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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Sport
Tanya Aldred at Old Trafford

Essex beat Lancashire despite late wobble, Surrey thrash Hampshire

Jamie Porter took five wickets for just 30 runs as Lancashire were bowled out for 105 in their second innings.
Jamie Porter took five wickets for just 30 runs as Lancashire were bowled out for 105 in their second innings. Photograph: Nathan Stirk/Getty Images

Match report: Essex beat Lancashire as 19 wickets fall

After second-innings wobbles, in which Essex tripped, stumbled and stumbled again chasing 104, Ravi Bopara hit the winning runs at 6.30pm with a day to spare.

It had been a turbulent day at Old Trafford, with 19 wickets falling and an air ambulance landing on the pitch, 15 minutes into play, much to the surprise of the fielders who had their eyes on the Essex batsmen completing a run. A spectator had been taken badly ill in the pavilion and first an ambulance then two rapid response cars then the helicopter arrived. The man was later taken to hospital.

Essex had started the day four wickets down and, after a half‑hour delay for the emergency, lost three quick wickets to Tom Bailey. But a last-wicket stand of 42 between Sam Cook and Neil Wagner as Lancashire spread the field gave Essex a one-run lead. Bailey finally dismissed Wagner for 29, to finish with four for 54.

An Air Ambulance helicopter lands on the Old Trafford pitch after a spectator was taken ill.
An Air Ambulance helicopter lands on the Old Trafford pitch after a spectator was taken ill. Photograph: Martin Rickett/PA

Then, in a disastrous start to Lancashire’s second innings, Keaton Jennings and Alex Davies were out for ducks before lunch. There was time for a sweet four from Haseeb Hameed before his calamitous season – 44 runs in eight Championship games – continued when he was caught off Jamie Porter for just that four.

It was a coconut shy of a batting performance from Lancashire, made tricky by the odd ball that kept low and deep cracks in the pitch, especially around fourth stump. Liam Livingstone was particularly unlucky, lbw to a snorter from Porter, but rash shots abounded. They were rescued from the indignity of 29 for six by some judicious bat-throwing by Joe Mennie, Bailey and Graham Onions. The impressive Porter snaffled five for 30 and Simon Harmer four for 34.

Essex were nervous in reply, after Varun Chopra was bowled by Onions and Alastair Cook tried to cut and was well caught by Hameed on the second attempt at slip. But from 41 for four, Bopara and Ryan ten Doeschate ran, nurdled and nudged their way towards victory, despite the best efforts of Onions, Mennie and Bailey. In the words of a deeply disappointed Livingstone afterwards, Lancashire were “outbatted and outbowled”.

Roundup: Surrey go top after rout of Hampshire

Victory for Surrey at the Ageas Bowl planted them top of the Championship table. There was little real resistance as Hampshire followed-on, Joe Weatherley top‑scored before being run out for 50. Morne Morkel grabbed three for 37 to make it five wickets on debut; Amar Virdi also took three for 37.

Nottinghamshire knocked up 468 for eight in their second innings against Somerset at Taunton, with 103 for Tom Moores. There were two expensive wickets for Dom Bess and four for 114 for Roelof van der Merwe. Warwickshire were 25 without loss chasing 269 to win at Edgbaston. Glamorgan’s Usman Khawaja made 125 on debut.

Northamptonshire’s dreadful season continued after they lost seven for 53 in their second innings. Leicester eased to victory with six wickets in hand. At Bristol, Matt Henry took six for 58 and Gloucestershire, forced to follow on, were 73 without loss following-on, still 269 behind Kent.

A valiant second-innings batting performance by Durham, including a century from Gareth Harte, gave them more than at chance against Derbyshire who were 69 for four at stumps. Two wickets for debutant Matt Salisbury.

Close of play scores and results

Leicestershire got the job done in Division Two, while Essex recovered from 41-4 to get over the line at 108-5 against Lancs.

Division One

Somerset 392, Nottinghamshire 134 & 468-8 (close)
Lancashire 301 & 105, Essex 302 & 108-5
Essex win by five wickets
Hampshire 135 & 175, Surrey 368
Surrey win by an innings and 58 runs

Division Two

Warwickshire 250 & 25-0, Glamorgan 220 & 323 (close)
Northamptonshire 204 & 229, Leicestershire 217 & 217-4
Leicestershire win by six wickets
Gloucestershire 240 & 73-0, Kent 582-9 (close)
Durham 96 & 376, Derbyshire 205 & 69-4 (close)

Warwickshire 4-0, chasing 290, Leicestershire need just 19 to win.

Gloucestershire going well in their second innings, albeit from the bottom of a deep ravine. 68 for 0.

A hundred for Moores!

