Championship - May 30

On a day of quite extraordinary highs and lows, spare a thought for Mohammad Ali of Derbyshire who recorded figures of 4-124 against Worcestershire. Nothing particularly unusual - until you learn that he only bowled 12 overs. Anyway, here's the roundup :

Division 1

Kent v Lancashire, Canterbury.

The visitors got off to a dreadful start, losing their first five wickets for just 52. Mark Ealham did the damage with the ball, picking up four wickets in his opening spell. Enter Andrew Flintoff playing in the match solely as a batsman.

Flintoff was devastating, scoring throughout his innings at around a run a ball. Batting with Glen Chapple, the pair added 179 for the sixth wicket to transform the game. Flintoff traded almost exclusively in boundaries, blasting 17 fours and no less than 8 sixes. He eventually departed for 155, seventh out with the total on 284.

With the close approaching, Alamgir Sheriyar made his first telling contribution, bagging the last two wickets with successive deliveries. The way this game has gone, don't bet against a hat-trick when Lancashire are called upon to bat again some time late tomorrow or Sunday.

Lancashire 347 (Flintoff 155, Chapple 66, Ealham 5-54)
Kent 12-0


Nottinghamshire v Essex, Trent Bridge

Those members hoping for a quiet nap on a gloriously sunny day at Trent Bridge were rudely interrupted - frequently - by the rattling of the gate between pavilion and playing area today. Batsman after batsman strode hopefully out to the wicket, only to have to make the forlorn trudge back again to the sanctity of the dressing-rooms shortly afterwards.

Essex won the toss and elected to bat, but were soon in desperate trouble as the seam of Greg Smith cut their upper order apart. Only a partnership of 88 between Jonathan Dakin and Graham Napier, who top scored on 57 allowed them to claw their way past 200.

Within three quarters of an hour of Nottinghamshire starting their innings, the record books were out. Dakin had paired up again, this time with Aussie Scott Brant to all but destroy the home side. The scoreboard showed 19-9 with 'Extras' comfortably on top with 6.

The blushes were spared a little as some desperate hitting by Nadeem Malik and Stuart MacGill added a further 60 in the last seven overs before Brant grabbed his sixth victim of the innings.

There was still time for Essex to start their second innings. Start? There was almost time to finish it as three more wickets fell on a quite farcical day which will have ECB pitch inspectors twitching up and down the country.

Essex 203 (Napier 57, Smith 5-42) and 39-3
Nottinghamshire 79 (Brant 6-45, Dakin 4-22)


Surrey v Sussex, AMP Oval

A typically resolute innings by England discard Graham Thorpe was the highlight of an excellent day for Surrey today at the AMP Oval. Coming in at a precarious 22-2, Thorpe stroked an excellent 156, an innings which included 26 boundaries.

He had plenty of help, too. After a scratchy Ramprakash departed, firstly Ally Brown and then Adam Hollioake smashed the ball all round the ground for seventies. James Kirtley stuck manfully to the task, picking up three wickets as Surrey ended the day nicely placed on 401-8.

Surrey 401-8 (Thorpe 156, Hollioake 77, Brown 74, Kirtley 3-90)


Division 2

Derbyshire v Worcestershire, Derby

Wickets fell in bunches today at Derby. first of all, a resolute century opening partnership between Peters and Singh gave the visitors a great start, then the Derbyshire seamers hit back with three wickets in five overs. Graeme Hick looked on, impassive as he played himself in.

Vikram Solanki hung around for an hour, scoring just six as Hick conducted his own master-class. Brutal in despatching anything remotely wayward, he gave Mohammad Ali a frightful seeing-to, treating the lightning-quick paceman with utter disdain.

Kevin Dean took two in two, then Hick cut loose, racing to his century despite the defensive fields. Cork turned to Welch to tie an end up - a job he did admirably under the circumstances, then finally turned once more to the profligate Ali, as if in desperation. It did the job, accounting for Hick for a splendid 155 which included 24 fours and 4 sixes. Ali's figures of 4-124 look fine in the book, but lose a little gloss when you look at the 'overs bowled' column - just 12.

A desperately poor 59 extras swelled Worcestershire's total to 374. Meanwhile, Gait and di Venuto took Derbyshire on to 24 without loss before the umpires called time.

Worcestershire 374 (Hick 155, Singh 50, Ali 4-124)
Derbyshire 24-0


Northants v Glamorgan, Northampton

Everyone got in, everyone got out. Glamorgan won the toss and elected to bat, but frankly never really made the full use of the conditions as is evident from the fact that, out of a total of 269, eight batsmen went past twenty. None, however, made double that score.

Off-spinner Jason Brown was the pick of the home bowlers, bagging four wickets. It wasn't spin all the way, though, since Andre Nel and Ben Phillips helped themselves to five wickets between them.

It looked a different game when Northamptonshire batted, openers Hussey and White ticking along to 70 without loss at the close.

Glamorgan 269 (Dale 37, Brown 4-52, Phillips 3-33)


Yorkshire v Durham, Headingley

Fresh from their first championship win in two years, Durham must have fancied making it two from two when they surveyed local rivals Yorkshire's threadbare seam attack today. Missing four international bowlers but still with a couple to call on, the home side stuck manfully to their task as Durham ground things out.

Only skipper Jonathan Lewis and Ian Pattison showed much resolve, putting on 132 after Durham were reduced to 51-4. Pattison's 62 took him a little under three hours, but Lewis was still there at the end of the day on 120. For Yorkshire, Darren Gough came through another stiff examination, picking up a couple of wickets.

Durham 267-7 (Lewis 120*, Pattison 62, Kirby 2-40)


Posted by Eddie