Lancs v Durham Blackpool 17/5/24( 4 days)

[MickeyG]

Managed to get to 350.

[man in the stand]

Good result considering we were put in and our fragile batting.

[hengog]

After the Notts match I’m afraid to say so- but I think we’re in a good position! I’d certainly have settled for it at 11.00. This doesn’t look like a featherbed to me and I think Lyon will be very effective , and hopefully, decisive.

[happy larry]

May 17, 2024 19:13:12 GMT hengog said:

After the Notts match I’m afraid to say so- but I think we’re in a good position! I’d certainly have settled for it at 11.00. This doesn’t look like a featherbed to me and I think Lyon will be very effective , and hopefully, decisive.

Spot on mucker  parkinson got  a few to turn quite a bit.

[John W]

May 17, 2024 18:43:01 GMT man in the stand said:

Good result considering we were put in and our fragile batting.

Good result at 11am when it was heavy cloud cover but was it a good result at 2.30pm when we were 163/1 and the sun was out? Poor choice of shot from both Bohannon and Jennings but at least the skipper had made a significant contribution. Saqib's mini innings was a bonus at the end of the day because when the new ball was taken I fully expected us to be rolled over for around 300. Durham were painfully slow in completing their 96 overs, the final ball coming at 18.43. It's time the umpires told the bowling side to get a move on if this is the case.

I think tomorrow will be a big moving day, Durham's batsmen don't mess about and they have an array of big hitters who will keep coming at our bowlers. If a couple of them get their eye in I fear for the folk having a gentle game of crazy golf!

[Admin]

Vitality County Championship Division One, Stanley Park, Blackpool (day one)

Lancashire 350-9: Jennings 115, Bruce 46; Raine 3-67

Durham: Yet to bat

Lancashire 3 pts, Durham 3 pts

Ben Stokes took his first wickets of the summer, finishing the day with two for 70 from 17 overs, while Keaton Jennings scored his 28th first-class century as Lancashire made a competitive 350 for nine after being put in to bat by Durham on the opening day of the Vitality County Championship match at Blackpool.
Stokes last featured in a four-day game for Durham in May 2022. And with Lancashire going well on 163 for one, the England Test Match captain showed he still retains the knack of taking a wicket when his team needs it by luring Josh Bohannon (39) into a taking on a short delivery that the batsman top-edged into the hands of Callum Parkinson at deep backward square.

That wicket started a determined Durham fightback after Jennings and Luke Wells had equalled their best opening partnership of the season, posting 87 runs before Wells edged Matty Potts to slip for 27, with Jennings and Bohannon combined to add a further 76 to steer Lancashire into a strong position.



Stokes, who had struggled for a consistent line and length in his first two pre-lunch spells and had kicked the turf in frustration at times, then struck with the first ball of his ninth over. That wicket presumably brought some relief to Durham captain Scott Borthwick following his decision at the toss, as home skipper Jennings produced a brilliant century off 137 balls that included 15 fours.

From that point the Durham attack continued to make further inroads with Paul Coughlin having George Bell caught behind for eight before Callum Parkinson took the key wicket of Jennings, caught at mid-on attempting to hit over the top. Potts was finally rewarded for a fine afternoon spell when George Balderson edged behind for 14 to leave Lancashire on 255 for five.



The day was very much in the balance at that point, but Tom Bruce pushed the score with a careful and determined innings. The Kiwi overseas batter was going along nicely on 46 until Stokes struck again in a faster, more accurate fourth spell after tea, banging in a short delivery that found a leading edge with the ball ballooning gently back to the bowler.

Ben Raine backed up that breakthrough with the next three wickets to even up the day, having Tom Aspinwall caught at second slip for two, Matty Hurst brilliantly caught for 20 by wicketkeeper Ollie Robinson diving away to his left to take a quite magnificent catch, and then Will Williams lbw for nine.

A late onslaught by Saqib Mahmood, who thumped a six off Raine and a further five fours in a Lancashire-best 40 not out off only 48 balls meant the hosts ended the day the happier camp.

Keaton Jennings said:

“At the start of the day seeing the movement we had to face, I’d have taken 350.

“You need a bit of luck in those conditions. I thought Luke Wells played beautifully, and the same with Josh (Bohannon).

“I thought the way we got through this morning, and the way we ran, was good.

“Hopefully we can knock them over with the new ball tomorrow.

“It was good fun but it wasn’t my most enjoyable knock in terms of fluidity.

“We’ve spoken a lot this week about trying to compete. Thankfully today I’ve made a contribution that can move us towards competing in the game.

“Hopefully we can keep them out there for a bit tomorrow morning and frustrate them. Saqib played beautifully, counterpunching and smacking the ball around.

“The guys in the dressing room loved it and were really engaged and bouncing around during his innings.”

“We’ve got to back up today for the rest of the match. There are some high class international cricketers playing against us.”

[Dave Towers]

May 17, 2024 14:23:19 GMT Rob said:

Quite how it has come to this having been 2nd in 2022 is beyond me.

