First Ball: Hampshire enlivened by a fiery victory
In Spirited Away (whose adaptation is currently wowing crowds and critics in the West End), the enigmatic No Face reflects the emotions and attitudes of anyone or anything he experiences. Surrey came across their absence at the Utilita Bowl, where Hampshire gave the champions a job that would have made Godzilla proud.
That Dan Worrall was Surrey’s outstanding player is no surprise – whether because of his storytelling, his 48s when the game was well over, which proves his team’s best score. But it was a relentless top-flight display by the home side, for which Toby Albert scored a first century, Nick Gubbins scored in triple figures and Ben Brown scored his 24. The files were sent tumbling.
It was the story of the spinners that correctly revealed the balance of the game. Dan Lawrence and Cameron Steel recorded one for 309; Liam Dawson and Felix Organ bagged 12-175. Surrey have a couple of weeks to think about what went wrong before he goes on the field with a red ball in his hand; Hampshire will try to use such a surprising result as a springboard for the second half of the season.
Second scoop: Essex is still cooking without a chef
Among the pursuers, Essex was the team that benefited from this, despite some adversity.
They took Kent, who conceded over 500 for the fifth time this season, for almost 600 before Tom Westley ended the carnage when Jordan Cox dropped out for 207. To their credit, not without a few sour looks in the dressing room, I expect the batsmen themselves have dug and lifted almost 400, with Matt Critchley continuing his magnificent season with a fivefold. The second time Simon Harmer went into the rhythm for the first time of the season and no one managed it more than Joe Denly’s 23 when Kent calmed down.
Given that Sam Cook has been exceptional all season, playing only six overs in the match, this comfortable win speaks to the variety and depth of Essex’s action, but if his hamstring problem leads to a prolonged absence, it will impact their chances of tracking Surrey in Division 1 and in their T20 damn campaign. When the break of about a month is approaching, you are only two points away from the Londoners.
Ball three: Stokes fuels his fire
In the third-innings defeat at the top of the table, Somerset marched to Chester-le-Street for a two-day hiding.
Ben Stokes spat fire ball in hand, taking four wickets in each innings his reward as he went back in time (can we say that of a 32-year-old man?). David Bedingham was once again the bat of the class with his fourth ton in four strokes, another justification for Durham’s decision to retain his overseas services when he was no longer a kolpak.
Somerset are still in a good position after Hampshire did everyone a favour by overwhelming the leaders, but Durham’s second win snuck them into the top half.