County Cricket: Duckett Double, Hadley Heroics

The two leading title contenders met at Trent Bridge but the batters dominated to produce a stalemate. Nottinghamshire stay top after Joe Clarke’s prolific form continued, and Ben Duckett notched his first century of the county season, and it was an unbeaten 203, although Surrey bowling Burns, Sibley and Patel at the end probably helped a wee bit. 

Warwickshire leapfrog Surrey into second spot following a 377-run trouncing of Yorkshire. It is a weird scorecard. Three sub-200 totals scattered around the decisive Warwicks second innings of 553-6 declared, in which Sam Hain’s 164 not out headed a succession of solid scores. Oliver Hannon-Dalby was back in the Warwickshire fold after his Worcestershire loan, and claimed match figures of 7-71 against his home county. Harry Brook chipped in with sixty-six runs but couldn’t save his side. 

One-time leaders Somerset continued their miserable May, leading Glamorgan before crumbling in their second innings despite two more Tom Abell half-centuries. Inexperienced Aussie Ryan Hadley took 3-28 but it was his batting which sparked the last-day headlines. Glamorgan still faced an awkward target of 283, and Hadley entered the fray as nightwatchman with four wickets down. Incredibly, he was still there at the death, having persevered for almost five hours, facing more deliveries than in the whole of his first-class career, finally driving to the boundary to bring up his maiden fifty and winning the match by two wickets. His fifty-over 114 partnership with Sean Dickson (76) defied all that the Somerset seamers could throw at them and now the Welsh are above them in the table. 

Sussex achieved victory number three, with Leicestershire their latest victims at Hove. Centuries from Daniel Hughes (the only one by any opener this week) and John Simpson put them out of sight, then three wickets apiece by Robinson and Hudson-Prentice left the batsmen with a simple chase which they won at a gallop. Meanwhile, at Chelmsford, Hampshire’s batting woes continued, their hosts Essex winning by six wickets inside three days. The visitors’ James Fuller took 5-43 in the first outing but Matt Critchley compensated for early jitters against Kyle Abbott (4-36) by thumping fifteen fours in his unbeaten match-winning ninety. Hampshire now have the unenviable task of defeating leaders Notts later this week. 

In Division Two, Durham remain at the helm, comfortably beating Worcestershire by nine wickets at New Road. Despite Ben Raine’s 5-63 and 2-54 by the rarely-spotted Ben Stokes, Worcester claimed a slender led at halfway. However, Callum Parkinson (5-13) induced a collapse which left Gay and McKinney to add to their run tallies and steer their side to victory. 

Middlesex returned from Old Trafford with a win bonus and healthy bowling figures, especially by Ryan Higgins. On the third and final day, Ben Geddes steadied the ship and piloted his side home by six wickets, dropping Lancashire to fourth. Last week, Northants crushed Worcestershire by an innings but this time they were on the end of a similar pasting. Derbyshire recovered from a loss to Kent to compile a formidable 604-7 declared, crowned by a double-hundred stand between Martin Andersson and Brooke Guest. Northants tried to drop anchor, but with Shoaib Bashir sending down more than sixty overs and Guest catching six nicks off the seamers, Derby were patient and took the win. 

Having collected their first triumph for a year last week, Kent made it two on the bounce at Bristol. Gloucestershire pushed them all the way to the closing session, with Bell and Williams taking fourteen of the eighteen wickets to fall. Nonetheless, James Taylor enjoyed his first ten-wicket haul and Tawanda Muyeye (90 and 108) top-scored for Kent in the two-wicket success. 

In the last round before a Championship break, Kent entertain leaders Durham at Beckenham and Middlesex welcome Derbyshire to Lord’s. Northants visit Gloucestershire, and it’s off to the Southport seaside for Lancs and Worcestershire. 

Team of the Week:- Hughes (Sus), Duckett (Not), Clarke (Not), Hain (War), Muyeye (Ken), Guest (Der +), Higgins (Mid), Hadley (Gla), C Parkinson (Dur), Hannon-Dalby (War), J Taylor (Ken)

Surrey Scare but Almost There

Autumn rains may have arrived a tad early, but there was still some drama in the penultimate round of County Championship fixtures. Surrey’s smooth march to the title was surprisingly disrupted at The Oval by basement side Northamptonshire, for whom Karun Nair – who boasts a Test ‘triple’ for India - struck 150 and Jack White took 4-45 to make the home side follow on. Come the last day, openers Burns and Sibley stopped the rot by batting out the final four hours or so without trouble. 

Essex have only a mathematical chance of overhauling Surrey after an all-or-nothing final-day declaration against Hampshire failed to pay off. Adam Rossington and Tom Prest swapped centuries and Essex’s Matt Critchley was caught off Dawson’s spin for 99 before the stakes – and scoring rates – were raised on Friday. Hampshire were set a target of 267 in about 60 overs and at 32-4 looked set to capitulate. However, the experienced duo of James Vince and Liam Dawson turned disaster into triumph, putting on 184. Critchley nabbed them both but Ben Brown took them over the line with time running out. 

At the other end of the table, 42-year-old Tim Murtagh followed his retirement announcement with eight wickets for Middlesex at Lord’s. However, it was all in vain because Warwickshire have the in-form Oliver Hannon-Dalby, who claimed eight of his own. The lanky Yorkshireman is no spring chicken himself but has led the line admirably all season. Danny Briggs became the second spinner this week to be dismissed on 99 and Will Rhodes made 102 as the Londoners struggled to gain a foothold in the match. In the second innings, Sam Robson carried his bat for 107 but Warwickshire wrapped up the victory by eight wickets, leaving Middlesex in the relegation zone. 

They can still overtake Kent, who were second-best to Somerset, for whom Lammonby and Goldsworthy reached three figures, until the Taunton weather saved their bacon. At Old Trafford, only 84 overs were possible but the draw made little difference to the mid-table. Next week, Surrey should clinch the five points required at Southampton, although Hampshire have the incentive of snatching second place from Essex. Northants are down, but Kent (against Lancashire) just need to match Middlesex (at Nottinghamshire) to remain in Division One in 2024. 

Joining them will be Durham and, almost certainly, Worcestershire. IN between rain delays, the two played out a single-innings draw this week, Scott Borthwick top-scoring with 134 not out. A resurgent Leicestershire have a theoretical chance of promotion but there was no real opportunity to narrow the gap by defeating Yorkshire at Grace Road. Derbyshire failed to break their season’s duck at home to Sussex but Brooke Guest did equal Derby’s record of seven catches in the first innings. Gloucestershire are also winless, and Sussex are in their way next week, just as Glamorgan are Derby’s barrier. Most of the season’s honours have been decided but don’t rule out some late-September excitement. 

Team of the Week:- Lammonby (Som), Robson (Mid), Borthwick (Dur), Vince (Ham), Nair (Nor), Guest (Der +), Critchley (Ess), Briggs (War), Conners (Der), Murtagh (Mid), Hannon-Dalby (War)