding league fixture. Three days later, it’s the quarter-finals and this year, the Finals Day is wrapped up the following weekend before the horrors of the Hundred are unleashed on us all. 

Team of the Week; Lyth (Yor), Lynn (Nor), Roy (Sur), Lees (Dur), Smeed (Som), T Rew (Som +), Harmer (Ess), Tye (Yor), Cook (Ess), J Thomas (Som), Usman Tariq (War)

County Cricket: No Stopping Northants!

With the Men’s Vitality Blast entering its final phase, Northamptonshire prolonged their 100%r record to an impressive eight games. They widened their lead in the Central and West to twelve points with two crushing victories over Essex and second-placed Gloucestershire. Calvin Harrison spun his way to a 5-9 return as Essex crumbled to a 130-run defeat and David Willey helped himself to eleven sixes across the week, seven of them in a blistering 32-ball 73 as he and Nathan Mc Sweeney blazed a 99-run stand to surpass Gloucester’s 184, in which Dawid Malan crunched an unbeaten 91. 

Gloucestershire also fell to Somerset in the West Country derby. After becoming derailed in the last sequence of T20s, Somerset seemed to have recovered with an 18-run victory, with James Rew utterly dominant, scoring 116 not out. However, on Sunday they came a cropper at Worcester. Rew senior again top-scored but their response to the home county’s decent 180 never really got going. 

In the same group, Warwickshire won both their fixtures at a canter, all-rounder Beau Webster making two half-centuries and picking up a couple of wickets. Opener Zen Malik came within one from a maiden white-ball hundred in their 59-run triumph over neighbours Worcestershire. Apart from Rew, the week’s only other centurion was Durham opener Alex Lees, whose 108 anchored an unassailable total of 218 against Middlesex. 

Nottinghamshire displaced Yorkshire as kings of the north, taking Kent and Leicestershire to the cleaners. Scottish one-day specialist George Munsey performed much of the heavy-duty scrubbing with innings of 82 and 75 without getting out. Lancashire had England regulars Salt, Buttler and Livingstone in harness for their defeat of Leicestershire but managed without the first two in overcoming Derbyshire by just four runs. 

Yorkshire were involved in even tighter finishes. At Southampton, Hampshire overhauled them with a Chris Wood six off the penultimate delivery then two days later shared the points with Derbyshire. Matthew Revis plundered 69 off 32 balls, including two final-over sixes, to achieve an improbable tie with a single from Akif Javed’s finale. 

The greatest run-fest of the week occurred at Chelmsford, where Essex and Surrey treated the crowd to 473 runs. Roy, Evans, Pope and Aussie signing Josh Philippe whacked most of Surrey’s 240 before Paul Walter gave the home side a cracking start. Wickets tumbled but a late-innings rally by Snater and Akhtar took Essex tantalisingly close. For such a high-scoring match, figures of 3-28 for both Reece Topley and Dan Lawrence were exceptional as the visitors won by seven runs. 

Hampshire top the South division despite being well beaten by Kent, for whom Grant Stewart took 4-32 and skipper Sam Billings carved an undefeated fifty from only 21 balls. Hampshire seek revenge at Southampton on Sunday, followed by Middlesex three days later. Can Northants maintain their rampant run of success? Only Somerset and Glamorgan stand in their way, while Gloucestershire are ready to close the gap should they emerge victorious against Surrey and Warwickshire. Still plenty to play for in he remaining fortnight’s group fixtures. 

Team of the Week; Munsey (Not), Lees (Dur), Willey (Nor), J Rew (Som), Webster (War), Billings (Ken +), Phillippe (Sur), Lawrence (Sur), Tye (Yor), Harrison (Not), Topley (Sur)

Ben Stokes: It’s All About You….

So, Ben Stokes has called time on a thrilling international career at the age of 35. It had been coming, although maybe not in the manner and timing. But then Mr Stokes has never been conventional, one of the reasons why British blokes love him. And yet I could never really warm to him. 

It should not have been that way. Like me, he’s a ginger, and perhaps I could empathise with a degree of volatility, a trait we redheads often tend to share. I remember in his early days with Durham, I spotted in the newspaper scorecards the runs and wickets against the name of B A Stokes and quickly added this cheap all-rounder to my Fantasy Cricket team. Points galore! 

