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Day Two

Morning: Cloudier Friday skies didn't translate to an easier job with the ball, and certainly not the miracle that the Pears needed. Ben Gibbon dismissed Scott Borthwick LBW for 89 within the first half-hour, but that wicket simply brought about the long-dreaded arrival of Ben Stokes at the crease, and it proved every bit as much of a nightmare as expected as the new England skipper was given free rein to go nuclear. Poor Josh Baker in particular went the distance as Stokes attempted to take him for six sixes in an over, falling just short with 34. Nevertheless, Stokes racked up a century in maximums alone, setting a new record for sixes in an English innings - his seventeen beating the sixteen of Andrew Symonds in 1995 - and there was really no Plan B for Worcestershire except waiting for the storm to end as lunch was taken on 548-4.

Afternoon: The smallest of consolation as Brett D'Oliveira had Stokes caught on the boundary for 161, and the first ball of the next over gave Baker his own fig leaf of comfort courtesy of David Bedingham being caught for 135. At the over's end, Durham decided that 580-6 was a fit total to declare on, and as sure as eggs is infuriatingly predictable eggs, the same pitch that saw half a thousand runs racked up for next to no loss suddenly paid witness to a Worcestershire top order collapse at the hands of Matthew Potts. Jake Libby went first, caught behind for a duck; Azhar Ali perished four balls later without scoring, caught at slip, before Jack Haynes went LBW for 6 and Ed Pollock, despite a counter-attacking 32, was caught behind shortly before the ten-over mark. New man Ed Barnard enjoyed a sliver of luck as he inside-edged a Stokes delivery onto his pads that subsequently rolled onto the stumps without dislodging the bails, and he and Dolly were able to survive till tea on 110-4.

Evening: With rainclouds gathering and the light fast fading, all the two set batsmen had to do was bide their time and avoid silly risks; yet somehow, that was too much to ask. Having made a tenacious 41 and seen off the worst of the new ball, Dolly threw his bat at a Chris Rushworth bouncer so far outside off that it was practically a wide, and succeeded only in edging behind. Having reached his half-century, Barnard was then bowled by Potts for 55 shortly before bad light put an end to a day's cricket that was undoubtedly enjoyable viewing for pretty much everyone except the home side.

On 169-6, still trailing by 411 and with good weather for the next two days, the game has essentially already gone. But when the second innings rolls around, you have to wonder if some players in the top four are prepared to bat for their place in the team.

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Day Three

Morning: Resuming on 159-6 on a sun-kissed Saturday morning, Ben Cox was caught behind for 21 off Matthew Potts within the first half-hour, and it felt as though the script was being followed to the letter. But no one had told Joe Leach, who produced an array of commanding shots on his way to a valuable half-century in the circumstances. Ben Stokes, being an all-round class act, reportedly texted young Josh Baker on Friday night to check that the lad wasn't feeling too down about going for 34 in an over, and that maybe gave him the impetus to stick at the crease for long enough to make a commendable 27 before he was caught at first slip for 27 off Matt Salisbury. The Pears went in for lunch 280-8, knowing that every hard-fought minute out in the field mattered.

Afternoon: Sadly, Leach departed almost immediately after the resumption, caught at second slip off Chris Rushworth for 62, but the final pair of Adam Finch and Ben Gibbon, for all their youth, made an admirably stubborn last stand that lasted a full hour and secured an unlikely third batting point for the Pears. When Gibbon was finally bowled by Rushworth for 9, Worcestershire were 309 all out and trailing by 271; yet the extra time in the field persuaded the northerners that enforcing the follow-on might well backfire on their tired bowlers. It was nevertheless a hard task for the remainder of the session as the Durham openers made hay while the sun shone, and went in for tea 102-0 with a lead of 373.

Evening: Having smashed another effortless century, Sean Dickson finally went for one too many big shots and sent one high into the air that landed safely in the keeper's gloves for 105. Durham immediately declared for the second time in as many days, setting the Pears a target of 442 to win. A positive start ensued, but once again the visitors proved able to make the new ball talk in a way that the Worcs bowlers hadn't managed, and Ed Pollock was bowled for 10 by Rushworth within five overs. Likewise, Jake Libby copped a real snorter that kept low and struck his pad plumb in front, dismissing him LBW for 17 and leaving the Pears swaying on 35-2. But despite their travails in recent weeks, Jack Haynes and Azhar Ali succeeded in weathering the storm for the remaining overs of the day, reaching their fifty partnership despite some early edges and a barrage of hostile short balls from Ben Stokes. In the copper light of a fine May evening, the stumps were drawn on 85-2 with Worcestershire requiring a further 357 to win. Having his best score of the season so far on the board overnight, Azhar in particular needs to seize this opportunity with both hands to prove he's not just the latest in a long line of overseas flops at New Road.

