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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
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| County cricket – as it happened | |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| 5.32pm BST17:32 | |
| Will Macpherson writes from Hampshire v Middlesex | |
| So, Hampshire were all out for a decent-looking 413, after a flurry of wickets which saw Neil Dexter take 5-64, including Gareth Berg (50) and Will Smith (93) to short balls in quick succession. | |
| Opening the bowling for Hampshire is 18-year-old South African-born, British-passported Brad Wheal, who has been playing for Havant CC and has performed impressively for Hampshire 2s on a development contract, by all accounts. And he’s been excellent here too, rearranging Sam Robson’s stumps to leave Middlesex 32-1. He’s got a smooth run, a classic action and is quick. Lovely stuff. No sign yet of Fidel Edwards, who apparently has been bowling even quicker. In other news, overseas player Jackson Bird is here, not in Australia. He’s set to be back to full training in a couple of weeks. | |
| Updated at 5.42pm BST | |
| 5.32pm BST17:32 | |
| Will Macpherson’s report at tea | |
| After the early wicket of Sean Ervine, this game was meandering along quietly until Hampshire lost three quick wickets for five runs shortly before the scheduled tea time, which was pushed back for the final wicket to be taken. That was duly done - not before a bit of last wicket thrash - as Hampshire were all out for 413. | |
| Gareth Berg played with real intent and brought up his 50, before falling to his next ball, hooking Dexter to Gubbins at deep square-leg. He’d earlier nailed Ollie Rayner – whom Dale Benkenstein admitted last night that he’d told his batsmen to get after – for 6, 4, 4 as he pushed the game along. No.11 James Tomlinson punched him for 4, 4, 6 later in the session, too. | |
| Then Will Smith, who’d been composed in reaching 93, was caught behind, top-edging another Dexter short ball. Dexter’s meds have been very effective but you don’t imagine he gets many of his wickets with short stuff. Next Fidel Edwards – who is apparently bowling very fast – hit Dexter to Finn at mid-on and trudged very slowly off the field. | |
| Tomlinson was dropped twice – first by at mid-on off Dexter, then midwicket off Rayner - before TRJ (who had been the first dropper) caught him at mid-on to give Dexter 5-64, which is good going. | |
| So it’s tea time and Hampshire are somewhere around tricky-to-lose territory, especially given there is likely to be more rain forecast over the next couple of days. One senses James Franklin might have batted if he could have his time again. They’ll need to bat well in the 29 overs that are left tonight. | |
| 5.21pm BST17:21 | |
| Lizzy writes from Trent Bridge | |
| Nottinghamshire are in a spot of bother here at Trent Bridge. James Taylor has just spectacularly lost his off-stump to Groenewald for 45 and in the other 23 overs we have had today they’ve also lost the wickets of Brendan Taylor and Riki Wessels and they are precariously placed at 137/5 still trailing by 175. Allenby has very economical from the Pavilion End and these conditions suit him perfectly. He’s bowled six overs, one for five. | |
| 3.30pm BST15:30 | 3.30pm BST15:30 |
| Lizzy on more cricket | Lizzy on more cricket |
| There is actual cricket going on now here. There will be 44 overs today and tea at 4.45. It’s the two Taylors at the crease and Brendan is doing a defiant job. He’s faced 74 balls for just 11 runs. We are getting a view of Craig Overton with the ball for the first time this match. | There is actual cricket going on now here. There will be 44 overs today and tea at 4.45. It’s the two Taylors at the crease and Brendan is doing a defiant job. He’s faced 74 balls for just 11 runs. We are getting a view of Craig Overton with the ball for the first time this match. |
| Updated at 5.22pm BST | |
| 3.04pm BST15:04 | 3.04pm BST15:04 |
| Will Macpherson reports on some actual cricket | Will Macpherson reports on some actual cricket |
| There was almost immediate success for Middlesex upon the resumption of play, with Sean Ervine bowled by Toby Rowland-Jones with the ninth ball of the day. I’m sure TRJ’s run-up has got longer since I last saw him bowl live. I’ve timed him and it’s taking between seven seconds from start to finish. The straight boundaries here aren’t short but he’s starting somewhere back near them. We’ll certainly struggle to get our 63 overs in if he bowls too much. | There was almost immediate success for Middlesex upon the resumption of play, with Sean Ervine bowled by Toby Rowland-Jones with the ninth ball of the day. I’m sure TRJ’s run-up has got longer since I last saw him bowl live. I’ve timed him and it’s taking between seven seconds from start to finish. The straight boundaries here aren’t short but he’s starting somewhere back near them. We’ll certainly struggle to get our 63 overs in if he bowls too much. |
