Sunday’s round-up: Yorkshire, Kent win and more
Yorkshire’s whopping 504-run victory over Worcestershire gave Jonny Bairstow early-season bounce to his boots. Bairstow had declined to enforce the follow-on on Saturday, and batted on, and on, to set Worcestershire an implausible 610 for victory. Dom Bess collected his first Championship century, off just 115 balls, while Dawid Malan biffed an unbeaten 76 and Bairstow an unbeaten 44 – both pole-axing three sixes. Worcestershire’s fielders largely patrolled the boundary. A brow-beaten Worcestershire were then unzipped for 105 to become the first side in County Championship history to lose a match by 500 runs or more.
At Old Trafford, Lancashire, who swapped divisions with Yorkshire at the end of last season, were having a trying day against Northamptonshire. After a hard-fought morning, they lost three wickets in 19 balls just before lunch, one of them the steadfast Keaton Jennings, caught magnificently by Saif Zaib at midwicket, the third player in the match to get out in the 90s. Lancashire were soon following on in the chill of an April wind. Jennings once more strode out, this time making 49, and for the second evening in a row Anderson Phillip found himself drafted in as nightwatchman – he survived.
Spectators at Canterbury rubbed their eyes as audacious centuries by Tawanda Muyeye and Ben Compton sped Kent to an eight-wicket win over Middlesex. A chase of 316 to win had looked a challenge on paper but Zak Crawley pushed the launch button, making 58 off 66 balls, albeit after being dropped at third slip on nought. After he was bowled by Zafar Gohar, Daniel Bell-Drummond fell next ball, but Compton and Muyeye had it in the bag.
Nottinghamshire’s Haseeb Hameed made 92 in the absorbing game against Essex at Trent Bridge, while another hundred from Dom Sibley ensured Surrey are on top at the Oval, despite a debut five-wicket haul for Hampshire’s Sonny Baker.
Sean Hunt, having a match to remember at Hove, took all four Somerset wickets to fall as they chased 595 for victory against Sussex. Ben Raine (81) and the tail rescued Durham’s second innings against Warwickshire at Chester-le-Street. Rehan Ahmed pancaked 77 off 59 balls in his experimental opening position, getting Leicestershire’s second inning off to a cracking start against Derbyshire, while Glamorgan were forced to follow on by Gloucestershire.
