Hampshire Bounce Back

Welcome back, proper cricket after the school holiday preoccupation with The Hundred. Well, only in the minds of the ECB because most people were too busy enjoying a post-Covid holiday or obsessing over the football season’s early restart.

In the County Championship, Surrey sat out the first week’s fixtures, and Hampshire took full advantage. Setting aside the disappointment of a surprise semi-final exit from the Royal London One-Day Cup, in which a vintage innings from the veteran Darren Stevens ensured a Kent victory, James Vince’s side trounced Northamptonshire by an innings. Crucially, they defied the rain threat to secure maximum bonus points, too. Wicketkeeper Aneurin Donald top-scored with 94 and Mohammad Abbas claimed a second-innings 4-32 to steal an eight-point march on Surrey. However, the latter play their game in hand next week, subject to royal funeral protocols.

At Canterbury, there were to be no batting heroics this week. Thoroughly outplayed by Essex for three days, their only hope of avoiding defeat was to keep the visitors’ attack at bay until the forecast rains returned. However, the brace 21-over resistance of Jordan Cox and the stricken tail-ender Matt Milnes was broken by Sam Cook, who finished the match with figures of 10-60. He’d also made a handy 38 out of Essex’s impressive 573 although it was Feroze Khushi’s 164, his maiden first-class century, which did the most damage.

In the Old Trafford Roses clash, the Lancashire openers Luke Wells and Keaton Jennings shared two partnerships of 180+ but it was George Hill’s medium pace which kept Yorkshire in the contest into the final day. Kohler-Cadmore and Fraine played uncharacteristic straight bats for almost thirty overs to deny the home county a deserved victory.

In the West Country relegation battle, winless Gloucestershire easily had the better of Somerset at Taunton. On the first afternoon, they were steaming at 251-1 but, despite Marcus Harris’ 159, bowlers Lewis Gregory and Josh Davey saved some blushes the following morning. To be honest, Somerset dodged a bullet thanks to a near fourth-day washout and are still in there fighting to maintain their fifteen-year spell in the top tier. Next week’s trip to Edgbaston is another must-win encounter but whoever comes out on top will plunge Kent into the mire.

Nottinghamshire are almost guaranteed promotion thanks to a decisive triumph over bottom-club Leicestershire. Joe Clarke’s 67 was the highest score in the match and Brett Hutton was the pick of the bowlers but credit to the Leicester opener Sam Evans. His first innings contribution was only 50 runs but he carried the bat amidst carnage at the other end. Nobody else reached double figures.

At a soggy Cardiff, Garth Roderick struck the week’s top score, 172, for Worcestershire. Glamorgan were forced to follow on but the weather restricted their second innings to only nine uneventful deliveries and so they remain in second spot. At Derby, the locals had the upper hand over Durham, for whom Ben Raine claimed 5-43. In the next round of fixtures, Glamorgan will bound clear of the chasing pack by beating Middlesex at Lord’s but defeat will catapult the London team back into the promotion places.

Team of the Week: L Wells (Lan), Jennings (Lan), Harris (Glo), Hill (Yor), Roderick (Wor), Khushi (Ess), Donald (Ham +), Anuj Dal (Der), Raine (Dur), Hutton (Not), S Cook (Ess)

Somerset beat both Kent and the rain

In a week when heavy rains wept across the whole of Britain, it is probably remarkable that any first-class cricket fixtures produced a result. I’m biased, of course, but I’m delighted that Somerset were the only county to wring out a win from the soggy conditions, thus extending their lead at the top of the Championship to 26 points.

Lewis Gregory’s storming season stepped up another gear at Canterbury, taking 6-32 and 5-21. Spanning the full four days, Kent’s fate was sealed when the seamers bowled them out a second time for just 59, leaving Abell and Azhar Ali to knock off the required 30 runs in only 40 balls. As things turned out, Tom Banton’s 63 was not only the top score in the match but also the whole of Division One last week. 

Welbeck CC’s debut as a Championship venue proved less than lucrative as the last three days were washed out. Last Sunday, the pitch offered Kyle Abbott enough to reduce woeful Nottinghamshire to 162 all out, but second-placed Hampshire were left high and not-so-dry on 93-2.

Surrey’s second successive fixture at Guildford saw the home side settle into the driving seat enforcing Yorkshire’s follow-on, thanks largely to the bowling of Morkel and Clarke. However, there was neither time nor the weather to finish them off. Yorkshire and Hampshire now have the chance to narrow the gap behind Somerset by beating Warwickshire and Essex, respectively.

In Division Two, all ten counties were in action but again the elements conspired against their efforts to reap the sixteen points for a victory. At least the Swansea fans were able to witness a harvest of runs. Glamorgan’s new-found ability to build a sizeable innings was again in evidence, although it was the ninth-wicket partnership of 167 between Wagg and Carey which took them close to maximum batting bonus points. Derbyshire’s response was to pile on almost 600, featuring Billy Godleman’s career-best 227 and Tom Lace’s maiden century.

The Welsh side remain second, nine points behind Lancashire, for whom Jimmy Anderson took 4-24 at Worcester. Sussex stand third after their draw with Gloucestershire at leafy Arundel. Promoted to open, Will Beer duly struck his best ever score of 97 out of 351-8, then Gloucestershire’s Gareth Roderick and Ryan Higgins each reached three figures to play out an inevitable draw on the final day.

At Chester-le-Street, Ricardo Vasconcelos just achieved a ton of his own for Northamptonshire before the last two days were rained off. The result left Durham seven adrift of their opponents and Middlesex at the bottom of the league. At least all of the above managed more play than Leicestershire and Middlesex. Eleven overs on Wednesday was the sum total of their week’s cricket.

Let’s hope the June weather improves sufficiently to get the Championship motoring once more.

Team of the Week: Godleman (Der), Vasconcelos (Nor, Lace (Der), Roderick (Glo +), Higgins (Glo), Wiese (Sus), Wagg (Gla), Gregory (Som), C Overton (Som), Abbott (Ham), Anderson (Lan)