Yorkshire v Middlesex Championship Review Day 2

By JMB
September 15 2006

Joe Sayers provided a perfect example of concentration at the crease to grind out a century in the relegation confrontation between the First Division's bottom two teams - Yorkshire and Middlesex - at Scarborough.

Sayers reached his hundred, his second in the championship, in 263 deliveries and was undefeated on 102 when bad light brought a premature end to the day. Yorkshire had posted 273 for five in response to Middlesex's 376.

There was assistance for the Middlesex bowlers, albeit not to the same extent there had been for Yorkshire's on Wednesday, but they failed to hit a consistent line and length. McGrath made generally untroubled progress to 49, at which point he got a dubious leg-before decision following a stand of 94 with Sayers, and then Michael Lumb was caught behind. Adil Rashid was held at fourth slip – one ball after being dropped at third slip by Ben Hutton – before Sayers and Simon Guy added 60 in a stand interrupted by bad light with 9.5 overs remaining.