Yorkshire Set New Record as They Thrash Worcestershire

The pick of the second round of fixtures in Division One of the Rothesay County Championship appeared to be at The Oval, where champions Surrey continued their tough start to the campaign with another fixture against one of their likely title rivals, Hampshire. The visitors chose to field first, and against a side where all of the top six batters were England internationals they made early inroads. Only Dom Sibley showed any grit, as he went on to carry his bat for 100 not out in his side’s total of 253, with Dan Worrall batting for 30 minutes at No 11 to see him to three figures. Brad Wheal did most of the damage, taking four for 65. Hampshire needed Sibley’s equivalent, as no one from their side could even reach fifty, as they replied with 219. Sibley went on to score his second century of the match (105) as Surrey established a strong position, reaching 342 for nine declared, setting the away side a target of 377 for victory. In Sonny Baker, Hampshire appear to have picked up a gem from Somerset, as the paceman took a career-best five for 80. After some early losses, 117 from Nick Gubbins stabilised things, and Hampshire finished on 300 for five in an evenly fought draw.

Somerset are always there or thereabouts, but their visit to Hove did not go according to plan. They appeared to have done well enough after Sussex chose to bat and made 294, three batters falling for between 47 and 49; that they got as many as that was down to a last-wicket partnership of 52 between Sean Hunt (33) and Jayden Seales (21 not out, his highest score for the county). Lewis Gregory took four for 90. Tom Banton’s 371 was swiftly forgotten as Somerset tumbled to 62 for five by the close, with Fynn Hudson-Prentice picking up four wickets in quick succession. James Rew’s 80 not out was easily the highest score of the innings, as the West Country outfit fell away to 201 all out, Hunt finishing with five for 48. An opening partnership of 184 between Tom Haines (141) and Daniel Hughes (91) put the hosts in complete charge. John Simpson continued his fine form for Sussex, scoring 110 not out as his side eventually declared on 501 for seven, leaving Somerset with a notional target of 595 for victory. Hunt swept away the top order, finishing with four for 28, but despite some lower-middle order resistance, the visitors were all out for 334, beaten by a hefty 260 runs.

Yorkshire didn’t hang around after they were put in to bat by Worcestershire at Headingley, with Dawid Malan top-scoring with 98 as they closed the first day on 425 for eight. The visitors’ new recruit, Kiwi star Jacob Duffy, was unable to put the brakes on the scoring, but he did pick up three wickets on his first day. Yorkshire were eventually all out for 456, before their bowlers destroyed the away side’s batting, rolling them over for just 162, Ben Coad taking four for 39. Jonny Bairstow decided to bat again, which gave Dom Bess the chance to make 107, equalling his career-best score, as the White Rose outfit raced to 315 for four declared. Worcestershire’s batting folded again in the second innings, George Hill taking four for 23, as they were all out for 105. The result meant Yorkshire had won by 504 runs – the biggest winning margin (by runs) in the history of the County Championship, beating the 483-run win by Surrey over Leicestershire in 2002. Alarm bells for the summer ahead must be ringing at New Road after a very tough start to the season.

Meanwhile Nottinghamshire’s new overseas recruit, Kyle Verreynne, had a perfect day after his side was asked to bat first at Trent Bridge. Coming in at 74 for four, he went on to score 111 not out by the close to guide his side up to 328 for eight. He finished on 128 not out, as the home side were all out for 347, Sam Cook picking up four wickets. Essex went slightly better in their reply, reaching a total of 367. Jack Haynes’s career high of 142 was the centrepiece of Nottinghamshire’s second-innings score of 385, leaving a target of 366, but the game ended in a draw with Essex on 106 for one.

But the pick of the games came at the Riverside, where Durham chose to bat first and were perhaps a little disappointed to find themselves at 234 for seven. But opener Ben McKinney, with a career-best 153, and Matthew Potts added an unbeaten 109 for the eighth wicket before the close, and Durham were eventually all out for 387. In just his second game, 18-year-old leg-spinner Tazeem Ali took four for 66. Kai Smith, also playing his second game, top-scored with 79 in Warwickshire’s reply of 325. After losing five wickets for 41 runs at one stage, Durham recovered to declare at 276 for eight, Michael Booth taking a career-best four for 66. The away side was left with a little over a day to chase down 339. Stumbling to 90 for five, the visitors were in trouble, but then Ed Barnard led a remarkable fightback, going on to make 101. Booth then took charge, but at 295 for eight it still seemed more likely Durham would win. When Potts bowled Booth for 40, Warwickshire were still 15 runs short, as Vishwa Fernando joined the well-set Ethan Bamber, and over the next 31 deliveries they inched their way forward to a stunning one-wicket victory, sealed with a six by Bamber off Raine.

In the Second Division, the game at Canterbury got off at a furious pace. Kent chose to field first and bowled out Middlesex for 222 in 60.3 overs, with wickets and runs shared around. In reply, they stumbled to 79 for six, before Harry Finch and Grant Stewart stabilised things, adding 101 for the seventh wicket to help the hosts up to 218 in reply. Blake Cullen finished with career-best figures of four for 60. Middlesex moved at a steadier pace in their second innings, eventually reaching 311 all out to set a target of 316. Ben Compton (124 not out) and Tawanda Muyeye (125 not out) put on 225 for the third wicket at more than five an over as Kent raced to an eight-wicket victory.

Leicestershire were another side, like Yorkshire, who managed to top 400 runs in the first day, finishing on 423 for nine after being put in to bat, four batters making fifty but none going on to three figures, and they were eventually all out for 484. Caleb Jewell’s 104-ball 83 felt sedate by his standards this season, but it was Martin Andersson who proved Derbyshire’s saviour as the No 8 made his maiden century in his 36th match to take them up to 393 in reply. A 59-ball 77 from Rehan Ahmed, opening the batting, showed Leicestershire’s intent, as they went on to make 357 for nine declared, leaving a target of 449. Jewell hit his fourth consecutive half-century, but Derbyshire finished on 305 for four, with the drawn game having delivered a mammoth 1539 runs across the four days.

Northamptonshire were put in to bat at Old Trafford and responded very well, Saif Zaib top-scoring with 116 as the visitors made 496. Keaton Jennings hit 96 in reply, but Lancashire’s frailties with the bat from 2024 haven’t gone away, and they were bowled out for 228 and asked to follow on, on-loan Calvin Harrison having taken four for 34. Josh Bohannon made 155 to spare Lancashire’s blushes, while Harrison took a career-best seven for 119 to give him match figures of 11 for 153. The game ended in a draw with Lancashire on 351 for nine.

At Bristol, the game followed a similar pattern. Glamorgan chose to field first and soon came to rue the decision as Cameron Bancroft (163) and Oliver Price (101) put on 230 for the second wicket. The away side wasn’t helped by conceding 60 extras (Ned Leonard giving away 28 of them in no-balls) as Gloucestershire were eventually dismissed for 546. Colin Ingram’s 103 kept Glamorgan in it, as they replied with 385, but it wasn’t enough to avoid the follow-on, Zaman Akhter taking five for 85. An unbeaten 77 from Ingram ensured there were no further alarms, and Glamorgan were 288 for four when the game ended as a draw.