Division Two, Round 5

Catching up with the latest scores in Division Two as The Middle go top!

Just the three games for this round, and I really don’t understand the reasoning for not playing four matches every round unless it’s so that the LVCC can be stretched over 16 weeks.

Round 5

Second place Glamorgan played host to Leicestershire, won the toss and put their guests in to bat. Leicestershire scored 320 all out, with three of those wickets being run outs. That didn’t seem such a bad score until Glamorgan put up 437 all out in reply. Kiran Carlson top-scored with 92, Sam Northeast came next with 84 and Extras managed a creditable 64, 34 of those runs being no-balls. Starting off 117 behind, Leics could only get to 266 all out, Ben Mike scored 64 in 100 balls. Needing 150 to win, Glamorgan did lose four wickets but reached their target in the 41st over. Although Extras only managed 18 runs in the second innings, 12 no-balls meant that 50 runs were given away in no-balls alone. Leicestershire stay bottom.

Glamorgan (23 pts) beat Leicestershire (5 pts) by six wickets

Worcestershire welcomed Durham and new England captain Ben Stokes to New Road, and probably wished they hadn’t bothered accepting the invite. Durham won the toss and chose to bat. Once England opener Alex Lees was out for 27 at 55-1, Worcester might have been optimistic. But Sean Dickson with 104 and Keegan Petersen put on 123 for the second wicket, Dickson falling 40-odd runs later. Scott Borthwick and David Bedingham then put on 138 for the fourth wicket, Bedingham (135) hanging around to share a partnership of 220 with Ben Stokes, the England captain blasting 161 runs off 88 balls including 17 (seventeen) sixes. The Cathedral remains undamaged.

Durham declared at 580 for 6 and soon had Worcester at 41 for 4 wicket but the hosts recovered to finish at 309, a mere 271 behind. c took six wickets for 62 runs off 24 overs. Durham then declared  at 170 for 1, Sean Dickson going one better than the first innings with 105. 

Chasing a highly unlikely 442 to win, but more importantly not losing ten wickets, Worcester played out a draw by getting to 262 in 100 overs, for the loss of just three wickets. Jack Haynes scored a maiden first-class hundred in a stand of 195 with Azhar Ali.

Worcestershire (12 pts) drew with Durham (16 pts)

In an exciting game at Hove all four innings between Sussex and Middlesex exceeded 300 runs. There were centuries for Tom Alsop, Cheteshwar Pujara and Sam Robson. England’s Ollie Robinsons took five wickets for 66 runs off 24 overs. More on this game elsewhere on MTWD.

Middlesex (23 pts) beat Sussex (7 pts) by seven wickets (and go top!)

Three batters have now scored over 700 runs:

Durham's Sean Dickson has 729 runs from 9 innings with a highest score of 186. He has hit thriteen sixes.

Sussex' Cheteshwar Pujara has 717 runs from 7 innings with a HS of 203, with four sixes.

Derbyshire's Shan Masood has 713 runs from just 6 innings with a HS of 239 and a solitary six.

Masood's team mate Wayne Madsen is just two run short of 500 runs from six innings.

Of the bowlers, Durham's Matthew Potts has taken 24 wickets from 195 overs, the next best are the Nottinghamshire pair of Dane Paterson and Liam Patterson-White with 18 each.

Details at ESPN Cricinfo

Here's the table, also available at BBC Cricket