Match report by ECB Reporters Network, supported by Rothesay
DAY FOUR
Zafar Gohar took figures of 6-31 to spin Middlesex to a comfortable 141-run win on the final day of Rothesay County Championship action at New Road.
Ben Allison produced a superb 89 to keep the Pears’ hopes of a famous victory alive until the early afternoon, but his dismissal saw Worcestershire collapse from 131-4 to 155-7 as the visitors took control.
Gohar’s controlled spell kept the pressure on the home side throughout, who were unable to hold on for a draw after a damaging period either side of tea.
Eventually dismissing their opponents for 216, Middlesex claimed an important third win of the season, as they leapfrogged their opponents in a tightly packed Division Two table.
Well and truly up against it at the start of day four, it was night watcher Ben Allison who threw caution to the wind in a positive cameo early on as the sun peeped through the clouds at New Road.
Allison, showed superb temperament, latching onto the short ball offered up by the Middlesex seam attack with some dismissive blows through midwicket, as he and partner Roderick registered their fifty partnership on the stroke of midday.
Whilst Roderick continued on with patience, belief inside the Pears camp began to grow, as Allison brought up crucial half-century from just 61 balls with a punch through the off side.
The momentum was firmly with the home side, with the third wicket partnership taking their side to within 250 runs of their target as Allison moved into the 60’s and the visitors’ bowlers struggled to find a foothold.
Ethan Bosch was the man who turned the fortunes for Middlesex, 15 minutes before lunch when he ended Roderick’s 104-ball resistance.
Resuming 135-3, the pressure of the chase soon told as the away side grabbed four wickets for just 24 runs to flip the contest on it’s head.
Zafar Gohar, who had proved difficult to navigate on a deteriorating surface all match, ripped through the Worcestershire middle-order in a clinical spell that saw him take three wickets, starting by removing the skipper for just four when he edged to Tom Helm at first slip.
The spinner drove a dagger into Worcestershire hearts moments later when he ended Allison’s fine riposte, 11 runs shy of a maiden first class century, as the Middlesex man got one to sneak past an attempted paddle sweep that careered into leg-stump.
Five balls later and the home side’s woes mounted, when Sebastian Morgan angled one back at Matthew Waite, beating the batter all ends up as the ball flattened his middle stump helping the visitors regain control, still ahead by over 200 runs.
A seventh wicket and third in the session for Gohar felt decisive, as the spinner-built pressure, with men around the bat watching Caleb Falconer take a straightforward catch at square leg after a mistimed sweep shot reduced the hosts to 155-7.
Henry Cullen showed excellent maturity on his second innings in first class cricket, as he and Tom Taylor came together to try and salvage a draw for the Pears, steering their side through to tea 191-7.
Still trailing by 166 when the players re-emerged, Gohar completed a superb fifer when he caught the edge of the Worcestershire debutant’s bat to provide a chance for Helm at first slip, who took a sensational reaction catch to remove Cullen for a 90-ball-21.
The end was nigh when Beyers Swanepoel nicked off to Helm who took another safe catch for Gohar’s sixth, before the visitors crowned an excellent performance with the final wicket of Harry Darley, to secure a 141-run win.
DAY THREE
Middlesex are in the box seat to claim a crucial Rothesay County Championship victory over Worcestershire after a magnificent Leus du Ploy century helped the visitors dominate day three at New Road.
The skipper’s imperious unbeaten ton anchored his side’s total of 283, with Joe Cracknell (46) playing the most significant supporting role as the visitors kept the Pears at arm's length throughout.
Declaring with 14 overs left in the day, Worcestershire’s chase of an imposing 358 began in dreadful circumstances when Jake Libby was run out without facing a ball, quickly followed by Dan Lategan.
The hosts closed on 33-2, with Middlesex on pole, needing eight wickets on the final day to seal victory.
Sam Robson and Ben Geddes showed staunch defence to navigate their way through a testing first hour on the third morning at New Road, getting through unscathed after Tom Taylor had posed plenty of questions early on.
Middlesex cashed in, with Geddes accessing the off side boundary with growing ease as the morning went on, alleviating some pressure in the process.
