365 Sporting Days – New!

In the midst of the T20 Blast we have 2 rounds of the County Championship to be played with the Kookaburra ball. My team, Essex have had a woeful T20 time, being without a win so far, it felt like a relief to get back to the 4 day stuff. Only one captain winning the toss put the oposition in and that was one Sir Jimmy Anderson! Round one of the 2025 Kookaburra experiment produced 7 Drawn games out of the 9 played. I’m not sure that’s great for those choosing to go along to be entertained. The fact that Surrey were one of two teams to win in this round could be key to Division 1! The fact there were 26 Centuries + and only 5 bowlers with 5 wickets tells a big story of this round!

Division 1

Durham v Sussex – Bank Homes Riverside, Chester-le-Street. John Simpson won the toss for Sussex and elected to bat. Match Drawn.

Sussex 361 All Out & 322 for 6, Durham 327 All Out

Sussex lost opener Tom Haines for 4 early and were 9 for 1 in the 3rd over. Opener Daniel Hughes and Tom Clark then put on 76 for the 2nd wicket. Hughes scored 60 from 110 balls. James Coles in at 4 then shared a few partnerships and was 117* at the end of Day 1. Sussex were 322 for 9 from the 96 overs. Bas de Leede took 4 wickets on Day 1. Coles went on to score 148 from 219 balls. Sussex were bowled out in 106.5 overs for 361. Bas de Leede took 4 wickets.

Openers Alex Lees and Emilio Gay put on 51 for the 1st wicket. Colin Ackeermann and Keeper Ollie Robinson put on 58 for the 4th wicket. Ackermann scored 65 from 148 balls. This was an innings go most of the batters getting some runs, although with only 2 over 50, the other being Graham Clark who made 51 from 103 balls. Durham made 327 in 106 overs. Gurinder Sanhu took 5 for 83 in his 23 overs. Sussex used 8 bowler one of which was Joffra Archer who bowled 18 overs and took 1 for 32.

Sussex fell to 27 for 3 in their 2nd innings, then 100 for 4. Coles added another 53 to his tally for the match. Captain/Keeper Robbie Simpson and Danial Ibrahim put on 157 for the 5th wicket. Simpson scored 85 from 167 balls. Ibrahim was 121* from 315 balls when the draw was declared. Sussex had batted for 111.2 overs.

Essex v Hampshire – Ambassador Cruise Line Ground, Chelmsford. Tom Westley won the toss for Essex and elected to bat. Match Drawn.

Essex 296 All Out & 358 for 6, Hampshire 453 All Out

I was oblky able to go for the first session on Day 1 of this match and it wasn’t a good morning for Essex. they lost 3 wickets in the first 15 overs. The bowlers gave nothing away in the morning session and challenged every batter. At 44 for 3 Essex were in some trouble. Captain Tom Westley and Matt Critchley put on 53 for the 4th wicket. Charlie Allison coming in at 6 on the back of his maiden Century at the Oval shared a 5th wicket partnership of 66 with Critchley. Critchley was out for 71 from 104 balls. Simon Harmer in at 8 scored 45 and put on 107 with Allison for the 7th wicket. Allison finished Day 1 on 101*. Essex were 292 for 8. Disappointingly Essex failed got reach the next batting bonus point and were bowled out for 296, facing just another 2.1 overs on Day 2. Allison was out on that 101 from 192 balls. Kyle Abbot took 5 for 26 in his 19.1 overs, some figures!

Sam Cook took 2 wickets in 2 balls and Hampshire were 34 for 2 in the 9th over. Opener Fletcha Middleton and Tilak Varma put on 62 for the 3rd wicket. Middleton scored 61 from 82 balls. Tilak and captain/keeper Ben Brown put on 68 for the 4th wicket, Brown made 42. I managed to get to the session after tea on Day 2 to see Tilak and Liam Dawson bat through the afternoon. Tilak was out on Day 3 for 100 from 241 balls, he and Dawson had added 133 for the 5th wicket. Dawson then shared a partnership if 98 with Tom Prest. Prest scored 41. Dawson’s was the 8th wicket to fall and he’d scored 139 from 235 balls. Hampshire batted for 138.1 overs and scored 453. Simon Harmer bowled 45 overs, taking 2 wickets, the 2nd of which was his 500th First Class wicket! 19 year old Mackenzie Jones took his very 1st First Class wicket.

