Durham- 387 & 276/8 dec Warwickshire- 325 & 339/9
Warwickshire won by one wicket
A sublime century from Ed Barnard and vital knocks from Kai Smith and Michael Booth led Warwickshire to a one-wicket win over Durham in a Rothesay County Championship thriller.
Warwickshire started well in the morning as Alex Davies looked in good touch for his 50, but his departure led to a mini-collapse before lunch, with the visitors losing four wickets for nine runs at the hands of Ben Raine and Matthew Potts.
However, Warwickshire had the perfect blend of experience and youth in the form of Smith and Barnard, who combined brilliantly for a partnership worth 147 to well and truly take the wind out of Durham’s sails.
There was yet another twist though as the hosts bounced back after tea to remove the pair, with Brendan Doggett orchestrating the fightback to set up a grandstand finale and it all went down to the final pair, but Ethan Bamber and Vishwa Fernando remained calm and composed to see the visitors over the line as they reached their target of 339.
Resuming on 12 without loss, Alex Davies and Rob Yates had a big task ahead of them and Davies started well as he hit Potts for back-to-back boundaries. However, at the other end Yates didn’t last long as Raine bowled him for three, with the opener misjudging one that nipped back and as a result it sent his off-stump flying.
Hamza Shaikh then survived a run out appeal after there was confusion between the wickets for the England Under-19s man and Davies. The Bears skipper continued to look good with a pair of boundaries from a Raine over including a clever cut shot.
Davies then reached his half-century off 73 balls to give his side a good start in their pursuit of 339, but he then departed without adding to his score as the impressive Raine got him LBW.
Durham got their third as Potts got the key wicket of Sam Hain for just two, with the experienced right-hander edging behind to Ollie Robinson and he struck again next ball as Dan Mousley chipped one straight to Dan Hogg at mid-wicket. The England man couldn’t get the hat-trick though as Barnard got it away for a single.
Durham continued to run through Warwickshire’s top order, as Raine got his third with the last ball before lunch when Shaikh edged behind to Robinson to depart for 23.
The hosts nearly got their sixth when a diving Emilio Gay couldn’t grasp one at silly mid-on when Barnard chipped a Raine delivery in the direction of the former Northamptonshire man.
First innings half-centurion Smith looked in good touch once again as he played a lovely cover drive to relieve some pressure. The Bears keeper and Barnard were solid in defence and took opportunities to score when they were on offer.
Smith and Barnard then took a liking to the bowling of Doggett, picking up three boundaries from one of the Australian’s overs.
Barnard then passed 50 for the second time this season off 81 deliveries and Smith reached the milestone for the second time in the match just a few balls later.
The pair continued to take chunks out of the target and the hosts struggled to find answers, but they found one when Smith departed LBW to Raine for a well made 62 to add another twist to the game.
Durham had another run out chance as Booth and Barnard had a mix up in the middle but Will Rhodes’ throw went to the wrong end as the latter was scampering at the other end.
Barnard’s experience showed in the situation amid the chaos in the middle, the all-rounder rotated the strike well with Booth after the run out chance and reached his century from 133 balls, but he departed next ball with him edging a Doggett delivery to Robinson.
Doggett followed that up as he got Taz Ali caught behind for three and the hosts almost had their ninth when Ethan Bamber edged a Raine delivery between Robinson and slip fielder Ackermann.
A glorious straight drive from Booth for four released the shackles, but Potts bowled him for a valiant 40.
Vishwa Fernando was the number 11 and Bamber tactically rotated the strike as Warwickshire got the target to single figures and Bamber got the visitors over the line with a six down the ground off the bowling of Raine.
Day 3
Ben Raine’s vital knock led a Durham fightback with the bat after a four-wicket blitz from Warwickshire’s Michael Booth had given his side the upper hand on day three of their Rothesay County Championship encounter.
After frustrating Durham in the morning, the Bears were bowled out for 325, 62 runs behind the hosts’ total. Durham’s second innings started in a serene manner, but a fabulous four-wicket spell from Booth either side of lunch saw momentum swing the way of the visitors.
However, Raine had other ideas and picked up his 20th First Class half-century at the Banks Homes Riverside and combined well with David Bedingham for a partnership worth 88 to help the hosts set a target of 339 after finishing their second innings on 276 for eight.
Warwickshire began their chase late on and finished on 12 without loss, 327 behind the target.
Warwickshire kicked off the day on 287 for eight, with Booth unbeaten on 50 and he resumed alongside Ethan Bamber. The pair frustrated Durham in the early stages of play, taking Warwickshire past 300 and to a second batting bonus point.