The pair passed fifty with growing confidence, but it was the return of Ben Allison that proved pivotal, when a superb low catch at first slip by Henry Cullen sealed the fate of the stubborn Robson for 23.
Featuring in his first Rothesay County Championship match of the summer, the fit and firing seamer showed what his side had been missing when he grabbed a second wicket of the morning by pinning Geddes LBW.
With the door ajar, there was another twist in the tale as Ethan Brookes castled Max Holden with the final ball of the session, as Middlesex left for lunch ahead by 156 runs with seven wickets in hand.
The visitors stalled the first over into the afternoon at 83-4 as Tom Taylor ended Caleb Falconers’ brief stay at the crease with a hooping inswinger that pinned the youngster LBW.
Leus du Plooy battened down the hatches, but Worcestershire squandered the chance to take the prize wicket of the skipper, when Brookes failed to hang onto a thick edge at first slip with the batter on 26.
With Joe Cracknell bedding in, the pair eased their side back into the ascendancy with a comfortable fifty run stand in the afternoon sun at New Road, with the keeper batter playing the leg-spin of D’Oliveira with relative ease.
du Plooy notched a magnanimous fifty from 106 balls, in a two-and-a-half-hour knock of real class, but his team were pegged back once more when Harry Darley, on as an injury replacement for Adam Finch, claimed the wicket of Cracknell for 46 just five deliveries into his spell.
The seamer was making things happen, with another huge chance going begging when Bosch edged between Roderick and Brookes with neither committing to the chance, as Middlesex made it to Tea 194-5, leading by 268.
Darley struck for a second time in what had been a whirlwind afternoon when he dismissed Ethan Bosch for 16, but shortly after du Plooy moved to a fine century from 163 balls, the visitors declared on 283-6, setting Worcestershire an imposing 358 to win.
Jake Libby was left helpless when he was run out on the fifth ball of the innings as Toby Roland-Jones deflected a ball driven straight back to the non-striker's end that careered into the stumps, leaving Worcestershire 0-1.
Zafar Gohar crowned an excellent evening session with the wicket of Dan Lategan late in the day, as the visitors ended the day with a 324-run lead, needing eight wickets on day four to seal victory.
DAY TWO
Toby Roland-Jones rolled back the years with a superb four-wicket haul that drove Middlesex into the ascendency against Worcestershire on day two of an intriguing Division Two clash at New Road.
The veteran seamer enjoyed a vintage day out on a surface that kept the seamers interested, returning figures of 4-41 as the away side bowled the Pears out for 265.
Matthew Waite’s punchy 69 was the biggest display of defiance for the home side in their pursuit of 339, but the hosts lost wickets in clusters as Middlesex kept control.
Sebastian Morgan and Tom Helm played handy supporting role’s sharing five wickets between them as they helped their side take control of the game with a lead of 79 runs heading into the third day.
Middlesex enjoyed the brighter start to day two, courtesy of Sebastian Morgan’s excellent lower-order rearguard that helped take his side past 300 in the process of registering an assured half-century.
The wickets of Toby Roland-Jones (4) and Tom Helm (21) curtailed the away side’s innings, having added 48 to the overnight score.
Worcestershire’s pursuit of 339 started in the worst possible fashion, with openers Jake Libby and Dan Lategan both wilting for single figures scores as the visitors stole a march on the Pears.
Libby was victim of a gorgeous ball from Helm that caught his edge on the day through to Cracknell, shortly before Roland-Jones snagged Lategan when the teenager offered no shot to a ball destined for off stump.
Brett D’Oliveira and Gareth Roderick led the fightback from 18-2 after lunch, showing patience as they defended resolutely in the early exchanges.
The experienced duo added 52 for the third wicket, but a vintage spell from Roland-Jones saw him take three wickets in successive overs as the visitors took control.
D’Oliveira mistimed a pull shot that was top-edged to Falconer before Roderick saw his 86-ball defiance ended when the former England seamer uprooted his off stump with a peach of a ball from the Diglis End.
Roland-Jones strengthened the visitors’ grip on the contest when he had debutant Henry Cullen caught behind without scoring, as Worcestershire slumped to 80-5.
Matthew Waite came together with Ethan Brookes to set about a middle-order rebuild, playing a handful of commanding offensive shots whilst Brookes soaked up the pressure from spinner Zafar Gohar midway through the afternoon.