Day 4 of this match was a key one for my team, possibly season defining, they could not afford to lose! Essex fell to 72 for 3 in the 54th over. Then lost the Century maker from the 1st innings in the 62nd over, Essex were 131 for 5. I was driving to West Yorkshire and keeping a nervous eye on the score each time I stopped. Captain Tom Westley and Keeper Michael Pepper saved the day for Essex with a partnership of 215! Pepper scored 140 from 154 balls and was out just before the close of play, a very memorable birthday innings for the young Essex batter. Westley made 130* from 322 balls. With Yorkshire also getting a draw this result kept Essex in 8th spot. The 2 teams play a key game against each other in York next week!

Nottinghamshire v Yorkshire – Trent Bridge, Nottingham. Haseeb Hameed won the toss for Notts and elected to bat. Match Drawn.

Nottinghamshire 487 All Out & 148 for 1, Yorkshire 510 All Out

Notts openers Haseeb Hameed and Ben Slater put on 90 for the 1st wicket. Hameed made 52 from 97 balls. Slater went on to score 96 from 224 balls. Exciting new signing Ishan Kishan was 44* at the end of Day 1 and Notts were 298 for 6. Kishan went on to score 87 from 98 balls. He and Liam Patterson-White put on 71 for the 7th wicket. Patterson-White and Dillon Pennington, who came in at 10 put on 96 for the 9th wicket. Pennington scored 61 from 61 balls and Patterson-White made 87 from 129 balls. Nottinghamshire made 487 in 132.4 overs. Dan Moriarty took 4 wickets.

Adam Lyth was out on the 1st ball of the Yorkshire innings. His fellow opener Finlay Brand then put on a number of partnerships sharing 98 with James Wharton for the 2nd wicket. 101 with Jonny Bairstow who scored 41 for the 5th wicket. Matthew Revis and Bean then put on 62 for the 7th wicket. That was Bean, he scored 224 from 489 balls, he batted for just under 9.5 overs. Revis was 93* from 243 balls. Yorkshire scored 510 in 185.4 overs.

Notts faced 48 overs before the Draw was agreed. They scored 148 for 1, Opener Ben Slater scored 74 from 145 balls.

Warwickshire v Somerset – Edgbaston, Birmingham. Craig Overton won the toss for for Somerset and elected to bat. Match Drawn

Somerset 498 All Out 229 for 8, Warwickshire 351 All Out & 161 for 4

Openers Tom Kohler-Cadmore and Josh Davey put on 186 for the 1st wicket. Davey Scored 64 from 121 balls and Kohler-Cadmore was out 2 overs later for 104 from 138 balls. Tom Lammonby and Keeper James Rew put on 88 for the 3rd wicket. Rew scored 38 and Lammonby was 75* at the end of Day 1. Somerset were 327 for 3. Lammonby and Tom Abell put on 132 for the 4th wicket, Abell scored 48. Lammonby made 133 from 196 balls. Somerset faced 133.3 overs and scored 498.

Warwickshire were 33 for 1, Capatain/Opener Alex Davies and Tom Latham put on 139 for the 2nd wicket. Latham scored 65 from 158 balls. Davies made 78 from 186 balls. Sam Haines came in at 4 and scored 78 from 170 balls. Jacob Bethell in at 5 scored just 20. Warwicks faced 121.1 overs and scored 351. Craig Overton took 4 wickets.

Somerset batted for a swift 53.1 overs in a bod to force a result. James Rew top scored with 61 from 81 balls . They declared on 228 for 8. Corey Rocchiccioli took 5 for 67 in his 16.1 overs.

Warwickshire faced 56 overs and scored 161 for 4 before the captains shook hands on the Draw.

Worcestershire v Surrey – Visit Worcestershire New Road, Worcester. Jake Libby won the toss for Worcestershire and elected to bat. Surrey won by 9 Wickets.

Worcestershire 209 All Out & 125 All Out, Surrey 291 All Out & 53 for 1

Having opted to bat alongside every other toss winning captain, New Road was the only ground where that decision didn’t prove beneficial. Worcestershire were bowled out in 78.5 overs for 209. Matthew Waite in at 7 top scored with 68 from 113 balls.

Surrey were 47 for no loss at the end of Day 1, Ryan Patel opened with Dom Sibley, Patel scored 61 from 88 balls as they made 87 for the 1st wicket. Rory Burns joined Sibley and they put on 73 for the 2nd wicket. Burns scored 34 and Sibley went on to score 73 from 184 balls. Dan Lawrence and Jordan Clark shared a 7th wicket partnership of 69, Lawrence scored 52 from 97 balls. Clark scored 34. There were 6 scored under 10, but Surrey put 291 on the board in 91.3 overs.

