Pro40 Cricket - 10th June & Tables

Five Pro40 matches today, in the final cricket before the Twenty20 competiton. There was play in every match, but two ended without result due to the weather.


Pro40

Glamorgan v Durham - Glamorgan win by 15 runs
Glamorgan won the toss and decided to bat
Gla - 163
Dur - 148

Glamorgan seemed to have made the wrong decision to bat first after they were rolled over in 34.3 overs, but it soon became clear 164 would not be easy to chase.
     Three wickets for nine runs stopped a decent start by Glamorgan but opener Rees' 28 turned out to be the highest knock of the innings, as several other players got 20s but failed to push on. Stokes was thee pick of the bowlers, who shared the wickets, taking 3 for 24.
     Durham also made it to 20 before losing a wicket but very quickly found themselves 44-5 with Simon Jones tucking into the top order. Richardson (45) and Smith (21) lead a recovery as they put on 39 for the sixth wicket, but with the required run rate climbing they ran out of steam, and batsmen.

Star Player: Jones, for his 4 for 23 off 8 overs to scupper Durham's chances of what should have been an easy win.


Middlesex v Lancashire - Middlesex win by 167 runs
Lancashire won the toss and decided to field
Mid - 350-6
Lan - 183

Lancashire were undoubtedly tired having only finished playing in Nottingham at 6pm last night, which made it an even stranger decision to bowl first. Middlesex tucked into the visiting attack as first Denly made 58, then Stirling (119) and Morgan (116) reached centuries. Together they put on 126 for the third wicket in 11 overs. Morgan's hit eleven 6s in a knock lasting just 54 balls! Keedy did dismiss both batsmen as part of his 5 wickets for 55.
     Lancashire needed a powerful start if they were to have any hope, but, as often happens in these games, they lost wickets instead, collapsing to 22-3 after 5.1 overs. That became 33-4 and 55-5, double numbers becoming a feature strangely. Shahzad hit a 6 and Horton made 49 but the game was already over.

Star Player: Morgan, for his blistering hundred from 49 balls, the fastest of any player so far this season, to put the game beyond the reach of Lancashire.


Worcestershire v Gloucestershire - Gloucestershire win by 109 runs
Gloucestershire won the toss and decided to bat
Glo - 238-6
Wor - 129

William Gidman made a strong 76 at the top of the order, but regular wickets at the other end prevented big partnerships from building, until the arrival of his brother, Alex (59). Together they put on 97 to take the visitors to 200. In the end they had to settle for a par score to set up an exciting contest.
     That thought was soon dismissed though as Worcestershire's top order was blown away, causing them to crash to 25-5 in just over 10 overs. Late runs lifted the total but but would never save a sorry home side.

Star Player: William Gidman, after top scoring he then picked up two wickets to help in Worcestershire's demise. His final figures were 6o-2m-10r-2w.


Kent v Northamptonshire - No result
Kent won the toss and decided to field
Nor - 168-5
Ken - 6-0

Rain struck several times throughout the first innings, steadily reducing the number of overs possible. After 29 overs, with Northamptonshire on 137-4, the match was reduced again to 32 overs per side. The visitors however scored 30 runs from the final three overs to finish strongly. Earlier Wakely hit 42 with three 6s.
      Due to the wonders of Duckworth/Lewis Kent then had to chase 203 from their 32 overs, but were saved by more rain after just one over that ended the game.


Sussex v Derbyshire - No result
Derbyshire won the toss and decided to field
Sus - 111-5

More rain meant this game was called off with only 24 overs bowled. Derbyshire had taken the upper hand after Groenewald took 3 for 30 from his 8 overs, but sadly play had to be abandoned when it became obvious the weather wasn't going to clear.