| At the other end, Steve Finn is going just fine again. New man Gareth Berg - looks like he wants to move the game along - just edge him over the slips for four. The next two bowlers were well directed short stuff which Berg didn’t look entirely comfortable when fending away, so it looks like Will Gubbins is preparing to go under the lid for the next over. Plenty of chirp from his former team-mates when Berg came to the crease. Sounded friendly enough. | At the other end, Steve Finn is going just fine again. New man Gareth Berg - looks like he wants to move the game along - just edge him over the slips for four. The next two bowlers were well directed short stuff which Berg didn’t look entirely comfortable when fending away, so it looks like Will Gubbins is preparing to go under the lid for the next over. Plenty of chirp from his former team-mates when Berg came to the crease. Sounded friendly enough. |
| Weather-wise, we’re doing just fine. Lots of cable knit discussion in the comments and I’m pleased to say there’s lots on show here. | Weather-wise, we’re doing just fine. Lots of cable knit discussion in the comments and I’m pleased to say there’s lots on show here. |
| 2.59pm BST14:59 | 2.59pm BST14:59 |
| Lizzy writes about the travails of the groundsman | Lizzy writes about the travails of the groundsman |
| Who’d be a groundsman? They’ve just spent 90 minutes painstakingly removing all the water from the covers and the outfield down tiny little plug holes. And just as the players are about to come back out, the blackness from the West descends and we’re about to get wet again. It’s also really cold and I may have to go off and buy myself a Notts CCC fleece. Not sure green is my colour though to be honest. | Who’d be a groundsman? They’ve just spent 90 minutes painstakingly removing all the water from the covers and the outfield down tiny little plug holes. And just as the players are about to come back out, the blackness from the West descends and we’re about to get wet again. It’s also really cold and I may have to go off and buy myself a Notts CCC fleece. Not sure green is my colour though to be honest. |
| 2.48pm BST14:48 | 2.48pm BST14:48 |
| Richard Rae has news | Richard Rae has news |
| It’s a 3.30pm start at Grace Road, with 48 overs scheduled in one long session. I’m being told that the rain may return around 6pm, but still. | It’s a 3.30pm start at Grace Road, with 48 overs scheduled in one long session. I’m being told that the rain may return around 6pm, but still. |
| 2.27pm BST14:27 | 2.27pm BST14:27 |
| Lizzy Ammon reports from Trent Bridge | Lizzy Ammon reports from Trent Bridge |
| News from Trent Bridge is that play will start at 3pm and a staggering 51 overs in the day. Tea at 4.30. There’s sun and blue sky now. Scenes. As they say. | News from Trent Bridge is that play will start at 3pm and a staggering 51 overs in the day. Tea at 4.30. There’s sun and blue sky now. Scenes. As they say. |
| 2.27pm BST14:27 | 2.27pm BST14:27 |
| Richard Rae reports from Leicestershire v Lancs | Richard Rae reports from Leicestershire v Lancs |
| The sunshine has reached Grace Road, but there’s an awful lot of water water to remove from the covers, and umpires Steve O’Shaughnessy and Martin Bodenham will re-inspect at 2.30pm. I’m very tentatively anticipating an early tea, followed by a 3.30pm start and around 44 overs of play. Question: will, or should, Lancashire skipper Steven Croft, on 98 not out, declare? After all, Lancashire are very unlikely to get a fifth batting bonus point, and with so many overs lost .... | The sunshine has reached Grace Road, but there’s an awful lot of water water to remove from the covers, and umpires Steve O’Shaughnessy and Martin Bodenham will re-inspect at 2.30pm. I’m very tentatively anticipating an early tea, followed by a 3.30pm start and around 44 overs of play. Question: will, or should, Lancashire skipper Steven Croft, on 98 not out, declare? After all, Lancashire are very unlikely to get a fifth batting bonus point, and with so many overs lost .... |
| 2.26pm BST14:26 | 2.26pm BST14:26 |
| Will Macpherson reports | Will Macpherson reports |
| The sun is out, the covers are off. CRICKET! It’s really nice here now, despite the earlier murk. Outfield damp, pitch green but being rolled, bit of wind and despite the sun periodically shining, plenty of cloud about. Not a batsman’s paradise, I’d say. Hampshire resume on 295-5. Will Smith looked rather nice last night and Sean Ervine will be looking to destroy, you’d think. Ex-Middlesex man (and Italian international, which isn’t something I type to often), is in next. | The sun is out, the covers are off. CRICKET! It’s really nice here now, despite the earlier murk. Outfield damp, pitch green but being rolled, bit of wind and despite the sun periodically shining, plenty of cloud about. Not a batsman’s paradise, I’d say. Hampshire resume on 295-5. Will Smith looked rather nice last night and Sean Ervine will be looking to destroy, you’d think. Ex-Middlesex man (and Italian international, which isn’t something I type to often), is in next. |