Dig in, survive, make it first to lunch and then to tea, and something might yet be salvaged from the ruinous first two days of this match.

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Day Four

Morning: An early pall of cloud enveloped New Road on Sunday, but if Durham were to make a breakthrough then it had to be early, and there was simply no way through the set batsmen on a pitch that offered precious little help to the bowlers. Azhar Ali was the first to reach his half-century shortly after noon; a well-deserved milestone that showed strong signs of the player we all hoped to see. Jack Haynes followed in good time with an edge down to third man, the fifty marking his best score of the season so far. Worcestershire went in to lunch on 161-2, requiring a highly nominal 281 to win, but more importantly seeing off a third of the day without loss.

Afternoon: Purists might make a case for positive batting when a team with eight wickets in hand need 140 a session to snatch a famous win, but with the new ball due at half past three and the Pears no strangers to a collapse, the measured and controlled approach was a wise choice from the men at the crease. To their credit, Durham stuck at the task and tried as many tactics as they could, but Azhar in particular looked assured against the old ball, unleashing some glorious drives and one masterful sweep to the boundary off Liam Trevaskis. It was a tremendous shame, therefore, when the new ball was taken shortly before tea and the Pakistani departed off the third delivery from Chris Rushworth with an edge to slip for 92. The new nut was zipping about, and it was clearly on the mind of Haynes, stuck on 98, that the interval would be a long old twenty minutes to dwell on the thought of those elusive two runs. What a relief, then, to see a streaky edge fly through third slip for the boundary that gave Worcestershire's young number four his maiden first-class century. The first, no doubt, of many.

Evening: Resuming on 234-3, 208 short of the required total, there was no real pretence of the chase being on. There was a bit of fun to be had here and there - with the three figures successfully accomplished, Haynes was willing to avenge the honour of Josh Baker a little by uppercutting the wicketless Ben Stokes over point, claiming a one-bounce four that was bare yards short of a six - but Brett D'Oliveira was taking no risks, and saw off the twenty overs of shine from the new ball with appropriate caution before the inevitable handshake.

Match DRAWN

The Verdict: Not the first time in recent years that a team firmly on top at New Road has been frustrated by a lifeless final-day pitch, and probably not the last. The moral victory goes to Durham for the first three days of dominance; the satisfaction, ultimately, rests more in the Worcestershire camp after a leisurely Sunday at the crease. There are questions to answer over the Pears attack, as despite a fair debut for Ben Gibbon in very tough circumstances, it's increasingly clear that we don't have the overall wicket-taking threat we had even two or three years ago, and at some point a real gun bowler is going to be needed if we're to move upwards. The top order has also been suspect at times, but those runs for Azhar Ali and Jack Haynes will hopefully have quelled a few butterflies, and fingers crossed they can now kick on.

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Leading Run-Scorers

1. Ed Barnard - 358 (71.60)
2. Brett D'Oliveira - 356 (118.66)
3. Ed Pollock - 267 (38.14)
4. Jack Haynes - 250 (41.66)
5. Joe Leach - 158 (52.66)


Leading Wicket-Takers

1. Joe Leach - 10 (30.40)
2. Josh Baker - 10 (43.60)
3. Charlie Morris - 9 (27.55)
4. Ed Barnard - 9 (49.33)
5. Dillon Pennington - 8 (25.00)

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It was a solid rearguard action that guided the Pears to a welcome draw after three days of being second-best against Durham, but the team can't afford too many weekends like that. Strangely enough, last year's visit to Derby followed a similar script, and if anything, the hosts have only got stronger in the thirteen months since.

