Essex v Yorkshire
Specsavers County Championship | The Cloudfm County Ground
Friday 4 – Monday 7 May, 11am starts
Essex team | Nick Browne (10), Alastair Cook (26), Tom Westley (21), Dan Lawrence (28), Ravi Bopara (25), Ryan ten Doeschate* (27), James Foster + (7), Simon Harmer (11), Peter Siddle (64), Jamie Porter (44), Sam Cook (11).
Yorkshire team | Adam Lyth (9), Harry Brook , Cheteshwar Pujara (27), Joe Root (66), Gary Ballance* (19), Jonny Bairstow + (21), Jack Leaning (34), Tim Bresnan (16), Steven Patterson (17), Jack Brooks (70), Ben Coad (10).
Umpires | Richard Kettleborough & Steve O’Shaughnessy
Toss | Yorkshire, who elected to bat
Day Three | Close of Play Report
Champions Essex suffered their first defeat in 19 matches after Yorkshire pulled off an amazing 91 runs victory in their clash at The Cloudfm County Ground, the match lasting less than seven sessions.
When the final day’s play commenced, Essex were 97 for 4, still requiring another 141 for victory but they were bowled out for 146.
Dan Lawrence and Ryan ten Doeschate did inspire hope as they carried the overnight score to 114 but then the innings totally fell apart as four wickets fell on that total in the space of 23 balls.
Paceman Ben Coad put the home side into free fall by removing ten Doeschate and James Foster in the same over, the former being nailed in front of his stumps leg before wicket while Foster was caught behind three balls later.
Simon Harmer went the same way as ten Doeschate again to Coad before Steven Patterson, who destroyed the Essex top-order yesterday, claimed his fifth wicket of the innings by bowling Lawrence for 32 to end the batsman’s two and a quarter hour stay.
The disintegration continued as Jamie Porter became the fifth lbw victim of the innings when the total had moved onto 126.
Peter Siddle did bring some light relief as he struck 4 boundaries in an entertaining 24 but then Tim Bresnan trapped him lbw to bring the curtain down on a dramatic game.
While it was an incredible triumph by Yorkshire after they had been rolled over for just 50 before lunch on the opening day, it has to be admitted that their opponents contributed to their own downfall with some ill-judged batting.
Alastair Cook, Tom Westley, Nick Browne and Ravi Bopara contributed a combined tally of 52 runs between them in eight innings.
The only real backbone with the bat came from Lawrence, with efforts of 48 and 32 and to a lesser extent from ten Doeschate (18 and 34) and the pair shared in a fifth wicket stand of 59 in the second innings. It was the home side’s highest stand in the match.
Patterson returned career-best figures of 6 for 40 as Essex capitulated a second time while Coad returned 3 for 36.
Essex, whose last defeat Championship defeat was in the Second Division at the hands of Glamorgan in September 2016, had to settle for just 3 points whilst a jubilant Yorkshire side returned north with 19 points.
Day Two | Match Highlights
Day Two Reaction | Ryan ten Doeschate
Day Two | Close of Play Report
Essex were left facing a testing task to fashion victory as Yorkshire continued their amazing recovery in the Specsavers County Championship Division One clash at The Cloudfm County Ground.
Faced with what seemed a modest 238 runs target, they reached 97 for 4 by the close after the top-order was demolished by paceman Steven Patterson.
Essex were seemingly about to take control as Alastair Cook and Nick Browne took the total to 34.
But they were plunged into trouble when Patterson removed them both, along with Tom Westley and Ravi Bopara in a five over spell, costing ten runs.
Before Patterson made his telling impact, however, the openers had enjoyed moments of brief fortune.
Browne survived a caught and bowled chance to Jack Brooks whilst still seeking to get off the mark while Cook as reprieved by Jack Leaning as he failed to accept a low slip catch at third slip offered against Ben Coad.
Patterson was to ensure that those two lapses did not prove costly.
