Sajid Mahmood shines with the ball as Lancashire gain momentum against Somerset

Lancashire were in a decent position in a match of the County Championship Division One against Somerset, at Aigburth, Liverpool in England. Somerset were bowled out for 268 in their first innings and the hosts reached 70 runs without any wicket, until close of the first day’s play.

Conditions were good for batting, as there was no pace and movement in the pitch for the bowlers. This forced the visitors’ captain Marcus Trescothick to bat first after winning the toss. However, his team were unable to post a big first innings total in batting friendly conditions.

The start was not an ideal one for the visitors, as they lost their captain in the very first over of the innings. The seasoned left-hander struck a stylish boundary off the very first ball he faced, but was sent back to the pavilion on the very next ball. His opening partner Arul Suppiah was also unable to make an impression, as he was dismissed after adding 14 runs to the total.

Somerset were struggling at that stage with 28 runs on the board and both openers back in the hut. However, first-drop Nick Compton and two-down batsman James Hildreth played brilliant cricket, guiding their team out of trouble.

The pair scored 101 runs for the third wicket, before Hildreth got out. He did a terrific job for his team though, scoring 55 runs off 69 balls with the help of seven fours in his innings.

Compton also scored a half-century, but he failed to carry onto the start he got. He was dismissed after scoring 61 runs from 124 balls, hitting nine fours in his knock.

Wicketkeeper-batsman Craig Kieswetter also batted with responsibility, scoring 53 runs for his team. The stylish right-hander was unable to find support from the other end and finally got dismissed, attempting to score some quick runs.

The bowlers of the home team did an excellent job, restricting Somerset below 300 runs on a good batting track. Sajid Mahmood led the attack, taking three wickets in the innings for his team. He found good support from Gary Keedy, who also chipped in with three wickets.

There were plenty of overs left in the day and Lancashire’s openers Paul Horton and Stephen Moore walked out at the crease to face the music. They batted nicely, scoring an unbeaten partnership of 70 runs for the opening wicket. Moore played aggressive cricket, reaching 52 runs in just 63 balls with the help of nine fours. His partner was in defensive mode, as he scored 14 runs from 58 balls before the day was called-off by the umpires.

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Durham overcome Yorkshire by a comprehensive margin

Durham claimed an easy win over Yorkshire in a match of the County Championship Division One by 146 runs, at the Headingley, Leeds in England. Durham scored 327 and 311 for six (declared), whereas the hosts managed 149 and 343 in both their innings.

Seasoned South African campaigner and Durham’s captain, Dale Benkenstein, won the toss and chose to bat in good batting conditions. The wicket was dry and didn’t have much movement off the seam and in the air for the bowlers.

The start for the visitors was brilliant, as their openers Michael Di Venuto and Will Smith put together 106 runs for the first wicket. Di Venuto played aggressive cricket, scoring 74 runs from just 84 balls. He struck 13 fours in his innings before being dismissed eventually.

The fall of the first wicket saw a collapse for the visiting team, as wickets started to tumble. Durham lost six wickets in a span of just 28 runs and things started to look grim for them.

However, wicket-keeper batsman, Michael Richardson, and lower-order batsman, Scott Borthwick, batted sensibly, guiding their team to 196 with a 62 run stand for the seventh wicket. Borthwick got out after scoring 13 runs from 41 deliveries whereas the wicket-keeper batsman was sent back to the pavilion after adding 67 runs to the total.

Things didn’t end there for the visitors, as Liam Plunkett and Callum Thorp amassed a century stand for the ninth wicket. Thorp missed-out on a half-century getting out on 41 whereas Plunkett remained unbeaten on 66, until he ran out of partners from the other end.

Left-arm seamer, Ryan Sidebottom, shined for the home team, taking four wickets in the innings.

In reply to Durham’s first innings total, Yorkshire batsmen were below par. Opening batsman Joe Root top scored the innings with 45 runs, but no other batsman was able to score much runs apart from him. The second highest score of the innings came from middle-order batsman, Gerard Brophy, who remained unbeaten on 19.

Graham Onions was instrumental with the ball, claiming a five-wicket first-innings haul. He got good support from his new balling partner Thorp, who scalped three victims.

Durham had a comfortable first innings lead of 178 runs and they added 311 more runs to it, giving a massive target of 490 runs to the home team. Benkenstein was the star in the second innings for his team, scoring an unbeaten 150 runs off 213 balls. He smashed 17 fours and one towering six in his valiant knock. Wicketkeeper batsman Richardson also played a superb innings of 73 not out, until the innings was declared.

Moin Ashraf and Steven Patterson took two wickets apiece for Yorkshire in the second innings of the visitors.

Yorkshire played well in the second innings, but their dismal show in the first innings proved to be decisive in the match. Rich Pyrah top scored the innings with 87 runs whereas wicketkeeper batsman Jonathan Bairstow also batted well for his 81 runs. Their effort went in vain though, as the home team was all-out for 343.

Liam Plunkett bowled with accuracy for Durham in the final innings of the match, picking up three wickets.

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