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County Championship: Scores and daily round-ups as Lancashire drew with leaders Essex
Final scores and round-up from day four of the latest round of Specsavers County Championship games.
County Championship scores (September 5-8)
Division One:
- Ageas Bowl: Hampshire (290) drew with Surrey (200 & 280-4)
- Old Trafford: Lancashire 290 drew with Essex (202-8 dec)
- Edgbaston: Somerset (282 & 265-4 dec) beat Warwickshire (146 & 132) by 169 runs
- Headingley: Yorkshire (358) drew with Middlesex (272-8 dec)
Division Two:
- Derby: Derbyshire (236-9) drew with Glamorgan
- Riverside: Durham (217 & 359-7 dec) drew with Kent (206 & 184-9)
- Grace Road: Gloucestershire (368 & 15-0) beat Leicestershire (222 & 160) by 10 wickets
- Wantage Road: Northants (426 & 140-4) beat Sussex (172 & 393) 6 wickets
- Trent Bridge: Worcestershire (243 & 229-2) beat Notts (193 & 275) by eight wickets
Friday round-up
The Specsavers County Championship clash between league leaders Essex and second-placed Lancashire ended in a draw after rain ruined the prospect of a result at Old Trafford.
Both sides took nine points as Essex maintain a 36-point lead in the Championship with three matches remaining.
The game ended at 4.10pm after Essex declared in order to prevent Lancashire from picking up another bowling point. Lancashire then also declared without batting and those two declarations took 20 minutes out of the game, moving it into the last hour and allowing the two captains to shake hands on a draw.
A wet outfield after heavy overnight rain meant that there was no play possible before lunch on the final day.
When play did get underway at 1.40pm, Essex resumed their first innings on 115 for four in reply to Lancashire's 290 and quickly passed their first target which was to avoid the follow-on.
From there it was largely a battle for bonus points and Lancashire struck four times before tea to secure their second, which moved them ahead of Essex by four points to three in the match.
Essex are at Warwickshire next week while Lancashire travel down to Taunton to face Somerset.
Somerset completed a 169-run victory over Warwickshire at Edgbaston to improve their survival hopes.
Chasing 402 for victory, the home side were bowled out for 232 to suffer their seventh defeat in 11 games and one which effectively seals their relegation after nine seasons in the top flight.
Somerset, meanwhile, will face Lancashire at Taunton, next week with momentum high as they aim to reel in one of the sides above them over the final three games.
Warwickshire will take on Essex at Edgbaston next week with the prospect of having their relegation sealed while the visitors celebrate clinching the title in the adjacent dressing room.
Ollie Pope registered his maiden first-class century as Surrey's clash with Hampshire ended as a draw at the Ageas Bowl.
Surrey held a lead of only 45 with six wickets in hand at the start of the final day but the 19-year-old Pope and Ben Foakes (83no) put an unbroken 158-run stand to ensure the spoils were shared on the south coast.
There was no play before 2pm due to rain but any hope Hampshire had of snatching victory were snuffed out by the brilliance of Pope and Foakes.
Foakes brought up his half-century from only 113 balls before crunching three fours in an over off Fidel Edwards as Surrey went to tea on 200 for four and a lead of 110.
It was Pope who was the aggressor in the final session as he reached his first half-century in only his third first-class match from only 89 balls, and he accelerated from there, peppering the boundary rope seemingly at will.
Hampshire take 10 points from the encounter and remain third in the standings, three points ahead of Surrey, who took nine.
The final day of the match between Yorkshire and Middlesex at Headingley saw only one session of play, with the inevitable draw confirmed.
Play started at 3.10pm following heavy overnight and morning rain, with Middlesex advancing their first innings from 108 for three to 272 for eight declared, including a fine unbeaten 65 for Australian Adam Voges.
The sodden outfield in front of the Football Stand was the reason why umpires Jeremy Lloyds and Richard Illingworth went through a series of inspections before giving play the green light after tea with a minimum of 38 overs to bowl.
A total of 198 overs were lost in the match, including a washed-out first day on Tuesday.
A measured century from Daryl Mitchell helped Worcestershire to become the first side to defeat Nottinghamshire in this season's County Championship.
