Story Essex: In The Now!..............
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August 31, 2011: Middlesex vs Essex, Lord?s
Pro League Division 1
From my experience with such games, I knew that Middlesex had the hitters to overhaul this total. We were still favourites, however, because in sustaining such a rate, it seemed certain that they would simply have to take too many chances.
Napier was to open the bowling. Last ball of the over, a Robson edge was snapped up by Walker at second slip. Three for 1 after 1. Napier and Wagg restricted the scoring for 7 overs, after which there were only 31 on the board, including one streaky lofted boundary behind point that might (in a perfect world) have gone to hand.
Then Godleman and Shah accelerated their scoring in the eighth, and their luck held. In Harris? first over, he had one pass a whisker from the edge, followed by one dropped by Carson at short point. Yet the over still went for 9, and the required rate kept dropping. There were five more near-misses in the century partnership, before Harris induced and accepted a return catch from Godleman. After 18 it was 122 for 2. David Nash was the new batsman, so they could sustain their scoring rate. We would need a bit more of the luck if we were to peg them back.
Godleman's dismissal - nothing more painful than a leading edge...
What followed was a 15-ball partnership in which every ball was scored off bar the wicket ball and two others. It was great however to get rid of the dangerman Shah. He was lbw to Cook in the 21st. The partnership was worth 18 ? this was more like it! Nevertheless they had escaped three more close shaves in those two and a half overs.
Nash and Guinness came together. Guinness, despite being a fast-bowling batting all-rounder, is a defensive bat, and is in only the fifth List-A game of his career, so the dot balls were somewhat more frequent between these two. They still rode their luck, however, surviving two more near-misses. They managed a run a ball for the 31-ball partnership. Then Matt Walker struck, inducing Guinness to swing at a straight one (as he had at all the others!). This time, for some reason, he missed!
This brought Nash together with Dawid Malan. For eight balls, that is. And it would have been six balls had Ahmed not spilled the catch off Nash at mid-on. Still, two balls later, there was at least some genuine guile about the way Wagg induced Nash to swing way too early at the slower ball, which went on to do some damage to middle and off. 177 for 5 in the 27th ? it was looking quite good for us!
The new man was a fellow by the name of Richard Buller. He was another debutant this year, an all-rounder who, if his career was any guide, we could knock off cheaply. Sure enough, Wagg had him caught and bowled for 2 in his next over. 11.2 overs to go, six wickets down, 78 runs still needed. We were looking good two overs ago ? we were looking better now.
Yet another 2011 debutant, batsman Geoffrey McPhee, arrived now (at number eight!) to partner Malan. His second team average was under 40 ? that explained why he was batting down in a bowler?s slot ? but his List A average from his six games was higher than that, so he could not be written off completely.
This pair were evidently of the view that, as there was no batting to come to speak of, it was their responsibility to get all the runs required before the next wicket fell. Thus in their 31-ball partnership, 54 runs were scored. Somewhere in there, the balance of the game tipped in their favour. And now Middlesex had the stranglehold on this game that we had had only a partnership ago.
We still had a chance, if we could skittle the tail and this overachieving debutant. Yes I should have mentioned that it was Malan who departed. He was called through for a single, meaning that Moore had only to come in three paces at backward point, and underarm a direct hit from not far, in order to effect a run-out. Silverwood is the new batsman, but just 24 are needed from 6.1 overs.
So, even without too much effort, McPhee saw them home with 13 balls to spare. Wagg got two wickets, but both Harris and Cook seemed quite unlucky to only get one each. We are still fourth in Division 1 after 5 games, but it is desperately disappointing to lose the game after all that scintillating batting. Freddie Klokker was deservedly man of the match, of course.
And the games keep coming thick and fast. Tomorrow we must be in Derby for our next limited-overs game. So ciao for now, but join me for that game, won?t you, in the very near future.
Middlesex v Essex, Pro League Division 1
Essex 264-4 Klokker 107 from 96 Cook 75 from 74 Evans 1-55
Middlesex 265-7 37.5 overs Shah 66 from 48 Godleman 56 from 63 Wagg 2-52
MIDDLESEX DEFEATS ESSEX BY 3 WICKETS WITH 13 BALLS REMAINING
Can we quickly jump to 2012?
Good win by Middlesex, but all we need is Essex' win. Good contribution by Cook and Klokker there.
