The Cricketer wraps up the best of the action on day two of the tenth round of LV= Insurance County Championship matches in 2023
Northwood (second day of four): Northamptonshire 219 & 55-2, Middlesex 277 - Northamptonshire trail by three runs with eight wickets remaining
Ryan Higgins displayed his all-round prowess on day two of Middlesex's LV= Insurance County Championship Division One basement battle with visitors Northamptonshire at Merchant Taylors' School.
Higgins made 64 not out, his sixth half century of the season, to steer the hosts from the perils of 127 for 5 to only their second batting bonus point of the campaign and a total of 277 – a first innings lead of 58.
Mark Stoneman was Middlesex's other half-centurion with 51 while Max Holden made 41. Rob Keogh impressed with his off-spin for Northamptonshire, returning 3 for 53, while Ben Sanderson took 3 for 76.
Not content with his batting efforts, Higgins then removed both Ricardo Vasconcelos and Justin Broad when Northamptonshire batted again, the visitors almost achieving parity by the close on 55 for 2, three runs behind.
Ryan Higgins made a fine half century for Middlesex (Getty Images)
Canterbury (second day of four): Kent 171 & 55-1, Warwickshire 549-7 - Kent trail by 323 runs with nine wickets in hand
A double century from Rob Yates put Warwickshire in a commanding position after day two of their LV= Insurance County Championship game with Kent at Canterbury.
The visitors declared their first innings on 549 for 7, a lead of 378, before reducing Kent to 55 for 1 at stumps.
Yates hit his highest first-class score of 228 not out from 421 balls, with 23 fours and a six, having batted for nearly nine hours. Australia's Glenn Maxwell made 81 in his first Championship appearance for four years and Henry Brookes was unbeaten on 52 as the visitors dominated throughout.
Chris Rushworth bowled Tawanda Muyeye early in Kent's second innings and although Ben Compton and Joe Denly survived till the close, the hosts are still 323 behind with two days remaining.
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Taunton (second day of four): Somerset 500, Hampshire 58-2 - Hampshire trail by 442 runs with eight wickets remaining
James Rew confirmed his emergence as the brightest batting prospect in the LV= Insurance County Championship by becoming Somerset's youngest-ever first-class double-centurion on the second day of the match with Hampshire at Taunton.
At the age of just 19 years and 181 days, Rew extended his overnight score of 77 to 221 before being last man out in his side's first innings total of 500, having walked to the crease on day one with the scoreboard reading 41 for 4.
The young left-hander's memorable knock occupied seven hours and 42 minutes, 310 balls, and featured 23 fours and four sixes. His previous four Championship centuries this summer had already established him as the leading run-maker in the competition.
Kasey Aldridge (88) and Dom Bess (54) also contributed to Somerset's impressive recovery from 80 for five before a last-wicket stand of 108 with Shoaib Bashir, who hit a career-best 44 not out, piled on the misery for Hampshire.
By the close, the visitors had replied with 58 for 2, having lost Joe Weatherley to the opening ball of their innings after spending a draining 120 overs in the field.
Rob Yates made a double hundred for Warwickshire (Getty Images)
The Oval (second day of four): Surrey 355, Nottinghamshire 248-5 - Nottinghamshire trail by
Will Young marked his Nottinghamshire debut with an undefeated hundred to anchor the visitors’ response on day two of their LV- Insurance County Championship match against Surrey at the Kia Oval.
The New Zealand international, who is on a three-match contract with the county, provided immediate value with a fluent knock of 106 not out that guided them to 248 for 5 at the close, trailing Surrey by 107.
Young shared a second-wicket partnership of 134 with Haseeb Hameed, who hit 67, while Surrey’s Jamie Overton took two wickets on his return to bowling action for the first time this summer after recovering from a back injury.
The home side had earlier posted 355 all out in their first innings, with Nottinghamshire allrounder Lyndon James picking up the last two wickets to register career-best figures of 6 for 74.
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Blackpool (second day of four): Essex 282, Lancashire 37-1 - Lancashire trail by 245 runs with nine wickets remaining
Tom Westley's 28th first-class century and his record-breaking century partnership with Paul Walter rescued Essex from a poor start on the second day of this LV= Insurance County Championship encounter at Blackpool before a late fightback by Lancashire saw the visitors bowled out for 282.
Skipper Westley made 135, his third century of the season, to put Essex in a strong position at tea but Tom Bailey, with 6 for 59, led a good reply by the hosts who closed on 37 for 1 to be behind by 245 runs.
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