A general downturn in both batting and bowling.
In 2022, Jennings averaged 72, Wells 52, Croft 44 and Bohannon 40.
Of the three bowlers who took 25 wickets or more, three low averages, Williams 17, Hasan Ali 20 and Bailey 22.


In 2023 Bohannon, Jennings, Balderson and Salt, (remember him?) all averaged over 40.
Bailey and Williams aggregated 89 wickets, including 31 in the first five games. In the first five this season that's reduced to 15 and resulted in our most reliable bowler season after season being omitted.


This season, the averages for players who've played in our top seven:
Jennings 50.88
Bell 29.87
Hurst 27.22 (less than 7 after the first three games)
Bohannon 25.88
Wells 25.44 (the most frustrating as he's had a start in all 9 innings)
Bruce 21.55 (was 10 before his last three innings)
Balderson 19.88

Are we likely to get Salt back soon or will he be in Englands's one-day set-up?
When will Jimmy have his warm up for the internationals?
Would we be able to select Croft if we so wished, and just pay him a bit more?
Are Buttler's and Livingstone's contracts with Lancashire for T20 matches only?
Luke Wood only played two CC matches for us last season; does he still have a full Lancashire contract?

[John W]

May 17, 2024 20:56:35 GMT Dave Towers said:

May 17, 2024 14:23:19 GMT Rob said:

Quite how it has come to this having been 2nd in 2022 is beyond me.

A general downturn in both batting and bowling.
In 2022, Jennings averaged 72, Wells 52, Croft 44 and Bohannon 40.
Of the three bowlers who took 25 wickets or more, three low averages, Williams 17, Hasan Ali 20 and Bailey 22.


In 2023 Bohannon, Jennings, Balderson and Salt, (remember him?) all averaged over 40.
Bailey and Williams aggregated 89 wickets, including 31 in the first five games. In the first five this season that's reduced to 15 and resulted in our most reliable bowler season after season being omitted.


This season, the averages for players who've played in our top seven:
Jennings 50.88
Bell 29.87
Hurst 27.22 (less than 7 after the first three games)
Bohannon 25.88
Wells 25.44 (the most frustrating as he's had a start in all 9 innings)
Bruce 21.55 (was 10 before his last three innings)
Balderson 19.88

Are we likely to get Salt back soon or will he be in Englands's one-day set-up?
When will Jimmy have his warm up for the internationals?
Would we be able to select Croft if we so wished, and just pay him a bit more?
Are Buttler's and Livingstone's contracts with Lancashire for T20 matches only?
Luke Wood only played two CC matches for us last season; does he still have a full Lancashire contract?

Those batting averages are pretty depressing. I was talking to an ex Lancashire/England legend before play this morning, he fully agreed with me that Lancashire are deep in a relegation scrap.

I can't see Salt playing for us all season. White ball series v Pakistan, World Cup, ECB propose rest, hundred, White ball series v Australia. That's the season done.

Jimmy is expected to turn out against Notts at Southport.

Buttler and Livingstone are on a 2 year central England contract. Even if they weren't would they stoop so low as to play in the CC? off the top of my head I think the last time LL played CC cricket was 2021 and Buttler 2018.

In 2022 Wood signed a contract with Lancashire until the end of 2024.

[lancsdes]

It’s encouraging that we have spoken a lot this week about trying to compete 🙄

[sillypoint]

Can't agree that this was a flat track. I thought it was doing plenty, a good toss to win, and that Durham bowled poorly, particularly in the morning.

Thought Jennings played really well. The shot he got out to was justified. Left arm spinner to left hand bat with field in. Hitting over the top to push the field back and then milk the 1s and 2s was the right shot. He just didn't execute it correctly.

Wells never looks like he's going to hang around for very long. Bohannon is clearly talented, but seems to have decided that he needs to play Bazball to get into the England side, and it just doesn't suit him. He's better than he's showing.

Bell is clearly not up to batting at no.4, at least not at the moment, but who else is there? Lavelle wouldn't be up to it either.

Bruce has been looking remarkably lacking in confidence, but a couple of better scores now, so, hopefully he might kick on.

With Bailey's demise, they've obviously decided that Balderson will have to bowl more, hence his return to no.6. He's out of nick, but he's a quality player IMHO.

Hurst was unlucky, strangled down the leg side, good catch by the keeper.

350 was a good score in the conditions, but we'll still do well to gain a first innings lead, as the pitch should be at it's best for batting today and tomorrow. Pitch will probably suit Williams and Balderson more than Mahmood, but we'll see. Fancy Lyon to get Stokes out. Stokes looks back to full fitness.

[exile]

Spot on SP: definitely not a flat track. Durham made the right decision at the toss but failed to take advantage. I agree with Martin Emerson that Durham were a bit unlucky in the first hour but after that their bowling was very wayward. Let's hope we can do better...

[MickeyG]

Williams getting tonked.

[MickeyG]

Lees out for 24. Balderson.

[MickeyG]

Now Lyon gets Borthwick, the collapse is on!

[Rob]

Well its looking pretty flat at the moment... couple of slightly hopeful shouts for LBW.