Tables

Group A

	Team	Played	Points
1	Netherlands	8	11
2	Middlesex	6	7
3	Lancashire	5	6
4	Gloucestershire	5	6
5	Worcestershire	6	6
6	Essex	5	3
7	Leicestershire	5	1

Group B

	Team	Played	Points
1	Surrey	6	10
2	Hampshire	6	9
3	Durham	5	6
4	Nottinghamshire	4	4
5	Scotland	7	4
6	Glamorgan	4	3
7	Somerset	4	0

Group C

	Team	Played	Points
1	Warwickshire	5	8
2	Sussex	5	8
3	Kent	5	6
4	Yorkshire	5	5
5	Unicorns	7	5
6	Derbyshire	5	3
7	Northamptonshire	6	3

This will be my final post for three weeks or so, partly as I will be away, but also to take a break during the Twenty20. Later in the competition I will provide more reports, scores and stats, but for now, thanks and see you later.

County Championship R10 - D4 & Tables

The final day of Championship cricket for a few weeks saw some exciting play ahead of a break for more Pro40 and the Twenty20 competition.

County Championship

Day 4

Sussex v Surrey - Sussex win by 10 wickets
Sur - 124 & 248
Sus - 351 & 22-0

Sussex needed nine wickets to beat Surrey, while the visitors needed another 188 to avoid an innings defeat. Wickets did fall steadily thoughout the day as several players made starts but failed to push on, and shortly before tea Surrey did find themselves in trouble on 181-7, still 46 runs behind. The visitors passed Sussex's total, but almost immediately lost their ninth wicket. Still they fought on with Hamilton-Brown (47) providing the impetus, but with the lead on 21 he was bowled to leave Sussex on the brink of victory. Indeed it took just 1.5 overs for Sussex to reach their target with Joyce hitting 19 off 11 balls.
     Sussex take 22 points, but Surrey get just 3.


Nottinghamshire v Lancashire - Match drawn
Lan - 350-9d & Forfeit
Not - Forfeit & 293-7

Chapple and Read got together before the start of play in Nottingham to set up a game. The deal quickly became clear with four overs bowled by Taylor and Lumb as Hogg (61) and Kerrigan took Lancashire to 350, with a last wicket partnership of 99*. Both teams then forfeited an innings meaning the hosts would have a minimum of 90 overs to score 351.
     Nottinghamshire began badly however losing Hales for 0 from the fourth ball. His partner, Wessels departed soon after to put Lancashire on top. Lumb and Patel then scored well up to lunch but the latter was caught just before the break to level the game again.
     In the first over after lunch Lumb went lbw as the visitors took the upper hand again and the run rate soon dipped. Taylor and Voges played steadily throughout the afternoon session and built a good partnership until Voges danced down the wicket and was easily stumped for 55. Taylor and Read then put on 61 for the sixth wicket before Taylor went lbw for 67.
     Adams was promoted up the order, but came out with a runner, due to his injured ankle. Seven men were put on the boundary and Adams found one of them (Chapple) first ball to almost effectively end the run chase. Read and Franks then sucessfully saw out the draw.
     Nottinghamshire get 6 points and Lancashire 7


Kent v Hampshire - Match drawn
Ham - 303-8d & Forfeit
Ken - Forfeit & 220-6

In a similar match to that in Nottingham, Hampshire made some quick runs this morning to set Kent a target of 304, after two innings forfeits. Kent began steadily, going to 75 before losing their first wicket. However, after Ben Harmison departed with the score on 99-2 the run rate dropped and by tea the draw was the favoured result.
     Kent however, were not finished, Stevens and Northeast (79) started to bat harder, which worked for a while, but then both were dismissed for just 13 runs to leave the hosts on 160-4, and once again the draw seemed most likely. Two more wickets fell to all but end Kent's hopes but reignite Hampshire's. Kent batted sensibly however and prevented the result.
     Kent pick up 5 points to Hampshire's 6

Northamptonshire v Essex - Match drawn
Ess - 400-6
Nor - 200-3

Essex and Nothamptonshire opted for a battle for bonus points, one which Essex dominated as they launched themselves to 400 despite having been 57-4 earlier in the week. In-form Bopara (174) and Foster (135) put on 294 for the fifth wicket, and in just 74 overs. The fifth batting point still looked out of reach but 26 from ten Doeschate lifted them to 400. They then declared to try and steal a few bowling points as well.
     Although the draw was clear at five o'clock the battle went on with Essex taking a second wicket and shortly after Middlebrook (100) reached his century. Not long later though he became the third batsman to be bowled to give Essex the bowling point they had been striving for. Northamptonshire had the last laugh though by reach 400 right at the end of play.
     Northamptonshire collect 6 points against Essex's 9


Glamorgan v Yorkshire - Match drawn
Gla - 117-3

No play
Glamorgan get 3 points, while Yorkshire pick up 4.