Waite wore a nasty short ball into his throat two short of his half-century but dug deep to register a fourth fifty of the summer with his promotion to number five paying dividends shortly after, avoiding a mix-up with his partner when a run-out opportunity was missed by the visitors.
Worcestershire could breathe a little easier at 152-5as the crucial partnership for the fifth wicket reached 72 at the interval, but the visitors re-asserted control soon after Tea.
Two wickets in as many overs courtesy of youngster Sebastian Morgan tore apart the partnership, with Waite’s mistimed hook shot finding the grateful hands of Roland-Jones at long-leg on 69, before Brookes edged behind for a dogged 29 from 90 balls to re-open Worcestershire’s wound.
With two set batters now out of the equation, Tom Helm returned to remove Beyers Swanepoel for a breezy 34, before Morgan grabbed a third late on as Worcestershire were bowled out for 265, still trailing by 74 runs.
Middlesex openers Sam Robson and Ben Geddes saw through the last two overs of the day to finish 5-0, set to start day three in the box seat.
DAY ONE
There was nothing to separate Worcestershire and Middlesex as a determined display with the ball saw the home side take eight wickets on the opening day of Rothesay County Championship action at New Road.
A nip and tuck day’s play saw momentum sway back and forth, but four wickets for Adam Finch and Ben Allison’s 3-69 helped peg back the visitors, who’s grip loosened after an assured start.
Sam Robson’s 70 dominated a second wicket stand worth 94 with Max Holden (49 from 151), before a revitalised Pears attack hit back in the afternoon session.
Two wickets in two balls from Finch stalled Middlesex late on, but Leus du Plooy’s 85 kept the visitors well in the fight heading into day two, closing 291-8.
The effervescent Tom Taylor needed just three overs to mark his return to red ball cricket with the dismissal of Ben Geddes for five, as the opener edged to Jake Libby at fourth slip for five.
Veteran Sam Robson dug in during an examining opening hour, showing all his maturity to see his side through without any further casualties, despite Libby squandering a tough chance in the cordon.
A sedate session ensued, with Robson fending off the attentions of Worcestershire’s bowlers, on a placid looking surface that saw the boundaries come at a premium.
62-1 at lunch, Robson returned shortly after the interval to chalk up his second fifty of the Division Two season, whilst Holden’s gritty knock saw score just 13 from 100 deliveries at the other end.
With just 16 points separating second and seventh place in Division Two, the attritional nature of the contest continued into the afternoon, as two sides searching for a third win of the season resisted one another.
Worcestershire’s seamers continued to battle hard on a docile surface, with the next chance coming via a mix up in the middle that left Robson well short of his ground at the non-strikers end, but a poor throw saved the opener’s blushes.
Five balls after passing 100, the returning Ben Allison claimed the key scalp of Robson, with the Middlesex batter departing for a disciplined 70 after chopping onto his own stumps in the 46th over.
Featuring for the first time this campaign after a delayed start through injury, Allison hit back with a second wicket in an impressive spell as he nipped one back that castled Holden, with the left-hander forced to depart for a turgid 151-ball-49.
Worcestershire’s efforts to capitalise were to little avail, as the new pair of Caleb Falconer and Leus du Plooy settled in swiftly, touching gloves to acknowledge their fifty partnership shortly after Brett D’Oliveira entered the attack for the home side.
The momentum of the day swung drastically when Adam Finch roared into life by taking two wickets in successive balls soon after tea.
In a pivotal 67th over, the right arm seamer first pinned Falconer LBW for 37 with a ball that shaped back to beat his defences, before sending Joe Cracknell on his way for a first ball duck as the hosts wrestled back momentum at 199-5.
Finch grabbed a third wicket of an excellent spell as he helped strengthen the Pears grip on proceedings when he hurried Ethan Bosch for four.
Visiting skipper du Plooy registered a fifth half-century of the season as play entered the final hour, before Allison grabbed a third as Gohar became Worcestershire’s seventh victim of the day.
Finch ended du Plooy’s repost for a superb 85 in the dying embers, with Middlesex 291-8 at stumps.
Worcestershire Men
Middlesex Men
