31 August 2024

Nottinghamshire teen Freddie McCann slows Surrey victory bid with maiden ton

31 August 2024

Teenager Freddie McCann’s maiden century in only his third first-class innings helped Nottinghamshire avoid the follow-on in their Vitality County Championship match against title-chasing Surrey at Trent Bridge.

The 19-year-old batter made 154, with 17 fours, as the hosts posted 405 in reply to Surrey’s mammoth 525 despite a career-best seven for 129 from visiting spinner Will Jacks.

Leaders Surrey ended the third day 133 runs ahead on 13 for one, Dom Sibley the man out.

Hampshire beat Lancashire by an innings and 37 runs with a day to spare at Old Trafford to boost their hopes of a top-two finish.

Having dismissed Lancashire for 200 in their first innings and enforced the follow-on, the visitors bowled Keaton Jennings’ side out a second time for 152.

Liam Dawson took five for 52 to finish with match figures of 10 for 99 and Mohammad Abbas bagged three for 18. Luke Wells offered the only significant resistance for the home side with 53.

Somerset were also on course for victory over Durham at Taunton as they look to keep Surrey within their sights.

After Jack Leach’s five for 124 had seen Durham dismissed for 336 in their first innings, Somerset raced to 263 for five before declaring and setting the visitors a massive 420 runs to win.

Durham then lost Ben McKinney, Alex Lees and Scott Borthwick cheaply to slump to 15 for three at stumps.

Jake Libby, Brett D’Oliveira and Adam Hose all passed 50 as Worcestershire made sure Essex would have to bat again in their rollercoaster Division One match at Chelmsford.

When bad light ended play 20 overs early on day three, the visitors had turned a 138-run first-innings deficit into a 165-run lead.

Libby laid the foundations for the recovery with 65 at the top of the order but it was an 80-run stand for the sixth wicket between D’Oliveira (51) and Hose (64) that gave Worcestershire hope of securing a third successive victory.

Warwickshire banked their first County Championship victory of the season after beating rock-bottom Kent by an innings and 21 runs well inside three days at Edgbaston.

Kent were bowled out in their second innings for 243 on the third morning as Warwickshire’s seamers completed the demolition job they started on their opponents on the first morning.

Bowled out for 156 first time round, Kent mustered little more at their second attempt even against the Kookaburra ball on an easing pitch as Oliver Hannon-Dalby took six for 43, finishing with nine for 74 in the match.

Leicestershire’s international pair Ajinkya Rahane and Peter Handscomb battled hard to give their side a chance of saving the game after Glamorgan’s Colin Ingram had continued his batting masterclass in their Division Two match.

Rahane was 47 not out and Handscomb unbeaten on 33 with Leicestershire 144 for three, trailing by 155, when bad light stopped play with 21.2 scheduled overs remaining.

That was after Glamorgan had declared on 550 for nine, with a lead of 299, Ingram unbeaten on a personal-best 257.

Centurion Ryan Higgins reached 1,000 County Championship runs as Middlesex batted themselves to an almost certain draw against promotion rivals Yorkshire on day three at Headingley.

Unbeaten all-rounder Higgins top-scored with 117, with opener Sam Robson having earlier made 108, in Middlesex’s 441 for five as they replied to Yorkshire’s first-innings 601 for six declared.

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