Key events
There’s another tight game zigging and zagging at Hove, where John Simpson (71), with help from Charlie Tear, has ushered Sussex to a lead. Sussex 361-8.
And Mouseley (66) and Hain (22) are taken over where Yates (81) and Davies (38) left off at the suddenly upside down game at Edgbaston. Warwicks 220-2.
Dom Sibley is still going at Trent Bridge, 66 not out. I know it might be unpalatable for Bazball, but he is the only opener making stacks of runs…Surrey 165-3.
Ro-Jo with the new ball here, airs one past Balderson. Jennings strides down the wicket to whisper sweet nothings.
Down at Chelmsford, the bells start to toll. Sam Cook has Toby Albert cheaply for the second time in the match. Hampshire 19-1.
Glamorgan are all out at Sophia Gardens for 229, but an 125 run deficit is better than it could have been, thanks to Cooke and van der Gugten. Three wickets for Pretorius.
And that’s tea at last. Roland Jones has an expansive waft and caught behind off Balderson. Middx lose their last three wickets for nought and Lancs have a lead of 32. Lots of tight games in this round.
And Stokes out, edged to second slip, with little fanfare and two fours. Durham 119-4.
And another wicket at OT. Seb Morgan doesn’t want to go, but the umpire sends him off. Top edging a hook behind. Middx 169-9, trail by 32.
Ben Stokes is in!
Some fireworks would be nice. A good scattering of people at New Road. Love to see that forward defensive on tip toes.
This was Ali’s report from the 2022 whirlwind, batting with David Bedingham, as today.
And this the lovely note Stokes messaged young Josh Baker that evening, after Baker was savaged on social media. “Hey Josh, Ben Stokes here. Hope you don’t mind me sending you a message pal. Please don’t let today define the rest of your season. These days social media is relentless and a vile place for keyboard warriors and people who are jealous of us that we are professional cricketers and they didn’t make it. You’ve got serious potential and I think you’ll go a long way,”
Hmmmm. Northants? But on the up side, things are looking better than they did at 38 for four. Northants 54-4.
Jimmy takes a break. 6-0-24-1. Now on ball polishing duties for Stanley, who takes his place at the JA end. Middx have reduced the deficit to 41, du Plooy 65.
Five wickets for James Fuller in Essex’s 273. A handy 38 run lead. Now Hampshire go again.
Fifty for Leus du Plooy, who turns JA off his hip for four, and follows up with two more. Jimmy polishes the ball on the front of his shirt and mutters spells and spiders. The deficit now 59.
It feels a long time since we’ve had a Simon Harmer century. And I miss those summers where Harmer zipped through everyone. Anyway, he’s not far off now and helping Essex’s cause no end with his 80 not out. Essex , nine down, now have a small lead over Hampshire.
Really enjoyed this interview with him from Dan Gallan earlier this week.
Tea has come and gone at most places, but not yet at OT, where Gohar must now make the lonely walk past his batting partner, super catch by Stanley, diving, at midwicket. A second wicket for Tom Bailey. Middx 124-7.
With only the hardiest spectators still in the stands, Anderson chalks off wicket number four, substitute Harry Duke who, tempted outside off stump, wafts and edges behind. Middx 124-6. But Du Plooy still here on 43.
After three catches, including a blinder at second slip to get rid of George Hill, Rob Yates is racing along at Edgbaston, where batting is suddenly not difficult any more. Warwickshire 142-1, are just five short of their first innings.
4pm start at OT
Tea at 5.15, 38 overs to go.
Hundreds for Andersson and Guest as Derbyshire pass 600 and declare
Rare riches for Derbyshire – who declare on 604-7 and already have Northants 12-1, Vasconcelos a ten ball nought after being in the field for 148.5 overs. Ben Aitchison the wicket taker.
It’s going to be a one-innings shoot out at Chelmsford as well. Essex are nine down, 14 behind Hampshire. Wiaan Mulder (54) and Simon Harmer (39) helping out the top order. Four wickets to James Fuller.
The umpires are taking a walk at OT but I think it is spitting again. They don’t look hugely impressed anyway.
After losing Rory Burns to a top-edged pull, stalking off before it came back to land in Olly Stone’s hands, Surrey are sailing on, 82-1. Dom Sibley, who has two hundreds in the last two games, 32 not out.
And now Cooke goes…as Craig Overton digs one back and into the pads. Glamorgan 176-7.
Ben Kellaway was doing a good job of rescuing Somerset with 59, but he fancied cutting Jack Leach away and was bowled. Glamorgan 174-6 and only about half way to catching Somerset, but Cooke still there on 39.
