Pope Piles on the Runs for Surrey

For the first three days at The Oval, Surrey and Hampshire were neck-and-neck. Mohammad Abbas took 6-64, then Dan Worrall’s riposte was a 5-40. Ben Brown and Ollie Pope swapped scores in the 90s. Then the England batsman suddenly decided to go all Twenty20, clubbed an unbeaten 122 and the champions were home and dry by nine wickets. What was all the fuss about? 

However, Warwickshire hold a three-point advantage in Division One having beaten Kent by an innings and fourteen runs at Edgbaston. Rob Yates and Sam Hain plundered hundreds, then the home seam attack, including new recruit Chris Rushworth and, on a rare outing for his county, Chris Woakes made hay with the ball, despite a brave 99 by Joey Evison. 

At Trent Bridge, Nottinghamshire outclassed Somerset by 165 runs. Stuart Broad was in action, but all bar three wickets went to Brett Hutton and Dane Paterson. Without Lewis Gregory’s eleven wickets, the visitors would have been in a right state. Middlesex suffered their second successive defeat, this time at the hands of Northamptonshire. Runs were in very short supply, but Northants’ seamers Sanderson and Tremain were in charge.

 Such were the temperatures at Chelmsford, James Anderson could be forgiven for wearing six sweaters and a Parka, but he still bowled 35 tidy overs for Lancashire. His side accelerated their second innings scoring to set Essex an unlikely target in the final few sessions. 20 year-old Mancunian wicketkeeper George Bell struck two half-centuries and is apparently a useful prospect, although he couldn’t deliver a victory. 

Division Two was a more sparse terrain. The Bristol pitch was so waterlogged that Gloucestershire’s match against Yorkshire was abandoned halfway through without a ball bowled. Durham took full advantage, winning their home fixture against Worcestershire. The latter’s Jack Haynes contributed 174 runs but David Bedingham (118 and 86) and Aussie spinner Matt Kuhnemann (5-53) finished the job with just five overs remaining. Leicestershire head the table but the weather wiped out days two and three, scuppering any chance of a decisive result. Skipper Lewis Hill and Colin Ackermann each made tons, Chris Wright took 4-38 but a draw was inevitable. 

Next week, Worcestershire host Gloucestershire and Durham travel to Glamorgan while in the top division, the leaders sit it out before meeting in a fortnight. 

Team of the Week:-  Yates (War), Sibley (Sur), Bedingham (Dur), Pope (Sur), Haynes (Wor), Bell (Lan +), Gregory (Som), Hutton (Not), Paterson (Not), Worrall (Sur), Kuhnemann (Dur)