SURREY V SOMERSET AT THE OVAL
All nine of the second round’s County Championship fixtures ended in a draw, only the third time in history that has happened. But Surrey perhaps came closest to victory, and would have won it without the match-saving contributions of Lewis Gregory and Kasey Aldridge.
Twice Gregory passed 50 to hold total batting collapses at bay. In the first innings, he guided Somerset from 216-8 to a competitive total of 285, and took them to a 209-run lead in the second with a near impenetrable 80, which Surrey could not hunt down.
England Lions’ Aldridge took five wickets in the first innings and three in the second to shut down the Surrey chase.
Somerset had begun the game well and were 196-1 in their first innings before the collapse took place. From then on, they were on the back foot, but dealt with their self-inflicted predicament well.
“Apart from about 40 minutes on day one we have been outstanding in this game,” said Somerset Head Coach, Jason Kerr. “We showed a lot of resilience. We were close to shutting the game down but then we gave them a bit of a sniff,” he added.
There were two sniffs for Surrey in the second innings. They had Somerset at 162-6 with a lead of just 19 before Gregory’s vigil, and gave themselves a chance again when the final three wickets fell cheaply, leaving a chase of 209 in 19 overs as threatening skies were seen over Kennington.
For 90 quickly accumulated runs, before Jamie Smith fell to the bowling of Gregory, Surrey were on track to complete a thrilling victory, but no incoming batter could match Smith’s striking and Somerset finally honed their plan - short balls to the long boundary - reducing the hosts to 118- 5. Five runs later, the sides shook on a draw.
ESSEX V KENT AT THE CLOUD COUNTY GROUND
Essex were just three wickets from recording their second victory of the season, and the second win of the whole County Championship, but resistance from debutant Jaydn Denly and his uncle Joe halted the hosts’ charge, the game ending in stalemate.
Kent were 65-5 on the final day before the relatives partnered up, with Jaydn making an unbeaten 41 and Joe 39, which ended when Jamie Porter had him caught by Feroze Khushi.
“It was just a case of staying patient and taking it ball by ball and getting the clock down,” said Jaydn. “It was nice batting with Joe. I’ve never really batted with him before, so that was great.”
Nathan Gilchrist also held firm at the crease, surviving 55 balls, to confirm the draw. Essex hadn’t struggled with the bat themselves, making 530-7 and 257-4 declared respectively, as Dean Elgar, Matthew Critchley and Jordan Cox all celebrated centuries.
