Essex starting to purr in County Championship title defence

SAM DALLING AT CHESTER-LE-STREET: In a game that will likely be remembered for its unusual lbw record, Essex showed their true Championship credentials after a mixed start to their title defence

This is looking ominous. Essex’s title defence has been mixed to date, and they headed to the north east knowing defeat would leave qualification from Group One less than certain. What a difference three days makes. An emphatic 195-run victory opened up a 19-point gap over Durham in third, and – for 24 hours at least – took them to the table’s summit. The champions are starting to tick.  

And more worryingly for the others, Simon Harmer was largely a peripheral figure here. He went wicketless, a slow, low Chester-le-Street pitch conducive to seamers bowling straight. And what a fine trio Essex have, Sam Cook, Jamie Porter and Peter Siddle sharing 19 wickets in the match. 

Control, accuracy and relentlessness a perfect concoction, Porter fittingly finishing the game in the evening sunshine. An England call may not ever come but he has been consistently amongst the best on the circuit for years now. He was unable to claim a hungover hat-trick with the first ball of the innings but his first nine overs were sublime and cost just eight runs.

Towards the end of the day, there was excitement over a potential world-record. Confusion too as the press box scrambled to confirm the requisite number of LBWs to achieve the landmark. In the end it was elementary, the tally of 19 falling one short. It was though an English domestic 'best.'

For Durham the manner of defeat will be disappointing, although it is far from terminal and they have a game in hand on their opponents.  As a club they are on an upward trajectory but if Tom Westley’s side are the pace-makers, Durham are at the tail of the peloton. What they have though is both local state school talent and spirit in abundance. Men with pride in their work and pride in their club. Their time will come, whether this year or in the future.  

And in a week where the true extent of the advantage a private school education provides in reaching the professional game was revealed, it was pleasing to see two sides peppered with local talent that has been nurtured through the club-cricket system. "We’re proud to be working class," sing the miners of Durham in the musical Billy Elliot. And rightly so.  

A thick fog had descended on Wearside overnight, making a morning run by the river worthy of danger money. But by the time Ben Raine claimed the final two Essex wickets to fall – in the process making it 10th career five-fors and 300th first-class victim - the sun was shining brightly and the club shop had already sold the ten bottles of hastily stocked sunscreen. Summer had arrived.  

It left Durham a daunting 385-run target. Still someway short of the 453 they miraculously chased in 2004 at Taunton – they had slipped to 95 for 5 before Gareth Breese smoked an unbeaten 165 batting at 7 – but survival represented their best hope.

It started badly, Cameron Bancroft losing two stumps to a grubber from Porter. That brought in Scott Borthwick early, with a chance to make a game-defining. Since his hundred in the reverse fixture he has made a handful of unfulfilled starts without pressing on.  

Again, there was promise, Cook tickled away fine and Siddle despatched off the back foot. On the stroke of lunch, Siddle was convinced he had Borthwick LBW - what else - but Umpire Middlebrook was unmoved. En-route back to his mark, the Australian engaged the official in a game of charades, leading to heckles from the unamused locals. It mattered little: Borthwick was trapped in front by Cook six balls into the afternoon session.  

LBWs aplenty as Essex secure dominant win over Durham

Alex Lees has enjoyed a fine season – albeit with only six runs in three innings against Essex – and he dared to go where so many before him have feared to tread: into the face of Hamer. Unquestionably a spinner of the highest quality, Harmer has an aura whenever the ball is in his gargantuan mitts, meaning plenty have surrendered before they reach the middle. Prodding and poking only ends one way, and Lees immediately went on the offensive, a pair of beautifully timed boundaries whistling through mid-wicket and mid-on respectively in the same over.  

Not long afterwards, Lees waltzed down the track and smashed the game’s first maximum. That was accompanied by a youngster in the crowd chanting "get in, get in – smash it" enthusiastically in a soothing Geordie twang. No finer sound than the next generation admiring county cricket.   

But Lees' success perversely contributed to his downfall. For so well had he played Harmer, the lesser spotted Ryan ten Doeschate was chucked the ball to enable the spinner a change of ends. The result was inevitable: ten Doeschate dragged one into the pitch, Lees got half-way through a pull shot before realising the ball was not there to hit, and Nick Browne at cover was offered a looping catch. It was the first by an outfielder in the game, Browne already laughing with the bowler by the time the ball nestled in his hands.  

Michael Jones had his mind set on time at the crease, and frustrated Essex for 126 balls before he fell to Cook. Replays suggested it was leg-before something but maybe not wicket. Jack Burnham and Ned Eckersley both came and went quickly, meaning a day-off tomorrow became possible. And when Brydon Carse and David Beddingham fell in the 79th over, Essex claimed the extra half-hour that enabled them head to head home early.   

Next week’s top-two clash with Nottinghamshire at Chelmsford now takes on added importance, while Durham head to New Road hoping to get the show back on the road.