At OT, Bopara and Ten Doeschate seem to have things buttoned up with quick singles and lots of nurdling, despite the best efforts of Onions, Bailey and Mennie. They need just 34 now.

Young Moores at Notts getting perilously close to three figures, now 90 not out, as the lead over Somerset grows to 186. Anyone there? What happened to the pitch on day 2?

And two wickets for young Durham debutant Matthew Salisbury. Derbyshire 25 for 2, still nee 243.

TIMBER! Lawrence trying to drive on the off side and ball ducks between bat and pad and off stump disappears. b Mennie 3. Essex 41 for 4!

Essex in trouble: 39 for 3. Westley, who had just driven beautifully, caught behind off Onions for 14. Onions 3 for 18

Even the Wisden editor has lost faith in Northants -Leicester142 for 1, need 75. Horton 59 not out; Hill 69 not out.

Enter Dan Lawrence, the man tipped for future England honours by Essex press-box stalwart Paul Hiscock.

Onions two overs, 2 for11. Essex 25 for 2, needing 80.

And Cook’s out! Trying to cut a ball too close to him, c Hameed, on the second attempt, b Onions 9. All the twos, Essex 22 for 2

Updated

Thanks so much John. Got back to find hot sunshine and Essex 12 for 1, Chopra gone for 6. Lancs did well to make three figures in end. Sounds like a lovely debut hundred for Khawaja .

Durham have made a fine recovery at Chester-le-Street to be all out 376 in the second innings after making just 96 in their first innings. Derbyshire have to chase a reasonably tough fourth innings target of 267. Derbyshire’s Duanne Olivier got five wickets for 105 runs, a gallon, but he did bowl 40 overs.

Updated

Gloucestershire have been made to follow on by Kent at Bristol.

Essex could get the job done today.

Tea-time summaries.

Division One

Surrey 368 v Hampshire 135 & 175

Surrey won by an innings and 58 runs

Lancashire 301 and 105 v Essex & 302 (still in play)

Somerset 392 v Nottinghamshire 134 & 320-5

Division Two

Durham 96 & 358-8 v Derbyshire 205

Kent 582-9 dec v Gloucestershire 240

Northamptonshire 204 & 229 v Leicestershire 217 & 110-1

Glamorgan 220 & 273-5 v Warwickshire 250

Lancashire are now all out for 105, with Matt Parkinson having been bowled by Jamie Porter. Essex can take tea in the knowledge that they must chase down 104 runs.

Updated

Tea is being taken across the county matches, though they are playing at Lancs, who have at least breached 100 runs to give Essex something to chase.

Surrey in celebratory mood after polishing off Hants. So excited they are throwing “apostrophe’s” everywhere.

Updated

Khwaja’s maiden innings for Glamorgan is at an end, as he goes for 125 at Edgbaston; Glamorgan are currently on 273/5.

Lancashire down to one man left and 98/9, with Graham Onions having been caught by Harmer, again doing the damage for Essex, and Alistair Cook taking the catch in the slips.

Updated

Meanwhile in Manchester, Tom Bailey falls for Lancs, leaving them currently on 92/8.

Victory for Surrey puts them top of Division 1 as it stands.

Surrey beat Hampshire by an innings and 58 runs.

Hampshire are all out for 175 with Morne Morkel doing the damage for the final two wickets, taking out Dale Steyn and then Fidel Edwards, with both falling to catches from Ollie Pope.

Hampshire have lost another wicket, with Kyle Abbott being trapped by Amar Virdi and the scores currently on 175/8. Surrey won’t have much to chase down, it seems, if anything.

Updated

Kent’s Matt Henry has reached another five-for with the wicket of Gloucestershire’s Craig Miles, and the batting team have just a single wicket left, and at 221/9 are staring down the barrel of a follow-on.

Lancashire are throwing the bat at it in an attempt to have something to cling on to for Essex’s fourth innings with Joe Mennie and Tom Bailey adding a quick twenty runs between them.

Hampshire are struggling. They are now 151/7 after Surrey’s Rikki Clarke bowled Brad Taylor. It doesn’t look like Surrey will be required to bat again.

Essex smell a victory at OT.

The Lancs collapse continues. Shivnarine Chanderpaul has gone now, and they are 41-7, with Simon Harmer doing the damage this time and collecting his second wicket.

Updated

John Brewin here, taking to the crease while Tanya is away. The first news I have to bring you is that Usman Khawaja has scored a century on his debut for Glamorgan, motoring along nicely on 228-4 in their second innings.

And van Buuren is out at Bristol for 83, after a partnership of 104 with Noema-Barnett. Gloucs still trailing Kent by 396.

