[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

A real batsman's paradise down in Chelmsford, I see

[themaclad]

And easy, having matches played at the arse end of the summer is really the pits and we still play again next week but the 100

[themaclad]

Lancashire (131 & 25-6) lead Essex (107) by 49 runs

Simon Harmer, who had bowled just 23 overs in two months since his last appearance for Essex in late July, claimed his sixth five-wicket haul of the summer to take his tally past fifty for the fifth time in six seasons. But while his 5-41 helped bowl Lancashire out for 131, Essex struggled initially to capitalise in what is essentially the bronze-medal match to decide the finishing order in the LV= Insurance County Championship.

Lancashire seamer Tom Bailey matched Harmer’s efforts by taking 5-36 as Essex were dismissed for 107. Only Sir Alastair Cook’s resolute 40, the highest by anyone on an extraordinary day, prevented Lancashire eking out a bigger first-innings lead than the 24 runs they managed.

However, that was not the end of the strange affair. When Lancashire batted for a second time in the evening gloom, Luke Wells was bowled first ball by Sam Cook before Shane Snater had three lbw appeals upheld in four balls to account for Keaton Jennings, Steven Croft and Dane Vilas.



When Cook then had Josh Bohannon caught behind Lancashire were reeling on four for five. And that became worse when Snater took a fourth wicket, his sixth of the day, knocking over George Balderson’s stumps. By the close, at 25 for six, Lancashire’s lead was a precarious 49.

Lancashire, who won the toss on a worn wicket of variable bounce under leaden skies, were all out first time around three-quarters of an hour after lunch. Snater started their demise with his first ball, beating the outside of Wells’s bat and rapping the off-stump. The first-wicket stand of 25 turned out to be the largest of the innings, and second largest of the game to date.

Snater also removed Lancashire’s other opener, Jennings, at the start of his fourth over when an uncontrolled inside edge ballooned into the covers. In between, Cook, who had switched to the Hayes Close End to accommodate Snater, trapped Bohannon lbw to one that kept low.



Harmer’s entrance was delayed until the 18th over and he bowled unchanged from the River End until Lancashire’s resistance was ended. Croft reverse-swept him for four before he rediscovered his range and sent one skidding through to claim Vilas lbw.

Croft hung around for a time before he chanced another reverse sweep, realised his error, tried to rectify it and dabbed the ball to the diving Alastair Cook at slip.

Harmer went to lunch with a third scalp under his belt when George Balderson left the last ball before the break and was another lbw victim.

Lancashire were seven down soon after the interval when George Bell marked his first-class debut by attempting an extravagant drive at Cook and was bowled. Will Williams did not last long before he was struck on the pad by Cook with bat nowhere near ball.

The innings was wrapped up in the 40th over – with Bailey unbeaten on 24, the highest of the innings – when Parkinson edged to slip to give Harmer his 29th five-wicket return in six seasons for Essex.



Essex’s reply followed a similar pattern. Nick Browne went third ball when he tried to whip Bailey through the onside and was lbw. Next over Tom Westley shouldered arms to Williams, turning to see his off-stump pegged back, before Bailey had Lawrence playing all around a delivery to depart lbw.

The procession back to the pavilion continued. Balderson removed Matt Critchley with his fifth ball, Hartley taking the catch at head height, to his right, at third slip.

Feroze Khushi batted brightly before he dragged the first ball after tea from Parkinson on to his stumps. Adam Rossington, meanwhile, fished recklessly outside off-stump and kept walking.

Alastair Cook had watched the wickets tumble, but after holding up his end for 98 balls, he was seventh out, pinned plumb on his back foot by Bailey. Essex’s innings finished seven overs later as Snater, Harmer and Jamie Porter departed in quick succession. That, though, was not the end of a bizarre day, not by a long way.

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Essex all out 59 Lancs win never in doubt

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Lancashire (131 & 73) beat Essex (107 & 59) by 38 runs.

MATCH CENTRE

The pace bowler finished with 5 for 14 from seven overs supported by Will Williams who returned 4 for 24 as Essex lost their lost nine wickets for 35 runs in pursuit of 98 to win.

