County Championship wrap: Somerset move up to second after thrilling win

DIVISION ONE

Somerset vs Durham

A thrilling 39-run victory in a low-scoring encounter against Durham on Saturday (August 6) helped Somerset gain 19 points, by virtue of which they moved up to the second spot on the Division One table.

Neither teams could reach the 200-run mark in the two times that they batted at the County ground in Taunton. Pursuing a target of 176, Durham, who started the day at 130 for 5, saw their middle order perish without any fight. Jack Leach and Roelof van der Merwe were the wreckers-in-chief as they finished with four-wicket hauls to help Somerset prevail.

Brief scores: Somerset 184 (Craig Overton 42; Mark Wood 3-24, Chris Rushworth 3-47) & 180 (Ryan Davies 49; Graham Onions 4-50) beat Durham 189 (Adam Hickey 36*; Jack Leach 5-69, Roelof van der Merwe 4-59) & 136 (Mark Stoneman 57; Roelof van der Merwe 4-45, Jack Leach 4-46) by 39 runs.

Yorkshire vs Warwickshire

Fighting knocks from Jonathan Trott, Tim Ambrose and Sam Hain went in vain as Yorkshire secured a 48-run win in their Division One game at Headingley, Leeds. The hosts gained 21 points courtesy of their victory, helping them move up three spots to number three.

Starting the day at 78 for 5, with a lead of 156 runs, Yorkshire kept losing wickets at regular intervals, but Alex Lees scored a crucial 70 to help the hosts to 150 before they were bowled out. Jeetan Patel picked up a four-wicket haul.

Needing 229 for victory, The visitors were in early trouble, reduced to 14 for 3. Jonathan Trott (59) and Tim Ambrose (36) added 91 runs for the fourth wicket, but they fell in quick succession with Jack Brooks and Ryan Sidebottom doing the damage. Hain tried to keep Warwickshire in the game even as Adil Rashid made inroads at the other end. Hain eventually became the last to depart as Warwickshire ended up 49 short of the target with Rashid finishing with a four-wicket haul.

Brief scores: Yorkshire 257 (Travis Head 54; Keith Barker 4-55) & 150 (Alex Lees 70; Rikki Clarke 4-45, Jeetan Patel 4-49) beat Warwickshire 179 (Rikki Clarke 50*; Adil Rashid 3-32, Ryan Sidebottom 3-41) & 180 (Jonathan Trott 59; Adil Rashid 4-29, Jack Brooks 3-48) by 48 runs.

Hampshire vs Lancashire

Solid knocks from the Lancashire top-order batsmen helped the visiting team fight back on day three of the County game against Hampshire at The Rose Bowl, Southampton.

Starting the day at 70 for 1, in reply to the home team's mammoth first-innings total of 548 for 6 decl., Haseeb Hameed and Luke Procter added 119 runs for the second wicket to lead a solid reply. While Will Smith ended the partnership by sending back Procter for 54, Hameed and Alviro Petersen added 85 for the third wicket, followed by a 84-run stand for the fourth between Petersen and skipper Steven Croft that brought down the deficit.

Petersen was unfortunate to miss out on a ton, falling two short of the three-figure mark late in the day. Croft and Simon Kerrigan, who remained unbeaten, will have a key role to play on the final day if the visitors are to get close to Hampshire's first-innings total.

Brief scores: Hampshire 548/6 decl. lead Lancashire 310/4 (Alviro Petersen 98, Haseeb Hameed 89, Luke Procter 54; Gareth Berg 2-48) by 238 runs.

Middlesex vs Surrey

Sam Curran's all-round efforts helped Surrey to a position of strength in their County game against hosts Middlesex. The visitors extended their lead to 356 at the end of the third day's play at Lord's.

Beginning the day at 249 for 5, Middlesex could only add 43 runs to their overnight total before being bowled out, conceding a 122-run lead. Curran picked up 4 for 60.

In their second innings, Surrey were reduced to 47 for 4 at one stage before Jason Roy and Steven Davies added 60 runs for the fifth wicket. However, both Davies and Roy fell in quick succession, leaving the visitors in a spot of bother at 108 for 6, before Sam Curran and Ben Foakes came to the team's rescue with an unbeaten 126-run stand.

Brief scores: Surrey 415 & 234/6 (Sam Curran 71*, Ben Foakes 50*; Toby Roland-Jones 3-44) lead Middlesex 293 (John Simpson 58; Sam Curran 4-60) by 356 runs.

