County cricket: Porter Carries Essex to Their First Win of 2025

Top-order runs were the order of the week, which ended with dismal weather scuppering hopes for sixteen-point win bonuses. Essex and Middlesex were the exceptions, each opening their respective 2025 accounts.

Essex and Worcestershire fought a tight contest at Chelmsford, overcoming a first-innings deficit to eke out a 28-run triumph. Paul Walter’s 104 began the turn-around then Jamie Porter completed the job. While Ethan Brookes was at the crease, clumping seven sixes, Worcester were still in the hunt but Jamie Porter’s caught-and bowled ended his resistance, finishing with 6-52. 

Nottinghamshire and Sussex top the table only two points ahead of Essex. Notts were heading for an innings defeat of Warwickshire when the rain clouds rolled over Birmingham. On day one, Brett Hutton and Fergus O’Neill each claimed five-fors, then Haseeb Hameed carried his bat for 138 to leave the home county in serious trouble. Ed Barnard, Kai Smith and Oliver Hannon-Dalby dug deep to defend the draw, and the weather completed the task. 

Hove witnessed more of a run-fest. Sussex opener Tom Haines scored 174 and 69 not out, while two of Surrey’s England internationals Ollie Pope and Dan Lawrence responded with centuries of their own. A draw was inevitable, 

Partnership of the week was the 279 shared by Durham’s Alex Lees and Emilio Gay. The latter must have been particularly pleased with his personal 152, following three ducks in the first few matches. Visiting captain Jonny Bairstow’s unbeaten 86 ensured Yorkshire’s path to safety. At Southampton, Hampshire had the better of the draw with Somerset, despite a solid all-round performance by Migael Pretorius. 

The next round of Championship fixtures includes the meetings of last year’s bitter rivals Surrey and Somerset, and this season’s leading pair. 

The only positive result in Division Two saw Middlesex cruise to a nine-wicket success at home to Glamorgan. Max Holden top-scored, whilst the wickets were largely shared between the seamers. At Derby, Northamptonshire raced to 500-8 declared, assisted by tons from Luke Procter and Saif Zaib but captain Wayne Madsen’s second half-century of the game and Caleb Jewell’s fifth 50 of the campaign steered Derbyshire to stumps. 

Leicestershire were in the box seat against Lancashire, thanks to Tom Scriven’s 5-46 and centuries stroked by Rehan Ahmed and Peter Handscomb, 13 years his colleague’s senior. When Lancashire slumped to 16-3 in their second innings with a day to spare and more than 200 runs adrift, a slaughter looked likely, only for Manchester gloom to descend and save Leicester. 

Three hundreds entertained the Canterbury spectators. Ben Compton’s 178 was the biggest, but James Bracey (151 not out) and Cameron Green (112) advanced Gloucestershire to 472 all out. It could have been much higher but for Nathan Gilchrist’s 7-100. As things turned out, the second-innings declaration came too late to bowl Kent out again a second time. Gloucestershire host leaders Leicestershire in next week’s reduced bunch of games. 

Team of the Week:-  Compton (Ken), Haines (Sus), Procter (Nor), Gay (Dur), Madsen (Der), Handsworth (Lei), Bracey (Glo +), Waite (Wor), O’Neill (Not), Gilchrist (Ken), Porter (Ess)

Somerset Crash the Essex Party

Only five fixtures in the County Championship this week, but most actually produced a result. Oddly, it was the bowlers in charge in Division One while in Division Two, the batsmen stole the show.

With Surrey resting, this was Essex’s chance to re-establish a formidable lead at the top. However, on a seaming wicket at Taunton, they surprisingly cane off second best in a match which was done and dusted within two days. Nobody reached fifty and Somerset’s pace quintet shared the wickets, whilst Essex achieved a slight first-innings advantage when Jamie Porter (5-37) and Sam Cook (5-38) swept through the home side with ease. When Somerset batted again on Saturday afternoon, they must have feared the worst. However, openers Renshaw and Dickson made a solid start, and Craig Overton struck the winning boundary with only three wickets left. That meant Somerset leapt above Surrey, and Essex’s margin over the champions is a mere three points. 

It shouldn’t last long, given that the winner of Warwickshire’s trip to The Oval later this week will go top, and the weather is set fair/ 

At the other end of the table, Kent despatched Lancashire at Old Trafford by seven wickets. The home county’s run of dreadful starts continued, bowled out for a paltry 92. Harare-born Nathan Gilchrist produced a career-best 6-24, supported by Wes Agar’s 4-35. At least Bell and Hurst dug in to set Kent some kind of target on the last two days, but Daniel Bell-Drummond’s unbeaten 79 ensured the win bonus went Kent’s way. They now meet Worcestershire while Lancashire travel to Nottinghamshire who are also winless. 

Runs flowed more freely in the second tier, and eight players reached three figures. Sussex needed only one innings to defeat Derbyshire. Chteshwar Pujara top-scored with 113, before young West Indian Jaydon Seales sealed the victory with 5-29. At Lord’s, both the first and fourth days were washed out, ruining the contest and the chances of Middlesex and Leicestershire of keeping Sussex in check. Peter Handscomb (109), Sam Robson (162) and Leus du Plooy (139) enjoyed some decent batting practice. 

Up at Headingley, Joe Root struck his second ton in succession as Yorkshire racked up a huge first-innings lead over Glamorgan. Both he and Finlay Bean (173) set a cracking pace, too, in the hope of providing ample time to bowl the opposition out a second time. However, the visitors were no pushover. A 210-run stand involving Sam Northeast and Colin Ingram was the centrepiece of an excellent fightback. Ingram struck twenty boundaries in his 113 but it was his skipper Northeast who remained at the crease on 142 not out when a draw was agreed, thwarting Yorkshire’s bid for an opening victory of 2024. They now have a fortnight to put that right, against leaders Sussex who could be running away with the division should they beat Glamorgan in their game in hand. 

Team of the Week:- Robson (Mid), Bean (Yor), Northeast (Gla), Root (Yor), Pujara (Sus), Ingram (Gla), Hurst (Lan +), S Cook (Ess), Porter (Ess), Seales (Sus), Gilchrist (Ken)