Only two Essex batters reached double figures against the telling and incisive bowling of the Lancashire duo helping their side to 19 points whilst Essex were left with a paltry three after a dramatic Championship clash

The demons of the previous day, when 26 wickets fell, continued to manifest themselves. Lancashire had resumed their second innings on 25 for 6 and lost another 20 balls into the morning play.

Debutant George Bell had looked settled while moving on to 24, the equal highest score by a Lancashire player in the match. However, his 28-ball knock ended when he was bowled around his legs by Snater to reduce Lancashire to 34 for seven. Snater had taken 5 for 6 in 4.2 overs at that stage.

The two Toms, Bailey and Hartley, both hit successive boundaries in an uncharacteristically wayward over from Sam Cook that cost 17 runs. Bailey then threw the bat to the first ball of the next over only to pick out Lawrence on the long-leg boundary and hand Snater his sixth wicket and incredible figures of 6 for 10.



Cook gained a measure of personal satisfaction when Hartley attempted an upper-cut to a short ball and only succeeded in edging behind. It was Cook’s 200th first-class wicket for Essex.

The Netherlands international struck again before the innings concluded to finish with the incredible return of 6 for 10 from 8 overs Simon Harmer had the last word when he struck Matt Parkinson full on the front pad to end the visitors’ second innings inside 24 overs for a paltry 73.

With the floodlights on throughout the day, the home side, seeking a third successive Championship victory in September, set out on the task of reaching a modest 98 runs for victory but on this pitch, a tortuous task.

Sir Alastair Cook and Nick Browne made a comparatively serene start to the chase, and had 24 on the board in seven overs to ease the nerves of the home camp when Browne was trapped lbw by Bailey.

But the introduction of Balderson sent panic waves through the home camp.



With his second delivery he had Cook beaten all ends up by one that ducked in and dislodged his leg bail.

His next ball had Dan Lawrence chipping carelessly to Will Williams at midwicket before the bowler breached Matt Critchley’s defences to claim his hat-trick.

Lunch arrived soon afterwards with Balderson feasting on figures of 2-2-0-3, while Essex tottered on 34 for four.

The latest sacrificial lamb was Feroze Khushi, bowled by Will Williams for a single as Essex tottered further to 35 for 5.

Adam Rossington opted for aggression and collected two boundaries before Balderson wiped him out and with the score on 55, Essex lost their seventh and eight wicket, both to Williams.

During all the carnage, skipper Tom Westley had stood firm but he finally succumbed for 13 having survived 41 balls when he was caught to become a fifth wicket for Balderson.

Williams rounded off proceedings when he bowled Sam Cook to leave Lancashire celebrating victory in match in which the four innings produced just 370 runs.

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A superb century by Keaton Jennings led a great batting performance by Lancashire on the opening day of the final LV= County Championship match of the season against champions Surrey.

Jennings made an unbeaten 190 while Steven Croft contributed 86 in a 195-run partnership that dominated the day’s proceedings with Lancashire 414-5 at the close.

After Dane Vilas won the toss, Jennings and Luke Wells made steady progress in compiling 58 for the opening wicket with Wells the more aggressive, hitting six fours in his 36.



The visitors switched to spin as early as the eleventh over and the move paid dividends as left-arm slow bowler Dan Moriarty – playing his first Championship match of the season – struck twice.

Wells, advancing down the wicket, was smartly caught by Ryan Patel at short leg after edging onto his pads while Josh Bohannon - having made 12 - played back only to be bowled by a beautiful delivery that gripped and turned sharply to hit off stump.

Those breakthroughs left Lancashire on 96-2 just before lunch but after that the afternoon became the Jennings and Croft show as the pair dominated the Surrey attack.

Jennings reached his fifty from 109 balls and moved on effortlessly and remorselessly to reach three figures on the stroke of tea from 169 balls having struck some delightful shots that included ten fours.



It was the left handed opener’s tenth century for Lancashire and 25th career hundred – and his fifth this season alone.

