Published: 2025-06-23 14:33:32 | Views: 12
Key events
Rhodes sways out of the way of a bouncer, a few guided missiles follow of the sort that hone in on the body. He’s warming up here.
At Trent Bridge, Notts are all out at last, for 487. While Surrey are in touching distance of Worcestershire, but they’ve lost Sam Curran (batting at four). Lawrence joins Sibley (69 not out).
Archer is very much in the Jimmy Anderson mould, neat as a new pin. Gay again finds himself at the wrong end, but whistles away after a quick single. Will Rhodes survives tasty toe-crusher. A double change as Carson comes on at the other end.
Jofra hands the umpire his cap at Chester le Street.
Dillon Pennington’s career-best knock is over, acught and bowled by Dan Moriarty for a run-a-ball 61, Notts 475-9; while at Edgbaston Tom Banton perishes going for a huge woof down the ground – a wicket for that man Jacob Bethell. Somerset 458-6. No make that, 460-8 as Yates gets Vaughan and Pretorius in the next over.
Everyone is now out, post lunch. The first wicket of the session goes to Simon Harmer, who has snaffled Fletcha Middleton for 61, Hants 97-3 following Essex’s 296. And a huge shout from the long limbed figure of Green here at Blackpool – but to no avail.
Lots of activity on the outfield at lunchtime – young men sprinting to bowl, while two stewards in high vis guard the pitch. It’s busy in the club house too, pints clutched close to the chest, a protective arm against the wind. They took a late lunch here to make up time from yesterday, elsewhere things are already underway.
After squinting at the stream, time for a brisk stroll in the sea air.
DIVISION ONE
Chester le Street: Durham 50-0 v Sussex 361
Chelmsford: Essex 296 v Hants 89-2
Trent Bridge: Nottinghamshire 453-8 v Yorkshire
Edgbaston: Warwickshire v Somerset 446-5
New Road: Worcestershire 209 v Surrey 147-1
DIVISION TWO
Bristol: Gloucestershire 187 v Derbyshire 242-2
Blackpool: Lancashire v Kent 279-5
Grace Road: Leicestershire 36-0 v Glamorgan 353
Wantage Road: Northamptonshire 71-1 v Middlesex 413
The clouds have cleared at CLS and it now looks set fair for batting. Just over ten minutes till lunch, and Robinson takes the ball again, marking the end of Archer’s first spell: 4- 2- 11-0. Everything seemed in good working order, easing himself into business. In the words of Ali : “There’s too much emphasis on his pace, he tends to operate in the 80s unless the mood takes him.”
Lees takes on Jack Carson. Four and six – huge and straight. Now Archer again, whites setting sail in the breeze, this time around the wicket to Gay – and relief in the form of a back foot punch for four, and another whipped off the boots. Lees survives his last ball and that’s nine off Jofra’s third over.
A bit of ballast for Durham, as Lees picks up the first four of the innings, but now they face Jofra again. Emilio Gay, whose summer has been famine, and feast, gets the honour again. He ducks a short ball, shoulders arms at another. Archer seems to be picking up speed but I can’t see a speed gun – is anyone at CLS? And that’s a second consecutive maiden.
…and a maiden to top things off.
Flashing a bit of ankle, wearing a sleeve on his right arm, he zips in. A huge appeal first ball – but reality beats romance, nothing doing. Emilio Gay concentrates, hard, three slips wait.
All this waiting calls for a Double Decker from the Blackpool picnic bag. At Edgbaston, Tom Lammonby has eased to a century and he and Tom Abell have put on 104 and counting. Somerset flexing their rarely-seen batting tranquility muscle: 380-3.
John Simpson is toying with us. At the other end at Chester Le Street, Gurinder Sandhu. Jofra Archer kicks his heels at long leg.
[Meanwhile, at Blackpool, Ben Compton goes to his century-warm applause round the ground as he raises his bat to all corner in a window of bright sunlight.]
The stream cameras are showing surround-sound clouds and the commentators report rising damp. Just what Durham’s were dreaming on. Here come the players and the first over goes to…. Ollie Robinson.
A standing ovation for Coles, his first century away from Hove. The last two wickets put on 104 runs, and now we wait for Jofra.