The resistance of Warwickshire was broken as Potts finally got a first innings wicket when Bamber departed for 21 after he edged one to Colin Ackermann at second slip.
The final wicket fell soon after as Doggett bowled Vishwa Fernando for one, to hand Warwickshire a first innings total of 325.
Alex Lees and first innings centurion Ben McKinney began Durham’s pursuit of building their lead of 62, but Bears bowlers Bamber and Fernando kept things tight.
Lees started to look good as he whipped an Ed Barnard delivery to the legside boundary for four and he followed that up in the same over with a lovely straight drive.
However, Booth broke the Durham opening partnership as he got skipper Lees LBW for 32 and the Bears bowler struck again as he got Emilio Gay LBW.
Booth then had another shortly after lunch as he produced a pearler of a delivery which knocked out two of Ackermann’s stumps and in the same over Ollie Robinson edged a delivery from the 24-year-old to Rob Yates at second slip to leave the hosts in trouble.
Bamber joined in on the action as he got Will Rhodes LBW for 18. Despite the difficult situation he found himself in, Raine looked to be positive when he arrived at the crease, while McKinney remained solid as he did in the first innings.
Raine continued to attack as he pulled a short ball from Fernando to the boundary, but the Bears picked up the vital wicket of McKinney for 33 as he feathered a Barnard ball through to Kai Smith.
That brought Bedingham to the crease, who was assisted by runner Ackermann due to a toe injury sustained in the first innings. Despite the injury, the South African played some delightful shots and had no problems finding the boundary.
Raine then reached his 50 from 88 balls, and he produced an inventive ramp shot which went past third man for four just a few balls later. The wounded Bedingham showed no signs of his injury as he smashed back-to-back fours to the legside boundary off the bowling of Booth.
Raine was then dropped by Alex Davies at slip on 55, after he nicked a delivery from Taz Ali. However, there was no mistake made in the field for David Bedingham as Bamber got his second of the innings when the Durham man picked out Dan Mousley at deep square and he had to depart for a well made 45.
Raine continued to build the lead along with Potts and they took it over 300, with the latter playing a glorious straight drive for four. But Raine departed for 81 shorty after as Yates got him LBW after he was hit on the pads while attempting a sweep.
Potts and Daniel Hogg continued to add vital runs for the hosts, with both hitting maximums as they set up a declaration, which came with four overs left in the day. Openers Yates and Davies saw the visitors through to close, with a big job ahead of them on day four.
Day 2
A brilliant bowling performance from Durham put them in a controlling position in their Rothesay County Championship clash with Warwickshire despite excellent half-centuries from Kai Smith and Michael Booth.
Durham were bowled out for 387, adding 44 to their overnight total, with Warwickshire spinner Taz Ali mopping up the tail, picking up two wickets to give him figures of four for 66.
Warwickshire’s reply started well with their opening pair putting on 57, but the visitors struggled to get a grip of the game as Daniel Hogg and Brendan Doggett put them in a spot of bother at 157 for six.
However, Smith and Booth excelled with the bat to combine for a 115-run partnership which gave Warwickshire some hope of getting close to Durham’s score, but a late cluster of wickets meant that the visitors closed on 287 for eight, 100 behind Durham’s score.
Resuming on 343 for seven, Ben McKinney and Matthew Potts were looking to pursue quick runs in the opening session of day two. McKinney passed 150 with a nice flick off his pads for four but the opener didn’t last much longer as he was caught behind off an Ethan Bamber ball for 153.
Potts smashed a Booth delivery over the square leg boundary for six, but his excellent knock ended soon after as he was stumped by Smith off the bowling of 18-year-old Ali for 70 and the spinner wrapped up the innings in the same over when he got Doggett LBW.
Warwickshire’s opening pair of Alex Davies and Rob Yates started their reply well, with Yates producing a lovely cover drive for four off the bowling of Potts.
Davies then found the boundary with a super straight drive from a Hogg delivery and a few balls later he picked up back-to-back fours from the same bowler. Hogg responded though and removed the Warwickshire skipper for 38 as Davies chipped a ball to Emilio Gay, who caught excellently at cover.
Hogg struck again soon after, with the 20-year-old producing a jaffa to bowl Warwickshire prospect Hamza Shaikh for a two-ball duck just before lunch.
The visitors began the afternoon session in a calm manner, but they offered a huge chance to the hosts as Doggett forced Sam Hain into an edge but Will Rhodes dropped a regulation catch at first slip with the Bears batter on nine.