Tables

Division 1

	Team	Played	Points
1	Nottinghamshire	8	107
2	Warwickshire	7	106
3	Somerset	9	96
4	Middlesex	8	95
5	Sussex	8	78
6	Lancashire	9	64
7	Surrey	8	56
8	Worcestershire	7	42
9	Durham	8	36

Division 2

	Team	Played	Points
1	Derbyshire	9	121
2	Yorkshire	8	89
3	Kent	8	89
4	Northamptonshire	9	82
5	Hampshire	8	80
6	Gloucestershire	8	72
7	Essex	8	68
8	Leicestershire	9	55
9	Glamorgan	9	40

County Champ R10 - D4/3 and Pro40 Cricket

More rain, and more draws. Plus a bizarre Pro40 match in the Netherlands.

County Championship

Day 4

Middlesex v Somerset - Match drawn
Som - 173 & 227-7
Mid - 364-3d

Middlesex declared on their overnight score, with Somerset 191 behind, and soon had the visitors in trouble on 4-2. Compton, though batted excellently to take the game away from Middlesex, with 69 not out. It didn't stop Somerset sweating on 113-5 or 176-7, but with 50 from Trego it was enough to see out the draw.


Durham v Warwickshire - Match drawn
Dur - 277 & 147-7
War - 197

No play due to rain
Durham take 8 points, while Warwickshire pick up 6.


Leicestershire v Derbyshire - Match drawn
Lei - 177
Der - 259-5

No play due to rain
Leicestershire get 4 points, but Derbyshire collect 8.


Day 3

Nottinghamshire v Lancashire
Lan - 321-9

Nottinghamshire have been struck by the disease of being unable to take the final wicket, a regular illness on the county circuit. Lancashire progressed from 271 overnight to 321 without losing a wicket, taking the final wicket partnership to 70, with Hogg on 44 (the second highest score of the innings) and Kerrigan on 22.
     A draw now looks the mostly likely option, with bonus points the aim, but if a full day tomorrow is possible a deal may be struck to try and find a winner.

Sussex v Surrey
Sur - 124 & 39-1
Sus - 351

Some astonishing lower order batting gave Sussex's innings an oddly unbalanced look. Taking away Wells's 127, the rest of the top seven contributed 51. However the bottom four put together 163 to take the home side past 350, despite having been 87-6 and 236-8. Anyon finished 64 not out.
     Surrey are now in deep trouble, still 188 runs behind, and must bat almost all of tomorrow, or pray for more rain, to survive this match.

Kent v Hampshire
Ham - 90-3

Hampshire edged along today in search of batting points and reached their first before the close. Dawson is 111 not out overnight, so if he is at all superstitious I'm sure all kinds of odd things will be going on.

Northamptonshire v Essex
Ess - 195-4

No play due to rain


Glamorgan v Yorkshire
Gla - 117-3

No play due to rain



Pro40 Cricket

Netherlands v Worcestershire
Worcestershire won the toss and chose to field.
Net - 57
Wor - 61-1

There was rain on the continent today too, although nowhere near enough to stop this short encounter. The Netherlands may be top of their group but they were wiped away by Worcestershire. A few drops of rain stopped play briefly after 2.3 overs, with the hosts on 9-1. On returning they progressed easily to 23-1, unaware of the carnage to come. Swart was dismissed for 3 and followed 1 run later by Barresi. Cooper, the top scorer with a wopping 25, went lbw with the score on 33-4 and Borgas left with the total still the same. After 12.2 overs and the score on 34-5 more rain arrived and the game was reduced to 39 overs a side, possibly unnecessarily. Borren scored 12, the only other player to pass 5 but was the eighth man out and soon after the innings was over.
     Worcestershire began cautiously, scoring 13 from the first 4 overs. Clearly the pitch was proving more than a handful, and it soon did for Ali (5, from 22 balls). Solanki (39*) and Hughes saw the game through though in 13.1 overs, to complete a comfortable, if unexpected, victory.