Jofra Archer having a minor shocker in the IPL. So far, four wides, a no-ball, a four and a dot in his seven ball over.
A third five-fer of the season for Ben Raine, who is the leading wicket taker in Division Two, ahead even of Sir Jimmy. Worcestershire all out 308, Jack Home proved a large irritant for Durham with 63 not out. Lees and McKinney steady she blows, 15-0.
Stat of the day, courtesty of Ken and Paul. Jimmy Anderson’s caught and bowled this morning was his first caught and bowled since 2023, when he caught Tom Blundell at Mount Manganui, and his first caught and bowled for Lancashire since he caught Grant Flower at Chelmsford in September 2005.
That was the same game when Lancashire sprang Murali Kartik on Essex and got 10 wickets in the match. See scoreboards p19 – a a great bit of history this!
Apologies all, I just had to take a work call. Still nothing doing here at OT, in fact the covers are coming back on. It started raining five minutes before play was due to restart.
Ben Kellaway and Sean Dickson have added thirty since Glamorgan’s pre-lunch clatter of wickets – Glamorgan 89-4. Oooh, and Dan Hughes is just two runs short of his hundred at Hove…
Yates and Davies seem to have decided that on this pitch attack in the answer – five boundaries between them in just eight overs. Warwicks 27-0.
The OT covers were briefly pulled off but now they are being pulled back on again. The sopper sopps.
Surrey are batting at Trent Bridge, a four for Rory Burns off big Josh Tongue. Sibley booking in for bread and breakfast.
Circling thunder and lightning means they’ve aborted the clear-up operation in progress at OT.
Lunchtime-ish scores
DIVISION ONE
Chelmsford: Essex 142-6 v Hampshire 235
Sophia Gardens: Glamorgan 66-4 v Somerset 354
Trent Bridge: Nottinghamshire 415 v Surrey
Hove: Sussex 125-2 v Leicestershire 328
Edgbaston: Warwickshire 147 and 7-0 v Yorkshire 152
DIVISION TWO
The County Ground: Derbyshire 447-5 v Northamptonshire
Bristol: Gloucestershire 325 v Kent 99-3
Old Trafford: Lancashire 201 v Middlesex 116-5
New Road: Worcestershire 278-9 v Durham
In Div 2, Derbyshire bat on and on against Northants, though Conway has three wickets. 431-5.
At Canterbury, Mikey Cohen and Sam Northeast are joining Crawley in an early bath, but Ben Dawkins and Tawanda Muyeye are sticking it out. Kent 96-3.
And after the failure of the top order, Worcestershire continue to battle at New Road. Twenty overs but no more wickets for Stokes. Worcs 272-9.
It’s continuing to rain at OT where we’ve taken an early lunch.
As the rain continues, Ken Grime plays us Red Rose/The Ballad of David Hughes as recorded by Lancs CCC at Strawberry Studios in Stockport in 1972. It’s certainly of its time…
Actually they’re all out. Losing six for 15 in 14 overs. Five catches for Rob Yates. Bad Yorkshire.
Four wickets for OHD at Edgbaston, Yorkshire have subsided – losing five for 15 since Harry Brook was bowled chasing an elaborate drive. Yorks 152-9 only lead Warwicks by five.
Now hosing it down at OT.
Rain at OT
Or maybe bad light. Anyway, they’ve come off – Middlesex 116-5, Leus du Plooy 39 not out. Looks pretty miserable to be honest.
Dan Hughes collects a rapid fifty at Hove, after Tom Clark and Dan Ibrahim were both extracted c Rishi Patel, b Tom Helm. Sussex 85-2 trail Leics by 328.
Notts’ tail is causing Surrey some frustration. Joe Clarke was out without adding to his overnight score but 41 from Fergus O’Neill and 25 not out from Olly Stone has added another 58. Notts 375-9.
Glammy have lost both openers, ul Hassan following Asa Tribe back into the dressing room. A wicket each for Gregory and Ball. Glamorgan 38-2, trail by 316.
James Fuller has been chopping through Essex, though has hit some resistance in the shape of Matt Critchley and Wiaan Mulder. Essex 104-5, trail Hants by 131.
(a fearsome drive by du Plooy off Stanley – ping! over mid off)
Some nasty looking skies approaching from behind the OT pavilion. Higgins and du Plooy at the moment fighting off the Lancashire storm 90-4, trail by 111. Time to wander round the grounds.