Mitchell scored an unbeaten 139 from 212 balls, with 21 fours and two sixes. as the visitors successfully chased down their victory target of 226 to win by eight wickets on the final day of domestic cricket at Trent Bridge this season.
Worcestershire claim 20 points for the victory, closing the gap on Division Two leaders Nottinghamshire to just 15 points; with both counties having just two matches remaining.
Richard Levi's unbeaten half-century led Northamptonshire to a six-wicket win over Sussex on the fourth afternoon to keep alive their hopes of promotion.
Levi made a typically breezy fifty in 61 balls with six fours and a six as Northants chased 140 for a rare maximum-points victory. Sussex left Wantage Road with only three bowling bonus points.
That the match was still in progress into day four was thanks to a record ninth-wicket stand for Sussex against Northants, compiled by David Wiese and Jofra Archer on the third evening. Archer extended his career-best score to 81 not out but his final partner, Danny Briggs, was caught at midwicket in the second over after lunch, trying to pull Azharullah.
The chase began with a solid opening stand of 28 before Rob Newton fell to Wiese. Ben Duckett, who made 193 in the first innings, played some attractive strokes in reaching 28 before he was caught by wicketkeeper Ben Brown off a top-edged pull to hand Archer a second wicket of the match.
But Levi played the innings a small chase needs. He and Josh Cobb, who finished 22 not out, brought Northants home with Cobb striking the winning boundary.
Gloucestershire completed a 10-wicket victory over Leicestershire as Liam Norwell took the final three wickets in the hosts' second innings to finish with a first-class career-best return of eight for 43 at the Fischer County Ground.
His return was the best in the Second Division of the County Championship this season, and also meant the young seamer had taken 10 wickets in the match for the second time against Leicestershire this season.
The hosts resumed on 152 for seven, leading by only eight runs, so Gloucestershire's only real concern was the weather. But play started on time, and Norwell made an immediate breakthrough with a delivery which Matt Pillans edged to George Hankins at third slip.
The end was not long coming as Clint McKay then edged an expansive drive to Gareth Roderick behind the stumps before Dieter Klein nicked one to Chris Dent at second slip.
Gloucestershire openers Dent and Cameron Bancroft needed just 3.3 overs to score the 15 runs required to complete their third victory of the season.
Kent's Sam Billings returned from the migraine which had laid him low for two days to defy Durham, and their record-breaker Graham Onions at Chester-le-Street.
Set a target of 371 in 56 overs, there were 28 overs left when Billings went in at 74 for five. But while four more wickets fell he remained unbeaten on 70.
There were six overs left when Onions pinned Adam Milne lbw to break the record of 518 first-class wickets for Durham, held since 2002 by left-arm seamer Simon Brown.
Imran Qayyum was well protected by Billings and faced only two balls before edging James Weighell's first ball of the penultimate over to Paul Collingwood at first slip off.
Last man Mitch Claydon, who defied his old team-mates when Kent also hung on with nine wickets down at Canterbury, survived the over and Billings then kept out Onions.
Kent closed on 184 for nine, leaving Durham to rue their belated declaration in a match which lost four sessions to the weather.
The 2017 season at Derby ended in anti-climax after the final day of the Division Two match between Derbyshire and Glamorgan was abandoned before the scheduled start.
Rain throughout the night and early morning left the outfield too wet for the prospect of any play so the teams settled for a draw with Derbyshire taking six points and Glamorgan eight.
Thursday round-up
The Specsavers County Championship Division One clash between second-placed Lancashire and leaders Essex looks set to be a draw after rain brought an early close to day three at Old Trafford.
In a contest that had its first day wiped out by wet weather, the hosts moved from 222 for eight overnight to 290 all out, with Haseeb Hameed adding three runs to his 85 before becoming the fifth man ousted by Jamie Porter (five for 73).
Essex, who began the match 36 points clear of Lancashire, then got to 115 for four in their reply, captain Varun Chopra top-scoring with 40. Rain subsequently arrived during tea and led to play being abandoned for the day.
A draw also appears on the cards at Headingley, where poor weather has hampered Yorkshire's encounter with champions Middlesex - two sides still with relegation worries.
