Down by The Riverside

 posted by John Winn

                                                                           

                                                                                    

A day at Aintree on Thursday delayed my start to the 2023 season at The Riverside but I was there in good time on Friday to see the second day of Durham's match with Worcestershire. Durham had had an excellent day on Thursday and Raine and Coughlin started where they had left off the evening before. Durham skipper Scott Borthwick eventually declared on 425 for 9, leaving the visitors about an hour's batting before lunch and what an hour it was. Pollock set about the Durham attack, shorn of Carse by the ECB, with Pollock hitting nine fours off 26 balls before he was cleaned up by Potts for 41, a scoring rate of 157.69. Azhar Ali went for 29, lbw Potts, but shortly afterwards rain sent the players from the field and that was it for the day, Worcestershire 96 for 2. 

 Rather than return home I had booked accommodation in Durham for the night and thus was at the ground early on Saturday to see Worcestershire resume their innings. I was slightly concerned that mopping up was still going on when the five minute bell was rung but play started on time. Coughlin, who I thought the pick of the bowlers, had Libby caught at slip and to a man the Durham side thought they had D'Oliveira next ball but umpire White stood firm and the Pears' skipper proceeded to play a lively innings before being caught and bowled by Kuhnemann. I thought the Durham attack especially the seamers gave away too many easy leg side runs. The photo up above was taken just after lunch and suggests a cloudy day but for much of the day there was lovely sunshine.

I had originally intended to leave about 2:30 and catch some league cricket in East Durham on the way home but news of widespread postponements dissuaded me from this idea and instead I stayed until shortly before tea and got home just in time to see the delayed Grand National. Sam Brown who carried my hopes but fortunately not my money fell at the 16th. Perhaps his belt was too tight. 

After I left Worcestershire made a somewhat surprising declaration and with Borthwick hitting a century Durham have set Worcestershire 314 to win, as I type they are 3 for 2. 

In last week's posting I commented on the dismay felt in Somerset when they lost the first day of their opening match to rain, imagine the disappointment yesterday morning when the game at Bristol between Gloucestershire and Yorkshire was abandoned without a ball being bowled, a fairly rare occurrence these days. The decision provoked plenty of bile on social media but my main sympathy lies with Yorkshire supporters who booked accommodation for a couple of nights or more. They should have better look at Hove next week.