Northamptonshire v Derbyshire day 1

Derbyshire 372 (Madsen 151, Aitchison 106, Randell 36, Guthrie 3-66, Sanderson 3-72, Conway 3-75)

Northamptonshire 15-0

Derbyshire lead by 357 runs

It was a thoroughly absorbing days cricket at Northampton today, one in which Derbyshire recovered remarkably from the perils of 107-6 soon after lunch to end on 372 all out.

There was an element of deja vu for seasoned watchers. Back at Lord's in May, Derbyshire recovered from 130-5 to 338-6 thanks to centuries from Wayne Madsen and Ben Aitchison. Today, the same pair added 197 together, as each made their second century of the season.

It was a good toss to win, with the ball nipping around in the early morning dampness and Derbyshire's top order displaying the worrying frailty that has been an unfortunate feature of the summer. Harry Came failed to trouble the scorers and will likely be disappointed with his current  season average of just 26, while Luis Reece was unlucky to be given leg before when just outside the line, after he and Madsen had suggested a rebuild.

But the home attack made good use of conditions and I suspect that most people expected Northamptonshire to be batting before tea. 

Madsen and Aitchison had other ideas. The skipper came into the game on the back of a rare bad trot, only 95 runs in his last eight innings, with three ducks. He started sketchily but gradually the trademark sureness came into his batting. He became ever more expansive as the day wore on, without assaying anything overly ambitious. On this performance, rumours of his demise are premature, because this was height of summer Madsen, leading from the front and offering sage counsel to Aitchison, as he built his own innings.

And what an innings it was. I remember writing about Ben two or three years ago, when some were suggesting he wasn't a batter, merely a merry tail end clumper. There have been sufficient incidences since then to suggest another string to his bow, although there may still have been those who wrote off his century at Lord's as one of those things. After today, they can no longer do that, because some of his strokes were of the very highest order. A clip through mid-on was indicative of pedigree, while successive cover drives for four from the bowling of Conway could scarce have been bettered by the man at the other end. 

His century, like that of his captain, was greeted by a roar from the away dressing room and his return to the pavilion, after eventually being caught in the deep, was greeted as the return of the conquering hero and was fully deserved. 

Afterwards, Brett Randell came in to play a delightful cameo that took the score past 350 and highlighted his own ability with the bat, before he was bowled by a slow yorker from Conway.

Conway, like Guthrie and Sanderson, ran in hard all day, but his ridiculous 'celebrappeal' when he thought he had dismissed Yusuf Bin Naeem was unnecessary and frankly embarrassing. So too another appeal from Sales, a good cricketer, who blotted his copybook by only realising that no one else was interested when he had almost reached the striker's end.

There was even time for Abbas to hit a six over third man before the Derbyshire innings came to a close on 372, made at a very respectable 4.5 runs an over. Madsen had eventually been well caught from a leading edge for 151, an innings of which he can be very proud.

The home side faced ten overs before the close and Derbyshire's bowlers were very accurate, even though it was clear that conditions were easier than they had been earlier in the day. 

They reached 15-0 in the evening sunshine.

A word too about the stream, which I thought was excellent, while the two commentators were very even-handed in their comments and listenable. I don't know who they were, but they added to the enjoyment of the day, so fair play to them.

All in all, that was a wonderful day's entertainment.

In that, it was a reminder that there are all too few left this summer.