I may have fancied the London counties for he title but it was a good week for the North as both Yorkshire and Durham picked up their second wins of the campaign. At Headingley, Yorkshire looked to be struggling in the wake of a career-best 270 from Derbyshire's Chesney Hughes. However, England batsmen Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow underlined their credentials by striking 236 and 186, respectively, including a 231-run partnership, on the way to an innings of 677-7 declared. Then on the final day Jack Brooks led the attack with 5-40 to secure an impressive victory.
Meanwhile Durham moved to the top, albeit temporarily, after beating Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge. It wasn't quite as much a bowlers' match as their previous fixtures, but Durham had enough strength in depth to overcome a county brim full of England internationals. From Hales, Lumb and Taylor to Broad, Swann and Patel, the home team were ultimately second best after a frantic T20-style run chase on the final afternoon. Stoneman and Mustard flayed the attack for 125 in under 12 overs and the 183 target was reached in barely 19.
On the South Coast, Sussex and Warwickshire played out a rain-affected draw in which Trott, Bell and Woakes warmed up for New Zealand with half-centuries. Luke Wells fell just four short of another century for Sussex, too, while team-mate Matt Prior claimed six catches in the single innings possible. At the time of writing, the Middlesex-Surrey contest is intrigingly balanced, but Chris Rogers' double-century could well have turned the game on its head after his side was made to follow on.
There were some dramatic finishes in Division Two, too. Northants consolidated their stranglehold by beating Kent by seven wickets. A hundred by captain Stephen Peters, ten wickets for Trent Copeland and another fine all-round display by Steven Crook proved too much for the home county at Canterbury. Up at Colwyn Bay, Lancashire pulled off an improbable success on the third afternoon. In a low-scoring match, Glamorgan looked to be cruising towards the 154 target at 94-2 before the evergreen Glen Chapple and spinner Simon Kerrigan instigated a humiliating collapse.
While big scores were the order of the day in Division One, runs were at a premium in the other second-tier fixtures. At Chelmsford I had expected Hampshire to roll over the home side but Essex fought back well to snatch a four wicket triumph inside three days. Alastair Cook hit a half-century but the main damage was inflicted by Graham Napier's batting and the returning seam machine David Masters, whose match aggregate of 9-70 showed what an under-rated bowler he is. Finally, At Leicester, a tight contest was eventually decided by Gloucestershire captain Michael Klinger's unbeaten century as they won by nine wickets.
With the CB40 competition opening this week, too, domestic cricket is becoming more complicated with staggered starts and a May mish-mash of formats. The Black Cap tourists have arrived and things are getting interesting in England. It's been a good start to the 'summer' for home-grown Joe Root, Tom Westley, Varun Chopra, Michael Reed and James Vince, as well as overseas players Alviro Petersen, Steven Crook and Simon Katich. I would expect the headlines to turn the way of Cook, Trott, Anderson et al in the next four weeks....