| 1.04pm BST13:04 | 1.04pm BST13:04 |
| Lizzy writes about water | Lizzy writes about water |
| A lesser spotted groundsman took a wander out to the middle but he’s quickly gone back to join the borrowers in the shed. Essentially what I am saying is, it’s still wet here in Nottingham. There’s no Press Box cricket going on though. I think they’re scared of my 45mph inswingers. The weather is coming up from the west, so if they start playing at Edgbaston we might well start here an hour later. | A lesser spotted groundsman took a wander out to the middle but he’s quickly gone back to join the borrowers in the shed. Essentially what I am saying is, it’s still wet here in Nottingham. There’s no Press Box cricket going on though. I think they’re scared of my 45mph inswingers. The weather is coming up from the west, so if they start playing at Edgbaston we might well start here an hour later. |
| BREAKING: Sopper out. Sopper out. They’re mopping up. This is an exciting development. | BREAKING: Sopper out. Sopper out. They’re mopping up. This is an exciting development. |
| 12.48pm BST12:48 | 12.48pm BST12:48 |
| Will Macpherson has some good news | Will Macpherson has some good news |
| So we’re taking lunch at the normal time of 1pm, which strikes me as a bit silly. Why not just have a feed now to give the best chance of cricket as early as possible? There’s a bit of indoor cricket being played in the press box, which tells you all you need to know about the morning so far. The one former first-class cricketer in the press corps is showing his quality – ie David Fulton laid bat on ball. | So we’re taking lunch at the normal time of 1pm, which strikes me as a bit silly. Why not just have a feed now to give the best chance of cricket as early as possible? There’s a bit of indoor cricket being played in the press box, which tells you all you need to know about the morning so far. The one former first-class cricketer in the press corps is showing his quality – ie David Fulton laid bat on ball. |
| In more important news – THE RAIN HAS STOPPED AND THE COVERS ARE COMING OFF. They have huge puddles on them, but they’re coming off. Maybe 1.40 is a possibility. The drainage is good here and the covers extend almost all the way across the field. | In more important news – THE RAIN HAS STOPPED AND THE COVERS ARE COMING OFF. They have huge puddles on them, but they’re coming off. Maybe 1.40 is a possibility. The drainage is good here and the covers extend almost all the way across the field. |
| There’s a group of schoolkids in the Shane Warne Stand. No doubt they’ll leave today as converts to the county game. They’re currently receiving an exhibition in cover removal, as the groundsmen drain the water off them before dragging ‘em off. That optimism has returned. | There’s a group of schoolkids in the Shane Warne Stand. No doubt they’ll leave today as converts to the county game. They’re currently receiving an exhibition in cover removal, as the groundsmen drain the water off them before dragging ‘em off. That optimism has returned. |
| 12.23pm BST12:23 | 12.23pm BST12:23 |
| Will reports from the Ageas Bowl | Will reports from the Ageas Bowl |
| There had been a good deal of optimism around the Ageas Bowl as the rain abated; the players went to warm up and a few barmy (certainly not balmy) fans showed up. Folk optimistically spoke of an early lunch and a start at 1pm or 1.30pm. | There had been a good deal of optimism around the Ageas Bowl as the rain abated; the players went to warm up and a few barmy (certainly not balmy) fans showed up. Folk optimistically spoke of an early lunch and a start at 1pm or 1.30pm. |
| Oh, how misplaced such faith was. The rain is back. It’s not heavy, but it’s back and we’ll be off for the foreseeable future. That early lunch will doubtless be taken, but any prospect of play in an hour is now gone, surely. I’d say we’re currently in “wouldn’t-start-in-it-but-would-stay-on-in-it” territory, if you get my drift. | Oh, how misplaced such faith was. The rain is back. It’s not heavy, but it’s back and we’ll be off for the foreseeable future. That early lunch will doubtless be taken, but any prospect of play in an hour is now gone, surely. I’d say we’re currently in “wouldn’t-start-in-it-but-would-stay-on-in-it” territory, if you get my drift. |
| 12.12pm BST12:12 | 12.12pm BST12:12 |
| Lizzy Ammon reports on more rain | Lizzy Ammon reports on more rain |