Worcestershire were bowled out in 35 overs in their 2nd innings. Adam Hose scored 40 of Worcs 125 runs. Nathan Smith took 6 for 38 in his 11 overs.

Surrey needed just 11 overs to get the win wrapped up just after lunch on Day 3.

Division 2

Gloucestershire v Derbyshire – Seat Unique Stadium, Bristol. Cameron Bancroft won the toss for Gloucs and elected to bat. Match Drawn.

Gloucestershire 187 All Out & 526 for 6, Derbyshire 398 All Out & 296 for 8

Openers Cameron Bancroft and Joe Phillips put on 68 for the 1st wicket. That was the only real partnership of the innings. Bancroft top scored with 58 from 127 balls as Gloucestershire were bowled out in 59.2 overs for 187. Jack Morley took 6 for 55 in his 18.2 overs.

Derbyshire were 116 for 2 at the end of Day 1. Harry Came and captain Wayne Madsen put on 206 for the 3rd wicket. Madsen scored 123 form 195 balls and Came went on to score 103 from 187 balls. Derbyshire lost 7 wickets for 97 runs, they scored 398 in 105.5 overs.

Gloucestershire went big in their 2nd innings scoring 526 in 147 overs. Captain/Opener Cameron Bancroft and Keeper James Bracey put on 222 for the 4th wicket. Bancroft scored 176 from 366 balls. Graeme van Buuren scored 175 from 277 balls, sharing 106 runs with Bracey. Bancroft declared on 526 for 6.

Derbyshire faced 66.5 overs and scored 296 for 8. Harry Came and Caleb Jewell put on 177 for the 1st wicket in 31.3 overs. Graeme van Buuren took 4 wickets.

Lancashire v Kent – Stanley Park, Blackpool. James Anderson won the toss for Lancs and put Kent in to bat. Match Drawn.

Kent 374 All Out & 328 for 8, Lancashire 639 for 9

Openers Ben Compton and Jaydn Denly put on 55 for the 1st wicket. Tawana Muyeye coming in at 4 on the back of his maiden T20 Century put on 126 for the 3rd wicket with Compton. Muyeye scored 63 from 95 balls and Compton was 86* at the end of Day 1. Kent were 213 for 3 from the 57.4 overs bowled. Compton went on to score 135 from 296 balls. He and keeper Harry Finch put on 95 for the 6th wicket. Finch made 52 from 133 balls. Kent scored 374 in 123.2 overs.

The Lancashire openers Keaton Jennings and Luke Wells put on 119 for the 1st wicket, Jennings made 49. Wells went on to score 152 from 297 balls. Wells and Josh Bohannon put on 136 for the 3rd wicket. Bohannon and Ashton Turner put on 174 for the 4th wicket. Bohananon scored 124 from 210 balls. Turner then put on 90 for the 6th wicket with Michael Jones. Turner went on to score 154 from 148 balls. Lancashire batted for 142 overs and scored 639 for 9.

Kent batted for 92 overs in their 2nd innings and scored 318 for 8. Jaydn Denly scored 57 from 97 balls. Joey Evison made 77 from 175 balls. Chris Green took 4 wickets. Huge apologies to Grant Stewart! I somehow missed his 130 from 122 balls! Some innings!

Leicestershire v Glamorgan – Uptonsteel County Ground, Leicester. Sam Northeast won the toss and elected to bat. Match Drawn.

Glamorgan 353 All Out & 342 for 6, Leicestershire 576 for 7 dec.

Openers Zain ul Hassan and Asa Tribe put on 98 for the 1st wicket. Tribe went on to score 107 from 173 balls. Colin Ingram was 56* at the end of Day 1 and Glamorgan were 305 for 5. Ingram was out for that 53 and the remaining 4 wickets fell for 48 runs. Glamorgan scored 353 in 110.2 overs.

Rishi Patel and Sol Budinger opening for Leicestershire put on 180 for the 1st wicket. Patel scored 70 from 121 balls and Budinger made 118 from 102 balls. Rehan Ahmed in at 3 and Lewis Hill shared a partnership of 165 for the 3rd wicket. Ahmed scored 106 from 118 balls. Hill made 70 from 136 balls. Ben Green and Logan van Beek put on 123 before the declaration, Green scored 58 from 96 balls and van Beek 67 from 85 balls. Leicestershire scored 576 in 129 overs!

