8 hours ago
Cracknell ton helps Middlesex recover at Northants
Rothesay County Championship Division Two, County Ground, Northampton (day one)Middlesex 397-8: Cracknell 106*, Du Plooy 66, Hollman 51; Guthrie 6-87Northamptonshire: Yet to batMiddlesex 3pts, Northamptonshire 2ptsMatch scorecard
Joe Cracknell scored an unbeaten 106, his maiden first-class century, while Leus du Plooy struck 66 as Middlesex staged a spirited fightback against Northamptonshire on day one of this County Championship match at Wantage Cracknell, whose previous best was just 33, having largely played white-ball cricket to date, played a superbly-paced innings, facing 164 balls and striking 11 fours and a six to take the visitors to 397-8 at stumps. It was Cracknell's third century of the week after tons in each innings of Middlesex's Second XI game against Glamorgan at bounced back after Liam Guthrie, who took 6-87 with the Kookaburra ball, his first five-wicket haul for Northamptonshire, had the Seaxes reeling on 33-3 inside the first half an hour, removing the visitors' top Du Plooy started to revive Middlesex's fortunes, sharing two 60-run stands, first with Ryan Higgins (25) and then with Ben Geddes (27). When they fell, Middlesex were still in a precarious position at 160-6 before Cracknell and Luke Hollman (51) combined to add 103 for the seventh was then joined by Zafar Gohar and Toby Roland-Jones in stands of 81 and 53 at the end of a satisfactory first day in charge for Middlesex's interim men's first-team coach Dane Vilas.
Earlier, left-armer Guthrie struck in the second over, coming round the wicket. Josh de Caires fell into the legside trap as he worked one off his hip straight to leg Max Holden was trapped lbw by a Guthrie delivery that moved in and straightened. When Sam Robson became Guthrie's third wicket, edging low to Calvin Harrison at second slip, the visitors were in real Plooy and Higgins rebuilt positively, keeping the scoreboard ticking as they put on 62. Du Plooy garnered boundaries off backfoot punches off the seamers and played Guthrie down the legside for four to take Middlesex past 50 in the 12th over before driving him sweetly through was proactive, strong on the reverse sweep against the spinners, but was adjudged lbw to a Justin Broad delivery that looked a little high as he stepped down the wicket aiming to play to Plooy joined forces in another confident stand worth 60 with Geddes who started positively, Middlesex passing 100 in the 23rd over before powering Broad through extra Plooy, meanwhile, punched Guthrie off the backfoot through cover point and then pulled leg-spinner Harrison for four to reach his half-century just before flowed quickly against the seamers after the interval. Geddes punched Guthrie off the backfoot, while Du Plooy drove Luke Procter for four before coming down the wicket and pulling him dismissively through mid-on. He had a rush of blood though, attempting to repeat the shot, failing to control it and instead top-edging to long-on where Rob Keogh took an excellent diving catch running back.
Geddes drove Procter handsomely through extra cover but departed soon afterwards, edging behind off a Broad delivery which held its brought together Cracknell and Hollman who started briskly, Cracknell pulling and driving Broad for consecutive fielded four spinners and both batters took a liking to them with the ball offering little turn. Hollman hit Harrison back over his head, smashed him through the covers and swept behind square. He swept Lloyd Pope to the boundary too and drove his next ball through cover also tucked into the spinners, muscling Keogh down the ground before dispatching his next ball, a half-tracker, over midwicket for six to go past his previous highest tea, both batters reached their fifties and brought up the 100 partnership, but were parted next over when Hollman skied an attempted hook off Guthrie, Pope taking a good catch at deep-backward square continued to locate the boundary, driving Broad through extra, pulling a Pope half-tracker through midwicket and pummelling Guthrie through extra (34) offered strong support as Cracknell neared three figures, taking consecutive boundaries off Procter with the new ball before Guthrie got one to lift, Gohar fending it to Ricardo Vasconcelos at smashed Guthrie through extra cover and then worked Broad into the off-side to take him to three figures and a well-deserved celebration before some Roland-Jones fireworks ensured Middlesex rounded off the day positively.
Report supplied by the ECB Reporters' Network, supported by Rothesay