The start of this match was delayed until Wednesday as well, and no play was possible on Thursday beyond 4pm when bad light and then rain came in for the second time in the day.
Having begun proceedings on 317 for seven, Yorkshire were bowled out for 358 and Middlesex subsequently made 108 for three, with openers Sam Robson and Nick Compton hitting 47 and 42 respectively.
Somerset were close to a potentially crucial victory over Warwickshire after Marcus Trescothick starred on the third day of their basement battle at Edgbaston.
With Trescothick having struck 119 not out, James Hildreth contributing 68 and captain Tom Abell 51, the seventh-placed visitors declared on 265 for four in their second innings to set their rock-bottom opponents a daunting-looking target of 402.
And Warwickshire finished Thursday's play on 172 for six, their former seam bowler Tim Groenewald having taken three wickets.
Jonathan Trott (74) was one of two Warwickshire batsmen to fall in quick succession right at the end of the day.
The other Division One match saw Hampshire conclude their first innings impressively before finishing 45 runs behind Surrey at the Ageas Bowl.
Gareth Berg's 80 and Ian Holland's 51 helped the hosts go from 129 for seven overnight to 290 all out, giving them a first-innings lead of 90, with Rory Burns (63) then continuing his fine form against Hampshire as Surrey made 135 for four.
The top two are facing each other in Division Two as well, and Worcestershire are poised to cut the gap between them and front-runners Nottinghamshire - currently standing at 32 points - with victory at Trent Bridge.
Set 226 to win, Worcestershire finished day three needing 103 more runs with eight wickets intact after Daryl Mitchell's unbeaten 63 helped them to 123 for two.
Earlier, Notts captain Chris Read, who is retiring at the end of the season, was accompanied to the middle by a standing ovation and a guard of honour for his final innings at Trent Bridge, before making 38 of his side's 275.
Gloucestershire look set to inflict another defeat upon bottom side Leicestershire, who only lead by eight runs with just three batsmen remaining, after Liam Norwell took five wickets at Grace Road.
Sussex have some hope in their match at Northamptonshire after Jofra Archer (74 not out) and David Wiese (61) shared a ninth-wicket stand of 127 to move their side 128 runs ahead with one wicket in tact.
Rain and bad light meant only 29 overs were bowled at Emirates Riverside as Durham advanced from 57 for two overnight to 145 for two in their second innings against Kent, leading by 156 with Tom Latham on 64 not out and Graham Clark 49 not out.
Elsewhere, Derbyshire's match against Glamorgan at Derby finally got under way after two washed out days, with the hosts reaching 236 for nine before bad light and rain ended play shortly after tea.
Wednesday round-up
Haseeb Hameed's unbeaten 85 halted Championship leaders Essex's charge as Lancashire rallied at Old Trafford.
Hameed hit his top score for the season as the hosts recovered from 92 for six to 222 for eight at the end of day two.
After the first day's play was lost to rain, the hosts were caught cold at the crease by Essex, with Jamie Porter plundering four wickets for 54 runs.
Hameed shared 50 partnerships with Jordan Clark and Stephen Parry to steady the ship.
Jack Leach's five for 50 and Craig Overton's four for 33 put Somerset in charge with a 211-run lead over Warwickshire in the Division One relegation tussle.
Tom Abell's 82 guided Somerset to 282 all out, with Sunny Singh claiming five for 72 for the visitors.
Leach and Overton combined to skittle Warwickshire for 146 though, with Keith Barker's 52 one of few highlights. Somerset then edged to 75 for two at close of play.
Jack Leaning's 85 and 51 from Andrew Hodd put Yorkshire in the driving seat against Middlesex. After day one was lost to poor weather, the hosts closed on 317 for seven having recovered from 116 for four.
Adam Lyth added 40 to the 114-run fifth-wicket partnership from Leaning and Hodd, while Tim Bresnan and Liam Plunkett shared an unbroken 47 for the eighth wicket.
Jade Dernbach's two for 28 and Tom Curran's three for 21 put Surrey in control as Hampshire struggled with the bat at the Ageas Bowl.