County Championship Round 10 - Day 3/2

Heavy rain across the whole country meant very little play today.

County Championship

Day 3

Durham v Warwickshire
Dur - 277 & 147-7
War - 197

Warwickshire bowled well to set up an exciting game in Durham. Woakes picked up 3 for 36 as the home side were reduced to 116-7, but 29* from Collingwood has lifted the lead to 227 overnight.

Middlesex v Somerset
Som - 173
Mid - 364-3

Middlesex increased their lead to move into a commanding position. Tomorrow they will aim to bowl out Somerset for fewer than their current 191 run lead, if there is enough playing time. Joe Denly has gone to 116 not out.

Leicestershire v Derbyshire
Lei - 177
Der - 259-5

Derbyshire extended thier lead oveer Leicestershire in the few overs possible today, without losing a wicket. Redfern is now 81 not out.

Day 2

Glamorgan v Yorkshire
Gla - 117-3

No play due to rain

Northamptonshire v Essex
Ess - 195-4

Essex added 57 runs today with Bopara moving on to 87*, and Foster 60*.

Nottinghamshire v Lancashire
Lan - 272-9

Adams took his 600th first class wicket today as part of his 3rd, five-wicket haul of the season, but Lancashire are still batting in this fixture

Sussex v Surrey
Sur - 124
Sus - 90-6

Sussex went from 81-2 to 90-6 today as Meaker picked up 3 for 22. Wells is still there, however, on 38 not out.

Kent v Hampshire
Ham - 90-3

Hampshire added 40 runs today without losing a wicket. Katich is 43 not out.

County Championship Round 10 - Day 2/1

Five more matches started today, to add to the three begun yesterday.


County Championship

Day 2

Durham v Warwickshire
Dur - 277 & 28-2
War - 197

Durham were dismissed fairly cheaply this morning, as Barker and Woakes both took four wickets to even the game. The home side will have been hoping to reach at least 300 but when Collingwood was lbw early in the day that target became harder.
     Chopra (29) and Westwood (36) then put on 61 for the first wicket but soon Warwickshire were in trouble as they lost 5 wickets for 29 runs. After a short recovery more wickets fell to leave the visitors on 168-9, but stern resistance from last man Wright (21*) almost took Warwickshire to 200. Rushworth finished with 5 for 46 as Durham took an 80 run lead.
     Play was still possible under apparently the only sunshine in the country and Warwickshire used it to fight back again, picking up two wickets, both lbw.


Middlesex v Somerset
Som - 173
Mid - 285-2

Middlesex only used four bowlers as they came back strongly this morning to nip out 6 batsmen for just 43 runs. Kieswetter was first to go, caught behind, one of Simpson's five catches in the innings.
     The hosts showed that there was nothing wrong with the conditions though as they built the beginnings of a huge score. Rogers went to 173 and Denly 94*, with the pair putting on 245 for the second wicket, in just over 52 overs, to leave Somerset in deep trouble.


Leicestershire v Derbyshire
Lei - 177
Der - 191-5

Derbyshire inched towards Leicesterhire's small total as several players got going but failed to kick on to big scores. However Redfern (40*) and Wainwright added 41* before rain forced an early finish.


Day 1

Glamorgan v Yorkshire
Glamorgan won the toss and decided to bat
Gla - 117-3

Just 34 overs were possible at Colwyn Bay where so far every batsman had reached double figures, with Walters (37*) top scoring.