Well it is the last month of the season, and the 2012 season doesn't start till April, so I do have time to catch up. Can't make any promises though. Let's wait and see. Oh and thanks for reading.
September 1, 2011: Derbyshire vs Essex, Queen's Park, Chesterfield
Pro League Division 1
Well welcome back, but there is a slight change of plan, as we are in fact at Queen?s Park in Chesterfield for this Pro League encounter with Derbyshire. The weather is sunny, if not warm. I?m told the pitch appears to be one that favours spin a little. So it?s lucky we have Alastair in our bowling lineup.
Yes you heard right. I wonder if they thought Jake Needham was more than a match for our Paul Harris, or whether they suspected I was going to drop him? Because I have! I?m going with an extra batsman, with Moore, and perhaps Walker to cover the bowling duties. And yes, I do think Alastair will exploit the conditions just as well as Needham will!
Here are the lineups:
Oh yes you may also notice that Tahir comes in for Ahmed.
We lost the toss and they decided to bat. It wasn?t a bad toss to lose, since the outfield would probably be faster later. Napier and Wagg looked good early, and kept a rein on the scoring, albeit without looking all that dangerous. Then in the 6th over, Wagg induced an edge to Cook?s left at slip, which Alastair failed to grasp. It was such a difficult chance ? a real Paul Collingwood special ? so I was not too displeased. Perhaps I would have been, had I known what was to come haha!
So, a life to Tom New on 19, but no reprieve for Scott Newman, all of two balls later. His stumps were splayed off an inside edge from Napier. He had not looked anywhere near as comfortable as New, and departed for 5 off 18. It was 26 for 1, and suddenly we were looking a lot more threatening.
Dom Telo is the new man. At least on paper, he is their dangerman, and the wicket we would most prize. But, for the next 20-plus overs, wickets, prized or otherwise, were hard to come by. It was a partnership of 133 between these two, that wasn?t broken until the 30th over. Then ? finally ? dangerman Telo was gone, stumped off Cook for 60. By this time, of course, Mr. New was looking quite dangerous in his own right.
So Garry Park arrives, and wickets continue not to fall. It was just 4 overs from the end of innings when Walker trapped New in front. But not before he had amassed a creditable 123 off 112 balls. The 40-ball partnership was worth 49, and at 206 for 3, they already had a par score, with 4 overs of hitting to look forward to.
Moore, you see, had been hit right out of the attack early. We were left with Tahir and Walker as the last men standing to bowl out the innings. With all those wickets in hand, neither could really curtail the hitting. Walker got the wicket of Dwayne Smith in the final over, but they amassed another 35 runs, to end at 241 for 4, with Park not out on 33. Walker had two wickets, but at 6.5 an over. Cook and Wagg were both impressively economical, with just 39 each off their 8 overs, and the wicket of Telo to Cook.
That?s all for now, but I?ll be back very soon with the Essex innings.
Derbyshire v Essex, Pro League Division 1, Queen?s Park, Chesterfield
Derbyshire 241-4 New 123(112) Telo 60(68) Park 33*(32) Walker 6-0-39-2
Dipak
ICC Board Member
Essex look much better on paper! I guess they'll take the game, but they need a solid start from Cook!
Umair7
El Presidente
Cook Need To Performe Here Like NEW
Welcome back, and now Alastair and Mal are out in the middle, and we are ready to begin our chase. You will have noticed that Liam Plunkett is playing for Derbyshire, and he will open the bowling with 24-year-old Brian Smith, who made his debut in 2009.
It is okay to start slowly when batting first ? you can still pick up the pace later and put together a massive score if you?ve the wickets remaining. But that does not seem to work when chasing a big score. We are going for broke from the first over. In the 3rd over, their keeper Taylor let a routine edge from Mal inexplicably slip through his grasp. Alastair and Mal kept hitting, and yet not getting out. We had a run a ball after 10 overs. The 12th over, bowled by Plunkett, went for 17, including three successive fours from Mal. We brought up the 100 ? which of course was also the 100 partnership ? on the fifth ball of the 14th over.
Two of Loye's three fours in succession:
This was the first; and...
...this the last
The scoring slowed a bit after 15 overs when the fielding restrictions were eased. But we were still 136 for no loss after 20 overs. Going at 6.8 per over, our required rate was not much above 5.
