Day Four
Result: Durham (117 & 487/7 [Declared]; Bancroft 109, Lees 93, Rimmington 92, Trevaskis 64; Wright 5/30) won against Leicestershire by 119 runs (212 & 237; Ackermann 62, Azad 60, Cosgrove 60, Horton 50; Raine 5/47)
Durham’s seamers took seven wickets in an extended post-lunch session on the final day of their Specsavers County Championship match at the Fischer County Ground to clinch their third win in five matches and put themselves squarely in the hunt for one of the three Division Two promotion places on offer this season.
They defeated Leicestershire by 119 runs after seamer Ben Raine took five for 47 against his former county, who were bowled out for 273 in pursuit of an unlikely target of 393.
Leicestershire’s in-form opener Hassan Azad and former skipper Mark Cosgrove made half-centuries but after an 81-run stand between the pair was broken soon after lunch, Raine and fellow seamers Nathan Rimmington and Chris Rushworth took the last six wickets for 63 runs.
Leicestershire, who drop to the bottom of the table, had been 160 for three at lunch, recovering from the setback of losing nightwatchman Chris Wright and new batsman Neil Dexter to Raine in quick succession to remain in with a chance.
But they could advance the total by only another 18 runs in the afternoon session before Azad was drawn into playing a ball outside off stump and Ned Eckersley – another ex-Leicestershire player – took the catch behind the stumps, giving Raine a third success.
Cosgrove was striking the ball well enough to keep Leicestershire hopeful, a flourishing cover drive off Nathan Rimmington bringing up his half-century via his eighth boundary.
Moments earlier, however, Leicestershire had suffered another blow when Colin Ackermann was taken low down at slip by Cameron Bancroft as he bottom-edged a wide delivery from Rimmington, the batsman seeking confirmation that the ball had carried before walking off.
That left Leicestershire 210 for five. Cosgrove and new batsman Harry Dearden continued to push the score along but when Chris Rushworth returned to the attack at the pavilion end, Cosgrove was out to his fourth delivery, chopping the ball on to his stumps as he tried to cut it away.
Now six down for 234, still 158 in arrears, Leicestershire were battling to save a draw rather than chasing a win, more so when Lewis Hill was pinned in front by Rimmington with only one addition to the score.
Hill was the eighth man out on what would have been the stroke of tea when he was leg before to Rimmington but Durham skipper Bancroft asked the umpires to allow play to continue, the officials being at liberty to allow the interval to be delayed by four overs or 15 minutes if they believe a result can be obtained in that time.
In the event, it was enough for Rushworth to induce Gareth Griffiths to edge behind and for Raine to claim his fifth wicket when Mohammad Abbas was snapped up by Graham Clark at first slip.
Day Three
Close, Day Three: Durham (487/7 [Declared]; Lees 93, Rimmington 92, Trevaskis 64) lead Leicestershire by 335
Durham made an early breakthrough after captain Cameron Bancroft set Leicestershire a formidable 393 to win the Specsavers County Championship match at the Fischer County Ground.
Foxes captain Paul Horton was caught behind by Ned Eckersley, a fine low catch diving to his right by the former Leicestershire player, off the bowling of Nathan Rimmington shortly before the close.
It completed an excellent day’s work for Rimmington, who after coming in as night-watchman the previous evening, went on to make 92 as Durham piled on the runs in their second innings
Resuming at the start of play on 191-1, Rimmington and Alex Lees extended their partnership to 71 before Lees, within sight of what would have been a third championship century of the season, was unfortunate to glove a legside delivery from Gavin Griffiths through to wicket-keeper Lewis Hill.
Rimmington continued to thrive however, reaching his half-century off 71 balls, including six fours and a six, and with Gareth Harte playing himself in solidly, the visitors passed 300 shortly before the lunch.
Having toiled away all morning with just one success, Leicestershire did manage to pick up four more wickets in the afternoon session, three of which came as Durham added just one run to their score.
Rimmington, on 92, went leg before to a Mohammad Abbas delivery which seamed back in, Jack Burnham was bowled by a Neil Dexter out-swinger for a single, and then Harte also went leg before to Abbas, reducing Durham from 349-2 to 350-5.