George Bailey's 51 and 34 not out from Ian Holland helped Hampshire recover to 129 for seven, but the hosts still trail by 71 runs.
Ryan Patel hit 81 in just his second first-class match, with Ben Foakes notching 47 as Surrey reached 200 all out.
Sam Northeast's 110 kept Kent in the hunt at Durham, as Graham Onions' six for 62 wiped out the visitors for 206.
Fit-again Mark Wood hit 72 not out as Durham made 217 in their first innings, before the England star then claimed three for 48 with the ball.
James Weighell's 55 also improved Durham's situation, before the hosts reached 57 for two in their second innings at stumps.
Riki Wessels hit 60 from 79 balls as Nottinghamshire reached 138 for five in their second innings, a lead of 88 at Worcestershire.
The visitors wound up 193 all-out in their first innings, with Joe Leach taking three for 47.
Ed Barnard's 55 and Ben Cox's 47 from 43 balls carried Worcester to 243, with Steven Mullaney snaring four for 31 for Notts.
Rory Kleinveldt's five for 50 helped Northamptonshire squeeze Sussex to 172 all out, with the follow-on enforced.
Northants capped a fine first innings on 426 all out before lunch, with Luke Procter hitting 57.
Sussex ended a tough day at 34 for one in their second innings, leaving Northants well in control with a 220-run lead.
Gareth Roderick and Chris Dent hit 57 apiece as Gloucestershire took control against Leicestershire.
Mark Cosgrove turned his overnight 38 in 92 but Leicester wound up 222 all out, with Josh Shaw taking four for 54.
There was no play in Derbyshire's home match against Glamorgan for a second successive day.
Tuesday round-up
Somerset made a solid start to their Specsavers County Championship clash with relegation rivals Warwickshire by passing 200 on an abbreviated first day.
Openers Marcus Trescothick and Eddie Byrom put on 51 in 10 overs for Somerset, second-bottom in Division One with only their opponents beneath them, with the former dismissed just before a lengthy rain break.
Byrom top-scored with 43 and put on 42 with James Hildreth (33), with captain Tom Abell (38 not out) and wicketkeeper Steven Davies (39no) adding an unbroken 72 to take the visitors to 203 for four when bad light ended play in the 57th over.
Rain dominated elsewhere in the top flight, with no play between top two Essex and Lancashire at Old Trafford - where the hosts would have been eager to eat into their opponents' 36-point lead, as well as stretching their own 24-point cushion over Hampshire.
Struggling pair Yorkshire and Middlesex were also unable to take to the field at Headingley while at the Ageas Bowl, only five overs were possible between Hampshire and Surrey with the visitors reaching 16 without loss.
Second-placed Worcestershire enjoyed a profitable first day in the Division Two promotion race, reducing leaders Nottinghamshire to 188 for nine to earn maximum bowling points.
Notts reached 70 for one before a rain break, after which Jake Libby (34) and Cheteshwar Pujara (28) soon fell in the same Ed Barnard over.
Barnard (four for 66) then had Samit Patel caught behind and bowled Riki Wessels for a duck while Jack Leach and Josh Tongue took two wickets apiece, the latter having Chris Read caught and bowled for 26 in the ex-England wicketkeeper's last game at Trent Bridge before retirement.
Ben Duckett went close to a double hundred to put Northamptonshire in control against a Sussex side with ambitions of breaking into the top two.
The opener finally gave a return catch to Danny Briggs, but not before batting for 69 overs and contributing 193, with 26 fours, to his side's stumps total of 329 for five.
He put on 91 with Rob Newton (32) and 106 with Richard Levi (44) as Sussex, who trailed Worcestershire by 19 points at the start of play, were left searching for answers.
Durham and Kent had to wait until 4pm to get their match under way at Chester-le-Street, with the hosts then quickly subsiding to 61 for four as Adam Milne and Durham old-boy Mitch Clayden took two wickets each. Keaton Jennings and the in-form Paul Collingwood were among those dismissed.
Leicestershire reached 90 for four in the 26.3 overs possible against Gloucestershire - Liam Norwell taking two for 16 while Mark Cosgrove will resume on 38 - while the first day between Derbyshire and Glamorgan was washed out.