DIVISION TWO

Kent vs Worcestershire

A comprehensive 10-wicket win over the second-placed Worcestershire helped Kent pick up 23 points from their Division two game at the St Lawrence Ground in Canterbury. With the victory, the hosts consolidated the top spot in the Division Two table.

Starting the day at 213 for 6, trailing by 27 runs in their second innings, Worcestershire managed to erase the deficit before being bundled out for 251. Needing 12 for victory, Kent openers Sean Dickson and Daniel Bell-Drummond saw their team through without much fuss, taking less than two overs to knock off the required runs.

Brief scores: Worcestershire 211 (Joe Clarke 69; Mitchell Claydon 5-42) & 251 (George Rhodes 55; Darren Stevens 3-31) lost to Kent 451 (Darren Stevens 81; Ed Barnard 3-97) & 14/0 (Sean Dickson 4*) by 10 wickets.

Glamorgan v Northamptonshire

Ben Sanderson's seven-wicket haul in the second innings helped Northamptonshire thump Glamorgan by 251 runs in their County game at St Helen's, Swansea. The 22 points that Northamptonshire gained with the win helped them move up to sixth.

Starting the day at 230 for 7 in their second innings, Northamptonshire added 31 runs to their overnight total before declaring. Tim van der Gugten, who picked up two wickets on day four, finished with figures of 5 for 61.

Set a target of 347 for an unlikely victory, the home team lost the top four with only 12 runs on the board. Only three batsmen crossed 20 as Sanderson ran through the batting order, picking up 7 for 22 to bowl the hosts out for 95 in 38 overs.

Brief scores: Northamptonshire 321 (Rory Kleinveldt 91; David Lloyd 3-36) & 261/9 decl. (Laurie Evans 73; Tim van der Gugten 5-61) beat Glamorgan 236 (Nicholas Selman 122*; Azharullah 3-58) & 95 (Mark Wallace 28*; Ben Sanderson 7-22) by 251 runs.

Essex vs Sussex

Chris Jordan's all-round efforts put Sussex in a strong position against Essex at the end of the third day's play at the Castle Park Cricket Ground in Colchester. Jordan scored a career-best 131 before picking up two wickets in the second innings to take his match tally to six, putting Sussex in the driver's seat.

Starting the day at 291 for 6, Jordan and Jofra Archer, the overnight batsmen, extended their partnership to 140 before David Masters struck to dismiss the latter. Jordan, who registered his maiden first-class hundred, was given good support by Danny Briggs (49) as they took Sussex past 400 before the visitors were bowled out. Graham Napier finished with a five-wicket haul.

Jordan and Archer then combined to leave Essex at 41 for 2. Dan Lawrence put on a useful stand with Tom Westley before the hosts lost two wickets in quick succession. Ryan ten Doeschate steadied the ship with an unbeaten 52-run stand with James Foster, but the hosts, with an overall lead of 73, have a lot of work to do on day four.

Brief scores: Essex 358 & 163/4 (Tom Westley 44, Ryan ten Doeschate 42*; Chris Jordan 2-40) lead Sussex 448 (Chris Jordan 131, Jofra Archer 73; Graham Napier 5-114) by 73 runs.

Leicestershire vs Derbyshire

Derbyshire fought back with an impressive all-round display on day three at Grace Road, Leicester to keep their match against Leicestershire in balance. The hosts, who are five down in their second innings, currently lead by 127.

Starting the day at 199 for 6, Derbyshire's lower-order batsmen came up with defiant knocks to help the visitors finish with a total of 362 in reply to Leicestershire's first-innings total of 380. Alex Hughes and Alex Mellor put on a half-century stand for the seventh wicket before falling in quick succession. Tom Milnes contributed with a handy 24 before the last-wicket pair of Tony Palladino (46) and Callum Parkinson (48 not out) helped the visitors close to Leicestershire's total. Ben Raine, the pick of the bowlers, finished with 5 for 66.

Early wickets dented the hosts' bid to take a healthy first-innings lead as they were reduced to 30 for 3 at one stage. Mark Cosgrove and Mark Pettini put on a useful stand before Leicestershire lost wickets late in the day to be 109 for 5.

Brief scores: Leicestershire 380 & 109/5 (Mark Cosgrove 49; Tom Milnes 2-29) lead Derbyshire 362 (Callum Parkinson 48*, Tony Palladino 46; Ben Raine 5-66) by 127 runs.