Emirates Riverside

Durham V Leicestershire
(Day 4 of 4)

7th May 2018

Last season at Northamptonshire I watched an innings where all ten wickets taken were catches, which I am guessing is probably quite a rare occurrence at any level of cricket.  To-day I witnessed something possibly equally singular as Leicestershire, after enforcing opponents Durham to follow-on, contrived to lose this match.

In their first innings, aided by knocks of 70 or more by no less than four players (Michael Carberry, Paul Horton, Mark Cosgove and Neil Dexter) Leics. had posted a whopping total of 440.  The visiting attack then set about the Durham lads with gusto, bowling them all out for 184 by early on Day Three.  Leicestershire, perhaps not surprisingly, asked the home lot to bat again......but then appeared to suffer a Bowling Collapse (if there is such a thing).  For they managed to take just a single wicket – Durham's Aidan Markam falling just six runs shy of his century – during the whole of the rest of the day.

And so it was, when I pitched up to take in Day Four, although Durham's second innings had reached an impressive 233/1, they still trailed their visitors by 23 runs.    

Coming into the ground, I overheard a couple of Durham supporters suggesting the match would either be a “real nail-biter”, or would just “fizzle out”.  By which I assume he meant his side would build up a reasonable target before being bowled out with sufficient time to have a bash at getting rid of all the Leics guys.....or the visiting bowlers would continue to toil and the match would dribble to a draw.  

Well, the first session initially went pretty much the way of the last two on the previous day, with Leics struggling to make a breakthrough.  But once Graham Clark went for 25 with the score on 308/2, the Durham wickets began falling with (from a Leicestershire and my perspective) pleasing regularity.  Although Graham Weighell's tenacity proved a challenge to overcome.  The home side's second innings eventually closed on 403, due in no small way to Gavin Griffiths' bowling mojo returning.  He finished that second Durham innings with figures of 6/49. 

All of which left Leicestershire with the eminently, (I thought) achievable target of 147 to win.

But I don't know if was the conditions favouring the bowlers as the day went on, or a dose of the jitters caused by the fact they were on the verge of a first Championship win since September 2016, but Leics just never looked like getting anywhere near that modest total.  And as wicket followed wicket with metronomic regularity, the pendulum swung inexorably back towards the hosts.  Leics. were eventually scuttled out for 101, with team captain Carberry top scoring with a paltry 22.

And so the Leicestershire wait goes on.

Welcome to Emirates Riverside.

The old scoreboard.

The gladiators emerge.

Panorama of Emirates Riverside, Chester le Street.

Graham Clark  - Durham CCC

Leicestershire's Varun Aaron gets some stretching exercises in, out at the boundary

"There is something wrong with this ball, Umpire.
I just cannot seem to hit the wickets with it."

Leics. players, having topped up the factor 50, prepare for the second session.

Michael Richardson - Durham CCC

This long-shot shows Durham's Stuart Poynter being dismissed lbw.

Leicestershire's Callum Parkinson is a talented chap -
the scoreboard had him bowling from both ends at one point.

This is the tenacious James Weighell hitting a boundary during his second innings 38.

Between innings the groundstaff got busy going whatever it is they do with brush and shovel.

Early in the Leicestershire innings, it may have been second ball,
Michael Carberry took a sore one to the arm.

An appeal for lbw against Colin Ackermann - which he survived.

Neil Dexter sneaks this one past the Durham fielders.

Durham's James Weighell has just taken his ninth wicket of the match, Durham win by 46 runs. 

Panorama of Emirates Riverside - Durham CCC

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Durham v Leicestershire
(Royal London One Day Cup)

19th April 2019

Following on from his match-winning 151 not-out in Durham's opening Royal London One Day Cup win over Northants, Cameron Bancroft again was the difference between the two sides here.