Northamptonshire v Essex
Essex won the toss and decided to bat
Ess - 138-4

Essex recovered well from 57-4, with in the in-form Bopara scoring 65 not out to boost his team's total. Pettini had made 32 from 81 balls, while Shah was run out having faced just 1 ball.


Nottinghamshire v Lancashire
Nottinghamshire won the toss and decided to field
Lan - 203-6

Adams was yet again amongst the wickets in a rain interrupted day in Nottingham. Lancashire were inserted and struggled early on slipping to 69-3. Croft added 29, before being caught behind, Chris Read's 700th catch for Nottinghamshire. Prince though eased his way to a good half-century. Shortly after he was dropped on 51 by Hales at 1st slip in a rare moment of error in the field. Cross (35) helped put on 52 for the sixth wicket to take the total past 200, but was caught brilliantly by a diving Taylor, just as the rain returned.


Sussex v Surrey
Sussex won the toss and decided to field
Sur - 124
Sus - 81-2

Sussex made good their decision to bowl first by dismissing Surrey in just over 40 overs. Anyon (4 for 63) and Magoffin (4 for 27) ripped through the visitors top order leaving them 32-5 before 32 from Batty lifted the score towards three figures.
     Nash (38) and Wells (33*) then put all other batsmen to shame by building easily the biggest partnership of the match so far (69), up to the close.


Kent v Hampshire
Kent won the toss and decided to field
Ham - 50-3

Kent used the damp of the morning to take three Hampshire wickets in the 15 overs avaliable today. Katich is 21 not out overnight.

County Champ R10 - D1 and Pro40 Cricket & Tables

Three matches begin another round of Championship matches, with more starting tomorrow, plus three Pro40 games to complete the Jubilee weekend of fixtures.


County Championship

Day 1

Durham v Warwickshire
Durham won the toss and decided to bat
Dur - 228-5

Durham lost two early wickets but slowly took the upper hand thanks to 47 from Smith, and 66 from Stokes. Collingwood finished the day 43 not out, as bad weather cut short play

Middlesex v Somerset
Middlesex won the toss and decided to field
Som - 130-4

Only half the day's play was possible as rain interrupted Somerset's innings. The visitors were struggling on 1-2, but Hildreth (58) and Kieswetter (48*) helped restore the ballance a little. All four bowlers have picked up a wicket to keep things even in the Middlesex camp.


Leicestershire v Derbyshire
Leicestershire won the toss and decided to bat
Lei - 177
Der - 5-0
Leicestershire struggled against their midland rivals slipping to 111-7 before a partnership of 58 between Ali (48) and Buck lifted their total. Groenewald picked up 5 for 29.
     Only three overs of the Derbyshire innings were possible before rain ended play for the day.


Pro 40

Lancashire v Worcestershire - Lancashire win by 12 runs (D/L method)
Lancashire won the toss and decided to field
Wor - 259-9
Lan - 95-1
A thrilling final over to the Worcestershire innings included four wickets, although no hat-trick, as Shahzad ripped through the tail to prevent Worcestershire from adding vital late runs. Before all that Solanki (121) and Hughes (104) had put on 208 for the second wicket. However no one else made it past 5, meaning the visitors had to settle for a good score rather than a great one.
     In reply Lancashire made a quick start, especially Moore, who raced to 52* from just 45 balls. Rain interrupted play after 11.4 overs, and after a break the target was reduced to 131 from 19 overs. However with 36 runs needed off 29 balls the rain returned and play was abandoned

Star Player: Solanki, despite being on the losing side, for his 121 off 107 balls, with eight 4s and five 6s!

Surrey v Scotland - No result
Scotland won the toss and decided to bat
Sco - 124-4

Rain interrupted this game, although it may have been because everyone wanted to go and see the Queen. Either way after 23 overs, Scotland's innings was cut short, just as it was beginning to gain momentum. Early wickets had left them on 46-4 but a strong partnership between Symes (58*) and Mommsen (30*) had given the visitors a much needed boost.