| This blog is brought to you today by the letter W. W for wet, wetter, wettest. It’s wetter than Lord Wet McWet of Wetsville out there but the radar says it might break after 2pm. We’re going to have an early lunch. | This blog is brought to you today by the letter W. W for wet, wetter, wettest. It’s wetter than Lord Wet McWet of Wetsville out there but the radar says it might break after 2pm. We’re going to have an early lunch. |
| 11.47am BST11:47 | 11.47am BST11:47 |
| Some late-morning reading from Gary Naylor: | Some late-morning reading from Gary Naylor: |
| Related: County cricket: the week's final over | Related: County cricket: the week's final over |
| Updated at 11.47am BST | Updated at 11.47am BST |
| 11.15am BST11:15 | 11.15am BST11:15 |
| Will Macpherson with more gloomy weather news | Will Macpherson with more gloomy weather news |
| So, it was raining when I woke up, it rained all the way here and – scoop alert – it’s still raining at the Ageas Bowl. It’s not all that heavy but the start is delayed and with the covers very much on, an utterly sodden outfield and a lone groundsman doing a recce, there’s no prospect of play any time soon – almost definitely not before lunch. It’s lighter now than it has been all morning and the forecast is only set to get better, so we will see play at some stage. | So, it was raining when I woke up, it rained all the way here and – scoop alert – it’s still raining at the Ageas Bowl. It’s not all that heavy but the start is delayed and with the covers very much on, an utterly sodden outfield and a lone groundsman doing a recce, there’s no prospect of play any time soon – almost definitely not before lunch. It’s lighter now than it has been all morning and the forecast is only set to get better, so we will see play at some stage. |
| The players evidently knew they were in for a late start. Some were rolling out of cars as I arrived at 10.50 and the rest were just milling about having a coffee and a knees up in the Atrium as I came in. Next to the media box, a workman is using the downtime to do some very light drilling and Sky Sports News man Dave Fulton is now out in the middle and hasn’t required the services of a brolly, which bodes well… | The players evidently knew they were in for a late start. Some were rolling out of cars as I arrived at 10.50 and the rest were just milling about having a coffee and a knees up in the Atrium as I came in. Next to the media box, a workman is using the downtime to do some very light drilling and Sky Sports News man Dave Fulton is now out in the middle and hasn’t required the services of a brolly, which bodes well… |
| I promise to report on cricket - not coffee, drills and umbrellas – when I have some to report on… | I promise to report on cricket - not coffee, drills and umbrellas – when I have some to report on… |
| 10.43am BST10:43 | 10.43am BST10:43 |
| While we await a few more updates from around the grounds, here’s a piece from Gary Naylor we published last week... | While we await a few more updates from around the grounds, here’s a piece from Gary Naylor we published last week... |
| Related: How I fell in love with cricket: celebrating pavilions from Liverpool to Lord's | Related: How I fell in love with cricket: celebrating pavilions from Liverpool to Lord's |
| In the early 1980s, the Liverpool Competition, like Liverpool itself, featured some beautiful but fading architecture. Its pavilions at clubs such as Sefton Park, Bootleand Northern were rooted in Victorian confidence, but were adjusting to Thatcherite astringency with varying degrees of success. As a teenager, I did what all teenagers do and took them for granted, barely glancing at the photos on the walls, surveying the Honours Boards only for funny names, oblivious to the history seeping from the bricks into the very air I breathed – after all, where could I get a pint? | In the early 1980s, the Liverpool Competition, like Liverpool itself, featured some beautiful but fading architecture. Its pavilions at clubs such as Sefton Park, Bootleand Northern were rooted in Victorian confidence, but were adjusting to Thatcherite astringency with varying degrees of success. As a teenager, I did what all teenagers do and took them for granted, barely glancing at the photos on the walls, surveying the Honours Boards only for funny names, oblivious to the history seeping from the bricks into the very air I breathed – after all, where could I get a pint? |
| 10.38am BST10:38 | 10.38am BST10:38 |
| Richard Rae with a weather report | Richard Rae with a weather report |