Durham continued to probe and Yates and Hain were happy to absorb the pressure, but the pressure was too much for the former as he edged a Ben Raine delivery to second slip for 42.
Hain started to make the most of his second chance as he played a lovely cover drive for four, while Dan Mousley looked good for 24, but Rhodes atoned for his drop by getting the England white-ball player LBW to swing the momentum back to Durham.
Doggett was then rewarded for his hard work with his first Durham wicket as Hain edged behind to a diving Ollie Robinson for 30. Wickets came like London buses for Doggett as Ed Barnard skied one straight to the hands of Alex Lees at mid-wicket to depart for 12.
Young Bears wicketkeeper Smith looked good in the early stages of his innings and he picked up three boundaries from a Raine over.
Smith and Booth continued to frustrate Durham, with Smith impressing in particular as he adapted to the match situation and he got his 50 from 86 balls.
Smith moved through the gears with a cut shot from the bowling of Rhodes going to the boundary and Booth got in on the act as he hit Colin Ackermann for back-to-back boundaries. However, just before close Smith departed for 79 as he spliced a Hogg delivery in the air and Gay made no mistake with the catch at third man.
There was another boost for the hosts when Raine got Ali LBW for one, but Booth reached his half-century in the final over of the day and remains at the crease with the visitors 100 runs behind.
Day 1
Ben McKinney’s excellent unbeaten century gave Durham the edge on day one of their Rothesay County Championship clash with Warwickshire.
Durham had the worst possible start when they lost Alex Lees in the first over, but they recovered well with McKinney leading the charge and he was well supported by Emilio Gay David Bedingham on his way to making 58.
The Bears then took the initiative thanks to double-wicket bursts from Michael Booth and Taz Ali either side of tea, but Matthew Potts joined McKinney at the crease and made an unbeaten half-century to take Durham to 343 for seven at close.
McKinney impressed on tour with England Lions over the winter and he’s brought that form with him to the county scene. The tall left-handed opener saw out some tough periods but he remained calm and composed throughout the day to pick up his third First Class ton.
This century, when others around him struggled, will likely prompt further calls for the opener to be in the reckoning for a senior international call-up and England Test skipper Ben Stokes was among the spectators as he steps up his recovery from injury at Chester-le-Street.
Durham won the toss and elected to bat at Banks Homes Riverside, but the decision didn’t look a good one when Ethan Bamber bowled Durham skipper Alex Lees for a six-ball duck.
McKinney and Gay settled the nerves for the hosts, with the former producing a booming shot through the covers which went for four. Gay got in on the act with a lovely punch through backward point for four.
The hosts continued to tick along nicely through the two left-handers. McKinney showed a good balance of attack and defence amid some tight Warwickshire bowling, but he launched a Rob Yates delivery for four to keep the scoreboard ticking over.
However, Booth picked up a much-needed wicket soon after as Gay edged a delivery behind to keeper Kai Smith for 41. But that brought last year’s top Division One run-getter David Bedingham to the crease and he looked in good touch from the off as the South African international picked up a boundary with the first delivery he faced.
McKinney and Bedingham resumed after lunch and they continued to combine well as the former reached 50 off 93 balls to kickstart his season.
Warwickshire then missed two huge chances to get rid of the dangerous Bedingham, as the South African was dropped twice, both from the bowling of Bamber, with Smith and Yates the culprits for the visitors.
The drops were proving costly for Warwickshire as Durham talisman Bedingham reached his half-century from 88 balls, but Booth removed him for 58 after he trapped the South African in front.
McKinney continued to impress as he plundered a Booth ball through the covers for four but Ollie Robinson didn’t last long as Booth got his third scalp of the day when the wicketkeeper picked out Ali at extra cover for 12.
Ali then got himself into the wickets with two in quick succession as Colin Ackermann holed out to the legside boundary for 18 after tea and he then bowled ex-Warwickshire man Will Rhodes for a three-ball duck. A third wicket in seven balls then came for the visitors as Ben Raine was bowled for four by former Durham overseas Vishwa Fernando.
Despite the chaos at the other end, McKinney remained calm and composed and reached his century from 186 balls after a nervy period in the 90’s where Potts had the bulk of the strike.
Potts supported McKinney well and produced some lovely shots as well including a cut shot for four from a Fernando delivery. McKinney then heaved a Bamber ball over the legside boundary for six to pass his career best score and just before close Potts passed 50 for the fourth time in his First Class career.