As a teenager, he picked up a couple of wickets and eleven runs on his one-day debut against Surrey in 2009 but his first-class initiation came the following Spring in the pre-season Abu Dhabi warm-up against the MCC, notching a half-century. International white-ball recognition came towards the end of the 2011 season. In a gentle 50-over affair against Ireland, he scored three and didn’t bowl, then in a T20 demolition of the West Indies, his only contribution was a role in a run-out. It was another two years before he was burdened with the epithet of “the new Ian Botham” and thrust into Alastair Cook’s side in Adelaide. He made one on his first innings in the heavy defeat but could at least claim Michael Clarke as his first wicket. 

So many all-rounders in the footsteps of Sir Ian have floundered, especially in the Test arena. One-dayers were made for decent all-rounders, making the careers of players such as Mark Alleyne, Adam Hollioake, Tim Bresnan and many more. Botham is revered, but he flourished before Twenty20 and the proliferation of ODIs. His powers began to wane by the late ‘80s, selected by England more in hope than expectation. He could be rather controversial, not afraid to cock two fingers at the establishment and often getting away with misdemeanours by the memory of one amazing Ashes series. Hmm. Remind you of anyone else?! 

I have watched Stokes a couple of times at Cardiff. The first was an ODI against Australia in September 2013. He looked really fiery in the sunshine, regularly reaching 90mph with the ball as did his opponent Mitchell Johnson. He kept Jos Buttler company in the final run chase before playing all round a McKay delivery and losing his leg stump. Two years later, it wasT20 time playing his part in a nail-biting victory with some death bowling and an outstanding boundary catch to dismiss Glenn Maxwell. 

Unlike, say, Joe Root, Jimmy Anderson, Ian Bell or Alastair Cook, I struggled to elevate Ben Stokes to the pantheon of genuine England greats. And yet on the biggest occasions he came to the fore, imposing himself on opponents and the match by sheer force of personality. There seemed to be a switch he’d flick and he’d flay top-class bowlers to all corners or crunch an unplayable yorker into the stumps. For Botham’s summer of ’81, Stokes will always be associated with 2019, starring in both the decisive Ashes Test and that extraordinary World Cup Final against his home nation, New Zealand but that might never have come to pass given events in Bristol two years earlier. 

Arrested after a ‘nightclub incident’ (sound familiar) in Bristol, things looked grim. CCTV showed a clearly inebriated Stokes going absolutely berserk on the street, hurling punches with a abandon at two men while Alex Hales tried to hold him back. He was found not guilty of affray on grounds of self-defence. In my August 2018 blog, written in outrage after the court case, I pondered what an unprovoked assault would look like! He was very lucky not to serve time in prison. If there is any film of the latest curfew-breaking episode, it has been neatly suppressed. It may well be that he and Gus Atkinson were innocent parties but he really should know better. 

When Joe Root quit the captaincy, and the Brendpn McCullum era was launched, Ben Stokes was the obvious candidate for representing ‘Bazball’ on the pitch. Yes, his character is prickly and explosive, but that fitted the way England were to perform. For a while, it worked. Employ T20-style aggression with the bat, select untested 90mph speed merchants with the ball, wrap up the win inside three days and spend the next two days on the bar. Result! It was great when it worked – until it didn’t. You always need a Plan B. 

Never was this more evident than in his very last Test against the Kiwis. Sidelined for the Oval defeat for being a naughty boy, Ben Stokes was brought back as captain for the Trent Bridge decider. Without Williamson (retired) or Henry, this New Zealand side should have been easy, and England had not lost a home Test series in yonks, not even recent contests against India or the Aussies. 

The Latham-and-Conway show had threatened a disaster but somehow England fought back with Stokes taking four wickets and Duckett smashing an old-fashioned Bazball century. An 84-run deficit wasn’t too bad, particularly when, second time around, the top three went cheaply. However, Rachin Ravindra eased into his elegant stride for 94 and Daryl Mitchell - the same age as Stokes - stood up strong for six hours against a fusillade of short-pitched bowling by Archer, Tongue and co to reach three figures. 

Then came The Announcement. This would be Ben Stokes’ swansong. The skipper’s next ball took a wicket. The script was written. He’s polish off the NZ innings and score a match-winning 150 by the following lunchtime. He demanded a glorious Hollywood musical finale. The target was a more challenging 373 but, with more than a day remaining, the weather dry, not impossible in these adventurous times. But New Zealand had not read the script. Stokes opened with Duckett and struck a 50-run ‘powerplay’ before Ben swiped Foulkes to Mitchell at mid-on. Bethell went for a duck. Time for Root and Brook to settle things down and show why they are world-class batsmen. No. They were clearly under orders to continue the mayhem, slogging, ramping, reverse sweeping. At stumps, after fifteen bizarre overs, England were 103-4, the game as good as gone. By the next afternoon, it was over. From one-up, England had lost 2-1, chucking the series away on the altar of Stokes’ ego. 