The arrival of Mickey Arthur has certainly helped to transform the lacklustre fortunes of a county who know they're at risk of the chop in any future restructuring of the County Championship, and although turning draws into wins remains an issue, Derbyshire are building success on a solid batting foundation. Shan Masood and Wayne Madsen have both surpassed the best efforts of all Worcestershire players at the crease so far, with the former well in the running to be the first man since Graeme Hick in 1988 to reach 1000 runs by the end of May. They also have two bowlers ahead of the Pears in the wicket stakes, with Sam Conners on 16 for the season so far, ahead of Suranga Lakmal's 13. After a weekend off, it remains to be seen whether they'll be well rested or a little off the pace, but either way, this week's opposition carry a clear and potent threat in all departments.

The good news for Worcestershire is that Dillon Pennington and Charlie Morris are fit again, raising the possibility of a full-strength attack for the first time since the win over Sussex. Runs under the belt for Azhar Ali and Jack Haynes hopefully spells good news for the top order, but after two rough weekends on the bounce, winning the toss will be absolutely vital in this encounter.

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County Championship, Division Two

vs Derbyshire

Day One

Morning: Derbyshire won the toss and put the Pears in to bat on a green pitch under mild grey Midland skies. For the first hour it looked like a wise decision as the new ball fizzed around, with Ed Pollock the first victim; caught behind for 7 as a ball across his body from Suranga Lakmal seamed away. Around five to noon, Jake Libby was then dismissed LBW for 17 off Ryan Sidebottom, leaving Worcestershire 41-2. But with their marathon partnership from Sunday still fresh in the mind, Azhar Ali and Jack Haynes again combined to quell the nerves and see the Pears to lunch on 89-2; a morning that, in light of the lost toss, Worcestershire could comfortably claim as theirs.

Afternoon: It's a rare event when Worcs get to punish another team for making a bad decision at the toss, so the third-wicket pair were in hog heaven as they opened up and accelerated after lunch. Haynes was the first to his half-century, the slightly more watchful Azhar following soon after, and by the time the visitors reached tea on 209-2, Derbyshire looked fresh out of ideas.

Evening: Yet persistence paid off for the hosts. Having found a productive avenue for scoring through third man, Azhar tried a late cut to an Alex Thomson delivery that was a little too close to his body, and steered the ball into the hands of slip for 88, falling short of three figures for the second innings in a row. No such trouble for Haynes, happily, as the young man with the monkey newly-removed from his back dominated the crease like a twenty-year pro; having pulled well all day, he pivoted on the back foot to send another Sidebottom delivery through deep midwicket, past the fielder's despairing dive to the rope for his second first-class century. His career-best score was the next to go as he surpassed Sunday's unbeaten 120 shortly after five o'clock, but the new ball proved his undoing as he edged a seaming delivery from Sam Conners to first slip for a magnificent 133. Skipper Brett D'Oliveira also looked set for a good score, walloping one particularly lamentable half-tracker from Leus Du Plooy down the ground for a thundering six, but unfortunately his positivity proved his downfall as he attempted to cut Sidebottom over point only to fall for 35 to an excellent leaping catch. Ed Barnard and nightwatchman Adam Finch saw out the day's remaining overs as the Pears closed on 326-5. Though the evening was by far the most even session, with three big wickets for the hosts, it was clearly Worcestershire's day overall and a big miscalculation from Derbyshire to let us bat. 400 is the bare minimum target from here, and despite a weakened Pears attack, later on Friday we'll doubtless get some inkling of whether this is another placid pitch or if today's batting has been of a truly high calibre.

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Day Two

Morning: With a big score there for the taking, it all went Pear-shaped in the Friday morning sunshine as Sam Conners tempted Ed Barnard into a drive that flew straight to cover for 21, and then three balls later Ben Cox was adjudged LBW for 2 to a delivery that was angling down leg. In his next over, Conners got a bit of extra bounce to see Josh Baker caught behind for a duck, and though the tail offered some resistance, Adam Finch was caught for 18 on the pull of Ryan Sidebottom, and an attempt by Charlie Morris to carve Conners away saw him caught for 12 at backward point. 368 all out was better than we'd have dared hope after losing the toss on Thursday, but given the overnight score, it felt worryingly like a sub-par total. That uneasy feeling wasn't helped by the Derbyshire openers cruising to lunch on 30-0, having wrested some serious momentum in the match.

Afternoon: When Ed Barnard cramped Billy Godleman for space and the opener chopped on to his leg stump for 14, it raised the hope that the hosts might be in for a testing session. But nothing could be further from the truth, as whatever life Conners had extracted from the pitch in the morning was nowhere to be found, and even bowling a testing line and length proved beyond the Pear attack. An afternoon of bowling pies allowed Derbyshire to feast on runs, going in for tea on 202-1.