Unicorns v Kent - No result
Kent won the toss and decided to field
Uni - 177-8
Ken - 9-0

Only four players reached double figures for the Unicorns as they formed a steady 177. Having reached 88-1 Ord (52) was bowled and thereafter wickets fell regularly, causing the run rate to fall. There were two run outs, while the other wickets were shared between the bowlers.
     Sadly rain again meant play ended too soon for a result.


Pro40 Tables

Group A

	Team	Played	Points
1	Netherlands	7	11
2	Lancashire	4	6
3	Middlesex	5	5
4	Gloucestershire	4	4
5	Worcestershire	4	4
6	Essex	5	3
7	Leicestershire	5	1

Group B

	Team	Played	Points
1	Surrey	6	10
2	Hampshire	6	9
3	Durham	4	6
4	Nottinghamshire	4	4
5	Scotland	7	4
6	Glamorgan	3	1
7	Somerset	4	0

Group C

	Team	Played	Points
1	Warwickshire	5	8
2	Sussex	4	7
3	Kent	4	5
4	Yorkshire	5	5
5	Unicorns	7	5
6	Derbyshire	4	2
7	Northamptonshire	5	2

Pro40 Cricket - 4th June

Five more Pro40 matches today and this time five results.


Pro40

Derbyshire v Warwickshire - Warwickshire win by 105 runs
Derbyshire won the toss and decided to field
War - 242-6
Der - 137

Warwickshire built a steady innings having been 66-3 in the fourteenth over. Ambrose made 77 not out, while Maddy and Clarke both added 40s. Derbyshire used eight bowlers but only three took wickets, with Turner's 3 for 40 the best of the bunch.
     Chasing a par score the home side began badly losing 2 wickets for 2 runs and then 2 more with the score on 25. Wickets continued to fall regularly and the highest partnership was the last (33) as Clare knocked the ball around to reach 57. The wickets were sharded with Woakes taking 3 and Piolet 4.
Star Player: Woakes, although not the highest wicket taker, he destroyed the top order and made any chase impossible. He also hit a boundary in his two ball innings.

Essex v Gloucestershire - Essex win by 8 wickets
Essex won the toss and decided to field
Glo - 224-5
Ess - 225-2

Gloucestershire's inning failed to gain any momentum, despite Essex only picking up 5 wickets. Bopara, Smith and ten Doeschate all bowled tight spells as only Williams (77) and Cockbain (52*) made half-centuries.
     Pettini fell third ball for 0, but Bopara and Westley built a huge partnership of 185 to take the game firmly away from the visitors. Westley was eventually stumped for 82, but Bopara continued to see the game out scoring 120.
Star Player: Bopara, a big innings of 120 from 100 balls, plus somee tight bowling has put him back in the England picture.

Hampshire v Scotland - Hampshire win by 6 wickets
Scotland won the toss and decided to bat
Sco - 230-9
Ham - 234-4

All of Scotland's top five made starts but none of them reached half-centuries, with Mommsen (48) coming closest. Wickets fell steadily throughout the innings as Hampshire chipped away. Only Haq defied them finishing 53 not out off the same number of balls. Briggs took 3 for 35 from his 8 overs.
     Hampshire's reply began badly with Adams going for 0 and Vince only making 5. Katich though steadied the ship with 41, before two more quick wickets. The run rate though was never a problem and with Carberry still there the home side strolled to an easy victory. Carberry used the lack of pressure to carry his bat for a huge 148*.
Star Player: Carberry, for his personal best 148, off 122 balls with twenty 4s and three 6s!

Leicestershire v Netherlands - Netherlands win by 43 runs
Leicestershire won the toss and decided to field
Net - 304-3
Lei - 261-9

The Netherlands continued their good run to stay top of their group, with a win at struggling Leicestershire. Swart made 102 to help the visitors compile the biggest total of the day. Cooper and Borgas both provided 60s to lift the Netherlands past 300.
     Cobb was bowled first ball but Sarwan and Du Toit batted well to keep the game alive. 92-1 soon became 94-3 though and Leicestershire were up against it. Another big partnership for the fifth wicket added 80, but ended when Sarwan was run out for an excellent 115, from just 89 balls. Swart then stepped up to dismiss the lower order as the hosts slipped to defeat. On many other days 261 would be a winning total but it wasn't enough today.
Star Player: Swart, for his great all round effort of 102 and figures of 3 for 55.