Nobody’s England career should end like that. But this was Ben Stokes. Unconventional to the bitter end. His cricket statistics are impressive. They are there for future generations to see and admire. Yet they don’t convey fully the mark he made on English cricket in the Noughties and 2020s, as swashbuckling batter, snarling pace bowler, supreme fielder or the epitome of the Bazball strategy. In recent years, he suffered many injuries and endured the mental strain, too, of sacrificing the lucrative treadmill of franchise cricket for international white-ball tournaments and England Test series. Ashes defeats should never define a captain, but they do. Frequently, Ben Stokes was a winner, which should not be forgotten. Like I say, he was definitely not a personal favourite but English cricket will be a lot quieter without him.

County Cricket: Upside Down Championship!

With England and Wales sinking beneath an evil heat dome sucking the blood, sweat and brain cells of their citizens, the latest round of Championship fixtures produced some humdinger results. In just four days, Last week’s Division One leaders Essex dropped to sixth, title favourites sank to seventh and the bottom two each registered rare victories. 

I can’t recall the top tier table being so tightly bunched. Only sixteen points connect first with seventh. After last week’s thumping at the hands of Somerset, Nottinghamshire bounced back to the top in style, snatching the pole position back with an innings defeat of Essex at Chelmsford. Liam Patterson-White got the party started with 6-43, Jack Haynes struck an unbeaten 137 and Fergus O’Neill polished things off with 5-39. Twenty-two points in the bank, thanks very much. 

Sussex slipped down the pecking order, losing at home to Hampshire by 118 runs. It was all about the bowlers; the highest individual score was just 55. Hampshire’s veteran Kyle Abbott starred, scooping 6-49 and (from nearly thirteen overs) 3-6. Despite tearing Yorkshire apart at Grace Road to register their first success of the first-class season, Leicestershire remain rooted to the bottom, albeit on the same points tally as Hampshire. Rehan Ahmed and Nick Kelly each reached three figures and shared a stand of 160, leaving Jonny Bairstow’s side 263 just to make their hosts bat again. The skipper suffered a three-ball duck, and the trio of Josh Davey, Alex Green and Ajaz Patel snuffed out a late-order rally. 

Amazingly, Surrey also has only one win to their name, and Glamorgan dealt them a first loss of the campaign in Cardiff. Mason Crane hit a maiden ton, putting on 165 with Chris Cooke for the seventh wicket before picking up a few tailenders. Teenage seamer Tom Norto fared even better, taking 5-50, forcing Surrey to follow on. With runs from Rory Burns (115), Ollie Pope and the lower order, they did push Glamorgan into a fourth day only for Ingram and Carlson to make sixty-plus and steer their side to a seven-wicket victory margin. 

Meanwhile, Somerset and Warwickshire occupy second and third spots having played out a draw in Taunton. The first few days belonged largely to the Warwickshire all-rounder Beau Webster (64, 4-23) but a familiar pair came together to deliver a courageous rescue act. Thomas Rew matched his brother with another century while, more remarkably, bowler Craig Overton notched his third of the year. With no time to challenge the 314-run target, and Yates and Hain at their most resolute, a draw was agreed. 

In Division Two, Durham completed their fifth win of 2026 in the top-two clash at Chester-le-Street. Wicket-keeper Ricardo Vasconcelos gave Northamptonshire a promising start but naughty boy Ben (Stokes) helped ensure Durham stayed in touch. Potts, Raine and Parkinson limited Northants’ second innings to 250. Stokes had been recalled by England but his substitute Colin Ackermann and his South African compatriot David Bedingham kept her heads and the scoreboard ticking over en route to a sixth-wicket success. 

Kent leapfrogged Northants into second after overcoming Middlesex in an even contest at Canterbury. Both sides’ first innings topped 400, the London visitors relying heavily on Max Holden’s 182. Four wickets apiece for Sharma and Helm restricted Kent to 257 but even a modest chase of 231 was too much for Middlesex. Zafar Gohar was left high and dry on 66 as Matt Milnes and Keith Dudgeon claimed eight cheap wickets between them. 

Lancashire’s struggles continued at Chesterfield, succumbing to Derbyshire by nine wickets. Captain James Anderson didn’t hide in the field but was unable to prevent a considerable first-innings deficit, Ben Aitchison whacked 75 before picking up a decisive 5-49 to leave the Red Roses in tatters. Worcestershire were the latest county to beat Gloucestershire, despite a defiant 139 not out by Miles Hammond. Worcestershire established a lead, albeit at a snail’s pace. Graeme van Buuren toiled for forty-nine overs to take 4-96 then opened the bowling second time around to give Worcester a few heart flutters before stumbling over the line. 

