Here's today's report
Only 13 deliveries were possible at Headingley where much-changed Yorkshire and Lancashire sides spent most of the day watching the rain come down.
One of the many absentees was the former Yorkshire captain Gary Ballance who it was revealed is battling “anxiety and stress”. The batsman is yet to feature for the white rose county this season. A statement read: “Gary is currently managing some heightened feelings of anxiety and stress following a long period of isolation due to the Covid-19 lockdown, his own recent viral illness and other personal factors. The post-viral symptoms have affected his physical preparation for this shortened cricket season.”
Sam Curran was released from the England bubble to play for Surrey against Kent. The left-armer removed three of the middle order but the hosts were left frustrated as Kent made 295-8 with Grant Stewart getting a half century.
A well-paced century from George Bartlett allowed Somerset to reach 237 against Gloucestershire. They were aided by a fine 10th wicket partnership between Bartlett and Jack Brooks as the pair added 61. Things got even better for Somerset as Craig Overton and Josh Davey shared four wickets for a cost of just 13 runs.
Northamptonshire bowlers Brett Hutton and Jack White took four wickets apiece as Glamorgan were bowled out for 259 a total which would have been far lower if it was not for Callum Taylor and Michael Hogan putting on 124 for the final wicket, with the former smashing 106, including six maximums and 11 fours on his first class debut. Northants accrued 82-1 in response.
Captain Will Rhodes laid the foundations for Warwickshire, hitting an unbeaten 142 to put his side on top against Worcestershire, with only three batsmen falling as they got up to 228.
Eighty-four from Alex Lees held the Durham innings together as they made 219-6 before bad light stopped play prematurely in Derbyshire.
Leicestershire recovered from being reduced to 25-4 to earn a respectable total of 222 against Nottinghamshire, who ended the day on 48-0. Harry Finch top scored with 69 for Sussex as they reached 293 all out against Middlesex, for whom Martin Andersson picked up four wickets.
Hampshire and Essex failed to make it out to the middle, as no play was possible at Arundel.
Thanks for joining me today. I will be back tomorrow and there will be a little roundup coming soon.
Close of play
Northamptonshire 82-1 v Glamorgan 259ao
Somerset 237ao v Gloucestershire 13/4
Worcestershire v Warwickshire 228/3
Derbyshire v Durham 219/6
Leicestershire 222ao v Nottinghamshire 48/0
Yorkshire 8/0 v Lancashire
Hampshire v Essex No play due to rain
Middlesex v Sussex 293ao
Surrey v Kent 295/8
Gloucestershire are 11-4 against Somerset, having allowed their opponents to reach 237. Craig Overton and Josh Davey have two wickets apiece.
Kent finish the day on 295-8, which they will be very pleased with. Surrey struggled on a slow pitch at The Oval, especially against the lower order who showed plenty of intent.
That is slow, to be fair.
😍 Rikki Clarke seeing off Darren Stevens in slow-mo... You're welcome!
— Surrey Cricket (@surreycricket) August 22, 2020
🎥 @MyActionReplay pic.twitter.com/g4NtexPIXH
Grant Stewart notches his half century for Kent as Surrey’s frustrations continue, with the score moving on to 184-7.
Haseeb Hameed has five from eight balls, which is about as quick as he’s ever going to get. As a Lancashire fan, I desperately hope he finds his feet at Nottinghamshire.
Obviously, there is now glorious sunshine at The Oval, which is good news for me as I don’t live too far away, so it should be here soon.
There is a crowd at The Oval ...
The floodlights are on at The Oval as the light worsens in London. I suspect they will not be on for too much longer.
Leicestershire have recovered from being reduced to 25-4 to reach a respectable score of 222-9 against Nottinghamshire with Nos 7 and 8 doing the heavy lifting, as Tom Taylor and Ben Mike both achieved half centuries.
Harry Podmore’s innings has come to and end for Kent. The bowler hit a quickfire 47 to help his side gather momentum at Surrey but a cut to backward point off Finch was his demise.
A frustrating day for Lancashire debutant George Burrows who got six balls before play was curtailed at Headingley but what a fantastic moment for him and his family.
🗣 “It’s a bit of a dream come true for me. There’s a lot of hard work gone in over the last two or three years"
— Lancashire Cricket (@lancscricket) August 22, 2020
George Burrows on making his First-Class debut 👏
🌹 #RedRoseTogether pic.twitter.com/VYTymJpFkn
Updated
BewilderedPenguin says “A contributor to the Test OBO has just recommended listening to TMS on YouTube with the automatic subtitles on - seemingly an unexpected and undiluted joy. Jaws is playing, but who is Short Barbara?! And the TMS commentary team is very well spoken, imagine the fun to be had with more careless speaking!”
