Ball one: Rhodes feels the Paine
If it’s hot and sunny at the Oval with the forecast set fair, when the toss comes down on your side, there’s really only one thing to do – ask Tim Paine. The erstwhile Australia captain got burned in 2019 with a “you can have a bat” shout and, four years later, it was time for Warwickshire’s captain to feel the heat.
To be fair to Will Rhodes, the pitch has changed a bit in the intervening years, offering more seam movement than was once the case and his resources were depleted by injuries. That said, if not losing the match on the first morning is the key criterion for a decision, it does not augur well for the 11 sessions to come.
Surrey got in and got on with it, as they have all season. Dom Sibley scratched at one end while he waited for a partner to get a foot in the door at the other, Jamie Smith (an England call-up in the post) rolling out 60. Ben Foakes constructed a century and Cameron Steel, that handiest of squad players, made 71.
Early on the second morning, Warwickshire set off in pursuit of 396 and, by the evening, they had lost 17 wickets and, in all but name, the match and their title challenge to boot. Dan Worrall was Rory Burns’ most effective weapon, but Kemar Roach and Jordan Clark were not far behind. One has the impression that Tom Lawes and Jamie Overton would have been just as useful had they been required to be so.
Surrey have a week off now. They should probably plan their end-of-season celebrations.
Ball two: De Caires for England? It’s no mere Josh
The only reason the bunting isn’t already up is Essex’s extraordinary six-match winning run, which stretches back to the middle of May.
Middlesex were the latest to go under the Chelmsford steamroller, Jamie Porter’s six first-innings wickets and Simon Harmer’s five second-innings scalps flattening any hopes they had of pulling further clear of the relegation places.
The match marked a new milestone in the development of Joshua De Caires. Last season he was a top-order batter who bowled occasional off breaks; now he is a frontline spinner and No 9. Toby Roland-Jones tossed him the ball and trusted him with 47 overs and received 10 wickets in return. That augurs well for the long-term future of Middlesex and, maybe, for England too.
Ball three: The best England spinner of 2023?
Hampshire, whose inconsistency has scuppered any hopes of flying the pennant in 2024, were “due a win” and, sure enough, one turned up, Somerset outplayed at the Ageas Bowl.
At 95 for four, James Vince’s men looked in danger of wasting their first use of the strip but Liam Dawson, making a near-irresistible case for a winter tour to India, made a century to get his team up to 308. He and Keith Barker then scythed through the visitors’ brittle batting and, a day or so later, Tom Abell was looking at a target of 502 for the win or four sessions batting for the draw. Neither looked remotely possible.
Dawson again proved perfect support for the Barker, Mohammad Abbas, Kyle Abbott trident, his 31 overs bringing four wickets and delivering the victory. If selected, he will be called a “bits-and-pieces merchant” by the lazy pundits who do not watch the County Championship, but Dawson has 35 wickets at less than 19 this summer – the best numbers of any England-qualified spinner in Division One. He has earned a recall.
Ball four: Bohannon is getting funky
It is somewhat surprising for Lancashire to be fourth in Division One, because Lancashire are having a lacklustre season aren’t they? Probably, but they’re not alone in that and, when a trip to Northamptonshire – the bottom club in the division – came up on the fixture list, Keaton Jennings travelled with hopes of a win.
Not for the first time, Josh Bohannon proved the mainstay of the Red Rose batting effort, his 175 from No 3 proving the platform that allowed all-rounders, George Balderson (115) and Tom Bailey (77), to push Lanky well past 500. There was no way back from there. Luke Wells – on a similar journey to De Caires at a later stage in his career – sealed the deal with a five-fer.
Bohannon has been one of the most consistent batters in county cricket for a few years, as an average a tick less than 47 can attest. His career scoring rate of 52 has always counted a little against him but, like the conscientious pro he is, he’s working on his range and his weight of shot, as his 2023 season strike rate of 65 demonstrates irrefutably. The 26-year-old from Bolton has never played for England at any level and would be an unfashionable choice – but perhaps a correct one.
Ball five: Durham in de Leede
Durham continued to charge at the top of Division Two, beating Sussex comprehensively. Alex Lees made another century, his 103 matched by Bas de Leede’s maiden first-class ton and surpassed by Graham Clark’s 128.
But it was an old friend of this column who caught the eye, Matt Parkinson picking up seven wickets in his 48 overs. After a difficult 15 months or so since that emergency call from Lord’s to replace the concussed Jack Leach, the leg-spinner appears to have found the love every practitioner of that art needs at Chester-le-Street, 19 wickets in six matches a very handy return.
He might not be adding a second England cap to his mantelpiece any time soon, but some of us are just glad to see a rare talent back on the field, doing well and smiling.
Ball six: Van Beek runs hot with bat and ball
Worcestershire’s third win on the bounce lifted them into second place in Division Two and history shows they know how to close out a promotion campaign.
It was a low-scoring match at New Road and, as is often the case in such affairs, the difference proved to be a partnership. At 110 for six, the home side’s first innings looked to be heading towards a sub-200 total (as the other three innings turned out to be) but their captain, Brett D’Oliveira, found excellent support from Logan van Beek in putting on 101 for the seventh wicket.
It was an excellent match for the Netherlands international, who picked up four wickets in each of Glamorgan’s innings, the value of a second change bowler who can do job when required at No 8 underlined yet again.