Croft was far from a supporting partner though as he took consecutive boundaries early in his innings off both Jordan Clark and Moriarty to reach an 81-ball half-century with Jennings soon posting the century partnership inside 25 overs.

Surrey went wicketless through the afternoon session – probably a rare experience for the visitor’s attack this season – with the 150 partnership reached just before tea with Lancashire on 248-2 and in complete command.



However wickets did fall in the final part of the day with leg spinner Cameron Smith making the breakthrough when Croft missed a sweep to be lbw for 86 and Vilas then top edged a sweep off the leg spinner to Patel at backward short leg for 3.

George Bell was run out for 2 in very unfortunate circumstances after Steel, bowling from the James Anderson end, deflected a drive by Jennings onto the stumps at the bowler's end with Bell just short of his ground.

But George Balderson played some positive, confident strokes to keep the score moving along, hitting 30 of the fifty partnership in 61 balls for the sixth wicket with Jennings late in the afternoon and going on to make an eye-catching 53 not out off 65 balls.



“It’s been good fun,” admitted Keaton Jennings when asked how much he has enjoyed a season where he is now the leading run-scorer in the Championship on 1,224 runs – with power to add.

“I’ve a few average seasons as well,” he added, “so I suppose you enjoy these when they come round.”

“You want to win trophies and put in performances that enable you to do that. Unfortunately it’s not been our year in any of the three competitions so hopefully next year we can do that.



“It’s probably up there,” said Jennings when asked how he rated his form this year.

“Wellsy has been brilliant for me in a lot of ways,” he revealed. “We’ve spoken a lot about game plans and the way we go about things. We’ve pushed each other quite nicely at the top of the order.

“We’ve played some really good cricket as a team this year so hopefully we can finish off with some pretty good cricket over the next three days.”

“We want to beat the champions,” he added. “I think they’ve been fantastic and deserve to be winners of the Championship but we’ve got three big days ahead and hopefully we can play really well.



“It’s entirely up to those who make that decision,” was Jennings response to potential England selection. It’s completely out of my control.

“I’ve loved my cricket over the past couple of seasons, trying to get us into match-winning positions” he said.

And Jennings says he feels a completely different player from when he last pulled on an England shirt in early 2019.

“Entirely, I feel a different person (too),” was his response.

“We’ve been through a world pandemic, lockdowns, and ups and downs from an emotional point of view.

“I don’t think I’m anywhere near the same person or player – in a good way.

“You’ve got to accept the pressure-cooker of international cricket and things change and things happen.

“So it’s about trying to do the things that you do well, and have done well.

“But as I’ve said it’s out of my control and that’s why I’ve really enjoyed my cricket. I think I’ve enabled myself to feel comfortable out of the game which I think is crucial.

“It’s allowed me to try and play with a bit of happiness and freedom so you don’t feel like this is a be-all and end-all. You get things into perspective.

“It comes through hardship and struggle but I feel in a good place and just want to keep it going.”

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George Balderson made a career-best 97 and took the vital wicket of Hashim Amla to boost Lancashire victory hopes in this final LV= County Championship match of the season against undefeated Surrey.

The champions – who will receive the Championship trophy at the end of this game – ended a rain-interrupted second day on 123-5, still 389 runs behind Lancashire’s first innings 512.

There was a mixture of joy and despair for the Red Rose batters when play resumed on the second morning with Lancashire on a healthy 414-5.

The initial despair was felt by Keaton Jennings who, having added nine runs to his overnight score, received a brilliant inswinging yorker from Jamie Overton to be trapped lbw – agonisingly - on 199, one run away from equalling Lancashire opener Frank Watson’s unique first-class record of scoring two double hundreds and a triple century in the same season (1928).



The joy came for Balderson who was quickly into his stride, purposefully adding to the 53 runs he had scored yesterday in partnerships of 37 with Tom Hartley (16) and 33 with Tom Bailey (22) to pass his previous best score of 77 with ease.

But Balderson became somewhat becalmed when he reached the ‘nervous nineties’ as Surrey placed defensive fields, taking out the slips, to make run scoring more difficult and the ploy seemed to work.

