Pope and Amla Steer Surrey Closer

In the race for the title, the top three each won again to pull away from the field. At The Oval, no centuries were scored but two fifties from Olly Pope and a smooth unbeaten 80 by Hashim Amla eased Surrey to a six-wicket victory over Warwickshire. Hampshire’s trip to the Scarborough seaside netted them 20 points and an eighth success of the summer. Kyle Abbott took his season’s tally to 49 wickets, more than anyone else, although colleagues Abbas and Barker are also in the top six in Division One. The seam trio are really fuelling the South Coasters’ bid for a first crown in decades.

At Old Trafford, it was definitely a game of two halves. Matt Henry ably led the Kent attack into a commanding lead over Lancashire, but the home side didn’t roll over to have their tummy tickled for a second time. Josh Bohannon (134) was part of two century partnerships as they declared on 439-9 by lunch on the fourth day. There was no chance of a Kent run chase but only Daniel-Bell Drummond survived the experience against Williams, Sundar and Tom Bailey, who ended the match with career-best figures of 11-110. More importantly, the 184-run triumph keeps Lancashire just about within range of Surrey should the leaders slip up.

There weas plenty of entertainment at Cheltenham where Gloucestershire and Northamptonshire not only served up plenty of runs but also an exciting finish, a difficult combination in a first-class contest. Ryan Rickelton led the visitors to a handsome first-innings lead, only for Gloucester skipper Graeme Van Buuren’s 127 not out to help set up a thrilling final afternoon. Needing 202 off a minimum 37 overs, Northants got off to a cracking start with Will Young and Rickelton again before losing a steady flow of wickets to Zafar Gohar’s spin. In the end, it was tail-ender Simon Kerrigan who hit Higgins for the winning boundary.

At Chelmsford, there was no chance whatsoever of a nail-biting conclusion; it was all about accumulation of runs as only sixteen wickets fell in total. Essex batted first, Nick Browne ending unbeaten on 234 before Somerset continued in the same vein. They delayed their first-innings declaration until late on the fourth afternoon, allowing teenage ‘keeper James Rew and Tom Banton to strike their maiden first-class centuries. Somerset really needed more, and now their next two fixtures, against fellow strugglers Gloucester and Warwickshire are ‘must-wins’. But they will have to wait until after the summer holidays, when the Hundred and One-Day Cup take over.

In Division Two, Nottinghamshire extended their lead to thirty points thanks to a straightforward defeat of Sussex inside three days. Overseas stars James Pattinson and Dane Paterson shared most of the wickets to fall. Further north, Middlesex lost ground by only drawing a rain-hit encounter against Durham. Opener Michael Jones racked up 206 for the home team, before a ton from John Simpson ensured maximum batting bonus points for Middlesex. They now go into the summer hiatus, Glamorgan breathing down their neck with a game in hand. Anuj Dal’s superb all-round performance for Derbyshire made the difference against Worcestershire and very much keeps them in the promotion hunt.

Team of the Week: Browne (Ess), Jones (Dur), Bohannon (Lan), Rickelton (Nor), Van Buuren (Glo), Simpson (Mid +), Anuj Dal (Der), Pattinson (Not), Abbott (Ham), Bailey (Lan), Paterson (Not)

Why are Aussie fast bowlers always injured?

Maybe it's a case of selective memory but the journey from pitch to treatment table for fast bowlers does seem to be equipped with a revolving door these days, especially in Australia. Of course the pacemen are, and always have been, prone to impact injuries such is the explosive nature of their action. Dennis Lillee's career was almost over before it began yet he learned to bowl at a less fearsome pace, with greater control and he retired as the world's leading Test wicket-taker, and with 882 first-class dismissals under his belt. Brett Lee and Terry Alderman were absent for long periods, as indeed was the somewhat slower Shane Warne. Glenn McGrath had a similar first-class record to Lillee but of course played many more Test matches over a longer period.

McGrath was, of course, part of one of the greatest teams in cricketing history, in an era when physios, dieticians and such like began to form an integral part of the professional squad. As in England, central contracts have reduced intenational cricketers' commitments to their counties or states, supposedly to keep them fresher and off the treatment table. So why does every young Aussie 'quick' fail to play more than a handful of Tests before succumbing to stress fractures, ankle, knee or shoulder problems?

