Day 4 Durham 227 & 246 for nine beat Yorkshire 254 & 218 by one wicket
Durham held their nerve on a nail-biting final morning to defeat Yorkshire by one wicket to extend their lead at the top of the LV= Insurance County Championship Division Two table.
Durham required 33 on the final day of the contest to chase down their victory total of 246, while the visitors needed two wickets to end their 17-match run without a County Championship win. The hosts were composed to whittle down 31 of the required 33 as Ben Raine completed a brilliant half-century under pressure.
George Hill threatened to break Durham hearts when he pinned Matthew Potts lbw with his second delivery of the new ball. But, Brydon Carse ambled to the crease with his side injury and squeezed the winning two runs between third slip and gully to steer the home side over the line.
Durham claimed 19 points from the contest to move well clear of second-place Glamorgan at the top of the Division Two standings, while Yorkshire remain winless this term.
On a bright morning in front of 254 spectators in Chester-le-Street, Yorkshire turned to Hill for the first over of the day, hoping that he could continue to conjure magic for the White Rose in the middle after a fine performance. Raine and Potts worked his first two balls for singles to the cheer of the home crowd.
The Durham batters brought up their fifty stand from 127 deliveries, further inching the hosts towards the victory target and quietening the travelling Yorkshire faithful that remained.
Jordan Thompson replaced Hill, but Potts took the attack to the seamer drilling his third ball straight down the ground. Thompson put in a desperate dive to stop the ball and appeared to hurt his shoulder after staying down on the pitch. The seamer continued his over, but was dispatched off Raine’s legs to the fence.
Durham worked the target down to single figures before Masood had one last roll of the dice and placed the ball in the hands of off-spinner Dom Bess. Bess bowled a tight line, but could prevent Raine nudging his way to his 15th first-class fifty.
The new ball arrived and Hill brought about one final piece of magic to pin Potts lbw for 25 with only two required for victory. Carse arrived at the crease ailing with his trunk injury, but managed to work steer the winning runs between third slip and gully to secure a huge win for Durham’s promotion hopes.
Day 3 Durham 227 & 213 for eight vs Yorkshire 254 & 218
Yorkshire and Durham face a thrilling final-day shootout to decide their LV= Insurance County Championship clash at Seat Unique Riverside.
Defending a total of 246, Matthew Fisher claimed four wickets to turn the game in the favour of the visitors after Durham threatened to inch their way towards victory courtesy of a fifty from Michael Jones. Fisher produced a brilliant spell in the evening session supported by Jordan Thompson with three strikes of his own to put the White Rose on course for victory.
But, after taking four wickets apiece with the ball to bowl out Yorkshire for 218, Matthew Potts and Ben Raine produced a brilliant stand for the ninth wicket to bring Durham back into the match. The home side require 33 runs to win with two wickets remaining, although one of those wickets belongs to the ailing Brydon Carse, who missed the entirety of day three due to injury.
Durham were dealt a blow before the start of day three with the news that Carse would not bowl after suffering a trunk injury on Friday. It appeared to loom over the home side as Yorkshire strengthened their position in the opening 50 minutes as Dawid Malan and Jonny Bairstow took their partnership towards the 100-run mark.
But, Ollie Robinson produced two moments of magic behind the stumps with two brilliant catches to dismiss the England internationals, diving low to his left to remove Malan for 44 and then to his right to end Bairstow’s stay.
George Hill continued to be a thorn in the side of Durham in the contest after his four-wicket burst. The 22-year-old played with fluency in the middle to build the Yorkshire lead over 200 runs. Hill became the first batter to surpass the cursed score of 44 and the first half-centurion of the game, dispatching Potts for successive boundaries. Bas de Leede produced a gem of a delivery to remove Matthew Revis before Potts blew the game open to remove Dom Bess and Hill in back-to-back deliveries before lunch.
Fisher survived the hat-trick ball, but Potts and Raine ended the Yorkshire innings as Thompson and Mickey Edwards were the last two wickets to fall. Alex Lees got the Durham chase of 246 off to a rapid start, taking 20 off Fisher’s first two overs. The left-hander bludgeoned his way to 38 before Fisher had his revenge to get the breakthrough for the visitors. Thompson then removed Scott Borthwick, who clipped a tame glance straight to Bess at mid-wicket.
Jones set his stall out as the Durham anchor and defied the Yorkshire attack with a stoic knock through the evening. The opener was composed and worked his way to a deserved half-century from 132 balls. But, the visitors roared back into the contest courtesy of a devastating spell from Fisher from the Lumley End. Robinson offered a loose shot that Lyth pocketed at first slip before he prised out Jones for 54 with the aid of a generous lbw decision.
Bas de Leede continued the Durham procession as Fisher notched his fourth to leave the hosts reeling. Thompson relieved Fisher, but the relentless nature of the Yorkshire drive for victory continued as dismissed Graham Clark and Patel in two balls. Raine and Potts held firm in the dying stages of the day to edge Durham closer to the winning mark of 246, leaving a tantalising final day in prospect.
Day 2 Durham 227 vs Yorkshire 254 & 91 for three
Post Match Reaction – Ollie Robinson – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWFj_wp0aag
Yorkshire have edged their way into a controlling position in their LV= Insurance County Championship clash against Durham, leading the hosts by 118 heading into day three at Seat Unique Riverside.
George Hill claimed four wickets to put the hosts on the back foot after they resumed on 42 for two. Hill was supported by Jordan Thompson and Matthew Fisher, reducing Durham to 173 for nine. However, a partnership of 54 between Ajaz Patel and Bas de Leede allowed Durham to close within 27 runs of the visitors to leave the contest in the balance.
