Middlesex nowhere near the Chase

Harringay Racer reports on what seemed an ineviatable defeat from the start. This report is not pretty reading and carries a MTWD health warning

Lower Mound closed his report on day 3 by observing that all four results were possible. However with 352 runs needed on the final day the four results were far from equally probable. Indeed in my part of the Edrich Stand the opinions on the likelihood of anything other than a Durham win ranged between ‘no chance’ and ‘no chance whatsoever’.

Clearly if Middlesex were to get anything from the game a good start would be needed and Sam Robson raised spirits with a fierce straight drive for four in Chris Rushworth’s opening over. However he then tried to flick a ball through midwicket. Form my perch behind the arm it looked as if the ball was heading a long way down the leg side but umpire Millns raised the finger much to the surprise of Robson whose only concern had been to ground his bat in case of a run-out attempt. 48 for 2, Robson out for 38.

At this stage the ball was moving about a bit under cloud cover that had rolled in at about 10.20 and several balls beat the bat. Malan and Morgan, though, were picking off the bad balls for a succession of boundaries. Meanwhile, at Hove, Jos Buttler was out and Lancashire were 277 for 5, leading by 163. At 11.25 the sun came out briefly and Eoin Morgan was immediately caught behind by Phil ‘Colonel’ Mustard off Rushworth for 21: 79 for 3 and the draw and/or win was rapidly disappearing over the horizon.

At 11.32 Neil Dexter (4) lost his leg stump to a ball from Rushworth that nipped back through his defence. 83 for 4. Around the same time Yorkshire completed an innings win at Trent Bridge to clinch the Championship and, no doubt, reduce President Bird to floods of tears if his performance on the radio this morning was any guide.

10 minutes later John Simpson left a ball from Rushworth that must have missed off stump by the proverbial coat of varnish. Next ball he improved Rushworth’s mood even further by edging through the slips for 4. At Hove Lancashire had reached 305 for 6: would they be able to escape with a draw?

Just before midday Peter Chase replaced Rushworth and his second ball hit Simpson (8) on the pads. Hard to tell from my viewpoint as Simpson’s body was in the way, but I thought it may have been a bit high. Umpire’s call, possibly. 101 for 5 and now just a matter of time, surely. A piece of comedy fielding lifted spirits briefly as Paul Stirling hooked a ball 15 yards to the right of Chase who didn’t see it and moved to his left before realising his error.

At around 12.20 Stirling (15) was bowled by Paul Collingwood. 126 for 6. Any lingering doubts were removed when Malan was lbw to Collingwood for 46 – no question about this decision from my angle – from the last ball before lunch. 139 for 7. At Hove Lancashire lunched in the slightly healthier position of 328 for 8.

After lunch Ollie Rayner and Toby Roland-Jones added 61 runs in before Toby was caught by Mustard off the second ball of a new spell from Chase for 25. Keaton Jennings, who had earlier dropped him on the boundary off Rushworth (on 21), was no doubt a relieved man. 200 for 8. Lancashire, 364 all out, had set Sussex 251 to win.

Tim Murtagh came in playing a mixture of three shots, apparently in random order: standing still and swinging through the line (or where he thought the line was), stepping back and carving over cover and shuffling across the line and flicking through the leg side. The results were mixed but he did score well on the occasions when he made contact. Rayner (on 35) was dropped by Rushworth off Chase – if anything even easier than the chance Jennings dropped. Again, though, the reprieve didn’t last long as at 2.20 he was bowled by Ben Stokes for 38. 232 for 9 and all that remained was a bit of fun between Murtagh and Steve Finn until Murtagh was well caught at mid-on by a back-pedalling Chase off Hastings for 34 leaving Finn stranded on 12 and Durham the winners by 141 runs.