Eckersley knock in losing cause
Wed 29 Jul 2015
Oliver Stone and Steve Crook made telling contributions as Leicestershire Foxes lost by 55 runs under the floodlights in the Royal London One Day Cup at Wantage Road.
Clint McKay (10-0-36-3) reduced Northants to 7-2 after the hosts elected to bat but former Foxes favourite Josh Cobb led a recovery with a fine 86 as Northants posted 244-9 at Wantage Road.
Northants set about their defence in fine fashion as Stone took a wicket in each of his first three overs as the Foxes slipped to 7-3.
Ned Eckersley made a composed 71 in sharing 76 and 63 in consecutive partnerships with Niall O’Brien (34) and Tom Wells (25) as the Foxes regrouped to 146-4 with 14 overs to go.
But Steve Crook (10-1-38-3) dismissed all three batsmen, including Eckersley and Wells in a match-defining 37th over.
Leicestershire handed a debut to Michael Burgess and there were also first Foxes appearances in the tournament for Mark Cosgrove, McKay, Aadil Ali and Sayer.
McKay, who signed a new two-year deal at the club yesterday, extended his terrific form into a third competition. The seamer bowled the dangerous Richard Levi (4) before having Adam Rossington (0) caught at the wicket by O’Brien to leave Northants in trouble.
Cobb and Ben Duckett got the Steelbacks back on track in mixing watchful defence with the occasional boundary and plenty of strike rotation.
The Foxes missed a chance to remove the in-form Duckett as Sayer enticed him into a lofted sweep but the left-hander fell to the very next ball of the innings. The batsman, who hit one four and a maximum in 30, drove high to Aadil Ali at mid-off as Wells (10-0-59-1) put paid to the 80-run alliance.
Cobb then progressed to a responsible 68-ball fifty that included seven boundaries in the 24th over, and he and Keogh then upped the ante.
The duo shared 89 in the space of 15.4 overs and Cobb looked destined to make it to three figures against his former teammates. But he was trapped in front by Shreck (10-0-50-2) in the 37th over as the Foxes had a spell where they claimed six wickets for the addition of just 43 runs.
Although Keogh brought up his 50 from just 52 balls (5x4) in the next over from Raine, he was dismissed by the all-rounder in bizarre fashion two deliveries later. Keogh was entitled to think that an edge may run down to third man for runs but the ball cannoned off O’Brien's pads into the stumps with the batsman having taken a couple of paces down the wicket.
The dangerous David Willey (6) was then brilliantly caught by Cosgrove at extra cover off Sayer (10-1-46-1) in his last over. It was due reward for the young spinner, who had seen Crook drive a swerving four just beyond the grasp of Ali at long-off at the start of the over.
Northants were 219-9 as Raine took a good catch at deep backward square leg off the returning Shreck to dismiss Crook (10), the equally dangerous Kleinveldt (4) was then bowled by McKay, and Raine (10-0-50-2) disturbed the stumps of Zaib (16).
Stone clattered 19 not out from 13 balls as he and Graeme White (9*, 13b) added 25 from the last 19 deliveries, and the young seamer then had an equally destructive effect with the ball.
Angus Robson (4) received a beauty that left him outside off and got an edge behind, Mark Cosgrove was also held by Duckett after receiving a ball that bounced a touch, and Ali was beaten by a full straight delivery that knocked out his middle stump.
Eckersley led a very steady recovery with O’Brien after Stone’s triple strike. O’Brien went on to lift a drive over mid-off from Willey and began to impose himself on the bowling but Crook made a key breakthrough. The seamer went a little wider on the crease from around the wicket and found some extra bounce that produced an edge behind to Duckett.
Eckersley, who found the ropes for a third time in bringing up his battling fifty in 88 balls, formed another partnership with Wells. The number three batsman twice struck Cobb for four in the 32nd over but chipped Crook to his former colleague at mid-wicket five overs later.
Four balls after that dismissal, Wells, who had previously struck Willey for a big six, was trapped lbw and Leicestershire now had their work cut out at 147-6.
A target of 98 from 13 overs with four wickets in hand proved too much. Sayer was well held at slip by Stone off Kleinveldt, who had incredible figures of 7.2-5-6-1 at that point, and Burgess (13) was bowled after being beaten in the flight by White.
Raine struck two fours and a six in a lively 24 off 16 balls but he clipped Willey to Kleinveldt at cover and Shreck then lofted high into the air, White wrapping up the two points with an excellent return catch.
The Foxes have one point from their first two matches and next up is a home encounter with Gloucestershire on Friday at Grace Road. The match is due to start at 10.30am.