After losing Bailey and Will Williams in quick succession and with last man Matt Parkinson for company Balderson launched Dan Moriarty (5-163) to deep midwicket in search of the three runs he needed for a maiden first-class century only to find the safe hands of Overton.



A disappointed Balderson departed to an ovation for a fine innings and it surely will not be too long before a century does arrive for this talented all-rounder.

Lancashire lunched on 512 all out after somewhat farcically having to return to bowl one over before the break, but the Red Rose attack enjoyed early afternoon success openers after Rory Burns and Ryan Patel had put 37 runs together.



Three wickets fell for one run once Patel had fenced at Bailey to give a slip catch to Jennings after making 19.

The wicket was Bailey’s 50th of the season – the second season in succession he has reached this landmark and third time overall.

Then Burns, possibly unsettled by wicketkeeper George Bell standing up to prevent the Surrey opener advancing down the wicket, was bowled for 18 when Williams nipped one back – the bowler’s 150th first-class wicket.

When Jamie Smith was lbw to Bailey for 1, Surrey had suddenly slipped to 38-3.



A 46-run partnership between Amla – who thumped Parkinson for a four and a six in one over - and Cameron Steel threatened to turn matters around before the South Africa batter was out just before tea for 29 after edging an indecisive push at Balderson to Jennings at slip.

After a flurry of stoppages for showers Lancashire had further success when Williams uprooted Tom Curran’s middle and leg stumps after the all-rounder had made 11 and it was left to Cameron Steel (29 not out) and Jordan Clark (4 not out) to see out the final eight overs to stumps with Surrey still having a lot of work to do tomorrow.

George Balderson admitted to a bitter sweet moment today after making his first-class career-best 97.

“I was disappointed in the end but when you start an innings, if someone offered you 97 runs you’d take it!” he smiled.

“I’d started to run out of partners at the end, and saw that mid-on was up so I tried to take him on. But I dragged it out to deep midwicket instead which was a shame but I’m happy with that and happy with the position we are in the game,” he explained.

“Hopefully we can kick on tomorrow and get a few more wickets.



“Parky has been saying to everyone this season we should put more faith in his batting - and maybe I should,” he reflected, laughing.

“It’s all ifs, buts and maybes though. It’s happened now and hopefully we can move on in this game.

“To finish this season well would be good. I’ve been a bit disappointed with my performances early on in the season but I’m finally showing what I can do and hopefully it will be the start of something.

“I think we managed to get a bit more out of the pitch than their bowler’s did.



“It feels like there are enough wicket-taking balls in the pitch," he added. "It’s just nipping or staying a bit low and the odd one bounces.

“It feels like there is enough in it for us and I think it will start to spin a bit more.

“We just need to keep building pressure a chip away at the remaining wickets.”

If Balderson can produce a few more deliveries similar to the one that got Hashim Amla, Lancashire will be in with a real chance.

“I was trying to hit a decent area because we knew the odd might bounce or nip a bit more and that just seemed to bounce and nip away,” he said. “The pitch is slow and that was the first one of me that had really gone through.

“It was a fantastic catch by Keaton who was stood very close.”



And Balderson stressed this is definitely not an end of season match with not much at stake.

“You’re always playing for something when you play for Lancashire,” he said.

“Everyone wants to perform and impress and you are playing the champions in front of the Sky cameras.

“Hopefully we can push on over the next two days and get a win.”

Lancashire ran out convincing winners by an innings and 130 runs against Surrey on the third day to end their LV= County Championship campaign on a high and inflict the first defeat of the season on the 2022 champions.

Tom Hartley did most of the damage with a career best 5-52 in the Surrey second innings and finish with match figures of 8-80 as spin claimed the majority of the 15 wickets to fall.



Lancashire take a maximum 24 points from the match but will have to await the outcome of the Warwickshire v Hampshire match tomorrow to see where they finish in the table.

A Warwickshire win would see the Red Rose finish second on 225 points, one point more than Hampshire’s current total of 224. Any other result would see the South Coast county finish second with Lancashire third.

It was an outstanding performance on which to finish the season but on a good pitch a win on the third day seemed something of a long shot at 10.30am.