Nottinghamshire v Somerset - Nottinghamshire win by 5 wickets
Nottinghamshire won the toss and decided to field
Som - 205-8
Not - 209-5
Some great fielding and tight bowling, unlike that of yesterday saw Somerset restricted for once in their batting, No one made a half-century, with Trego (48) coming closest. There were three wickets for the returning Pattinson and three for Ball, playing his first match of the summer.
     Lumb had scored 0 and 1 in his last two innings and so it wasn't so surprising when he charged to 65 from 60 balls to provide all the early impetus Nottinghamshire needed. With Wessels making 55, they put on 79 for the second wicket and put the hosts in a strong postition. Two wickets from Trego slowed the game down but Nottinghamshire eased home with 20 balls to spare.

Star Player: Pattinson, for his tight bowling that prevented Somerset from setting a challenging total. He finished with 3 for 37 in 8 overs.


Tomorrow another round of Championship matches begins, with more starting on Wednesday, as well as three more Pro40s, to which will also come the updated tables.

Pro40 Cricket - 3rd June

Five games were scheduled for today but only two saw any play, and only one made it to a conclusion.

Pro40

Durham v Nottinghamshire - Durham win by .. runs
Nottinghamshire won the toss and decided to field
Dur - 310-4
Not - 219

Durham made a strong start flying to 102-0 off the first 12 overs. Mustard brought up his 50 in 37 balls and Stoneman followed bringing up his in 46 balls. They didn't stop there either but continued to build a huge partnership. Stoneman (72) was finally caught in the batting powerplay after making 183 with his opening partner. Next over Mustard scored his 100th run off just 66 balls, however from his next delivery Carter bowled him, to make it 186-2. Patel picked up his second wicket with his penultimate ball, but Durham marched on, passing 300 in the final over of the innings.
     Lumb departed early and was followed by Hales. Wessels scored 20 but was bowled in the sixth over. Taylor, star of Nottinghamshire's last game,  made just 1, as the visitors slipped to 31-4, all of the wickets taken by Rushworth. When he had Patel caught behind in the tenth over the game was all but over. Nottinghamshire added 47 for the sixth wicket and 99 for the eighth, Franks (57) took 21 off one over from Plunkett and Voges made 74, but it was never going to be enough.

Star Player: Rushworth, for preventing Nottinghamshire from making a quick start to their innings and for taking 5 for 31, in a blistering spell of bowling.


Surrey v Hampshire - No result
Hampshire won the toss and decided to field
Sur - 76-1 (8o)

In a match reduced to 29 overs a side Surrey began quickly, scoring 45 off the first 4 overs. However after 8 overs, with the score on 76-1, rain interrupted again and no more play was possible

Middlesex v Netherlands - No result
No play due to rain

Unicorns v Sussex - No result
No play due to rain

Yorkshire v Northamptonshire - No result
No play due to rain

Five more matches are due to be played tomorrow, and hopefully they will go ahead as planned.

County Champ R9 - D4 & Tables and Pro40 Cricket

Another round of Championship games comes to a close as we approach the half-way point of the competition. Already! I know, I can't believe it either. But don't worry, we'll be taking a break soon, for some rather short matches.
     Another Pro40 match (there's a full round tomorrow), but first the Championship results.


