Tanya Aldred's round up
The end at Grace Road came with a ball from Glamorgan’s Eddie Byrom that bounced three times and booked a couple of house viewings before it reached Leicestershire’s Rishi Patel. As the slips dropped to their knees, Patel grinned, patted the ball away and the teams shook hands. Patel’s unbeaten 134 was his highest first-class score and comes hot on the heels of the crucial century that helped chase down Yorkshire three weeks ago. Lewis Hill skipped to 82 in a second wicket partnership of 203 which safely zipped up the draw. Chris Cooke had earlier been Glamorgan’s last man out for 132; Chris Wright five for 89. Leicestershire, winless last year, can scent promotion.
Gloucestershire escaped with a draw against Sussex despite slipping to 41 for four following on. Two crucial partnerships saved their bacon between even more crucial rain breaks. The first, between Ajeet Singh-Dale and Miles Hammond (unbeaten on 87), frustrated Sussex until an hour into the morning session. The second was an unbroken 80 between Graeme van Buuren and Ollie Price that carried Gloucester to stumps.
A Sussex side with a twist will contest the next three Championship games, as Ollie Robinson gets some Ashes practice in, alongside Australia’s Steve Smith.
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No final twist in the tale, after the rain does Gloucestershire’s spade work for them, helped by a stoical partnership between van Buuren and Ollie Price. Thanks for all your messages and chat BTL. We’ll be back for Steve Smith and round five on Thursday. Till then, goodnight!
DIVISION TWO TABLE
1 DURHAM (played 4) 64
2 LEICESTERSHIRE (3) 45
3 SUSSEX (3) 41
4 WORCESTERSHIRE (3) 35
5 GLAMORGAN (3) 31
6 GLOUCESTERSHIRE (4) 27
7 YORKSHIRE (3) 21
8 DERBYSHIRE (3) 17
Gloucestershire draw with Sussex
With four overs left, they call it a day.
Bristol: Gloucestershire 248 and 121-4 v Sussex 455-5dec MATCH DRAWN
Gloucestershire 6 points; Sussex 13 points
Play due to restart at Bristol, any time now. I’m going to start writing up but will pop back should there be anyone around to read it! There were 25 overs left but that will shrink again as they continue to mop up.
In other news, thanks to BBC local radio, Ollie Robinson will play the next three games for Sussex, as Steve Smith replaces McAndrew.
Leicestershire draw with Glamorgan
Grace Road: Leicestershire 407 and 252-3 v Glamorgan 465 MATCH DRAWN
It ends with a just audible whimper, a ball from Eddie Byrom that bounces three times before Rishi Patel bats it away. The slips fall to their knees in hysterics, Patel smiles and handshakes all round. A smashing start to the season for Patel, who added his highest f-c score to the superb century against Yorkshire.
Rishi Patel reaches his career best score with a six!
134 on the board and nearly time for everyone to call it a day.
Those four wickets in full – feast on them Sussex, they might be all you get.
The 4⃣ wickets we took before the rain came. 👏 pic.twitter.com/3LvIOnYTzH
— Sussex Cricket (@SussexCCC) April 30, 2023
Meanwhile, at Grace Road, Rishi Patel is closing in on his highest f-c score of 125, and he’s joined by Peter Handscomb after Ackerman was a second wicket for Lloyd. Leics 240-3, 182 ahead.
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The floodlights are on, and the rain is in the wings – can Sussex bustle out another six wickets? It might not matter, the rain has arrived and Gloucestershire vanish in the click of the fingers at 43-4.
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Yikes! Gloucestershire 41 for four. Hunt catches Hammond’s edge and snaffles his third wicket. Time for a Price brothers rearguard?
A near run out….
Miles Hammond is batting again, two overs (and a long rain break) since he walked off, unbeaten on 87. Ah, and now Gloucestershire lose a third, Marcus Harris absolutely lbw to Sean Hunt. Glos 16-3.
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Oh FGS Gloucestershire, I wanted to get this done and dusted at 5 o’clock. So far, they’ve faced two overs and have lost two wickets, five for two, Dent and Bracey both out for ducks.
And the second-wicket partnership between Hill and Patel is broken on 203 as Hill loses his bails to David Lloyd, for a timely and neat 82. A huge appeal against Ackermann first ball gets hearts pumping, but the umpire isn’t interested. Tea drifts onto the horizon.
While you were resting, Lewis Hill has passed 50 and is now well into the seventies. The partnership with Patel stretches to 190. The dog curled up on the sofa sighs. Leicestershire 195-1.
They’ve taken tea at Bristol, with the “hope” of restarting at 3.30pm.