The first task facing the Lancashire bowlers at the start of the day was to take the remaining five wickets and force Surrey to follow-on.

And after thirty minutes of solid defence Will Williams struck first when Jordan Clark inside edged a drive onto his stumps to depart for 5.



Matt Parkinson does not bowl many bad balls but even he seemed surprised when a pretty average half-tracker sent down to Overton was obligingly chipped to Dane Vilas at midwicket by the batter.

Hartley’s introduction into the attack just before noon brought about a fairly swift end to the innings as the left arm spinner picked up the remaining three wickets starting with the big wicket of Cameron Steel who perished lbw for 47 sweeping.



Tom Lawes was bowled round his legs attempting to sweep for 21 before Kemar Roach skied a catch to Williams to be the last man out for 26 just before lunch with Surrey still 303 runs behind.

Burns produced a good, brisk innings for his side at the start of the Surrey second innings going to his half century off 66 balls with a six over long-on off Hartley.

But Hartley turned the tables with a clever piece of bowling, spearing the ball in to bowl the advancing Burns around his legs for 61 and halt the opening partnership at 89.



Fellow opener Ryan Patel batted steadily in compiling 36 but then slogged Parkinson into the hands of George Balderson who took a good catch diving forward at mid-on.

That left Surrey on 127-2 at tea but wickets tumbled in calamitous fashion for the visitors after the break as six wickets fell for 24 runs in 15 overs.

Without addition to the score Hashim Amla played back to a turning Hartley delivery to be lbw for 15, Steel was run out for 5 after hesitating over a single, Tom Curran went for a duck after he skied Hartley to Steven Croft at cover, Jamie Smith gave a bat/pad catch to Keaton Jennings at short leg off Parkinson for 23 and Overton was bowled around his legs sweeping at Hartley for 1.



When Lawes was lbw for 0 – another failed sweep attempt - Hartley could celebrate his first five-for in first-class cricket.

Clark held up Lancashire’s victory charge with a 48-ball innings of 9 before departing lbw to Tom Bailey, who had changed to bowling off spin as the light deteriorated.

It was left to Parkinson to claim the final wicket of the season, Roach lbw for 11, to wrap up a convincing victory.



Tom Hartley was delighted to have ended the season on a high after his career-best performance.

“The wicket was turning and starting to break up, and they played a few loose shots which helps,” he said.

“With two wickets down (at tea) we thought we would have had a bit of work to do tomorrow.

“I think we built good pressure, fielded really well and stopped a lot of ones and twos and then there was a run out. Chaos ensued after that!



Hartley was naturally proud at getting his first five wicket haul.

“Although it’s taken me to the last game (to do it) I’m over the moon. Hopefully I can carry that form on next year,” he said.

“I had a pretty slow start (this season), recovered well with the white ball and felt like I had a decent T20 Blast and a better Hundred.

“And then carried that on and felt that I’ve done pretty well in these last couple of red ball games so I can’t complain.”

“I’ve played the last three Championship games and I’m happy to get a go. Hopefully I can start again next year.

“I’ve played a lot of second team red ball cricket and I’d like to go on from that. So it’s a big push from me now to play alongside Parky, improve my batting and start to play more that spinning all-rounder role. So it’s been quite important for me to do that.

“It’s been awesome to end the season with two great wins.”



Glen Chapple reflecting on the season said:

"Our intention was to make sure we finished the season well and make sure we tried as hard in this game as we have in every other one. The effort from the lads was superb to see because they could have easily taken their foot off the gas but there was none of that. It finishes off the season well for us.

"We've played good cricket all the way through the season - there were a few pockets here and there where we didn't quite get over the line and possibly that's an area where we can see points have slipped. But the commitment the team has put in in all three competitions has been brilliant.

"We can't take any negatives from the season - the lads have performed really well. There are huge positives and when we sit back and reflect on the season there's a lot we can be proud of.

"Collectively it's one of the best seasons we've had - we want to lift silverware of course we do and that's what we're going to keep pressing for.

"Seasons like this only serve to reinforce your motivation to get stronger and better."


THE END