But all good things must come to an end. In the 21st over, Cook was out, caught behind off Dwayne Smith. He had made 74 from 63 balls, in a magnificent partnership of 141. In the very next over, Mal was out, bowled by Needham. He had made 72 off 66.
This caused quite a lull in the scoring. Only 15 were scored in the next 5 overs. At that stage, the equation was 74 to win off 78 balls. The scoring accelerated again in the 28th over, but that in turn brought about the departure of Freddie Klokker. He was trapped lbw by Lungley for just 21, bringing Jamie Foster in to partner Carson. 64 needed from 72.
Such a graceful off-driven boundary from Carson
This pair just about kept up with the required rate for nine overs. When Carson departed, caught behind off the spinner for 35, there were 15 needed off exactly three overs. In Needham?s next over, he bowled Foster for 23, and there were 10 needed off 11 balls, now with 5 wickets down. New man Stephen Moore played out an agonizing 4 dot balls, before smacking one to the boundary forward of square. Six balls remaining, six runs needed.
Trevor Lungley would be bowling the final over, and Matt Walker was on strike, having made just one off four balls so far. He played watchfully for two balls, not even swinging at them, just tapping them back as if trying to hold out for a draw. Now there were six needed from four, so the equation was looking worse than it had for the whole innings.
Then Matt got the ball he must have been waiting for. It was not much short of a half-volley wide of off. Matt?s full-blooded swing connected solidly, and the ball was deposited on the other side of the rope at cover. We had cut the run-a-ball chase fine, but the victory was ours, and that?s all that matters.
Of course Tom New was named Man of the Match for his century. We are now fifth in the table, behind Notts and Hampshire on run rate ? although they both have played two games less than us. We have two games remaining, against, you guessed it, Notts and Hampshire. Before that however, we have promotion to secure in the Championship. Tomorrow begins our four-day match right here in Derbyshire. So stay tuned, and my Day 1 report from that match will not be long in coming.
Derbyshire v Essex, Pro League Division 1, Queen?s Park, Chesterfield
Derbyshire 241-4 New 123(112) Telo 60(68) Park 33*(32) Walker 6-0-39-2
Essex 242-5 Cook 74(63) Loye 72(66) Needham 8-0-45-3
DERBYSHIRE DEFEATED BY ESSEX, BY 5 WICKETS, WITH 3 BALLS REMAINING
Check again. We didn't lose.
Umair7
El Presidente
I Dont Think We Lost Buddy Read Again
Dipak
ICC Board Member
Awesome batting by Cook, that boy is an indispensable part of Essex cricket.
September 2, 2011: Derbyshire vs Essex, County Ground, Derby: County Championship Division 2 ? Day 1
The Derbyshire game went very well for us, up until the start of play. By which I mean, the conditions were good, we won the toss and batted. If you can call it that, because Cook was out within three overs, and Carson caught at slip two balls later. Here are the teams.
You will note that they are still without Jonathan Clare, who is engaged in the ongoing one-day series against Pakistan. As I?m sure you know, Pakistan won the series yesterday, and now lead 3-1 with the dead rubber to be played tomorrow.
But back to our game. It got better from there, a 50 partnership between Moore and McPhee. McPhee took only 67 balls to reach his fifty. And Park?s diving catch at slip to dismiss him was (I must reluctantly admit) also a highlight of the session. Then suddenly they were both gone, and we were 4 down for only 95. We went to lunch, still precariously placed at 124 for 4.
We desperately needed skipper Loye and vice-captain Walker to step up, and they did. They both made fifties, and thus got us to 200 without further loss. Then they were gone, along with Jamie Foster. So was 221 all we were capable of? Three runs to Klokker and Tahir later, it was time for tea. Walker?s fifty, off only 78 balls, was the highlight of that session.
Second ball back, Klokker hoisted Brian Smith for 6 behind point. Klokker, Tahir and Harris all managed to reach their 20s, and Harris also lofted an impressive six, over midwicket off the other Smith. So it was 24 minutes to stumps before our innings came to a close. Our final score was a less than satisfactory 298. But that left Derbyshire?s openers, Birch and Newman, three overs to survive before stumps. And survive them they did - but only because Cook dropped Birch at short leg in the very first over.
Meanwhile, Northamptonshire number four Tom Woodward, in their game against Gloucs, went to stumps having just brought up his double century. He was 204 not out off 288. Tom Woodward debuted in 2009, he is just 22 years old, and his previous high score was only 112.
