After weeks of drought, the rain arrived, like a tolling bell, just in time for the County Championship restart. Josh Thomas hit the only century of the day on a bonny day for title chasers Somerset. Thomas’s sprightly second first-class hundred, together with 96 on debut from New Zealand’s Henry Nicholls, left Taunton merry after being inserted by Essex on a surface friendlier than it looked.
England’s forgotten man Zak Crawley gambolled to his highest score of the season as Kent rattled along against Middlesex on the corn-coloured grassland of Merchant Taylor’s School. Crawley played with discipline and flair before wafting Ryan Higgins to second slip for 81. Sam Northeast collected 87 against his favourite opposition.
The excellent Toby Roland-Jones grabbed three wickets. Liam Patterson-White saved Nottinghamshire’s bacon with 76 not out in the battle of the big dogs at the Oval. Surrey, lying in an unfamiliar seventh place, had reduced Notts to 104 for eight.
Tom Lawes grabbed five wickets. Fourteen wickets fell in the relegation ding-dong at Southampton. Kyle Abbot’s four for 17 felled Yorkshire, who limped to 173 courtesy of an unbeaten 40 from Dom Bess.
George Hill then returned the favour with three for four to leave Hampshire 60 for four. Durham have the upper hand in the Division Two promotion race, but didn’t get much chance to show their wares on a day of thunder, rain and bad light against Derbyshire. Alex Lees nurdled his way to an unbeaten fifty in front of some doughty spectators.
On the parched grass of Cheltenham, Worcestershire’s Ben Allison whistled up three quick wickets There was just time for 21-year-old Tommy Boorman reach his first Championship fifty in the town when he was born before the heavens opened.Warwickshire and Sussex eyed each other warily over the Edgbaston covers, the visitors inching to 99 for three. Chris Woakes tempted Daniel Hughes into slashing a catch to gully in his second over. The Toms Haines and Clark then added 69, to an accompanying goose flyover.
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