Meanwhile Lancs now 29 for 6. Another lbw to a ball keeping low: Clark b Porter for a duck.

And I’ve got to disappear for an hour and a bit. Not sure Lancashire will still be batting when I come back...lowest score against Essex as things stand is 70

Durham lead now 200. Harte 77 not out. Extras 70.

Crickey. Another wicket down at OT. Vilas well caught at short leg by ten Doeschante off Harmer for 4. Lancashire 28 for 5.

At OT Sam Cooke limps off the field. Morkel in the wickets at Hampshire: McManus bowled for 1. Hampshire 117 for 5 still 116 behind.

Livingstone’s lbw

And another slow trudge back to the dressing-room at Old Trafford. Livingstone lbw Porter 17, to one that kept low. Lancs 23 for 4. Porter 3 for 10.

And Somerset will have to bat again! Well played Notts, 260 for 3: Nash 47 not out, Patel 37 not out.

Oh Hampshire, how did you manage that? Weatherley run out for 50. 106 for 4, still trail by 126.

Khawaja moves on to 81 at Edgbaston, Cooke 19 not out. Leicester holding on: 39 for 1, need another 180. And a great effort in adversity from Gloucestershire’s van Buuren (72) and Noema-Barnett (38). Still 410 behind though.

Durham lead now 183 with two wickets in hand. Big slap on the back for Gareth Harte, 68 not out.

Cover your eyes. Haseeb Hameed c Wheater b Porter 4. Lancashire 12 for 3.

For those thinking about coming down to Old Trafford, a phone call from Lord’s has confirmed that 9 overs will be knocked off today’s total after the medical emergeny earlier this morning. Tea will be taken at ten past four, 66 overs left in the day.

Lunchtime scores

DIVISION ONE

Taunton: Somerset 392. Notts 134 and 231 for 3 (Nash 39 not out, Patel 19 not out). Notts trail Somerset by 27 runs.

Old Trafford: Lancashire 301 and 6 for 2. Essex 302. Lancashire lead by 5 runs.

Ageas Bowl: Hampshire 135 and 77 for 3 (Weatherly 32 not out; Virdi 2 for 14 ). Surrey 368. Hampshire trail Surrey by 156 runs

DIVISION TWO

Edgbaston. Warwickshire 250. Glamorgan 220 and 145 for 4 (Khawaja 59 not out) Glamorgan lead Warwicks by 115 runs.

The County Ground: Northants 204 and 229 (Raine 4 for 54). Leicestershire 217 and 1 for 1. Leicester need 216 to win.

Bristol: Gloucestershire 124 for 6 (van Buuren 48 not out, Henry 3 for 34 ). Kent 582 for 9 declared. Gloucestershire trail Kent by 458.

Riverside: Durham 96 and 274 for 8 (Rimmington 42, Harte 56 not out; Olivier 4 for 79 ). Derbyshire 205. Durham lead Derby by 165 runs.



And Lancashire negociated the final few balls without further disaster. Even a nice looking boundary for Hameed. 6 for 2. Lunch scores to follow v shortly.


Not the dream start. Davies c A Cook b S Cook for another duck. Lancs 0 for 2 after 8 balls of the second innings. Still another over and a bit till lunch.

Ah. Lancashire start badly, off the fifth ball of the innings, a wicket. Jennings pushed forward and edged Porter to second slip for a duck. 0 for 1. Deficit still one! Another couple of overs before lunch...

And a second for Virdi at The Ageas. Ervine, c Clarke for 10. Virdi currently 2 for 14 off 7.

Just for comparison, as suggested BTL, though on totally different pitches,: At Taunton Bess has 0 for 38 off 10.

Famous last words. Essex 302 all out, a first-innings lead of one run. Wagner c Davies b Bailey 29, and a career best 8 not out for Sam Cook. Bailey 4 for 54.

At The Riverside a partnership of 96 between Rimmington and Gareth Harte comes to an end when Rimmington is lbw to Critchley for 42. But Harte’s still there, 56 not out, and a lead that has crept up to 160.

And at Old Trafford, the new ball has not been a success. 274 for 9 has rapidly become 302 for 9, and Essex take the lead.

Not a great start for the Foxes: 1 for 1. Dearden b Kleinveldt for a duck.

And Leicester start their run-chase: 217 to win, in over a day and a half. Will Northants have their first win of the season by close of play?

And Usman Khawaja has got his first fifty for Glamorgan, 57 not out, steadying the ship at Edgbaston. Glamorgan’s lead moves to 113, with 7 wickets in hand.

And the new ball has been taken at Old Trafford, and given to Tom Bailey. In his magical spell earlier he took 3 for 4 in 14 deliveries.