I will probably offer a similar level of typo soon, to be fair.
Play your shots, Cal.
💯 on First-Class debut!
— County Championship (@CountyChamp) August 22, 2020
Astonishing hitting from young @CallumZTaylor, who reached triple-figures with a 6️⃣#BobWillisTrophy | @GlamCricket pic.twitter.com/rs7AHZtx6N
The pork in the oven has had seven hours thus far in honour of the amount of time Jos Buttler has enjoyed at the crease.
Sam Hain is dismissed for 55 and his replacement at the crease, Ian Bell, scores a solitary run before trudging back to the pavilion having been caught by Ed Barnard off the bowling of Joe Leach.
Harry Podmore has come in to give Kent a bit of a boost. The game looked to be going Surrey’s way but 28 runs from 24 balls has given his side a bit of momentum to take them past the 200 mark.
Not bad from Callum Taylor on his first class debut to his 106, including 11 fours and six sixes. That should give him a little confidence.
Glamorgan all out for 259 after White removes Taylor for 106, to claim his fourth wicket of the innings. A good effort from Taylor and Hogan, who put on 124 for the final wicket, much to Northants’ chagrin.
Hampshire v Essex play abandoned
The scene at Arundel where there was no play today.
CRASH! BANG! WALLOP! WHAT A LAST WICKET STAND! After heaping praise on the Northants bowlers, Callum Taylor and No 11 Michael Hogan have given them a bit of tap to put on a hundred for the final wicket. Taylor has just passed his own milestone of 100, with Hogan on 32* from 19 balls.
Will Rhodes has completed his century from 181 balls for Warwickshire as they look to build a big first innings score. The man at the other end, Sam Hain, has just reached his half century, helping his county to 165-1 against Worcestershire on the opening day.
CaldersInBrum says: “Will Rhodes 100? Sam Hain 50? A team playing to potential?” Worrying times for Warwickshire fans ...
Updated
Scores:
Northamptonshire v Glamorgan 179/9
Somerset 130/5 v Gloucestershire
Worcestershire v Warwickshire 155/1
Derbyshire v Durham 154/4
Leicestershire 154/7 v Nottinghamshire
Yorkshire 8/0 v Lancashire Play abandoned
Hampshire v Essex No play due to rain
Middlesex v Sussex 171/3
Surrey v Kent 162/5
Brett Hutton has picked up four wickets to help reduce Glamorgan to 160-9 and the Northants bowler has certainly been on the money all day.
If at first you don't succeed... pic.twitter.com/s1JAS5unXl
— Northamptonshire CCC (@NorthantsCCC) August 22, 2020
Captain Will Rhodes is leading by example for Warwickshire. The opener has made his way to 87 not out, as part of a total of 137-1 against Worcestershire. Rhodes will be looking to complete a well-deserved century up against a decent Pears attack.
Played abandoned for the day at Headingley
Just 13 balls were bowled at Headingley today. Hopefully the weather will be better tomorrow.
CLOSE: The remainder of Day One has been abandoned at Emerald Headingley due to rain & a wet outfield
— Lancashire Cricket (@lancscricket) August 22, 2020
Yorkshire will begin tomorrow 8/0
🌹 #RedRoseTogether pic.twitter.com/kbLNWI1Rfx
Updated
Glamorgan have been reduced to 119-7 by Northants, with White claiming three of those wickets. Additionally, Kerrigan has conceded just seven runs from nine overs, which is great to see.
I wouldn’t get to excited about the prospect of play in Leeds ...
📸📷 The scene a short while ago at Emerald Headingley
— Lancashire Cricket (@lancscricket) August 22, 2020
The umpires are currently inspecting but it remains very wet out there 😐
🌹 #RedRoseTogether pic.twitter.com/xOcpYF149Y
At The Oval, Rikki Clarke has the ball in hand and Darren Stevens is at the crease. They have a combined age of 82, as they continue to prove that there is no substitute for experience.
Surrey have picked up two quick wicket against Kent. First, Bell-Drummond was caught bang in front by loanee Finch, with Robinson following soon after suffering the same fate against Sam Curran, to leave Kent on 99-4.
They managed to get the covers off at Headingley but then it immediately started raining again. I will out myself as a Lancashire supporter at this point in order to admit that it’s been a frustrating day for all in Leeds.
Sussex are the highest scorers thus far, reaching 112-2 against Middlesex at Radlett. In addition to the loss of two wickets, Haines has been forced to retire hurt with an injury after making 29 from 92 balls.