No doubt the ACB doctors could supply the medical details so my question is more rhetorical. However, given that many promising fast bowlers win 'green baggy' call-ups on the basis of barely a dozen first-class matches, some grade cricket and a few Big Bashes, that inexperience would appear to be a potential cause worth exploring. Maybe the selectors have to take a look at themselves, too. With James Pattinson, Pat Cummins, Mitch Johnson, Peter Siddle, Mitch Starc, Trent Copeland, Jackson Bird, Moises Henriques and James Faulkner all having shown great promise, taking plenty of wickets, often at sub-25 averages, why haven't they been given a longer run in the side? Yes, injuries have played a part, yet they have all too often been jettisoned too quickly and therefore have few opportunities to increase strength, stamina and experience to play at the top level. Michael Hogan, now in his 30s and looking an excellent bowler for Glamorgan in T20, actually retired from Aussie cricket to come to Britain on a UK passport to further his career.

The West Indian pace stars of the '70s, '80s and '90s were world-beaters, yet played relentless cricket for their islands, the Windies and, more often than not, English counties. Indeed, Clive Lloyd and the management of those times would recommend young fast men to play for counties or league cricket before they would break into the international side. Courtney Walsh played more than 400 first-class games and took 1800 wickets, more than Lillee and McGrath put together. England looked to Australia's system of a very brief domestic system as a means of emulating the latter's success in Test cricket. They are still pushing to slash the County Championship, a move which thankfully has been resisted.

England did finally attain number one Test status and they remain one of the top nations in all forms of cricket. It was hailed as vindication of the central contract scheme. However, in my mind that owes more to a settled side with very good players and being relatively injury-free than to perceived previous over-playing. Finn and Tremlett have suffered long spells injured in recent years, and Simon Jones has played very little cricket in the past five seasons. Yet the sequence of young Aussies playing and failing physically goes on despite a dearth of top-level appearances. I suspect that the focus on T20 has much to do with it. When used to bowling four overs a day, a few times a week, no wonder the Pattinsons of this world struggle with a 20-over workload.

In the end, I reckon that a successful bowling attack relies on that blend of hard work, raw talent and good coaching. England have succeeded with a number of good individuals and one who has slowly developed into a world-beater, Jimmy Anderson. Ten to twenty years ago, the Aussies boasted a fabulous batting line-up along with not one but three or four special bowlers, McGrath, Kasprowicz, Lee and Gillespie alongside Mr Warne. Were they better because they were fitter, rested more often, pre-T20 era or none of the above? I'm not sure, but on paper Australia is blessed with another squad of excellent fast bowlers capable of emulating the aforementioned superstars. It's now down to the coaches, selectors and the players themselves to resist the temptation to concentrate on T20 riches and get themselves in the right physical and mental conditions to prosper at Test level. They might even get to win a few Ashes Tests in the next twelve months! Mind you, to achieve that, they need to focus on the batsmen, too....

Player of the Week: James Pattinson

Well, 24 hours after my blog criticising the Australian selectors for picking fast bowlers with little more than five minutes' first-class cricket experience, blow me but debutant James Pattinson romped through the New Zealand top order to set up a nine-wicket victory.

For this alone I must swallow my pride and make him my Player of the Week! Of course, the 21 year-old Victorian made some sort of history just by turning up; he and older brother Darren became the first siblings for more than a century to play Test cricket for different countries. Mind you, when after a useful start to the season for Nottinghamshire, Grimsby-born Darren was picked for England at Headingley, he had played only 11 first-class games and was almost 29 years old. He took the wickets of Amla and Prince but hasn't played a Test since and quite frankly never will in the future. Let's hope James' international career lasts longer and having taken 6-91, including the decisive 5-27 in the second innings, I'm sure it will.

It started ominously enough when his first over went for thirteen runs and his only wicket came courtesy of a ludicrous swish across the line by Ross Taylor. However, on what became the final day, he bowled beautifully to wreck New Zealand's top five, including three wickets in four balls. Nathan Lyons' match figures of 7-88 were also pretty impressive and skipper Michael Clarke weighed in with another century as the Aussies enjoyed another Brisbane success.

Pattinson's was not the only notable performance by a bowler this week. Shahid Afridi was up to his usual tricks in ODIs, taking wickets and hitting sixes for Pakistan. In the big Zimbabwe T20 competition, Somerset all-rounder Peter Trego also had a productive week for the Eagles, for whom Chris Gayle and Ryan Ten Doeschate also struck some awesome hundreds. At Visakhapatnam, Ravi Rampaul made history in the ODI against India, bu not as a bowler. His rampaging 86 not out in 66 balls was the highest ever in ODIs by a number ten batsman, as was his total of six sixes. However, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma ensured the home team emerged victorious. Back to Australia, Daniel Christian nudged the Test selectors with a good all-round game for South Australia in the Shield but 18 year-old Kurtis Patterson made it an even better week for debutants, striking 157 for NSW in his first ever senior innings. Based on recent decision-making, he'll probably be in the Test team next week!