Cook with the help of a couple of fine cover driven boundaries had moved to 26 when he was bowled whilst Westley was trapped lbw in the same over – his third successive duck.
Twenty-one runs and six overs later, Browne and Bopara departed in the space of three deliveries.
Browne who had never really looked totally comfortable was bowled for 10 while Bopara was caught by Harry Brook diving at backward point although he waited for the umpires to confirm the catch.
That left Essex in all sorts of trouble at 56 for 4 before Dan Lawrence and Ryan ten Doeschate revived their fortunes with an unbroken partnership worth 42 runs.
Lawrence will resume on 22 and his skipper on 27 with the county needing a further 141 runs to claim a victory in what has proved an absorbing match.
From 161 for 2 overnight, Yorkshire carried their second innings total to 329 with 19 year-old Harry Brook leading the way.
Resuming on 57 at the start of the day’s play, he went on to record his maiden first-class century and had reached 124 from 187 balls before he left the scene of battle.
His wonderful effort included 13 fours and a six and was eventually brought to an end when he drove off-spinner Simon Harmer to long-on.
Brook shared in two substantial partnerships – 94 with Cheteshwar Pujara (41) for the third wicket and 86 with Joe Root (35) for the fourth.
Pujara was bowled by Peter Siddle and that was to prove the only success for the title-holders Essex’s only success in the morning session.
The first wicket of the afternoon period came when Bopara disarranged the stumps of Root to start a fightback that saw four wickets picked off while 14 runs were added.
Siddle was to emerge as the county’s most successful bowler with 4 for 65 and a match haul of 8 for 72, while Jamie Porter played a key part in wrapping up the innings with 3 for 89.
Day One | Match Highlights
Day One | Close of Play Report
Essex found themselves on the end of a fine Yorkshire fightback during an absorbing first day of the County Championship match at The Cloudfm County Ground.
The visitors, who won the toss, were left licking their wounds after being bowled out for 50, their lowest total since 1973.
But they hit back by dismissing Essex for 142 and although that represented a healthy lead, they cleared the arrears of 92 for the loss of only one wicket before ending the day on 161 for 2.
After winning the toss, Yorkshire were left shell-shocked as they were bowled out before lunch in only 18.4 overs.
The initial damage was caused by 20 year-old Sam Cook who maintained a superb line and length on a pitch which gave him far less help than the scorecard indicated.
He picked up four wickets for eight runs in only 22 deliveries and amongst his victims was England skipper Joe Root, dismissed first ball as Alastair Cook accepted a chance at first slip.
The later carnage was enacted by Peter Siddle who returned 4 for 7 from his 3.4 overs, his successes including Gary Ballance , the only Yorkshire batsman to record double figures with 22.
In between, the Australian’s deeds, Cook picked up his fifth wicket, that of Tim Bresnan to end with 5 for 28. He also picked up a five wicket haul against Yorkshire at Chelmsford in the final match of last season.
Essex were soon left struggling when they replied, losing their first three wickets for 12, including that of Alastair Cook for a duck.
He was caught behind by Jonny Bairstow off Jack Brooks for a duck and the same bowler then removed Tom Westley, also for a duck.
Dan Lawrence though proved resilient helping himself to seven boundaries in his 48 to help Essex to pass Yorkshire’s total without further loss.
He eventually departed leg before to Bresnan and it was left to Simon Harmer to carry Essex to their final total before he was out for 36, putting up a simple catch to mid-on that provided Ben Coad with his third success.
His wickets came at a cost of 27, Bresnan and Brooks also claimed three wickets apiece at a cost of 26 and 63 respectively.
Bairstow was pushed up the order to open the innings when Yorkshire went in again and he responded with a typical aggressive 50 from 44 balls that included six fours in addition to a straight driven six at the expense of Cook.
Those runs came in an opening stand of 77 with Adam Lyth before he was bowled by Siddle.
