Fifty for George Bell
Lancashire’s off-on-off wicketkeeper – sent to Essex on loan – collects fifty, he and Akhter frustrating Yorkshire with an unbroken eighth wicket partnership of 60. Essex 157-7, still 233 behind.
A wave to the Guardian’s Will Unwin who rang the five minute bell today at Old Trafford, asked by a unwary steward who didn’t know the red rose fury within. Dhariwal and Taylor have now stretched the lead to 215, which feels enough already although conditions are looking easier.
A couple of wickets this morning – Kent’s Mahmud in the action again, removing the adhesive Montgomery for 46 (Derby 111-2 lead by an already hefty 192); and Dillon Pennington giving Eddie Jack an unwelcome 22nd birthday present, lbw for 3. Hampshire 278-8 trail impatient Notts by 99.
Knight-Stokes Cup
Today four schools will fight it out in the inaugral Knight-Stokes Cup finals at Lord’s, the welcome (if long-overdue) competition open to all state secondaries
11am: Boys’ Final: Altrincham Grammar School (Cheshire) v. John Hampden Grammar School (Bucks)
3pm: Girls’ Final: Penistone Grammar School (Yorkshire) v. Chelmsford County High School (Essex)
The winners will have their names etched onto a new honours board in the Pavilion’s Writing Room. To enter a school for next year see here.
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In the vast expanse of OT, people are scattered like lost buttons as JA runs in from the JA end. And now George Balderson resumes from the George Balderson end.
Glamorgan's Dawson: 'An unacceptable performance'
A cheesed off Glamorgan coach Richard Dawson after they were bowled out for 69 and 65:
“I’ve said to the boys that was an unacceptable performance, in front of our home fans.
“I thought yesterday was the bottom of the hole, and the frustration is repeating the mistakes not only from the first innings but from the last few games. If you want to learn, you’ve got to be honest with yourself, look in the mirror and work out what you need to do, then work forward rather than burying your head in the sand.
“Sometimes you’ve got to find a way through a tough period, Warwickshire were disciplined, their seam attack were on the money and they’ve got a top-class spinner.
“We’ve got to be honest, front up and go again because we’ve got another massive challenge next week [against Surrey]. We’re not burying our heads in the sand, we can’t kid ourselves where we’re at.”
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“Top o’ the mornin’ to you, Tanya,” hello there Tim Maitland.
“My mind has been, not distracted exactly, but scrambled - yes scrambled is the word - by the sight of Rahul Chahar running between umpire and stumps to bowl leggies right hand over the wicket for Surrey at Hove.
“Why it’s taken me so long to even notice is not the point, although perhaps it’s because the 27 year old’s last T20i involvement and his only ODI were both in 2021, thus proving that it’s not just England who chew up and spit out spin bowlers long before they’ve reached maturity.
“Chahar still looks like his torso is heading towards gully as he somehow manages to propel the pill towards the stumps. Now I’ll admit that I’m probably more adverse to contortions than most having endured a sacrum that will twist out of position at the mere mention of Chubby Checker (key learning, don’t try to train full time with professional footballers after you;ve turned 40), but that delivery isn’t just “quirky”, as the Sussex commentary team described it. It is in direct contradiction to all of the Laws of Nature!
“Meanwhile, did you notice Ishan Kishan, tried and rejected as a red ball player after just two tests in the Caribbean in 2023, ripping up trees in one of the pinnacles of the long form game in India; the Duleep Trophy? Kishan, captaining East Zone, followed up his 270 at a strike rate of 80.83 in their mammoth first innings with another 80 at 81.63 in the second.”
A reminder to tune in at Hove! Thank you.
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Warwickshire batter Glamorgan inside two days
Warwickshire threw a bear-shaped gauntlet on the Championship turf by demolishing Glamorgan in less than two days and taking temporary possession of top spot.
After claiming a first-innings lead of 322 through half centuries from Sam Hain and Ed Barnard, Warwickshire’s bowlers spatchcocked Glamorgan for 65, including five noughts. Ed Barnard’s five for 13 topped the leaderboard. Glamorgan, who made just 130 runs in the match, fell to their biggest loss since 1936. Warwickshire waved 22 points.
Jake Lehmann’s unbeaten 115 kept relegation-flirters Hampshire in it at Trent Bridge. A seventh-wicket stand of 97 with Scott Currie frustrated Notts who had one eye on events at Sophia Gardens.
A second century partnership of the match between Tom Lammonby and Josh Thomas shimmied fellow pennant-chasers Somerset to a dominant position. They had earlier whipped out Leicestershire for 157. Leicestershire’s top scorer was Nick Kelly, whose 39 was interrupted when a wasp flew inside his shirt.
At the other end of Division One, Yorkshire’s Dom Bess and Kuldeep Yadav bewildered Essex, with three wickets each. They had earlier frustrated in an eighth-wicket stand of 83, Bess undefeated on 80. Essex were further hit when Jamie Porter limped off, though Sam Cook later returned from the Test.
Durham’s serene passage back to Division One continued as their big beasts turned on the charm. Brydon Carse whistled through the Middlesex tail to finish with five wickets. Ben McKinney then delighted with his third free-flowing century of the summer.
There were 22 wickets in the frantic basement battle at Old Trafford. After bowling out Gloucestershire for 212, Lancashire were dismissed for 134, something of a triumph from 43 for six, with Will Williams pocketing a career best six for 24 at his former home. George Balderson top scored and then high-kneed through 13 overs on the trot to take four for 23 as Gloucestershire wilted to 118 for eight – but with a crucial lead of 189.
Ben Aitchison passed 50 wickets for the season as Derbyshire dominated against Kent, whose promotion rivals Northamptonshire had a good day against Worcestershire thanks to 110 from Saif Zaib and three evening wickets from Harry Conway.
Scores
Division One
Sophia Gardens: Warwickshire 391 BEAT Glamorgan 69 and 65 by 257 runs
Grace Road: Leicestershire 157 v Somerset 363 and 166-3
Trent Bridge: Notts 377 v Hampshire 267-7
Hove: Sussex 393 v Surrey
Headingley: Yorkshire 390 v Essex 137-7
Division Two
Derby: Derbyshire 300 and 100-1 v Kent 219
Chester le Street: Durham 252 and 204-2 v Middlesex 203
Old Trafford: Lancashire 134 v Gloucestershire 212 and 118-8
New Road: Worcestershire 200 and 55-3 v Northamptonshire 289
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Preamble
Good morning! Only ten cricketing dawns left till the end of the season, and who knows how many till our AI masters destroy us all. In the meantime, autumn falls and settles. Warwickshire have points in the bag, can Somerset and Notts push through? Will Kent re-find their mojo, will Northants sneak through on the inside? And who will win the Williams v Balderson nibble-nibble contest at Old Trafford. All this and more from 10.30am, do join us.