Ben Raine, Matthew Potts and Brydon Carse took early wickets to rock the Yorkshire ranks, but Dawid Malan and Jonny Bairstow thwarted Durham’s attempts to make further inroads with an unbeaten stand of 50 to put the visitors ahead in the game with a lead of 118 with seven second-innings wickets remaining.
Yorkshire capitalised on gloomy conditions on the morning of day two from the off to put the hosts under pressure. Thompson struck to remove nightwatch Potts for seven. Scott Borthwick nailed a drive down the ground against Fisher to produce one of the shots of the match to move to 35.
But, the England seamer had his revenge from the following delivery as he found his outside edge and Adam Lyth took a low catch at second slip. Thompson’s precise line and length earned him the reward of the prized wicket of David Bedingham on a marginal lbw call, reducing the home side to 71 for five.
Ollie Robinson stemmed the tide with a vital knock for the home side, piercing the field to find the fence with regularity. He and Graham Clark put on 61 for the sixth wicket, but Robinson fell six short of a deserved half-century playing a loose drive against Matthew Revis that Bairstow scooped up behind the stumps.
Hill probed away troubling both edges of the bat and would turn the screw for the visitors to open the Durham lower order. He eventually found Clark’s outside edge to end his stoic knock of 33 before pinning Carse lbw.
Hill then notched his fourth wicket by skittling Raine to give Yorkshire a real chance of opening a significant lead over the hosts. However, Patel and De Leede would defy Yorkshire with a stand of 54 for the final wicket that was only ended when Fisher bowled Patel for a useful 30.
Yorkshire held a lead of 27, but were immediately put on the back foot when Lyth bagged a pair, edging the first ball of the second innings from Raine to Lees, who fumbled the ball into the hands of Bedingham at second slip. There was no one to spare Lees’ blushes again when he put down concussion substitute Finlay Bean on three.
But, Durham continued to make inroads into the Yorkshire line-up as Potts produced a peach to remove Shan Masood. Bean couldn’t cash in on his second chance, making only 19 before Carse and Robinson combined to end his stay in relief of the ailing Saud Shakeel. Yorkshire required a touch of international class to halt Durham’s progress into their order.
Malan and Bairstow blunted the home side’s attempt to break back into the match and began to manufacture a game-winning platform, reaching their fifty stand in 109 balls before bad light brought a premature end to the day.
Day 1 Durham 42 for two vs Yorkshire 254
Post Match reaction – Bas de Leede – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aI6i4GcgtZw
Durham’s Matthew Potts continued his impressive campaign by taking four wickets to help bowl out Yorkshire for 254 on day one of their LV= Insurance County Championship clash at Seat Unique Riverside.
Yorkshire skipper Shan Masood, making his debut for the county, won the toss and elected to bat. But, Adam Lyth became Potts’ first victim in just the second over. The tone of the dismissal would sum up Yorkshire’s day as batters routinely gave their wickets away as Masood, Dawid Malan and Jonny Bairstow failed to capitalise on starts.
Potts was the main beneficiary with figures of four for 49, while Ben Raine claimed three wickets to put Durham on the board with three bowling bonus points. Yorkshire struck back late in the day as Jordan Thompson and George Hill removed the home side’s openers, reducing Durham to 42 for two at the close.
After scoring 174 in his last outing, Yorkshire would have been expecting a strong start from Lyth after winning the toss. But, he lasted just 10 balls before he slapped the ball straight to Graham Clark to hand Potts an early breakthrough. Masood survived a strong lbw shout from Bas de Leede that may have just been pitching outside of leg stump to produce enough doubt for umpire Paul Baldwin not to raise the finger.
The visitors were dealt a blow when Saud Shakeel suffered an unfortunate injury, turning his ankle during a run. He received treatment for 10 minutes and attempted to resume his innings, only to last a further ball before retiring not out on eight. Dawid Malan replaced Shakeel at the crease and took time to get settled, needing 21 balls to get off the mark.
Masood found his rhythm before lunch to close within six of a half-century on his first Yorkshire appearance, bringing up the 50-stand from 71 balls. However, the break allowed Durham to regroup and Potts forced the mistake from Masood in the first over after lunch, who chopped onto his own stumps for 44.
The wicket brought Bairstow into the middle aiming to regain his form to push forward his credentials for an Ashes place. He and Malan worked their way through a tough spell of bowling as Potts and Brydon Carse put the pressure on. Malan absorbed the attack and took the initiative against Carse with back-to-boundaries. But, his aggression would cost him his wicket as he edged a loose drive to Michael Jones at first slip.
Bairstow’s survived a near catch that flashed past David Bedingham, but could not make the most of his second life, losing his middle stump to an inside edge to present De Leede with his maiden first-class wicket.
Hill and Matthew Revis were faced with a rebuild in the afternoon session. Hill made his intentions known against Ajaz Patel, dispatching New Zealand international over the rope with a sublime strike down the ground. However, Durham’s pace bowlers were relentless and Raine notched his first wicket of the day to break the partnership for 49.
The home side compounded their advantage after Yorkshire passed the 200-run mark. Dom Bess, Hill and the returning Shakeel were all removed with the score on 202. The string of dismissals epitomised the theme of the day as the visitors were guilty of throwing wickets away producing a series of loose shots off the back foot. Mickey Edwards and Matthew Fisher added 36 for the final wicket to secure a batting bonus point before Raine closed out the innings with only the third delivery with the new ball.
In need of early wickets, Thompson produced a gem of a delivery to prise out Michael Jones in response before Alex Lees fell for 15 lbw to Hill just before the close to give Yorkshire a timely boost heading into day two.
