County cricket: Sussex v Surrey, Durham v Yorkshire and more on day three – live | County Championship
Key events
Division Two table (as of April 14)
1 Leicestershire 39
2 Kent 38
3 Derbyshire 36
4 Lancashire 23
5 Northants 18
6 Gloucestershire 18
7 Glamorgan 15
8 Middlesex 14
Three overs for Mahmood this morning at OT, Anderson Philip has replaced him: liquid run-up to the wicket, hands shoved in pockets for the trudge back. Rehan Ahmed has looked in fine fettle, playing with characteristic artistic ease but also patience. He and Holland have put on 46 runs in the first ten overs.
A first missive: and a very happy Easter to you Tim Maitland:
“Salutations Tanya!
“I’m struggling to concentrate on the cricket at the moment. It doesn’t help that my beloved Western Bulldogs (Long story short: some disreputable caddies on the LPGA decided I needed an AFL team and I didn’t have the sense to ignore them) are playing St. Kilda right now.
“But it’s not just that.
“I’m finding it hard to get a sense of who is in form, especially with the bat. Maybe it’s because we were distracted by Tom Banton’s 371, which he’s followed with scores of 6, 0 and 5. How long a lead does a triple centurion get before his chain is yanked?
“If Surrey’s Dom Sibley adds significantly to his 40 overnight, does he hold the crown after a 66 at Essex and then 100 not out and 1055 against Hampshire? Incidentally he made 3 in his one game for Khulna Tigers in Chittagong, which is officially called Chattogram, which would be a great name for a social media platform wouldn’t it?
“Or is it Tom Haines? His 174 against Surrey in this round of matches is, weather permitting, potentially match winning and his second innings 141 set up the victory against Somerset last week.
“As for bowlers… have you got anything? [Ed – My immediate thought is Fergus O’Neill?]
“The Bulldogs, incidentally, have living legend Marcus Bontempelli aka The Bont back for the first time this season, but as I speak our 6 ft 10 in young superstar-to-be ruckman Sam Darcy has just hobbled off with an injured knee, which would be a disaster for the Doggies.”
Division One Table (as of April 14)
A most unexpected hue:
1 Warwicks (35)
2 Sussex (35)
3 Notts (35)
4 Hampshire (30)
5 Essex (28)
6 Yorkshire (27)
7 Surrey (23)
8 Somerset (19)
9 Worcestershire (12)
10 Durham (11)
Weather watch
A delay only a Hove. Elsewhere the Met Office is full of spring-time optimism:
Rain across western Scotland and Northern Ireland easing, and rain in southeast England fragmenting into scattered showers. Dry elsewhere with variable cloud and sunny spells, most prolonged for parts of Wales and northwest England. Mostly light winds.
All is now well at OT, the players are out, the sun too.
Heavy roller problems
An Easter delay at Old Trafford, where the heavy roller has broken down and is stuck in the middle.
Tall Paul on his surprise promotion up the order for Essex:
“A few years ago when I wasn’t playing first team I opened a lot for the twos, Then I did a few games with Cooky during Covid time, so it’s not completely unfamiliar for me. It has been a really nice challenge because it something new, something to prepare for. I think I’ve dealt with it well so far, though it is still early in the season. It’s about turning up every day and giving it your best shot.”
Sciver-Brunt is Edwards’ first choice for England captaincy.
She’s an outstanding cricketer and and the best candidate. My main worry is if she actually wants to do it.
Saturday’s round up
A fit looking Saqib Mahmood, with a tentative mullet, bowled in his first Championship game for Lancashire since May 2024. In he steamed from the Statham End at Old Trafford, up against Leicestershire’s tyro opening partnership of Sol Budinger and Rehan Ahmed.
Budinger was dropped between first and second slip on a duck, and Leicestershire then made hay, fizzing past 100 in 19.4 overs. Ahmed, a pocket rocket with wrists of steel and a high‑fashion post‑shot pose, punched thrillingly through the covers, flashed extra‑cover drives, whipped with elan.
Tom Hartley caused trouble in his six overs from the James Anderson End towards the close and, after Budinger fell to Mahmood, Ahmed played out the last 20 minutes with an extravagant, and tight, defence.
Earlier Tom Scriven had collected a career-best five for 46, as Lancashire lost their last four wickets for 21 runs. Marcus Harris, once of Grace Road, made his fourth half-century in his fifth innings since arriving in Manchester.
A hundred for Ben Compton, scored at quite the lick, kept Kent in the game at Canterbury, after Gloucestershire strode past 450, a 27-ball 51 by Marchant de Lange ensuring a fifth batting point. James Bracey was left unbeaten on 151, Nathan Gilchrist putting in his Easter egg career best figures of seven for 100. Zak Crawley collar up, was then caught for one.
A possible rival for his England opening spot, Tom Haines, brightened the twinkle in Rob Key’s eye with a second hundred in consecutive matches, 174 in seven‑and-a-half hours against a Surrey seam attack of Dan Worrell, Jordan Clark, Gus Atkinson and Matt Fisher, who dedicated their day to slowing down the Sussex scoring rate. Ben Foakes conceded just one bye on a pitch with, at times, unreliable bounce. Surrey reached 90-1 at stumps.
Seam bowling to stick in the scrap book from Fergus O’Neill (five for 19) and Brett Hutton (five for 38) left Warwickshire in deep trouble at 93 all out. Nottinghamshire, going out to bat just as the sun came out, then stretched to 204 for five, led by a cast-iron 75 not out from captain Haseeb Hameed
After three ducks in four innings, Emilio Gay came good at Chester le Street with 105, he and Alex Lees (148) pounding Yorkshire into the north-east dust with an unbeaten second-wicket partnership of 242. It was Gay’s first century for Durham.
A second century of the season for Max Holden, tempo dictated by lunch, helped Middlesex into a promising position at Lord’s. There were three wickets for Timm van der Gugten, and Glamorgan’s fielders stayed perky on a trying day.
Paul Walter, settling nicely into the opening slot left vacant by Dean Elgar, hauled Essex out of a hole with 104, and, together with a career best 49 not out from Noah Thain, gave Essex a lead of 210. Sri Lanka’s Kasun Rajitha picked up four Worcestershire wickets on debut.
At Southampton, fifties from Nick Gubbins and Liam Dawson gave Hampshire a 10-run lead, after Somerset had been bowled out for 184. Migael Pretorius was the one thorn in Hampshire’s side, making 47 from a 48 run last-wicket partnership for Somerset.
It was a good day for Northamptonshire in Derby, Ricky Vasconcelos (82) and Luke Procter (97 not out) reducing the deficit to less than a hundred.
Scores on the doors
DIVISION ONE
Chester le Street: Durham 264-1 v Yorkshire 307
Chelmsford: Essex 179 and 233-6 v Worcestershire 202
Southampton: Hampshire 194-3 v Somerset 184
Hove: Sussex 435 v Surrey 90-1
Edgbaston: Warwickshire 93 v Nottinghamshire 204-5
DIVISION TWO
The County Ground: Derbyshire 307 v Northamptonshire 236-3
Canterbury: Kent 318-7 v Gloucestershire 472
Old Trafford: Lancashire 263 v Leicestershire 120-1
Lord’s: Middlesex 353-4 v Glamorgan 199
Preamble
Good morning! And a very happy Easter to all those who celebrate, buns, bunnies, church and chocolate. For those who don’t, or who want a little extra on the side, let me present the County Championship – day three, round three. Play starts at 11am, we’ll be here all day.