Be honest, we'd have taken that in advance, wouldn't we?
All things considered, a pretty good effort by our boys today and to bowl out Sussex just before the close (and thus not have to bat tonight) was a master stroke you would think they had planned...
Top marks tonight go to new boys Matt Higginbottom and Alex Hughes, both of who marked their championship debuts with wickets, the latter going on to three of them in an excellent display. There was also three wickets for Tim 'Mr Reliable' Groenewald and two for our mystery spinner, Wayne Madsen, the mystery perhaps being why he's not bowled himself more.
I like to see a skipper try something different and Madsen's Lancashire League record suggested a bloke who could bowl at least adequately. It was surprising that his first wicket today was only his second for us, so to get two at such minimal cost was an impressive piece of work by the skipper.
314 all out should, unless we bat horribly, ensure that we stay in this game, but it could have been an even better day had a few chances been held and some balls not fallen short of fielders, especially in the morning session.
Sussex were anchored by the increasingly impressive Luke Wells and we need someone to do that for us tomorrow against a steady but far from lethal attack. Jordan and Magoffin have made a good opening attack this summer and Panesar will always need watched, but we shouldn't be ripped apart, even on a wicket that offers the bowlers encouragement and allowing for an inexperienced lineup.
You can never tell with Derbyshire though and we'll need to hope that the battling performances remain in the boys, especially with so many of them having much to play for in building reputations, establishing themselves and earning contracts for next season.
Should be another good day tomorrow and I look forward to following it as it progresses. One last day in Blackpool tomorrow, then head for home later in the evening and we'll be in our own beds tomorrow after a terrific break.
Off for a last evening meal now, so see you soon!
Can't muster up any enthusiasm for the remainder of this season Peakfan. Looking forward to the close season to get rid of some of this deadwood, and see if we can bring any better ones in.
ReplyDeleteI think we might have settled for it before this match, but that perhaps just reflects our reduced expectations. I don't think we'd have regarded bowling the opposition out for 314 after winning the toss and putting them in what seemed to be helpful conditions as a particularly good day at any other time. At least, it wasn't the catastrophe I'd dreaded with such a thin and inexperienced bowling side, and we will have a better sense of how good it was after Sussex have bowled. Madsen's performance could be regarded as an unexpected bonus, but it wasn't altogether encouraging that he had to bowl at all. I'll be surprised if we don't struggle to bowl them out again, and if we do, having Panesar to deal with in the last innings will be a problem.
ReplyDeleteEnd of day 2 and not out of it!
ReplyDelete