At
The Oval, I was incredulous as Surrey’s formidable batting line-up was
demolished in 27 overs for a mere 67. To top it off, Essex proceeded to rack up
an impressive 477-8, thanks largely to centuries by Tom Westley and Simon
Harmer. No county had ever overturned a 410 first-innings deficit to win and I
naturally assumed the home side were just experiencing the effects of some
over-enthusiastic title celebrations. Not a bit of it. Surrey totally dominated
day three, Jason Roy and Ollie Pope each reaching three figures as they cruised
to 541 all out, the third highest total in Division One all year. Chasing a
target of only 132, and with neither Curran brother in action, an Essex victory
seemed a formality. However, Morne Morkel and Jade Dernbach had other ideas;
Surrey would not surrender their unbeaten status without a battle. Wickets
tumbled regularly, but skipper Ryan Ten Doeschate was defiant and, with just
one wicket remaining, it was apt that he struck the winning runs off Dernbach.
It
made no difference to the Division One standings; Surrey had already clinched
the title with ease, much as Essex had done a year ago, but it showed there is
also plenty of fight in the four-day format The ECB may have spent a fortune in
developing The Hundred but the venerable Championship still has the potential
to excite.
Somerset
nailed down another runners-up spot, a glorious surprise to me. James Hildreth
became only the second man in the top tier to pass 1,000 runs and both Tom
Abell and Craig Overton achieved hat-tricks as they flattened Nottinghamshire
by an innings.
The
only unresolved issue in the competition was who would join Worcestershire
through the trapdoor. Nottinghamshire were well beaten with just three bowling
bonus points to their name but Lancashire’s latest failure to bag more than two
batting points in their eight-wicket victory over Hampshire meant they finished
on the same points total, 133. Despite the win, they finished second-bottom
because Notts won a game more. This was particularly tough on Tom Bailey, who
claimed another eight victims in a highly productive summer. In fact no other
Division One team picked up more bowling bonuses, but they just couldn’t press
home many advantages earned during the summer. Meanwhile Worcestershire lost
for the tenth time, Yorkshire’s Gary Ballance scoring 194 and 60 and the
departing Jack Brooks 82 to accompany his seven wickets.
In
Division Two, the promoted counties met to decide who finished on top. Kent had
been on a charge but it was Warwickshire who triumphed remarkably easily. He may not have made many runs but Jonathan
Trott could retire on a high as Dominic Sibley’s 119, his third century in four
Championship innings, laid the foundations for success. Trott’s former England
colleague Paul Collingwood also signed off, but his Durham side threw away a
sizeable lead against Middlesex. At 37 Tim Murtagh is also knocking on a bit
but his seven wickets were crucial in the visitors’ victory.
They
finished fourth, pipped by Sussex despite the South Coast side losing to
Northamptonshire in two days. Bens Curran and Cotton starred with bat and ball,
respectively. Derbyshire opener Luis Reece provided the best bowling figures of
the week with his first innings 7-20 but ended on the losing side against
Gloucestershire. Craig Miles took 5-50 and 3-46 in his last match for the
winners.
In
the remaining game, Glamorgan finally remembered how to play first-class
cricket, beating Leicestershire at Cardiff. Both sides relied heavily on their
tails for runs – a familiar story for the Welsh – but Michael Hogan’s 2-18 and 4-30
were the outstanding bowling stats and Chris Cooke chipped in with 72 runs and
five catches. Now all they need to do is fix their top order problems and avoid
another wooden spoon.
As
for my Championship predictions, I deserve a C+, a great improvement on my
usual efforts. Surrey or Essex to win. Yes. Worcestershire and Somerset for
relegation: 50%. Kent and Middlesex for promotion: the same. I’ll reveal my County
Team of the Year shortly but in the mean-time, here is my final Team of the
Week of 2018.
Team of the
Week:
Mitchell
(Wor), Reece (Der), Westley (Ess), Ballance (Yor), Pope (Sur), Hildreth (Som),
Cooke (Gla +), C Overton (Som), Bailey (Lan), Miles (Glo), Hogan (Gla)
