MIDDLESEX
TIGHTEN THEIR GRIP by Marcus Hook
Middlesex 445 v Surrey 203 & 34-2.
Middlesex underlined their right to be top of
Division Two in the County Championship yesterday, tightening their
grip on this contest, which looks as though it could end in a second
innings victory over Surrey at Lord's in less than a year. The North
Londoners, who started the season 7-1 against are now being quoted
as evens favourites to win the second division.
Having allowed their opponents to wriggle off the
hook on the first day, Surrey did at least make short work of the
tail once John Simpson and Ollie Rayner were prized apart, with
Gareth Batty picking up figures of 5-76. In leading the visitors'
response, Tom Maynard batted superbly, but, sadly, he was denied a
second hundred in as many innings, not to mention let down by his
colleagues' shot selection.
Nine of the Surrey batsmen were either caught or
stumped. Apart from Maynard, only Rory Hamilton-Brown managed to
muster more than 19, and even the Surrey captain will be ashamed of
the shot he was playing when Steven Crook had him leg before for a
58-ball 47 to make it 89-5 in the 27th over.
Following on 242 runs behind, it got even worse
for the visitors when, in the third over, Michael Brown was pinned
on the crease by a delivery from Steven Finn that kept low and
Zander de Bruyn was dismissed very next ball, needing to take
evasive action. Surrey will start day three 208 runs adrift with
eight second innings scalps intact.
There was no indication that 17 wickets would fall
in the day when Simpson and Rayner picked up where they left off the
night before. In the second over of proceedings, Rayner despatched
Yasir Arafat behind square on the off-side for a brace of fours. The
fifty partnership for the sixth wicket was posted six overs later
and Rayner took Middlesex to 400 with an on-driven four off Jade
Dernbach in the next.
Simpson was eventually dismissed for 143 when
Batty's second delivery back caught the 22-year-old left-hander in
two minds. Two overs later, Rayner drilled the ball straight back to
Batty and then Dernbach picked up his 150th first-class wicket by
ripping out Toby Roland-Jones's leg stump with an unplayable
inswinging yorker. In the 117th over, Crook swept Batty into the
waiting hands of Hamilton-Brown at leg slip before Finn holed out to
deep mid-wicket, two overs later, to draw a line under the hosts'
first innings at 445.
With twenty minutes to negotiate before lunch,
Gary Wilson was caught at first slip without scoring, in the third
over, and Brown, fending at a short ball from Finn was pouched at
second slip two overs later. After the break, Steven Davies, playing
away from his body, was caught at third slip off Corey Collymore.
12-3 became 19-4 when Zander de Bruyn, looking to cut a ball from
the West Indian that was too close to him for such a shot, was taken
behind.
For the next 19 overs Hamilton-Brown and Maynard
put on 70 for the fifth wicket, but there was never really a sense
that their alliance would point Surrey in the direction of maximum
batting points. Maynard was the more subdued, but, in the 20th over,
the Welshman fetched Collymore high into the Grandstand for six.
Hamilton-Brown played some delightful shots in the V between mid-on
and extra cover. But then, looking to whip Crook to the rope at
mid-wicket, the Surrey skipper fell leg before.
Batty was undone by a ball that left him off the
pitch. Just before tea, Jordan went in similar fashion, but after
the break Arafat had no excuses after he danced down the pitch and
looked to heave Rayner.
Maynard straight drove Neil Dexter for six to move
to 78 and, in so doing, reach 1,000 runs in first-class cricket.
But, five overs later, Linley and Dernbach prodded forward to
successive deliveries from Rayner, both of which were snapped up at
slip to leave Maynard with an unbeaten 98, which had come off 150
balls, taken 195 minutes and included 10 fours and two maximums.
GO TO:
BACK TO:
|