It’s by the by, but I stumbled across this on Twitter and wondered if any readers of the County Blog might be interested. I haven’t read Rings of Saturn, but I should. I will. In the words of that sage Paul Edwards: ““a barely classifiable meditation on East Anglian geography, history and literature. It is the product of a supremely civilised, enquiring mind and there is hardly anything like it in English literature.”

Updated

And a wicket for Virdi at the Ageas Bowl. James Vince stumped Foakes for 28 - a dismissal that has a certain ring to it. It’s pretty smart actually...

And a third lbw! Essex now 260 for 9. Porter played out a yorker first ball, then sent off for duck. Bailey now 3 for 46.

Here’s Wheater’s dismissal:

A second lbw of the day, Wheater trapped by Bailey for 41. A second for Bailey this morning. Essex 260 for 8.

A breakthrough at Old Trafford where the mugginess has passed, the sun is out and good breeze blows across the ground towards the Kelloggs building. Harmer lbw Bailey for 29. Essex 253 for 7, creeping up on the Lancashire score.

And another down at Taunton, Taylor b van der Merwe for 5.

Notts faltering, Mullaney lbw van der Merwe six short of his century. A brave effort. 183 for 2 - still 75 behind.

A handy little stand of 56 at The Riverside between Nathan Rimmington and Gareth Harte. Durham have a lead of 106 - they need to somehow eek out another - 60?

And finally in Div 1, play has restarted at OT, with Essex 229 for 6. Nottinghamshire have lost an early wicket, Jake Libby for 69, while Steven Mullaney still in great form, 82 not out. Notts 165 for 1. And a wicket at the Ageas Bowl, Jimmy Adams lbw to Sam Curran for 2. Hampshire 31 for 1 following-on.

Updated

And another wicket for Abass at The County Ground, Rob Keogh for 3. Northants 192 for 5. And the unfortunate Gloucestershire batsmen in more trouble, 83 for 6. Henry 3 for 33. And a fourth wicket for Olivier at Durham, with Durham now 195 for 7 - a lead of 86.

Update from Old Trafford, a male supporter collapsed in the pavilion, he has been taken to hospital by ambulance.

The helicopter’s blades are circling and it takes off from Old Trafford, without a passenger. Play should restart soon.

Updated

Play still suspended at Old Trafford, with an ambulance and two rapid response vehicles as well as the helicopter in attendance.

Elsewhere, two wickets at Edgbaston with Nick Selman and Connor Brown out in quick succession. Glamorgan 73 for 2. A second wicket for Mohammad Abbas, Northants 189 for 4. Top scorer Jack Taylor a second wicket for Matt Henry.

Updated

Alarming scenes at Old Trafford, the helicopter landed on the pitch as the players were playing. Fingers crossed for the poor soul it has come for.

‘

Updated

And play is suspended at Old Trafford as paramedics crossed the pitch, two ambulances arrived and an air ambulance lands on the field.

Preamble

Welcome back! As I swam out of Old Trafford yesterday, it seemed very unlikely that play would start on time but lo it will, so hurray to the head groundsman and his team. A lovely day too at Durham, where there was no play after tea and at the Ageas Bowl where some opportune bad light prevented Hampshire following-on.

A quick whizz around the counties – expect a finish today at The Riverside, where Durham are only 46 runs ahead of Derbyshire with four wickets left, and Tom Latham out. Walking wounded stand-in captain Cameron Steel, who was hoping not to bat, was 6 not out at the close. Hampshire are also in trouble and start their second innings 223 runs behind Surrey after being bowled out for 135, with five wickets for Rikki Clarke. Gloucestershire’s batsmen have a hill, nay mountain, to climb against Kent, 538 behind, with only 6 wickets in hand.

At Old Trafford this will be a key day in a game of twists and turns, with Essex 80 behind Lancashire with four wickets in hand, and Adam Wheater in fine form with 31 not out. Joe Mennie was the pick of the bowlers, with 3 for 40, and in muggy, damp conditions batting could be a challenge. Somerset are still very much on top at Taunton, but the Nottinghamshire openers were on fire as they followed-on, hitting 19 fours between them.

It is a squeaky tight game at Warwickshire, where Ian Bell scored his first Championship century in two years, “It’s on your mind (the time between hundreds),” he said. “As a batter you want to score match-winning hundreds and it was disappointing last year not to stick to the standards I have done and contribute all the time, so it’s something off my back.” In their second innings Glamorgan are 55 without loss, a lead of 25. And Division two wooden spoonists Northants are in a strong position against Leicestershire, 165 for 3 at the close, a lead of 152.

In other news, read here how Gavin and Stacey convinced Usman Khawaja to join Glamorgan and a handsome picture of a Somerset legend.

Updated

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