Kuhnemann five-wicket haul guides Durham to a dramatic final day victory over Worcestershire.

Durham 425/9 & 254/4 beat Worcestershire 366/5 & 192 by 121 runs

Matthew Kuhnemann claimed a five-wicket haul to guide Durham to a dramatic final-day victory over Worcestershire in their LV= Insurance County Championship Division Two clash at Seat Unique Riverside.

Durham coach Ryan Campbell promised that his side would not settle for a draw, and his team were as good as his word. Scott Borthwick and David Bedingham laid the foundation of the victory with a 196-run partnership in a morning onslaught as Durham skipper scored his first first-class century in two years.

The Pears required 314 to win from 70 overs after Durham declared. However, after being reduced to three for two, the visitors were in a desperate scramble to rescue a draw. Kuhnemann provided the impetus with his skillful left-arm spin, and was supported by Matthew Potts and Paul Coughlin.

Adam Finch and Dillon Pennington almost combined with a late rearguard action to deny the hosts, but Kuhnemann removed the latter to secure Durham’s first win of the campaign.

Beginning the final day with a 155-run lead, Borthwick and Bedingham found their rhythm and were able to accelerate the run rate. Borthwick set the tempo and reached three figures for the first time since the 2021 season, and his first hundred at the Riverside since his return to the club.  

Whereas Borthwick’s innings highlighted his timing and touch, Bedingham offered a brutal assault, scoring four sixes, dispatching one onto the health club balcony, in his 87-ball 86 before being caught one ball removed after being skittled by a Finch no-ball.

The declaration came 20 minutes before lunch, and there was time for Potts to make inroads as Libby was caught at the second attempt by Michael Jones at first slip. Ed Pollock blasted the new ball in the first innings, but there would be no repeat performance as the left-hander was well caught by a diving Raine at mid-on, reducing the visitors to three for two.

Worcestershire needed to calm proceedings, and it fell upon their first-innings centurion Haynes and Azhar Ali to temporarily halt the Durham charge. However, both Ali and Haynes would make mistakes against Kuhnemann, and two further brilliant diving catches from Raine at deep backward square leg put the pressure squarely back on the Pears.

Kuhnemann’s impressive spell continued with a beauty to bowl Gareth Roderick to open up an end for the Durham attack. Matthew Waite and Brett D’Oliveira were in a desperate battle to stem the tide. They put on 44 for the sixth wicket, but Coughlin prised out Waite earning his reward for a tight line before Joe Leach became Kuhnemann’s fourth victim for an 18-ball duck.

Durham needed something special to turn a promising position into a victory. It was no surprise that it was Potts that broke the game open. He displayed his international quality by moving the ball just enough to find D’Oliveira’s outside edge. Ben Gibbon was powerless to follow his skipper back the pavilion from the next delivery as Potts put Durham on the brink.

Pennington saw off the hat-trick ball, but he and Finch faced the daunting task of fending off 19 overs to see out an improbable draw. The two tailenders put up a great fight and saw out 14 of the 19 overs, but Kuhnemann turned one past Pennington to secure a 121-run win for the hosts.

Jack Haynes produced a career-best knock of 134 to keep all results alive in Worcestershire’s LV= Insurance County Championship Division Two clash against Durham at Seat Unique Riverside.

Haynes’ unbeaten century proved that a strong defence and patience still has a place in the ‘Bazball’ era as he defied the Durham attack, reaching three figures from 203 deliveries. The 22-year-old shared a stand of 112 with Gareth Roderick to bring the visitors within 59 runs of the hosts’ first-innings total before they declared in an attempt to force the issue on day three.

Joe Leach and Ben Gibbon removed the Durham openers before the close, raising the possibility of a final-day thriller at Chester-le-Street with the home side 155 runs ahead with eight wickets remaining.

Jake Libby had a difficult time at the crease on day two and his problems persisted into the morning session. Matthew Potts, Ben Raine and Paul Coughlin all beat the bat before Coughlin finally found his outside edge, ending his 87-ball stay for 26. Coughlin thought he had two in two but umpire Hassan Adnan was unmoved for a caught behind shout against Brett D’Oliveira.

The Worcestershire captain and Haynes dropped anchor for the morning session and built a solid partnership to take the visitors into the lunch break without further damage to the wicket column.

Haynes continued his poised innings after the interval and worked his way to a deserved half-century, displaying composure to secure the milestone from his 107th delivery with only two boundaries. D’Oliveira was on his way to joining his team-mate, but Matt Kuhnemann removed the left-hander with a simple return chance after finding a leading edge.

Despite the departure of the Worcestershire skipper, Haynes continued to grind down the Durham attack with an impenetrable defence. In a game trending towards the ‘Bazball’ approach, the 22-year-old’s knock was one for the purists, blunting the effect of the new ball to further frustrate the home side. Haynes earned his reward by reaching his fourth first-class century, and much like his innings, his celebration was understated with further work to be done to cement the Pears’ position in the game.

The right-hander recorded his highest first-class score before D’Oliveira called his team in after securing their third batting point in a spirited attempt to force a result heading into the final day. Durham lost Michael Jones and Alex Lees cheaply, but David Bedingham and Scott Borthwick stabilised the innings before the close, with the game evenly poised.

Two wickets from Matthew Potts allowed Durham to make inroads into the Worcestershire batting line-up before rain ended day two prematurely in their LV= Insurance County Championship Division Two clash at Seat Unique Riverside.

The home side posted 425 for nine declared in their first innings after Ben Raine scored an impressive 71 to build on David Bedingham’s century and Alex Lees’ knock of 70 from day one, securing four batting bonus points to the total.  

Ed Pollock got the Worcestershire reply off to a blistering start, scoring 41 from just 26 balls before he was bowled by Potts. The England seamer produced a timely peach to remove Azhar Ali just before the close, signalling that he is well prepared to fill the void of Chris Rushworth’s departure. The visitors will resume day three 329 runs behind the hosts with eight first-innings wickets in hand.

Resuming on their score of 363 for seven, Durham were in need of further runs to shore up their exploits from day one. Raine continued his rich vein of form against Worcestershire following on from his century in the contest between the two sides at the Riverside last season. He sent a cut through backward point to the boundary to register his 14th fifty in first-class cricket.

Raine and Coughlin tormented Worcestershire with a record-breaking stand of 213 last season, and proved to be a thorn in the visitors’ side again by reaching their century stand, securing the fourth batting bonus point for Durham in the process. There was no repeat of their mammoth effort as Coughlin fell for 42 and Raine was caught on the fence before Scott Borthwick declared.

Pollock displayed no appetite to see out play until lunch as he unleashed an assault against the new ball. The left-hander bludgeoned nine boundaries to bring up the visitors’ fifty in the sixth over. The ferocity of Pollock’s innings fired up Potts and the England seamer took delight in dismantling his stumps for an entertaining 26-ball knock of 41.

Ali and Jake Libby were more sedate in their approach as the sunshine was gradually replaced by cloud cover. The elements allowed Potts, Raine and Coughlin to control the run rate while beating the bat on several occasions. It appeared as though Durham’s search for a breakthrough would end in frustration as the rain closed in.

Ali was put down for 29 down the leg-side, however, Ali’s reprieve lasted only two balls before Potts pinned the former Pakistan international lbw just before rain ended the day prematurely.