Well, that?s pretty much all there is to be said about Day 1 here at Derby. Check back shortly for my next report, a similarly brief recap of Day 2. So, ciao until then, yes!
Derbyshire v Essex, County Championship Division 2, County Ground, Derby, Stumps Day 1
Essex 298 (Walker 58 Loye 52 McPhee 50 Plunkett 20-2-95-3);
Derbyshire 3-0 (Birch 2* Newman 1*)
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September 3, 2011: Derbyshire vs Essex, County Ground, Derby
County Championship Division 2 ? Day 2
Welcome back, as Day 2 dawns with Scott Newman and Daniel Birch in the spotlight. Were the Ghosts going to make us pay for failing to reach 300 yesterday? Well, they got roughly 50 each for the first 3 wickets, so they were on track for a first innings lead. Harris trapped Newman in front off the very first ball he bowled to him. Birch battled on to 50, before being also lbw to Harris without adding to that score. At lunch they were 132 for 2, with Park on 27 and Telo on 20.
Meanwhile in the fifth and final ODI at Edgbaston, England had been held to 200 for 8 in their 50 overs. Strauss topscored for them with 57, while Arafat was Pakistan?s best with 3-39.
Anyway, twenty minutes after lunch, Telo?s was the third wicket to fall. He was caught at first slip by Walker off the bowling of Masters for 30. Derbyshire were 147 for 3. Then Dwayne Smith was out in the next over. He was bowled by Tahir without scoring. We were making progress, although they did have batting to come.
Park and New were one shy of a fifty partnership when New, on only 16, became Harris? third lbw victim. Keeper Taylor didn?t hang around long. He had made only 3 when he got a thick edge to an armball from Cook which was well held by Foster behind the stumps. It was 232 for 6 at tea, and the first innings lead was still a matter of some conjecture.
Elsewhere, it was now 31 overs into the Pakistan innings. Number six Sarfraz Ahmed was batting with opener Manzoor, and Pakistan were 120 for 4. Eighty-one needed off 19 overs with six wickets in hand. They appeared to be well on top.
So our struggle was resumed. Tailender Needham is a genuine number eight, with an all-rounder?s first-class batting average in the mid-twenties. Park closed in on his century, and their partnership reached 57 before we were able to break it. Park was on 97, so perhaps he lost concentration and tried to achieve three figures off the wrong ball from Cook. He was trapped in front. At this stage, spin duo Cook and Harris between them had five of the seven wickets to fall. The Ghosts were now 263 for 7, so they still did not have a first innings lead in the bag. Of course, they had Plunkett as new man in, and Hussain at number 10, both of whom get to double figures more often than not.
As it happened, what followed was a partnership of 23, dominated by Plunkett. He had reached 18 when Needham was bowled by Masters with the new ball. Needham had made 39, and Derbyshire at 286 for 8 were just 12 runs behind. By the time Plunkett departed, caught and bowled by Tahir for 31, they were 10 runs ahead. It was now the last half-hour before stumps. Hussain succeeded in keeping strike and hitting the occasional bad ball, so that we had to call it a day without having taken that last wicket. At 336 for 9, Derbyshire?s lead had extended to 38. Smith?s contribution to the partnership of 28 was one solitary single.
Then I checked back with the One Day International at Edgbaston, and the wheels had all come off for Pakistan. Somehow they had managed to lose all six remaining wickets in just 8 overs. They were all out for 153, which meant that England won by 47 runs. Stuart Broad was the destroyer, and won man of the match for his figures of 10-1-45-5, accounting for Ahmed and the tail ? a tail mind you which included Afridi (at 9 hahaha!), Arafat and Tanvir! Of course, the series still goes 3-2 to Pakistan.
And that?s a wrap as far as Day 2 at Derby is concerned. Check back soon to hear about Day 3. You might be pleasantly surprised?
Derbyshire v Essex, County Championship Division 2, County Ground, Derby, Stumps Day 2
Essex 298 (Walker 58 Loye 52 McPhee 50 Plunkett 20-2-95-3);
Derbyshire 336-9 (Park 97 Birch 50 Hussain 34* B Smith 1* Masters 27-5-60-3 Harris 30-5-85-3)
DERBYSHIRE LEAD BY 38 ON FIRST INNINGS WITH 1 WICKET REMAINING
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