Day 4

Durham v Lancashire - Lancashire win by 2 wickets
Dur - 102 & 267
Lan - 170 & 200-8

This thrilling contest ended late on the fourth day in a great advert for the longer format. With both teams looking for their first win of the season all four results were still possible at 5.50pm. Lancashire only needed 144 more to win this morning, but rain meant play didn't start until almost 3 o'clock. Wickets fell every 20 runs or so, to keep Durham in the hunt, but a partnership of 58 between Proctor (15) and top-scorer Prince (51), put Lancashire firmly in the box seat. However, three wickets for just five runs spun the game on it's head and set up a tense finish. Mustard marshalled his troops well, but it was Onions who caused the most trouble for Lancashire as he tirelessly chipped away at the visiting order.
     With 32 still needed Lancashire lost their eighth wicket and suddenly the game was Durham's to win. Time was running out however and only five overs were left for either side to edge a victory. Hogg (12*) and Shahzad (19*) pushed the visitors closer and left them needing 8 runs from the final over, to be bowled by Harmison. The first ball was a no-ball that cost 3 runs and put the Champions on the front foot. Shahzad then pulled the third ball of the over for four to claim an incredible victory, and leave Durham rock bottom of the table. Onions finished with 6 for 52, but couldn't prevent what always should have been a Lancashire win.
      Durham take 3 points but Lancashire claim 19.


Middlesex v Sussex - Middlesex win by 10 wickets
Sus - 283 & 225
Mid - 491 & 19-0

Sussex just about managed to make Middlesex bat for a second time, but couldn't save the game as the home side polished off an easy victory. With only Brown (53) making a half-century the visitors' chances of batting all day were slim and although they pushed the game beyond tea nothing would stop Middlesex from claiming their third win of the season, and closing the gap to the top three.
     Middlesex collect 23 points while Sussex get 4.


Worcestershire v Somerset - Match drawn
Wor - 340 & 129-7
Som - 298

This game was on the road to nowhere and although worcestershire managed to lose seven wickets, their first innings lead of 42 meant they were safe enough from Somerset's great ability to finish strongly. Shantry collected 5 for 58 as the visitors narrowly missed out on a third batting point, but it was Dockrell (3 for 56) who caused some scares in the afternoon. With the hosts' lead advancing to 171 however the captains shook hands.
     Worcestershire take 9 points to Somerset's 7.

Yorkshire v Northamptonshire - Match drawn
Nor - 253 & 250-6
Yor - 416

Northamptonshire successfully negotiated a tricky final day to force a draw at Yorkshire. Wakely scored 66 from 144 balls to help ensure the visitors passed Yorkshire's score and would close the day out.
     Yorkshire get 11 points and Northamptonshire take 8.

Pro40

Glamorgan v Surrey -  Surrey win by 56 runs (D/L method)
Glamorgan won the toss and decided to field
Sur - 173-9
Gla - 107-9

Surrey posted a relatively measley total despite having been 90-2 in the fifteenth over. Hamilton-Brown made 3 in an opening partnership of 40 with Davies (58) who, in the end, was the highest scorer; only de Bruyn managed to follow him past 50. Glamorgan only used five bowlers but all of them were productive, with Glover, 3 for 53, taking the best figures.
     In reply the hosts made a rather worse start, as often happens when teams are chasing a low target. The first 12 overs yielded only 38 runs at the cost of 2 wickets. De Bruyn only bowled four balls before getting injured and leaving the field, but Surrey continued to dominate. The required run rate wasn't high but regular wickets fell, especially as Kartik tucked into the Welsh side. When Allenby was stumped with the score on 91 the game was effectively over. Two more wickets fell before rain interrupted play and the players never returned.

Star Player: Kartik, his 4 for 27 really finished off the match; Surrey might still have won, but he sealed the victory emphatically.



County Championship Tables

Division 1

	Team	Played	Points
1	Nottinghamshire	7	101
2	Warwickshire	6	100
3	Somerset	8	92
4	Middlesex	7	85
5	Lancashire	8	57
6	Sussex	7	56
7	Surrey	7	53
8	Worcestershire	7	42
9	Durham	7	32

Division 2

	Team	Played	Points
1	Derbyshire	8	113
2	Yorkshire	7	85
3	Kent	7	84
4	Northamptonshire	8	76
5	Hampshire	7	74
6	Gloucestershire	8	72
7	Essex	7	59
8	Leicestershire	8	51
9	Glamorgan	8	37