Oooof, a nasty, brutish delivery from Mitchell Stanley to unsettle Ryan Higgins.
Another talked about opener falls early – Asa Tribe caught for four. Glamorgan 16-1 after Somerset picked up another 17 runs for the last wicket.
Brook out!
and Bairstow, both bowled. Brook driving, Ethan Bamber picking out off stump. YJB totally misjudging Olly Dannon-Dalby and watching the ball jingle into his stumps. Yorkshire 142-6, still trail by five.
No hundred for Falconer on Championship debut, a chorus of bouncing slips and an imploring Tom Bailey enough for the umpire to raise an off-you-go finger to an lbw shout.
Poor Zak Crawley out again cheaply, chopping on . I really hope this doesn’t disintegrate into a Haseeb Hameed 2019 summer and that someone has an arm round his shoulder. Kent 13-1.
An injury replacement here at OT – Yorkshire’s Harry Duke has joined Middlesex for a two-week loan to replace Joe Cracknell, who hurt a finger standing up to Jennings yesterday. Middlesex 50-3.
Five slips, Jimmy pistoning in. Middlesex supporters, hunker down.
A test for young Caleb Faulkner on county debut, who scored 100 in the U19 World Cup final.
That didn’t take long. Jimmy Anderson comes on at the Jimmy Anderson end, and first ball Ben Geddes gives a catch back.
Raf runs her eye over England’s summer, and a first captaincy gig for Charlie Dean.
Ali’s trip to Worcester to see Ben Stokes bowl.
Friday’s round-up
The vacancy sign over one England openers slot continues to swing. The selectors fancy James Rew, but he keeps wicket and bats in the middle order for Somerset. How to square the circle? Friday’s answer was Rew opening for Somerset for the first time in his first-class career. It was a short-lived experiment, Rew lasting just seven balls before being bowled for four.
Around Rew there were runs for young Josh Thomas (71) and Tom Lammonby (45) before Glamorgan debutant Tom Norton picked the first of three wickets. Tom Abell’s 86 propped up the rest of the innings.
Dan Worrall slipped into his Surrey bowling boots for the first time this spring and soon dismissed Nottinghamshire’s openers. He pocketed another wicket when Ben Duckett (42) fended at a lifter, and another two in a mini Notts collapse of four for five. Joe Clarke’s unbeaten 129, his second century of a rich early season, kept Notts in the match.
Middlesex’s skilled young seam attack made Lancashire work hard for their runs, Keaton Jennings (67), was, as ever, the glue. James Anderson then reduced Middlesex to 38 for two as the clouds closed in.
Jack White (four for 49) and his band of Yorkshire right-arm seamers ruined Warwickshire, a string of single digit scores strung together by 57 from Sam Hain. Harry Brook, in his first innings of the summer, got off the mark with an outrageously dismissive cover drive.
Half-centuries for Jake Lehmann and Ben Brown hauled Hampshire towards near respectability against Essex. A marauding Sam Cook (three for 56) took out the top order and Wiaan Mulder finished things off.
Sussex kept Leicestershire in sight, despite dropping six catches. Jack Carson pocketed four wickets and the impressive Ollie Robinson three.
An unbeaten 91 from Caleb Jewell topped a morale-boosting day for Derbyshire against Northamptonshire.
Scores on the doors
DIVISION ONE
Chelmsford: Essex 51-2 v Hampshire 235
Sophia Gardens: Glamorgan v Somerset 337-9
Trent Bridge: Nottinghamshire 317-7 v Surrey
Hove: Sussex 3-0 v Leicestershire 328
Edgbaston: Warwickshire 147 v Yorkshire 110-4
DIVISION TWO
The County Ground: Derbyshire 342-3 v Northamptonshire
Bristol: Gloucestershire 325 v Kent 1-0
Old Trafford: Lancashire 201 v Middlesex 38-2
New Road: Worcestershire 209-7 v Durham
Preamble
Good morning! And welcome to a reassuringly old fashioned Manchester spring day, slightly damp, slightly overcast, slightly muggy at the seams.
It was a day mostly for bowlers yesterday, and we wait to see if Jimmy Anderson can inflict more pain on Middlesex, how Kent fare against Gloucestershire, Essex against Hampshire and Glamorgan against Big Craig and co. It’s already a tight tussle at Trent Bridge, and Harry Brook proved highly entertaining last evening at Edgbaston in the gloom. And all eyes to New Road, where Ben Stokes will go into bat at the ground where he blasted 161 off 88 balls four years ago.
It all starts at 11am, do join us!