Leicestershire had won the toss and had decided to bat first, but must soon have wished they had not bothered; for within eight overs were sitting on 43/3.  Former Captain Mark Cosgrove then dug out a modest knock of 22, before being caught by ex-team mate Ben Raine.  The visitors, consequently, had to rely upon a dogged partnership of 81 between Dieter Klein and Tom Taylor – the latter eventually reaching a half-century - to achieve anything like a defendable target.

Opening ball of the match:  Matthew Salisbury to Harry Dearden.   

Harry Swindells (right) - Leicestershire Foxes

Durham v Leicestershire  -  April 2019

Tom Taylor doesn't know it yet, but he is about to hit his last shot of the match.

Tom Taylor - Leicestershire Foxes.

Dieter Klein (left) & Will Davis - Leicestershire Foxes.

The Durham lot were either supremely confident in whatever plan they had devised to achieve the 234 required for victory, or genuinely struggled to make any headway early on; for their initial run rate was pitiable slow.  After ten of their allotted fifty overs, Durham had amassed just 22 runs.  But once the inestimable Bancroft entered the fray, singles and doubles began to flow, seemingly effortlessly. 

Bancroft's increasing influence over proceedings culminated in the 27th over boundary-show, when both the Australian and his partner Michael Richardson each hit Aaron Lilley (the only spinner in the visitor's attack, I noted) for six.  The hapless Lilley was withdrawn from the visitors' attack for the rest of the afternoon, following this chastening experience.

Thereafter Bancroft was imperious; a sore-looking thump on the helmet aside, he appeared untroubled by anything Leics throw at him.  He reached his century in just 102 balls, and it was he who hit the winning runs with, perhaps inevitably, a boundary.

Gavin Griffiths - Leicestershire Foxes.

I am not sure quite how temporary replacements work in cricket, but Mark Cosgrove
appeared to sit out a couple of overs without any fielding replacement. 
Or, perhaps my ability to count these days is impaired by old age.

Cameron Bancroft (left) and Jack Burnham

Cameron Bancroft - Durham Cricket.

Not since I witnessed Marcus Trescothick single-handedly chase down a Scotland One-Day total back in 2003 (the first cricket match I ever attended, I think), have I seen an individual so dominate a bowling attack.  I do appreciate the chap is still undergoing his post-naughtiness rehabilitation, but I did find myself wondering just what he was doing choosing to play at this level.

Although I am sure greater challenges await him in this season's tournament.

Panorama of The Emirates Riverside, Durham.

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Durham v Leicestershire
(T20 Blast)

2nd July 2021

This was another rain-affected cricket trip, although I do wonder if the rain delay ultimately added to the excitement of proceedings.

The precipitation arrived with Durham three-quarters of the way through their allotted 20 overs, and sitting on 115/4.  The lengthy delay ended the home side's innings prematurely, and Messrs. Duckworth, Lewis and Stern decided upon a Leicestershire target of 88 to win from just 9 overs.  This represented a required run-rate of 9.8/over.  Which represented a marked increase on the 7.7 or so Durham had achieved.  Still, I do appreciate the wickets-in-hand factor had to be taken into account.

The Running Foxes began at a fair lick, Josh Inglis hitting each of the first two balls for 4s.  But, for a spell thereafter, the home bowlers appeared to gain the upper hand, restricting the visiting batsmen Scott Steel and Aaron Lilley to mostly singles, as the required run rate drifted up towards 11.7/over.  I felt things looked particularly grim for Leicestershire when Ben Stokes' juggling caught and bowled Lilley for just 5.

But, then Inglis struck Stokes for six just a few balls later, before Colin Ackermann hit three boundaries in quick succession.  Durham's Ben Raine then toiled his way through a nine ball over (the 7th), which yielded up 5 precious extras, and the unlikely began to look likely.

Nevertheless, a bit of work was still required - which was duly performed by Captain Ackermann as he hit fours off the first two balls of the final over, to seal victory for the visitors.

Well Done, chaps.

The Emirates Riverside 2021

Durham's Ned Eckersley hitting a 4 

The Emirates Riverside 2021

Ben Mike receives the ball - his sole over bowled yielded up ten runs.