Evening: There was a marked improvement after the interval, and after completing yet another century, Shan Masood played on to the stumps for 113 from an excellent Ben Gibbon delivery. Brooke Guest was then perhaps guilty of getting a little too cocky as he flashed a drive at Ed Barnard and was caught behind for 77, removing both set batsmen. With the exorbitant run-rate being strangled, Josh Baker then claimed the key wicket of the ever-dangerous Wayne Madsen for just 19, dismissing him LBW around half past five. Closing on 274-4, trailing by 94, the even final session just about helped Worcestershire remain in the game on a day that Derbyshire claimed overall. The second new ball will be due after five overs in the morning, and the Pears will have to produce a lethal spell with it to match the one Sam Conners delivered on Friday if they're to gain a first-innings lead.

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Day Three

Morning: On a real scorching Saturday, the new ball talked in a relative whisper. Charlie Morris had Luis Reece caught behind for 42 and Ed Barnard saw off Leus du Plooy LBW for 62, but Derbyshire claimed the morning comfortably as they reached lunch on 381-6, leading by 13.

Afternoon: The toil simply continued in the growing heat, though Josh Baker got in on the action with Alex Thomson LBW for 54 and Sam Conners stumped for 16 on the stroke of tea. But it was all too little too late as the hosts went in on 493-8, leading by 125.

Evening: There was time for Anoj Dal to complete a century before Derbyshire declared on 565-8, leading by 197 with eighteen overs remaining in the day. A typically positive start from Ed Pollock was curtailed when Suranga Lakmal bowled him for 23, but Jake Libby and Azhar Ali reached stumps without further incident on 59-1, trailing by 138. The situation isn't as desperate as this time last week, but caution will still be required from the Pears to bat out another final-day draw on Sunday.

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Day Four

Morning: Saturday's heat gave way to a cooler, cloudier Sunday, but Worcestershire were rock-solid in defence. Jake Libby brought up his half-century with a cover-drive to the boundary off Luis Reece, and with a hundred partnership completed for the third wicket, the Pears reached lunch unruffled on 162-1, trailing by 35.

Afternoon: Azhar Ali continued his welcome renaissance, reaching the fifty milestone by cutting Suranga Lakmal to the boundary, but then perished for 60 to the second iffy LBW decision of the match off Alex Thomson. Nevertheless, Libby reached his first ton of the summer tucking Wayne Madsen to leg for a quick single, and bad light meant that an early tea was taken on 220-2, with a Worcestershire lead of 23.

Evening: As the floodlights cut through unseasonable gloom, the hatches were well and truly battened down for the Pears. With Derbyshire unable to hand their quicks the new ball, all the emphasis was on spin, and having made his century from 185 balls, Libby was content to take well over 100 just to make his next five runs. Jack Haynes showed similar caution, and only a handful of runs were added to the total before the sides finally shook hands on an inevitable draw.

Match DRAWN

The Verdict: A fascinating first couple of days, with the pendulum swinging first to visitors and then hosts, gave way to a rather humdrum weekend that offered runs by the score, but precious few wickets. For anyone who cares about county cricket surviving in its current form (or as close to it as possible), the revival of Derbyshire is a welcome sight; they have a very able line-up that Mickey Arthur has worked wonders on, and with that in mind - alongside the flat track and the weakened Pears attack - there's little point in griping about Worcestershire's toothlessness with the ball again. I'm not sure the plethora of early-season stalemates is a great advertisement for Championship cricket, but as far as the Pears are concerned, these points on the board provide a solid platform if they can find the wherewithal to supply a couple of big wins further down the line.

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Leading Run-Scorers

1. Jack Haynes - 399 (57.00)
2. Brett D'Oliveira - 391 (97.75)
3. Ed Barnard - 379 (63.16)
4. Ed Pollock - 297 (33.00)
5. Azhar Ali - 274 (30.44)


Leading Wicket-Takers

1. Josh Baker - 13 (45.07)
2. Ed Barnard - 12 (42.41)
3. Joe Leach - 10 (30.40)
4. Charlie Morris - 10 (34.50)
5. Dillon Pennington - 8 (25.00)