Miaow, Miaow time to get up

Cat seems to think she’s my personal alarm. 5.30am lightning, forget it! Feeding time at the zoo is 6.00am or after. She woke me again at 6.30am so I got up after a restless night due to the humidity, and lightning thinking I needed a fur hot water bottle (I kid you not).

I saw that the flag-stones on the balcony were wet and the sky was still overcast. I thought to myself, if we field first the ball will be seaming all over the place (I also assumed that we’d lose the toss again). By the time I left home the sun was out, and the pavements dry. Weather forecast predicted thundery showers so I packed my coat (just in case).

The green, green grass of Lord’s

What a sight on arriving at Lord’s. Lush verdant grass compared with arid looking Southgate (and for that matter Finsbury Park when I passed it on the bus). I suppose being a test ground they’re exempt the hose pipe ban.

[Editor’s note: Mick Hunt is a law unto himself.  But you’re probably right and I also suspect that Lord’s has some sort of exemption that Southgate lacked]

Let’s have a bowl

The pitch is well over on the Mound stand side. I watched the toss take place and witnessed Styris shaking hands with the umpires and assumed that we’d won the toss, however Durham motioned that they were batting. It was later announced that we HAD won the toss but were fielding. We thought it was odd, as in every other game whoever won the toss batted. The only explanation we can think of it was done to allow Jamie when (and if) he was released by England to rejoin the game.

 [Editor’s note: see message board – I prefer jamesd’s theory that batting last is a tactic to increase the chance of a win, while also of course increasing the risk of losing.  We know from experience all summer that it is mighty hard to bowl sides out twice at Lord’s]

Things got off to a slow start and after 7 overs Durham were 7/0 from 4 scoring shots, 1 x 4 and 3 x 1. With the last ball of the eighth over Chad gets Lowe caught behind (8/1). Decision justified? Durham still progressed cautiously despite there being regular appeals. (At this stage I checked other scores on my mobile and Notts are already 2 wickets down).

Maher only reached double figures in the 15^th over. When Silverwood went off the field Goudie was 12^th man although Whelan was the ‘official’ 12^th man. I thought Goudie was injured, but when I saw him after the match he said that he was now better. Whelan is still struggling with his injury.

Durham seem to be struggling and are now scoring at 2/over.  Is the pitch ‘difficult’ or is our bowling that good? In the 26^th over, Peploe came on to bowl. What a mess. It cost us 13 runs including 3 wides and a 2 due to a Shah misfield. (I then wrote “I hope he bowls better next over” and “we want a wicket” as Notts are 4 down and Yorks 3 down).

In the 33^rd over Louw bowled a bouncer over Muchall’s head (no he did not duck) and it was deemed a ‘no ball’. His next ball was clouted for 6 into the Mound stand and the following one for 4, Muchall bringing up his 50 with the 6.

At lunch they were 110/1 with Louw’s 8 overs going for 40 runs and Peploe’s 5 going for 21 (remembering that Peploe’s 1^st over went for 13 I thought that was a good come back). There then came an announcement about the Notts Pro40 match, but no date was given at that stage (Tuesday 5^th September was given later in the evening). I overheard loads of complaints about putting Durham in.

Rip off a la Lord’s

At Southgate 1 pint of Lemonade and Lime is £1.30, at Lord’s the same beverage is £2.60.

[Editor’s note: I don’t consider that a rip off myself.  The prices at Southgate are excellent value.  The prices at Lord’s are in line with ordinary London pubs.  Lord’s is a far classier venue than most places in London that would charge those sorts of prices for dricks]

Come on Chaddy do your stuff

As I wrote this in my notebook Chad bowled Maher for 46 with the 5^th ball of his over making it 112/2. Silverwood then got among the wickets by having Muchall caught at slip by Shah for 68 off the 1^st ball of his 2^nd over after lunch. That gave us our 1^st bowling point (130/3). I missed photographing this as I found that I had got the cream from a piece of chocolate cake all over my t-shirt and I was busy trying to get it off with a stain removing pen (remind me next time to borrow one of Dreizy’s bibs). We now have two new batsmen at the crease. I am hopeful that our decision has been justified.

Chad bowls Harmison Minor. This time one of the stumps leaned drunkenly out of the ground, whereas the first one only the bails came off (131/4).

Good news?......

….for Middlesex, Jamie is on his way back. I half expected a helicopter to land in the outfield! The speculation was, who was the nominated player?  I later found out that it was Peploe

Why do they do it?

Peploe spectacularly dived to stop the ball as it passed him on it way to the boundary, not once but twice with consecutive balls. You see this in televised matches also. Why the half-hearted dive, if you can’t stop the ball fine. If anyone was closer to the action than me (i.e. in the Edrich stand) perhaps he was closer to the ball than I thought could they please say.

At 42 overs they were 149/4 and at 51 overs they progressed to 187/4. This was the period that I had my interview for ‘The Wisden Cricketer’. I asked Rob Steen to publicise the MB in the interview.

Another 100 partnership, and this went on and on and on. Eventually they had a new record for the 5^th wicket (more anon). How disappointing, we get a couple of quick wickets, and then we are hit all over the place. At tea they are 281/4.

Again I wrote “We need a wicket”. 300 comes up, and Benkenstein brings up his 100. There are now 23.4 overs left and at this rate they could have 400+ by stumps. At this stage I checked other scores, and others were having similar problems. (Notts put on 226 for the 6^th wicket).

[Editor’s note: it is that time of year.  Wins are usually hard to come by at this stage of the season.  Roll with this one]

At last

Benkenstein is out c Silverwood b Louw for 125 (353/5), and now Jamie is back on the field. Breese and Mustard at the crease.  Will we witness Mustard and Onions batting together…………………………… not this innings - now Mustard c Joyce b Styris for 1. Whoopee we now have another bowling point.

Breese was a long time in the nervous 90’s but eventually brought up his 100. New ball was due at 90 overs, but was taken when there were 11 overs left, by Keegan and Styris. It then started clouding over and got a bit dark. The light was offered and taken by the batsmen. My daughter would have said ‘what wuses’. I’ve seen cricket continue in darker conditions than that, and Breese was on 103. If he hadn’t got his eye in by then he never will!

[Editor’s note: I think the umpires are allowed to take Gibson into consideration too.  It was also very obvious about 8 balls before they went off that both batsmen were sent towels from the dressing room, so I suspect the Durham captain had a view and had expressed it]

At this stage there were 9 overs left (375/6). Then there was an announcement that play would re-commence for 3 overs. Our boys were all in place, but where were the Durham batsmen. They really made us wait, maybe they should have been ‘timed out’?. The fiasco continued, as Breese faced 3 balls from Keegan, the second being an edge for 4, and the third hitting Breese on the thigh. A few exaggerated rubbing of the spot hit soon gains the umpires sympathy and they are off again. What a farce.

The ball is still fairly new. Hopefully in the morning we can get the remaining wickets without conceding too many runs.