| Good morning, in the cheery greeting rather than literal sense. As the attached picture will confirm, it’s a cold, wet, sorrowful morning at Grace Road. Andy the groundsman and his staff are pushing water off the covers, but as he pointed out when I arrived, it’s the wrong kind of rain - i.e. heavy drops, the sort that quickly results in puddles. And though the Grace Road outfield was drilled not so long ago, and drains pretty well, he reckons it will take a couple of hours from when it stops - which is estimated to be around 1pm - to be ready for play. All of which blather is a long way of saying we might get play from around 3pm, if we’re lucky. | Good morning, in the cheery greeting rather than literal sense. As the attached picture will confirm, it’s a cold, wet, sorrowful morning at Grace Road. Andy the groundsman and his staff are pushing water off the covers, but as he pointed out when I arrived, it’s the wrong kind of rain - i.e. heavy drops, the sort that quickly results in puddles. And though the Grace Road outfield was drilled not so long ago, and drains pretty well, he reckons it will take a couple of hours from when it stops - which is estimated to be around 1pm - to be ready for play. All of which blather is a long way of saying we might get play from around 3pm, if we’re lucky. |
| 10.38am BST10:38 | 10.38am BST10:38 |
| Morning all, | Morning all, |
| Today we have Lizzy Ammon at Nottinghamshire v Somerset, Will Macpherson at Hampshire v Middlesex and Richard Rae at Leicestershire v Lancashire. | Today we have Lizzy Ammon at Nottinghamshire v Somerset, Will Macpherson at Hampshire v Middlesex and Richard Rae at Leicestershire v Lancashire. |
| Here are the reports from yesterday: | Here are the reports from yesterday: |
| Hampshire v Middlesex | Hampshire v Middlesex |
| Hampshire tick over as pitch makes Middlesex look a little greenHampshire and Middlesex served up excellent cricket here. It was far from warm (Middlesex’s 12th man Paul Stirling was running on extra cable-knit sweaters rather than lemonade), the game ambled along and the crowd, while not quite one man and his dog of the stereotype, was sparse, of a certain age and donning the obligatory uniform of fleeces and flat caps, clutching the Racing Post and entering the raffle. | Hampshire tick over as pitch makes Middlesex look a little greenHampshire and Middlesex served up excellent cricket here. It was far from warm (Middlesex’s 12th man Paul Stirling was running on extra cable-knit sweaters rather than lemonade), the game ambled along and the crowd, while not quite one man and his dog of the stereotype, was sparse, of a certain age and donning the obligatory uniform of fleeces and flat caps, clutching the Racing Post and entering the raffle. |
| Leicestershire v Lancashire | Leicestershire v Lancashire |
| Paul Horton’s 70 gives Lancashire advantage over LeicestershireAsked to bat first, as cricket politely puts it – has a side ever pondered the question and, equally politely, declined, one wonders – Lancashire must have been delighted to be approaching a fourth batting bonus point when bad light ended play eight overs early. For this they had to thank the opener Paul Horton, who battled his way through the morning and much of the afternoon sessions to score a dogged 70, the captain, Steven Croft, and Leicestershire’s slip catching, which was appalling. | Paul Horton’s 70 gives Lancashire advantage over LeicestershireAsked to bat first, as cricket politely puts it – has a side ever pondered the question and, equally politely, declined, one wonders – Lancashire must have been delighted to be approaching a fourth batting bonus point when bad light ended play eight overs early. For this they had to thank the opener Paul Horton, who battled his way through the morning and much of the afternoon sessions to score a dogged 70, the captain, Steven Croft, and Leicestershire’s slip catching, which was appalling. |
| Nottinghamshire v Somerset | Nottinghamshire v Somerset |
| Craig Overton rescues Somerset’s first inningsSomerset have done very little so far to suggest relegation predictions were wide of the mark. They travelled to Nottingham having lost all three of their championship matches and a first-class tour game against New Zealand. For Nottinghamshire, the lack of a win is something more of a surprise; they began the season as second favourites to lift the championship trophy. They are without their leading run scorer Alex Hales for this match; he has flown to India to join up with the Mumbai Indians who have made it through to the final of the IPL. | Craig Overton rescues Somerset’s first inningsSomerset have done very little so far to suggest relegation predictions were wide of the mark. They travelled to Nottingham having lost all three of their championship matches and a first-class tour game against New Zealand. For Nottinghamshire, the lack of a win is something more of a surprise; they began the season as second favourites to lift the championship trophy. They are without their leading run scorer Alex Hales for this match; he has flown to India to join up with the Mumbai Indians who have made it through to the final of the IPL. |
| Enjoy the cricket. | Enjoy the cricket. |