County Championship round-up: Ervine shines but Strauss and Cook still fail to find their form
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A dry spring may have yielded a healthy glut of results in the first month of the Championship but it has done nothing for the form of England's two Test captains.
Alastair Cook, who led the side in Bangladesh while Andrew Strauss was taking a sabbatical, fell first ball against Kent at Chelmsford yesterday, leaving the Essex opener with 155 runs from seven first-class innings so far, at an average of 22.14.
Strauss is doing scarcely better. After 11 innings he is averaging 23.81, with one half-century, eight scores of 25 or fewer and an aggregate of 262. He made only 13 at Lord's yesterday, although he insists he is "not overly concerned" by his lack of runs.
On that count, Sean Ervine will feel blissfully unworried after hitting a mammoth career-best 237 not out as Hampshire, after four straight defeats, at last found their feet, against Somerset at the Rose Bowl.
The Zimbabwean hit five sixes and 29 fours in a near six-and-a-half hour epic, surpassing his previous best of 208 scored in his homeland. His ninth-wicket partnership with James Tomlinson, whose 42 was also a career best, added 230.
After Cook's demise, Tom Westley laid the foundations for a recovery, but Essex have much to do to avoid the follow-on after Darren Stevens' century helped Kent to 474.
Centuries for Neil Dexter and Gareth Berg made up for Strauss's failure at Lord's, where Middlesex have a healthy first-innings lead over Derbyshire in the Second Division.
Leicestershire, bowled out for 102 at Bristol, made a better fist of their follow-on, while Jamie Dalrymple's century allowed Glamorgan to take charge against Northamptonshire.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments