Never in Doubt?
By Haringey Racer
August 4 2013
44 runs needed, 8 wickets in hand. What could possibly go wrong? Well, on the basis of the first two days quite a lot. These were my thoughts as I headed to St Johns Wood. Voges (36 no) and Morgan (24 no) would have to make fresh starts, presumably against Onions and Rushworth, and the game to date had seen wickets fall in clusters. And that’s before considering recent history between the two sides. Those who were at Chester le Street last year still speak in hushed tones about how we screwed up what should have been an easy run chase. Thus it was with considerable anxiety that I took my seat at the Nursery End joining the few hundred diehards scattered around the ground.
Durham’s only chance was early wickets and lots of them. Sure enough they opened with Onions and Rushworth. After two overs producing just a leg bye and a no ball Voges tried to pull the first ball of Onions’s second over. The ball seemed to deceive him for pace and/or bounce and he just managed a top edge that sent the ball a long way up but allowed Mustard to amble ten yards or so towards square leg to take the easiest catch imaginable. 106 for 3 and definitely not the solid start Middlesex supporters were looking for. Captain Dexter played out the rest of the over for a maiden and he and Morgan proceeded with due care and attention picking off the runs that were available without taking undue risks.Dexter was able to play out a maiden from Onions without actually playing a stroke. Rushworth was bowling to Morgan with a 7-2 offside field including two backward points and another catcher at short cover and the reason for this became clear when a controlled drive flew just wide of the cover man for four. Any mistiming of that shot would have been a chance. The pair continued to chip away at the target with few alarms apart from a couple of thick edges through the slips and a Dexter leave that caught the bottom edge and went through the slips for a single off Stokes, replacing Onions. Dexter pulled Rushworth for four and took a single to level the scores at the end of the 40th on the stroke of midday.
However, Middlesex being Middlesex, that wasn’t the final action. From the second ball of the next over a square drive saw Dexter well caught, low down by Smith off Stokes leaving Simpson to come in and finish things off with his second ball at 12.04.
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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2013:08:08:18:42:50 by BarmierKev.
As you say:' Morgan proceeded with due care and attention picking off the runs available without taking undue risks'.
Given the quality of the bowling: good approach.
Having been around awhile. the oppo have sussed that one of Moggies favourite run areas is through the point area.
Hence two backward points. The fine leg area was vacant but the accurate off stump attack, made that risky.
Good report, but in truth even for the biggest pessimists amongst us the outcome on the 3rd day was never really in doubt
Mind you- we're not Essex!
Never over till Vanessa Feltz sings etc.