DIVISION ONE
1 SURREY (played 3) 52
2 HAMPSHIRE (3) 45
3 MIDDLESEX (4) 45
4 ESSEX (3) 40
5 WARWICKSHIRE (3) 38
6 KENT (4) 31
7 NOTTINGHAMSHIRE (3) 29
8 LANCASHIRE (3) 29
9 NORTHAMPTONSHIRE (3) 23
10 SOMERSET (3) 22
A hundred for Rishi Patel!
And with a straight drive, Rishi Patel brings up his second century of the year, his second first-class century for Leicestershire. He throws his head back, lifts his bat, and cuddles his captain. Leicestershire safely on the way to zipping up the draw. Leics 158-1.
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Rishi Patel has just shimmied and hit a Marnus dibbly-dobbly no-ball for four.
Some not-so-tricky runs here for Leicestershire if they can stick around. Leics 120 for one.
And in the absence of cricket news, here is some food.
This is the sort of tea that would have us praying for rain. 10/10, @Brad_BingleyCC
— LV= Insurance County Championship (@CountyChamp) April 30, 2023
What would you have on your plate? https://t.co/VeqBOB5ih3
Whatever Rishi Patel had in his lunch, can he post some up to Manchester? He reaches his half century with two sweeps for four, then a dance and smash to hit Andrew Salter for six. 18 from Salter’s over. Leics 102 for one. Are they thinking about setting a target and daring Glamorgan to go for it?
The rain falls, in Bristol. Sussex’s hopes of forcing a result are slipping away with each fat droplet.
Lunch time scores
Division One
Lord’s: Middlesex 229 and 86-1 v Kent 186 and 128 MIDDX WIN BY NINE WICKETS
Edgbaston: Warwicks 150 and 141 v Surrey 281 and 16-1 SURREY WIN BY NINE WICKETS
Division Two
Chester-le-Street: Durham 452-9dec v Derbyshire 165 and 280 DURHAM WIN BY AN INNINGS AND SEVEN RUNS
Bristol: Gloucestershire 248 and 0-0 v Sussex 455-5dec bad light stopped play
Grace Road: Leicestershire 407 and 65-1 v Glamorgan 465
Totally sucked in by the dramatic-music-membership-drive for Leicestershire that they show at lunchtime on the stream – be a part of the moments that matter. Anyway, lunch in our two games – scores to follow.
A thought-provoking interview with Lauren Winfield-Hill, good on how the structure that now sits underneath the top level gives breathing space to those on the edge of the England Women’s set-up.
Only twice in her last nine RHF Trophy innings has Lauren Winfield-Hill failed to pass fifty. But, 12 months ago she was considering quitting cricket altogether.
— Katya Witney (@KatyaWitney) April 30, 2023
Sat down with her a couple of weeks back to chat about her ups and downs last year.https://t.co/9mRIqe3yid
A brisk east midlands wind is blowing across McIlroy’s trousers as he warms up with the ball at the top of his mark.Nice bold numbers on the Leicestershire and Glamorgan shirts; Leicester green, Glamorgan red. The pitch has flattened out and things seem to be softly heading towards handshakes at 5 o’clock.
Early lunch at Bristol
They’re tucking into their vegan burgers (possibly) in the hope that the bad light will relent and allow play after lunch. Gloucestershire yet to start their second innings, following on 207 runs behind.
All power to those drinking the prosecco cocktails on sale at Grace Road. It turns out a sundress and strappy sandals kind of drink can also be a fleece and wooly jumper kind of drink. Leics 38 for one and just 21 runs away from levelling the scores.
Bad light has stopped Gloucestershire’s second innings before it started.
Gloucestershire bowled out...and follow on
Will the weather, or two and a bit solid sessions of batting save Gloucestershire? Gloucs all out 248, Miles Hammond last man standing on 87 as Ajeet Singh-Dale is lbw for ten.
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Good luck to anyone playing club cricket today, hope soggy grounds have recovered in time.
Meanwhile, in the first-class game: Hammond is still there as Gloucestershire successfully see off Sussex for the first hour of the day, now 247-9. Hammond, into the eighties, was dropped in the morning’s second over. And Leicestershire are 22 for one in their second innings, Neser picking up Budinger for one.
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It comes to an end, with Cooke bowled for 132 and Glamorgan pocketing a lead of 58. A deserved five-fer for Chris Wright. Will either side now implode, or is this game going to peter out into a draw.
An early wicket at Grace Road as Wright picks up his fourth wicket of the innings. Cooke remains on 127 – Glamorgan’s lead stretches to 53. Some fascinating non-cricket related reading in the Observer today, including this on our dear departed ex-PM:
Fifty for Miles Hammond!
