In the County Championship, both Lancashire and Somerset enjoyed the double-whammy of a three-day victory, because rain spoilt the chance of a last-day result at Trent Bridge and The Rose Bowl. By beating Warwickshire, The Red Roses moved ahead of the current champions Nottinghamshire to lead Division One by a single point.
It was a very low-scoring affair, which could have gone either way. However, after the seamers Glenn Chapple and Jimmy Anderson had done most of the damage in the first innings, it was the spinners Simon Kerrigan and Gary Keedy who won it for Lancs. The home side were chasing 245 and with Chopra and Trott taking the score to 68-2, they had a chance, but improbable figures of 5-7 for Kerrigan and 3-2 for Keedy, Warwickshire slumped to 97 all out. At Taunton, Craig Kieswetter's century put Somerset in first innings charge then, despite Damien Wright's masterful bowling for the bottom-placed side, Gemaal Hussain finally produced a glimpse of last summer's talent, taking 6-33 to secure a 91-run victory.
Notts could only draw with Yorkshire, not just because of the weather, but also because the Tykes had compled more than 500 in their first innings. This was largely down to Jonny Bairstow's maiden double-hundred and record-breaking tenth wicket partnership of 151 with Ryan Sidebottom. In the other Div 1 fixture, it was a similar story of batting superiority over the bowling which made a draw between Hampshire and Sussex inevitable. Ed Joyce and Luke Wells each scored centuries for Sussex, but Hampshire's Sussex-born 20 year-old James Vince top-scored with 157.
In the second tier, Middlesex remain top despite only drawing with second-placed Gloucestershire at Bristol. For the home side, Will Gidman and Chris Taylor were in the runs, and Jon Lewis took eight wickets, but opener Hamish Marshall broke his thumb in the second innings and could be out for several weeks. Northants leapfrogged them by securing a five-wicket win over Kent. Skipper Andrew Hall's 100 underpinned a string first innings, supported by half-centuries from Vaas and O'Brien. Darren Stevens' 143 led a minor recovery by Kent but Hall saw Northants home on the fourth day to claim maximum points and leave Kent propping up the table.
Veteran Mark Ramprakash, an old favourite of mine, returned to the Surrey side and contributed 128 runs to a winning cause. Their triumph over Leicestershire sent them surging from ninth to fourth in the table. Stuart Meaker and Jade Dernbach took nine wickets between them in the second innings. Watch out for them in the England side within a few years. Not only because they are useful bowlers but because their South African birthplaces will help them fit in with Strauss, Trott, Pietersen, Prior et al!
Next week, Northants and Gloucestershire meet for a chance to displace Middlesex from first place in Division Two while in the top group, Lancashire are also without a game. Notts will almost certainly overtake them, and will lead the Championship if they beat Sussex. However, if they slip up, Durham could go on top by defeating visitors Somerset. If Trescothick's county make it three consecutive victories, the table could become very interesting indeed, just as it did last summer.
