At the start of the second day of the game, it was obvious that the key to its direction was going to be the wicket of Chris Rogers, the Derbyshire captain. How often have I written that in the past couple of years?
Rogers and Chesney Hughes (pictured) did the county proud in the first session, taking their overnight stand past three figures. Rogers went on to make yet another century before being dismissed by arguably the find of the season, Gemaal Hussain, which left Derbyshire's young middle order exposed. Seeing Redfern and Hughes together, the thought crossed my mind that if this team gets much younger, we could perhaps consider approaching Farley's as a major sponsor…
Reaching lunch at 195-4 was ahead of my expectations from the overnight score and an excellent response. It showed a good fighting spirit, but the question remained - could we reinforce this in the afternoon session and move ahead? Equally importantly, could the young tyros at the crease build another partnership and cement their places in the side?
Well, Redfern didn't last long after the break, nor did Robin Peterson, but the slow left armer will have been encouraged to see his counterpart for the visitors, Vikram Banerjee, take three wickets. It was he who broke an encouraging and valuable stand with Tom Poynton, the young wicket keeper adding 44 for the seventh wicket with Hughes.
At this stage, all eyes were on the burly West Indian as he reached the "nervous nineties." Any fears of the occasion getting the better of him were allayed with 2/4/4 from successive balls to reach a marvellous first century - almost certainly not his one and only… music buffs might see what I did there!
Rogers and Chesney Hughes (pictured) did the county proud in the first session, taking their overnight stand past three figures. Rogers went on to make yet another century before being dismissed by arguably the find of the season, Gemaal Hussain, which left Derbyshire's young middle order exposed. Seeing Redfern and Hughes together, the thought crossed my mind that if this team gets much younger, we could perhaps consider approaching Farley's as a major sponsor…
Reaching lunch at 195-4 was ahead of my expectations from the overnight score and an excellent response. It showed a good fighting spirit, but the question remained - could we reinforce this in the afternoon session and move ahead? Equally importantly, could the young tyros at the crease build another partnership and cement their places in the side?
Well, Redfern didn't last long after the break, nor did Robin Peterson, but the slow left armer will have been encouraged to see his counterpart for the visitors, Vikram Banerjee, take three wickets. It was he who broke an encouraging and valuable stand with Tom Poynton, the young wicket keeper adding 44 for the seventh wicket with Hughes.
At this stage, all eyes were on the burly West Indian as he reached the "nervous nineties." Any fears of the occasion getting the better of him were allayed with 2/4/4 from successive balls to reach a marvellous first century - almost certainly not his one and only… music buffs might see what I did there!
He was eventually run out after a truly outstanding effort on a track that remains helpful for bowlers. Although Groenewald and Sheikh were as expensive as Lungley and Sheikh were in the first innings, Greg Smith removed Snell before the end of the day. He and Robin Peterson can look forward to a long bowl tomorrow and if they do their stuff, our season could be back on track.
Mind you, after four catches then his maiden century, I'd reckon that Chesney is on for five wickets...
Well done Chesney.
ReplyDeleteHe looks to be a real young star in the making.
MASTERVILLAIN