Lyth, on 27, followed just after the arrears were cleared, as Harmer pulled off a juggling catch at second slip completing the catch at the third attempt.
Harry Brook and Cheteshwar Pujara, however, scored freely and looked untroubled as they carried the visitors to a close of play lead of 69 runs.
By then, Brook had completed a maiden first-class half-century with the help of seven fours and a six from 46 balls.
He will resume in the morning on 57 with Pujara 22 not out.
Day One | Tea Report
After 12 wickets fell in the morning, the clatter of wickets continued in the post-lunch session as 8 more fell to leave both sides having completed their first innings by tea.
Nick Browne was bowled by Ben Coad with only two runs added to the lunch score to leave Essex in serious trouble at 12 for 3.
But chiefly through the efforts of Dan Lawrence and the dogged determination of Ravi Bopara (celebrating his 33rd birthday), a recovery of sorts enabled the county to move past 50 and gain a first innings lead.
It was not long after though that wickets began to fall in rapid succession once more starting with Bopara edging Steven Patterson to Cheteshwar Pujara at first slip with the total on 58.
Bopara’s share of a 46 run partnership was nine and then five overs later, Lawrence followed him back to the pavilion. The 20 year-old top-scored with 48 unleashing some punishing drives in his tally of seven boundaries.
It was Tim Bresnan who removed him lbw with the score on 72, and the same bowler claimed two more scalps before the total moved into three figures.
James Foster was bowled and Ryan ten Doeschate fell leg before wicket for 18, only the third batsman to have reached double figures by that stage of the game.
Simon Harmer and Peter Siddle struck a few aggressive blows while adding, in the context of the game, a valuable 27 runs to carry the total to 120.
Then two wickets fell in successive overs. Siddle drove Brooks to Gary Ballance at mid-off for 145 before Jamie Porter became the sixth lbw victim of the match to give Coad his second wicket.
With Harmer leading the way, 21 runs were added for the final wicket with Sam Cook.
It carried Essex to an all out total of 142 and a lead of 92 with the final wicket falling when Harmer put up a simple catch to Bresnan at mid-on after making 36 that contained 4 boundaries.
Coad, Brooks and Bresnan each claimed three wickets at a cost of 27, 63 and 26 respectively.
Day One | Lunch Report
Twenty-year old Sam Cook and Australian Peter Siddle produced devastating spells of pace bowling as Essex bowled out Yorkshire for only 50 on the opening day of the Division One County Championship match at The Cloudfm County Ground.
Only 18.4 overs were required as the visitors, who had won the toss, were left completely shell-shocked by the champions slumping to their lowest total since 1973.
Cook did the early damage on his way to 5 for 28 from nine overs. He bowled unchanged in gathering his second five wicket haul against the Tykes returning 5 for 20 when the counties met at Chelmsford last season.
Siddle mopped up the last pockets of resistance with 4 for 7 in only 3.4 overs as the innings was brought to a close 24 minutes before Lunch.
That left enough time for Yorkshire to hit back and remove Alastair Cook and Tom Westley for ducks as the home side arrived at the break on 10 for 2. Nick Browne has 6 and Dan Lawrence is 4 not out.
Gary Ballance and Jack Leaning managed to take the total onto 41 before the arrival of Siddle brought about the sixth wicket to fall in an astonishing session and a further disintegration of the innings.
He trapped Leaning lbw, had Steven Patterson caught behind and Jack Brooks and Ballance caught at third slip by Browne.
In between Tim Bresnan fell lbw to provide Cook with his fifth success.
But any feeling of smugness for the home side evaporated with the loss of their first two wickets with only 2 runs on the board.
Brooks saw to that as Alastair Cook was snapped up behind by Bairstow and Tom Westley had his middle stump uprooted by the same bowler.
But Browne and Lawrence survived the final few minutes of a sensational morning that saw 12 wickets go down for 60 runs.
