Sussex 100 all out (Clark 31, Conners 4-32, Chappell 4-39, Dal 2-3)
Derbyshire 94-1 (Reece 50*)
Derbyshire trail by six runs
After two days of rain it was a good toss to win and the home bowlers used the pitch very well. There were 4 wickets each for Zak Chappell and Sam Conners, with Anuj Dal taking the other two while conceding just three runs in eight overs. I thought Pat Brown did well too, very much looking the part and enabling the Derbyshire attack to hunt like a pack.
How nice it was to see some help for them in the pitch and to see them use it so well. There is a lot of pressure in bowling well on a pitch where you are expected to do so and the home attack, admittedly helped by some rash strokes by the visitors, did a very good job.
Credit is due to Brooke Guest, who held seven catches in the innings, equalling the county record previously shared by Bob Taylor and Harvey Hosein. He kept wicket very well yet again and largely undemonstratively. When the final catch went up in the air, no one else was going to be taking it!
Later, Luis Reece made his fifth successive score in excess of 50, only the tenth Derbyshire player to do so. He has looked increasingly secure this season and can be proud of his efforts. He and Harry Came have formed an excellent opening partnership and while the latter was dismissed before the close, Guest came in to see things through to the clothes of play, capping a perfect day for him.
The only downside for Derbyshire was what looked like a nasty injury sustained by Wayne Madsen, in attempting to hold a sharp slip chance from Hudson-Prentice. It is not yet been made clear what happened, but it may well be that his season has come to a premature close.
With only one day left, a draw appears the likely result, but how nice would it be if such pictures became the norm next year? Let's trust the bowlers to match the opposition and our batters to do the same.
Could this have been the best day's cricket of the summer ?
ReplyDeleteOne of the best days of the season for Derbyshire. Tight and accurate bowling and solid batting. And what a day for Brooke Guest!
ReplyDeleteWhile a draw does look the most likely result, we could actually win the game, provided the rain stays away. If we could get 150 in the morning session and declare. We then have two sessions to bowl out Sussex. If we were to dismiss them for, say, 190, we'd only need 40 to win, which we could get even if we had only five overs.
A great shame that easily our best day of the season will be merely academic as with only one day left there is no chance of a positive outcome to this match. But a terrific performance by our bowlers and a marvellous day for Brooke Guest. At least this day has shown what we are capable of and let's hope we will have many more days like this next season.
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