I can confirm that it is now raining in south-east London. Hopefully it does not make it to The Oval too quickly.
Glamorgan are collapsing at Northants. They have gone from 68-1 to 93-5, with Hutton and White picking up two apiece.
SonOfTheDesert says: “I made couscous with a bunch of vegetables. I think I’d rather the eight hour pulled pork.
“Did consider going for a walk, but I think I’ll do that during the Test lunch.
“I’m writing this because I feel it would be best not to mention the cricket, as soon as I even think about it something goes wrong.”
I’ve not made it before, so it might not end well ...
Yorkshire have revealed that their former England batsman Gary Ballance is battling “anxiety and stress”. Ballance, who played 23 Tests and 16 one-day internationals between 2013 and 2017 has not played this season and has had health struggles recently.
The 30-year-old is working his way back to fitness and is also netting but there is no time frame for his return to action. A statement from Yorkshire read: “Gary is currently managing some heightened feelings of anxiety and stress following a long period of isolation due to the Covid-19 lockdown, his own recent viral illness and other personal factors.
“The post-viral symptoms have affected his physical preparation for this shortened cricket season. He is currently unavailable for selection and we are unable to put any timescales on his return to playing at this time.
“Gary’s health and well-being remains our priority and the club and medical staff will continue to work closely with Gary to support his return to playing as soon as possible.”
I used my lunch to go purchase some bread to go with my pulled pork, which has been in the oven for four hours thus far - only four more to go. I hope your lunch was as productive.
The scores at lunch
Northamptonshire v Glamorgan 74/2
Somerset 42/2 v Gloucestershire
Worcestershire v Warwickshire 67/1
Derbyshire v Durham 65/3
Leicestershire 37/4 v Nottinghamshire
Yorkshire 8/0 v Lancashire
Hampshire v Essex No play due to rain
Middlesex v Sussex 79/1
Surrey v Kent 56/1
Updated
Simon Kerrigan is brought into the Northamptonshire attack early on against Glamorgan, bowling three maidens in his opening five overs, conceding just three runs thus far. Great to see that he has his accuracy back.
Nottinghamshire’s Peter Trego has taken 3 for 16 opening the bowling to help reduce Leicestershire to 37-4, with none of their top four reaching double figures. Might be a short game.
If you’re wondering why there has been no play at Arundel between Hampshire and Essex, here is how it looks.
“Argh!” exclaims TransplantAthlete. “How on earth can England justify releasing Sam Curran and Ben Foakes for Surrey, but not Jack Leach for Somerset? This is a complete joke how they can be so inconsistent.
“S Curran was even in the actual match squad, so should be performing 12th man duties!”
There rarely seems to be much in the way of consistency on this but I guess that is what happens when you base it on individual needs.
Durham are in trouble against Derbyshire, having already lost three wickets. Dickson, Jones and Bedingham all departed without getting troubling the scorers too much, leaving them on 33/3. The Derbyshire bowling attack is looking impressive at the moment, which can only be good news for the county.
Scores from the opening hour ...
Northamptonshire v Glamorgan 33/1
Somerset 14/1 v Gloucestershire
Worcestershire v Warwickshire 36/1
Derbyshire v Durham 32/2
Leicestershire 19/2 v Nottinghamshire
Yorkshire 8/0 v Lancashire
Hampshire v Essex No play due to rain
Middlesex v Sussex 40/0
Surrey v Kent 29/1
Dunn and Sam Curran worked superbly well in tandem opening the bowling for Surrey, causing plenty of problems for the batsmen despite the pitch looking pretty slow. Cox was the man to go, caught on the crease by Dunn.
☝️@MatthewDunn05 enjoyed that one. 👏 pic.twitter.com/dt0jTGjCde
— Surrey Cricket (@surreycricket) August 22, 2020
An inauspicious start for Burrows on his Lancashire debut as he offers up a wide full toss with his first ball, which is duly whacked for four. The rest of the over is more impressive, though, and he looks to have a little bit of pace. Burrows will have a wait for his next over, as they have gone off for rain after eight minutes of play.
“Hopefully less rain than last weekend,” emails Arthur Graves.
“I see Scotty848 lamenting his inability to go to see Derbyshire play in Durham. Can you let him know that the government is actually particularly keen on people driving over to Durham for day-trips to visit family.”
I see what you’ve done there.
A tricky start for Bell-Drummond and Cox at the Oval up against Dunn and Sam Curran. Dunn just got one to lift off the pitch and Bell-Drummond did well to not get anything on it.
The Lancashire bowling lineup will not strike fear into the Yorkshire batsmen, that’s for sure. Good luck to George Burrows on his debut.