Graham Clark and Liam Trevaskis repaired some of the damage with a stand of 34 before Clark, responding to his partner’s call, was run out by Colin Ackermann’s direct hit from backward point, but Trevaskis and Eckersley then compiled an impressive century partnership off just 19.3 overs to enable Bancroft to declare after Trevaskis had holed out to long-on off Griffiths.
Day Two
Close, Day Two: Durham (191/1; Bancroft 109, Lees 70) lead Leicestershire (212/10; Ackermann 62; Rushworth 5/55, Raine 4/49) by 96 runs
Captain Cameron Bancroft led the way with a century as Durham turned their Specsavers County Championship match against Leicestershire on its head at the Fischer County Ground.
Bancroft’s century, his second of the season in the championship, came as part of an impressive opening partnership of 187 with Alex Lees, and came after the visitors had bowled Leicestershire out for 212, conceding a first innings deficit of 95.
Bancroft hit 13 fours in going to his hundred off 134 deliveries before being eventually dismissed by Will Davis, losing his middle stump to a delivery which seamed back and stayed a touch low. Even so, Durham finished the day leading by 96, with nine second innings wickets in hand.
Resuming on their overnight score of 124-4, and looking to extend their first innings lead into three figures, Leicestershire quickly lost Harry Dearden, who had added just four to his overnight score when he edged Chris Rushworth to Bancroft at second slip.
Lewis Hill had made only 8 when he was leg before to a delivery from Ben Raine which both seamed back in and kept a little low, and there was a first first-class wicket for debutant left-arm seamer Jack Campbell when Gavin Griffiths edged a delivery pushed across him low to Bancroft, again at second slip.
Ackermann, playing with unaccustomed deliberation, pulled Campbell to the midwicket boundary to reach his 50, but Rushworth quickly cleaned up the long Foxes’ tail, pinning Chris Wright leg before, getting Davis caught behind and then bowling Mohammad Abbas to leave Ackermann unbeaten on 62. Rushworth finished with 5-55 and Raine 4-49.
Day One
Close, Day One: Durham (117/10; Bancroft 36; Wright 5/30) trail Leicestershire (124/4; Horton 50; Raine 3/29) by 7 runs
Leicestershire’s seamers bowled outstandingly to dismiss Durham for just 117, their lowest score of the season, after the visitors had won the toss and chosen to bat first in the Specsavers County Championship match at the Fischer County Ground.
Chris Wright was the pick of the attack, picking up 5-30, his first five-wicket return since joining the county from Warwickshire at the end of last season.
By the close of play Leicestershire had passed Durham’s score and begun to build a first innings lead, captain Paul Horton leading the way with a half-century.
Mohammad Abbas, who took ten wickets in this fixture last season, was first to strike for the Foxes, trapping Alex Lees leg before with an in-swinging delivery which umpire Paul Baldwin adjudged would have gone on to hit leg stump.
Skipper Cameron Bancroft and Gareth Harte added 34 for the second wicket before Harte also went leg before, Chris Wright seaming the ball back in to hit the right-hander in front of middle.
Jack Burnham chipped a leg-stump delivery from Will Davis gently into the hands of Hassan Azad at square leg and Wright struck again with a fine delivery which Graham Clark could only edge to Colin Ackermann at second slip.
When Liam Trevaskis went leg before to a Neil Dexter in-swinger Durham had lost four wickets for 19 runs, but Bancroft remained unbeaten, going in for lunch on 36, only to fall to the first ball after the break, edging an Abbas delivery to wicket-keeper Lewis Hill.
Ned Eckersley and Ben Raine, both of whom were Leicestershire players last season, fought hard to add 26 for the seventh wicket before Raine, looking to force Wright through the off-side, inside-edged the delivery into his stumps.
Nathan Rimmington drove airily at Wright and edged a catch behind, Eckersley gave Wright the charge and succeeded only in lobbing a simple catch to mid-off and Chris Rushworth swung across the line at Davis to go leg before.
Raine did strike a blow for Durham before tea, dismissing the prolific Azad leg before with a full delivery, and the all-rounder continued to offer the biggest threat on his former home ground, persuading Neil Dexter to edge to second slip, before Horton, having reached 50 from 75 balls, was bowled by a fine delivery from Rushworth which came back to hit the top of off-stump.
Raine then picked up a third wicket, Mark Cosgrove leg before to a delivery which kept very low, but Ackermann and Harry Dearden saw Leicestershire through to the close without furher loss.
Photo Credit: John Mallett