Leus du Plooy hits century and Ethan Bamber takes maiden five-wicket haul as weather forces Lord's draw

Du Plooy reached his hundred in what turned out to be the final over of the season, finishing on exactly 100 not out as Derbyshire totalled 304 for 7, replying to Middlesex’s first innings score of 260

Lord's: Middlesex 260 v Derbyshire 304-7 - match drawn

Scorecard

Leus du Plooy became the first Derbyshire player to hit first-class centuries at home and away against Middlesex as their County Championship clash at Lord’s ended in a draw.

The 24-year-old, who hit his maiden Championship ton when the sides drew at Derby earlier in the season, added a second just before bad weather brought the match to a close.

Du Plooy reached his hundred in what turned out to be the final over of the season, finishing on exactly 100 not out as Derbyshire totalled 304 for 7, replying to Middlesex’s first innings score of 260.

The other notable achievement of day four was a career-best return of 5 for 93 – and a maiden five-wicket haul – for Middlesex seamer Ethan Bamber, who had collected the first two in successive deliveries the previous day.

The drawn match, which was repeatedly hit by rain and bad light throughout all four days, meant that Derbyshire finished seventh in the final Division Two table, with Middlesex in eighth.

Further rain in the morning meant that the teams were unable to resume until just after lunch, with the visitors on 199 for 4.

Having put together a partnership of 96, Du Plooy and Harvey Hosein narrowly missed out on a century stand as Bamber parted them with his third delivery of the day.

The young seamer swung the ball away from Hosein (57), whose edge flew into the hands of Dawid Malan at second slip.

Matt Critchley (16) was the next to depart, misjudging a pull shot off Bamber that sailed up into the hands of mid-on, but Fynn Hudson-Prentice immediately signalled his intentions by flat-batting James Harris for four.

Hudson-Prentice struck six boundaries as he accumulated 28 at better than a run a ball, but Bamber removed him with another outswinger, an edge into the wicketkeeper’s gloves securing his fifth wicket.

Du Plooy attempted to reach three figures quickly by striking successive boundaries off Max Holden, but he was stuck on 97 when the tea interval arrived – leaving him with an anxious wait to see if the rain might return.

It did – but by then another over had been delivered and the Derbyshire batsman achieved his ton from 175 balls, cutting Holden for three to end his first season in county cricket on a high.

Courtesy of the ECB Reporters Network.