I think this is Aaron Lilley scampering to attempt to save a boundary.
He failed.

Rain

...and more rain.

The Emirates Riverside 2021

Ben Stokes bowled just two overs - his first yielded four runs, his second eleven.

Not even Durham's Ned Eckerley's acrobatics could reach this one.

The Emirates Riverside 2021

Into the final over...

...Colin Ackermann celebrates hitting the winning runs

....as Leicestershire win by 8 wickets.

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Durham v Leicestershire

(T20 Blast)

4th June 2023

My adopted club Leicestershire (adopted primarily because they are generally rubbish) won their first T20 Blast match of the 2023 season, at just the sixth time of trying.

And a remarkably straightforward victory it appeared to be, with perhaps only a couple of moments/periods of concern.

The hosts, who had been put into bat first, accrued what I felt to be an eminently chase-downable total of 169.  They had much to thank Ollie Robinson for this tally, the England International contributing an unbeaten 69 to his side's cause.

Leicestershire equally had much to thank Josh Hull for keeping the hosts' run rate down; the 18-year old taking the wickets of both Durham's openers Alex Lees and Graham Clark in the fourth over.  Hull endured a bit of a torrid time during the sixth over, when he shipped 15 runs.  But the lad, playing just his second match for the Foxes, shook off this setback, and ended the match with a more than creditable 3/35.

The Foxes, despite a bit of a wobble when Nick Welsh and Lewis Hill fell in quick succession, relentlessly (and seemingly comfortably) marched down Durham's total to win with 12 balls remaining.  Louis Kimber hitting the winning runs with his seventh boundary of the match.

Although I found myself slightly concerned mid-innings when Patel and Ackerman seemed to get bogged down, only able to scramble singles as I watched the Required Run Rate rise and the Current Run Rate Fall.

But the chaps, thankfully, clearly knew what they were doing, and had proceedings under control.    

Not my ticket - I found it on the ground - but I rather liked this £0 Tickets for Troops giveaway.

£5 to park.....and 35 minutes to get out afterwards.

Who can resist Pick 'n' Mix?

Me, from now on.
This paltry fistful cost me £5.98

Riverside Ground 2023

Durham v Leicestershire Foxes

Opening ball of the match - Naseem Shah to Alex Lees

Ashton Turner about to bash this one for a four

Riverside Ground 2023

Bas de Leede - Durham CCC

Ollie Robinson - Durham CCC

Josh Hull - Leicestershire CCC

Riverside Ground 2023

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Durham v Leicestershire

(T20 Blast)

12th June 2024

Fine entertainment at a slightly chilly Riverside Ground this evening, as the pendulum of advantage swung back and forth throughout the match.  It was first blood to Durham when Sol Budinger was dismissed for a duck in the first over of Leics' innings.  The visitors, however, recovered to 91/3 by the end of the 13th over.  

But then wickets began to fall in quick succession as Louis Kimber (10) then Peter Hanscombe (26) were out in consecutive balls, before Ben Cox (6) and Lewis Goldsworthy (1) were both dismissed in the 18th over, leaving Leics on a decidedly ropey looking 128/8.  Thankfully Ben Mike put a decent face of things scoring 10 0ff the final three balls of the visitors' innings, to heave his side to a potentially defendable tally of 140.

Fine Foxes' bowling early on which yielded up just 12 runs in the first three overs swung things marginally back towards the visitors, before Alex Lees (8), David Bedingham (5) and Ollie Robinson (0) were all sent packing leaving the hosts on 19/3.

But then a lengthy partnership between Graham Clark and Ashton Turner took Durham's reply to 104, before the latter was needlessly run out.  Nevertheless, Durham still looked favourites to do the business, as the impressive Clark reached his half-century.  But the poor chap just ran out of effective partners, as the next four Durham batsmen all fell for a total of just seven runs.  

Leicestershire (140/8) defeated Durham (130/8) by 10 runs.