Glamorgan faced 121 overs in their 2nd innings and had 2 century makers. Sam Northeast and Colin Ingram steadied the ship after Glamorgan fell to 36 for 3; they put on 225 for the 4th wicket. Northeast scored 139 from 274 balls. Ingram finished the innings on 133* from 274 balls. Glamorgan made 342 for 6.

Northamptonshire v Middlesex – County Ground, Northampton. Toby Roland-Jones won the toss for Middlesex and elected to bat. Northamptonshire won by 4 wickets.

Middlesex 413 All Out & 332 for 8 dec, Northamptonshire 435 All Out & 313 for 6 dec

Middlesex lost early wickets and were 33 for 3 in the 8th over. Ryan Higgins and Lees du Plooy put on 52 for the 4th wicket. Ben Geddes and du Plooy then shared a partnership of 60. du Plooy made 66 from 95 balls. Luke Hollman in at 8 and Keeper Joe Cracknell in at 7 put on 103 for the 7th wicket. Hollman scored 51 from 86 balls. Cracknell was 106* at the end of Day 1. Middlesex were 397 for 8 at the end of Day 1. Cracknell scored 112 from 173 balls and Middlesex 413 in 101 overs. Liam Guthrie took 7 for 94 in his 21 overs.

Northamptonshire put on 69 for the 1st wicket. Luke Proctor scored 62 from 130 and his was the 4th wicket to fall. Saif Zaib and keeper Lewis McManus put on 147 for the 6th wicket. Zaib scored 102 from 170 balls. McManus scored 71 from 119 balls. Justin Broad in at 7 scored 70 from 81 balls. Northants batted for 125.2 overs and scored 435. Zafar Gohar took 5 for 121 in his 42 overs.

The Middlesex openers Josh de Caires and Sam Robson put on 89 for the 1st wicket. Robson scored 48. de Caires then shared 65b runs with max Holden. de Caires scored 87 from 144 balls. Holden made 54 from 104 balls. Middlesex batted for 78 overs before Toby Roland-Jones went for the declaration. Calvin Harrison took 4 wickets.

Northants batted for 62.3 overs and made the runs required to get the win, finishing on 313 for 6. Opener Luke Proctor and James Sales put on 153 for the 3rd wicket. Proctor scored 107 from 137 balls. Sales went on to score 108 from 120 balls.

Century Makers and 5 Wicket Takers

• James Coles – Sussex – 148 from 219 Balls
• Danial Ibrahim – Sussex – 121 from 315 Balls
• Charlie Allison – Essex – 101 from 192 Balls
• Tilak Varma – Hampshire – 100 from 241 Balls
• Liam Dawson – Hampshire – 139 from 235 Balls
• Tom Westley – Essex – 130* from 322 Balls
• Michael Pepper – Essex – 140 from 154 Balls
• Finlay Bean – Yorkshire – 224 from 489 Balls
• Tom Kohler-Cadmore – Somerset – 104 from 138 Balls
• Tom Lammonby – Somerset – 133 from 196 Balls
• Wayne Madsen – Derbyshire- 123 from 105 Balls
• Harry Came – Derbyshire – 103 from 187 Balls
• Cameron Bancroft – Gloucs – 175 from 166 Balls
• Graeme van Buuren – Gloucs – 175 from 277 Balls
• Ben Compton – Kent – 135 from 296 Balls
• Luke Wells – Lancashire – 152 from 257 Balls
• Josh Bohannon – Lancashire – 124 from 210 Balls
• Ashton Turner – Lancashire – 154 from 148 Balls
• Asa Tribe – Glamorgan – 107 from 173 Balls
• Sol Budinger – Leicestershire – 118 from 102 Balls
• Rehan Ahmed – Leicestershire – 106 from 118 Balls
• Sam Northeast – Glamorgan – 139 from 274 Balls
• Colin Ingram – Glamorgan – 133 from 308 Balls
• Joe Cracknell – Middlesex – 112 from 173 Balls
• Saif Zaib – Middlesex – 102 from 170 Balls
• Luke Proctor- Northants – 107 from 137 Balls
• James Sales – Northants – 108 for 120 Balls
• Grant Stewart – Kent -130 from 122 Balls

• Gurinder Sandhu – Sussex – 5 for 83 in 23 Overs
• Kyle Abbot – Hampshire – 5 for 26 in 19.1 Overs
• Nathan Smith – Surrey – 6 for 38 in 11 Overs
• Corey Rocchiccioli took 5 for 67 in 16.1 Overs.
• Zafar Gohar – Middlesex – 5 for 121 in 42 Overs