Now comes a lengthy hiatus in favour of the white-ball stuff. Oh, well Just as things were getting so interesting….. 

Team of the Week; Vasconcelos (Nor +), Burns (Sur), Holden (Mid), Hammond (Glo), T Rew (Som), Haynes (Not), Van Buuren (Glo), C Overton (Som), Abbott (Ham), Aitchinson (Der), Patterson-White (Not)

County Cricket: Cox Leads Essex Charge to the Top

It was a great return to first-class cricket for some of England’s finest wicketkeeper-batsmen, some of whom had a major influence on the positions at the congested summit of the County Championship. 

Jordan Cox prepared for his Test debut by pinging a double-century for Essex against Leicestershire, which propelled his county from fourth to first in Division One, although Paul Walter’s second-innings 110 laid the foundation for Essex’s last-day run chase. 

They benefited from a rare home defeat for Nottinghamshire at the hands of a resurgent Somerset. Another England debutant, James Rew notched another fifty, but it was his younger bother Thomas who struck his own maiden ton to follow a 68. 24-year-old South African opener Jordan Hermann also weighed in with his first Somerset century, while it was Craig Overton’s 5-29 which polished off the champions’ miserable match, losing by 306 runs. 

Yorkshire skipper Jonny Bairstow added another two half-centuries to his tally, while opening bat Will Luxton, thirteen years his junior, helped himself to 236 runs in the draw with Warwickshire, including a fine 167, his inaugural three-figure score in first-class cricket. His opponents were nowhere near reaching their fourth-day target, and were eight wickets down at the close. Sam Hain occupied the crease for well over four hours for his 69, which ultimately thwarted the Roses’ attack. 

At Hove, Sussex registered their fourth victory, finishing just a point behind Essex and two ahead of Somerset. They hammered Glamorgan by an innings, inspired by James Coles, who combined a career-best 224 not out with a decisive 3-34 in Glamorgan’s second innings which started well but ended with a whimper. 

Sussex now entertain neighbours Hampshire, while Somerset welcome Warwickshire to Taunton and reigning champs Nottinghamshire travel south to face the pretenders at Chelmsford. 

Durham remain clear in Division Two after thumping Derbyshire inside three days. Their total of 377 wasn’t massive but first Kasey Aldridge (5-19), then Matt Potts (8-66) broke any Derby hopes of rescuing a draw. Harry Came could at least hold his head high in defeat, carrying his bat for 105 over 95 overs and six hours. 

Northamptonshire kept in touch by handing Gloucestershire their sixth loss in the season so far. How they would welcome the return of Kane Williamson, whom I recall being interviewed on the regional news programme in Bristol fifteen years or so ago as a raw teenager learning his trade in a foreign land. Like everyone, I was shocked to read of his sudden international retirement in the middle of New Zealand’s Test series in England. Definitely one of the modern greats. Anyway, another of the week’s former England glovemen, James Bracey returned to form, his second-innings 148 not out ensuring Northants had to bat again.  Saif Zaib and Nathan McSweeney had made tons on day one but it was Calvin Harrison’s rapid unbeaten 92 on day four which clinched the winning bonus. 

Kent sit third after eclipsing Lancashire at Blackpool by 140 runs. Twenty-two wickets fell on the first day and Liam Livingstone, on his first Championship outing for five years, claimed five of them. However, in the final analysis, it was the Kent seamers who stole the show. Keith Dudgeon took 6-21 as Lancashire slumped to 87 all out. The home batsmen fared better next time out but Bangladesh’s Hasan Mahmud claimed 6-69 to seal the win by 140 runs. 

Middlesex’s margin of victory over Worcestershire was one better at New Road. Luis Du Plooy compiled the only three-figure score of the game, and Pakistan’s one-Test wonder Zafar Gohar enjoyed the best bowling figures with 6-31. Middlesex and Kent meet at Canterbury tomorrow, while the top two fight it out at Chester-le-Street. If he can stay out of the pub long enough, Ben Stokes is expected to get some batting practice for Durham. 

Team of the Week:-  Hermann (Som), Luxton (Yor), Cox (Ess), Coles (Sus), Du Plooy (Mid), T Rew (Som), Bracey (Glo +), C Overton (Som), Zafar Gohar (Mid), Potts (Dur), Hasan Mahmud (Ken)