Team news.....@YorkshireCCC: Lyth, Kohler-Cadmore, Fraine, Loten, Brook, Tattersall w, Thompson, Hill, Patterson, Olivier, Warner.@lancscricket: Jennings, Davies w, Bohannon, Jones, Vilas c, Croft, Balderson, Lamb, Hartley, Bailey, Burrows. #OneRose
— Yorkshire CCC (@YorkshireCCC) August 22, 2020
Yorkshire have won the toss and have elected to bat against Lancashire. As previously stated, play will begin at 11.30am.
Scotty848 says: “Normally if Derbyshire are away at Durham I go up and make it into a bit of a break and see family. Though it’s so sad we can’t make our usual trips around the counties the quality of the live streams is hugely appreciated.
“So excited to see what our young attack do today, whatever happens I can’t wait for 2021. I just hope we can keep them all.”
I won’t lie, 2021 still seems a long way off.
Following an inspection Yorkshire v Lancashire is set to start at 11.30am. The only other delayed start, as it stands, is at Hampshire v Essex where they will have an inspection in half an hour.
Some other good team news comes from Wantage Road where former Lancashire and England man Simon Kerrigan is in the Northamptonshire team. After dropping out of first-class cricket, the left-arm spinner is back, having recently signed a two-year deal.
Surrey are boosted by the return of Ben Foakes and Sam Curran but Jason Roy is unavailable, not to mention the absence of Morne Morkel.
🏏 SURREY XI:
— Surrey Cricket (@surreycricket) August 22, 2020
INS: Sam Curran, Ben Foakes, Rikki Clarke and Adam Finch.
OUT: Jason Roy, Ryan Patel, Morne Morkel and Gus Atkinson. pic.twitter.com/xEj2Wm0X4X
“Morning Will, Morning All,” says Gerrumonside.
“Looking forward to the Roses battle despite the weakened teams. Hampshire vs Essex look another key battle. Guess the weather could really favour the Central and Southern Group leaders if they can get positive results in the race to reach the final of the Bob.”
Lancashire’s opening defeat to Leicestershire showed how poor their bowling attack is without the likes of Mahmood, Gleeson, Onions and Parkinson. Hopefully the youngsters will be better equipped this time round to make an impact.
There will be an inspection at Headingley in 10 minutes, so hopefully that will provide some good news and allow the match to start as close to on time as possible.
“Morning Will, morning everyone,” says Mesnilman.
“Earlier this Morning, I said to Alexa: “Alexa, show me the epitome of two bald men fighting over a comb.” The only result that came back was the link to the scorecard for today from Wantage Road.
“So, I’ve been on to the Northampton branch of B&Q, and for a very modest fee - done without recourse to normal tendering procedures - I’ve got them to install a ‘bio-jinx-free bubble’ around Wantage Road. This will allow for members of two families (sorry, two sets of supporters) to meet, socially distanced, without there being any risk from jinxes. But we are not allowed to stay in each others houses overnight, lest there be any dream-jinxing.
“In terms of the other matches, I’ve run the numbers through an algorithm that I wrote on the back-of-an-envelope last night, and it shows that only Hampshire will win this Week. Or any Week from now on.”
Northampton v Glamorgan is not the most riveting clash on paper but you never know what might happen.
Wet up north ...
👋 from *their* place
— Lancashire Cricket (@lancscricket) August 22, 2020
It’s been a showery morning in Headingley. We’ll bring updates on the prospects as we have them 👍
🌹 #RedRoseTogether pic.twitter.com/AXeLhHl58W
Preamble
Good morning!
The Roses starts today. Sadly, the Lancashire bowling lineup looks more akin to a Second XI side, with so many of their frontline bowlers absent. The Red Rose claim eight absentees, with Tom Bailey the only first-choice bowler available to Glen Chapple. Yorkshire are missing Jonny Bairstow and Dawid Malan who have wandered off to play for England but they do possess the most fearsome - on paper - of the available bowlers in the form of Duanne Olivier. Regardless of who is in the lineup, it should be a pretty intense four days at Headingley.
Elsewhere, Surrey will be looking to improve of their pathetic start to the campaign, which has seen them earn just nine points in three games. Admittedly, they have suffered from missing players more than most, resulting in a need for loanees to be found just to fill the teamsheet. They host Kent at The Oval on a glorious Saturday morning in south-east London. Jordan Cox is back for Kent, having exited self-isolation following a breach of Covid protocols in the aftermath of his double hundred against Sussex.
Let’s hope the weather is kind to us, gifting us a full day’s play. Sadly, the forecast outside the south-east of England gives the impression that we will face some rain interruptions.
Get in touch in the usual places.