Good morning Mike Daniels! “Looking forward to seeing Ben Kella “which” way bowling with both arms today.” Yes! –There is an interview with him in one of the cricket magazines (apologies, I can’t remember which) talking about how he came to do it – such a great skill to have up your sleeve. It also said he sometimes forgets to tell the umpire which arm he’s bowling with.
At Trent Bridge, Nottinghamshire’s new signing Ishan Kishan, dropped at midwicket on 44, eases his way to fifty. Two in two for the irrepressible Ben Green at Grace Road – actually make that three wickets in his pocket this morning as Glamorgan slip to 317-8, Ingram gone for 56.
Jofra Watch – Sussex are still batting. Stat of yesterday – Rory Burns kept wicket for Surrey in the Championship for the first time in ten years.
And there’s another wicket for Jimmy, a carbon copy of the first, Evison for a duck. Kent suddenly 219-5 and a little more precarious.
A busy scene at Blackpool, the roller chugging, the players warming up in shades and ….sorry about the delay to the rest of this entry, there was a long queue at the Froth Me Silly coffee van. Long enough to miss Jimmy get a wicket with his first ball, Leaning driving a straight one to short midwicket.
With the longest day behind us, the County Championship slipped into its summer sandals once more. Those waiting for Jofra Archer to bowl in his first red-ball match for four years, or Jacob Bethell to audition for the next England batting slot, had to bide their time. But there was plenty more to see.
At Blackpool, the Division Two wooden spoonists gathered. Jimmy Anderson was presented with champagne before play to celebrate his 300th first-class match – but he went wicketless in his first day as interim Lancashire captain, as Kent motored along thanks to an unbeaten 86 from Ben Compton and an easy‑on‑the‑eye half‑century from Tawanda Muyeye. Damp squalls washed out much of the evening session.
At Bristol, the players lined up for a minute’s silence in memory of Gloucestershire’s president, the former fast bowler David Lawrence, who died just a year after announcing his motor neurone disease. Derbyshire had the best of the day as the left-arm spinner Jack Morley winkled through Gloucestershire, finishing with six for 55. Derbyshire then raced to 116 for two.
Jersey’s young batter Asa Tribe hit a maiden first-class century to help Glamorgan to reach a healthy 305 for five against the early‑season table-toppers Leicestershire. Logan van Beek pondered the Kookaburra ball: “In Australia and New Zealand [it] is a good ball – here it feels very different, because the wickets are a touch slower and it just seems to get soft more quickly.”
There was also a maiden first‑class century for Joe Cracknell, as Middlesex fought back from 33 for three – happily for their new first-team coach Dane Vilas – against Northamptonshire at the County Ground.
It was an uncharacteristically smooth day for Somerset’s batters against Warwickshire at Edgbaston, after the openers Tom Kohler Cadmore (104) and Josh Davey put on 186 for the first wicket. Bethell was clonked for 23 in his first two overs.
Sussex’s James Coles was happy to let England wait a little longer for Archer, making his first Division One century, against Durham on a damp day at the Riverside. Archer smacked a quick‑fire 31 at No 10.
Ben Slater fell four runs short of his century for Nottinghamshire against Yorkshire on an absorbing day at Trent Bridge, while the 20-year-old Charlie Allison hit his second consecutive Championship hundred for Essex, this time against Hampshire. Surrey’s Matt Fisher and Jordan Clark grabbed three wickets each as Worcestershire crumbled to 209 all out.
DIVISION ONE
Chester le Street: Durham v Sussex 322-9
Chelmsford: Essex 292-8 v Hants
Trent Bridge: Nottinghamshire 298-6 v Yorkshire
Edgbaston: Warwickshire v Somerset 327-3
New Road: Worcestershire 209 v Surrey 47-0
DIVISION TWO
Bristol: Gloucestershire 187 v Derbyshire 116-2
Blackpool: Lancashire v Kent 213-3
Grace Road: Leicestershire v Glamorgan 305-5
Wantage Road: Northamptonshire v Middlesex 397-8
Good morning from a blowy Blackpool – the waves route-marching across the front in their uniforms of white and murky green. A tricky day with the ball yesterday for Lancashire, as it was for many seamers with the Kookaburra ball. Time for the spinners to cash in? Play starts at 11am round the grounds, do join us!