An excellent back-against-the-wall effort, but how long can Singh-Dale stay with him? Gloucs, 213-9, 242 behind.
At Bristol, the floodlights are on, and the cricket is about to happen.
Chris Cooke mulls on his favourite ground:
“You do rock up at grounds and get good vibes from some of them, whereas others you arrive thinking ‘how I am going to score runs’. There was more in the pitch than when Sam (Northeast) and I were batting last time, but you get value for your shots with the fast outfield. It is a nice place to bat.
“Sam hasn’t got a score yet this season but he is a class act. We’re only in our third game and it is hard to bat in April, but he looked like he was getting into a good rhythm out there today.”
Weather watch
Bristol: Cloudy with occasional showers edging eastwards. Slow-moving downpours and possible thunderstorms by afternoon,
Grace Road: Increasingly cloudy with scattered, slow-moving showers .
Thank you Met office.
Next to bottom of Division Two Yorkshire to learn their fate in the next few days:
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The Hundred, take 2,645
More on the Hundred’s future/death knell:
But Sky might not be pleased:
Further chatter: ECB would breach TV deal with Sky Sports if they axe the Hundred before 2028 | Daily Mail Online https://t.co/iChVvm0gn9
— Cricket Supporters (@yourcricketsa) April 30, 2023
Scores on the doors
Division One
Lord’s: Middlesex 229 and 86-1 v Kent 186 and 128 MIDDX WIN BY NINE WICKETS
Edgbaston: Warwicks 150 and 141 v Surrey 281 and 16-1 SURREY WIN BY NINE WICKETS
Division Two
Chester-le-Street: Durham 452-9dec v Derbyshire 165 and 280 DURHAM WIN BY AN INNINGS AND SEVEN RUNS
Bristol: Gloucestershire 198-9 v Sussex 455-5dec
Grace Road: Leicestershire 407 v Glamorgan 446-8
Saturday's round-up
The heady scent of three-day victory filled London’s air as Surrey and Middlesex danced to nine-wicket wins within minutes of each other.
Surrey, the 2022 champions, turned their grip on Warwickshire on the evening of day two into a knockout thanks to a mature innings from Jamie Smith and fearsome bowling from Kemar Roach, leaving them 22 for four at lunch. Only Ed Barnard offered resistance and Surrey needed 11 runs to polish things off. Roach finished with five wickets, Dan Worrall three.
There was high praise for Smith’s 88 from Surrey’s head coach, Gareth Batty: “It’s not his highest score by any stretch but it’s the best I have seen him play, against a very strong attack in difficult conditions… If he keeps playing like that, he will be another one that we won’t be seeing around much, which is a big positive for him and for England.”
Surrey take their place at the top of the Division One table after handing out a thrashing to Hampshire and Warwickshire in quick succession, reinforcing their position as the team to beat.
Middlesex, whose batting had become a cheap joke over the first two games, bounced back with victory over Kent to follow the declaration-and-chase win against Nottinghamshire last week. Despite the best efforts of Ben Compton and Jack Leaning, Kent’s wheels fell off, shortly followed by the electric windows and the windscreen wipers as they lost seven wickets for 22 either side of lunch.
Tim Murtagh, now a player-coach, shoved his 1,000th wicket for Middlesex in his rucksack in the process of picking up six for 42, and 10 wickets in the match. The target of 86 was knocked off with the loss of Mark Stoneman.
Cheteshwar Pujara strode to his seventh century for Sussex in his 12th match. This was a sedate affair early on, but he put his foot down to help Sussex to maximum batting points. A game that looked a certain draw after rain washed out the first day, then sprang into life as Nathan McAndrew winkled out five of Gloucestershire’s batters.
Chris Cooke made another century at the ground where he bashed 191 in Sam Northeast’s record-breaking game last year. He and Michael Neser put on 211 for the eighth wicket, a record for Glamorgan, to make the game safe against Leicestershire.
Durham duly defeated Derbyshire by an innings and seven runs, despite plucky resistance from Matt Lamb, lbw for 99. Matthew Potts captured five for 65.
Preamble
Good morning! Pull on your bed socks and percolate the coffee, a gentle day on the blog in prospect today with just two games still in progress after Surrey, Durham and Middlesex powered to victory yesterday. At Grace Road, Chris Cooke made hay at his favourite ground and took Glamorgan to a 39-run lead; while Gloucestershire suffered an attack of collapsitus at Bristol, losing nine for 88 after Marcus Harris was run out.
Come join us for some relaxing Sunday morning chat.
