Foxes beaten in Gosforth
Fri 5 May 2017
Royal London One-Day Cup Matchday 4: Durham Jets v Leicestershire Foxes
RESULT | Durham Jets (2 points) beat Leicestershire Foxes by 5 wickets
REACTION | Dieter Klein spoke with BBC Radio Leicester's Richard Rae, the interview is available HERE
REPORT | Leicestershire Foxes fought hard but ultimately could not recover from a poor start in the Royal London One-Day Cup match against Durham at South Northumberland CC.
The Foxes, who slipped to 13-4 in tricky early conditions, showed spirit to put 211 on the board. Zak Chappell (59*, 82b) and Dieter Klein (26, 41b) each posted career-best List A scores as part of a ninth wicket stand worth 73, while Lewis Hill (44, 61b) and Mark Cosgrove (37, 42b) also played well.
Damage had been inflicted by Chris Rushworth and James Weighell, who took 4-34, including three of the first four wickets.
Dangerman Keaton Jennings fell early in the reply to on-song Klein (10-0-37-2) but a second wicket stand of 92 between half-centurions Stephen Cook (67) and Michael Richardson (51) broke the back of the chase.
Former England all-rounder Paul Collingwood, who earlier took 3-42, also reached 50 to help Durham register a five-wicket victory with 6.4 overs to spare in front of a healthy crowd in Gosforth.
Durham Jets were unchanged from the team that lost to Yorkshire Vikings while Leicestershire Foxes made one switch as Rob Sayer came in for James Sykes.
Jennings won the toss and elected to bowl at Rosewood Terrace - and it proved to be an excellent decision. It that looked deceptively warm; bright sunshine came from clear blue skies but chilly gusts of wind regularly swept down the ground.
The Foxes have generally got off to a flyer in this competition but that was not the case today as Rushworth and Weighell extracted bounce and movement.
Mark Pettini (0) edged the second ball of the game from Rushworth to Paul Collingwood at first slip while Cameron Delport (0) and Aadil Ali (1) chipped Weighell to Graham Clark in the covers and George Harding at mid-off respectively, leaving Leicestershire at 3-3.
The Foxes had to wait until the start of the eighth over to open their boundary account, Cosgrove powerfully pulling the lively Weighell through mid-wicket. Captain Ned Eckersley (4) followed suit by striking through the leg-side but fell at the end of the over, Rushworth taking a catch at long-leg as a Weighell delivery got big on him.
Hill then sent a lovely cover drive to the ropes but the powerplay belonged to Durham with the Foxes ending it at 20-4.
A stand developed as Cosgrove played some fine strokes, including a delightful drive towards the impressive indoor school, and the left-hander also collected a six when a thick top edge flew over the ‘keeper’s head and out of the ground.
The alliance reached 52 before the Foxes suffered another blow, striking Collingwood to Clark at deep mid-wicket, and Tom Wells (3) departed in the next over, lbw to Paul Coughlin after moving across his crease.
‘Keeper Hill continued to play nicely and Sayer knuckled down alongside him, and that prompted a change of tack from the hosts. Tall slow left arm spinner George Harding was introduced from the Park End and Hill reverse swept him for four at the end of his first over, the 23rd of the innings.
Sayer (18) clubbed Collingwood over mid-wicket to move the score into three figures in the 26th over but fell to the final delivery, trapped in front as he looked to work the ball to the on-side.
Hill and Chappell shared 21 and the ‘keeper looked set for a half-century. He became a third victim for Collingwood, however, as Jennings took a great diving catch at mid-wicket, the Foxes now at 127-8 in the 32nd over. Experienced duo Collingwood (10-1-42-3) and Rushworth (10-1-29-1) then finished their day’s work with the ball.
Chappell and Klein got stuck in and the former’s fourth boundary, a nicely timed drive through straight mid-wicket, saw the Foxes past 150 in the 37th over.
Cameron Steel’s leg-spin was given an airing as Harding switched to the Grove End. In Steel’s second over, Chappell showed two good examples of placement to record boundaries, dispatching a full toss between two leg-side boundary riders before driving off the back foot through extra.
The stand passed 50 in the 44th over and Chappell sent another couple of terrific pulls off the returning Weighell to the fence as he posted his a maiden List A half-century from 74 balls (8x4).
Leicestershire’s score moved to 200 with eleven deliveries to go but Klein’s fine knock of 26 ended as Weighell sent the off stump cartwheeling to claim a four-wicket haul.
Chappell smashed the first ball of the last over through extra and the next ball flew for four off the helmet but the innings came to its conclusion with a ball remaining, Gavin Griffiths driving Coughlin to Jennings at cover.
The Foxes batting heroes then shared the new ball against international duo Cook and Jennings. The left-hander twice found the third man boundary in the third over, beating the man on the outside and then inside, but Klein gained revenge in the seventh, swinging one in to trap Jennings (12) right in front with the score at 23.
Richardson looked in fine fettle from the get-go, his five early boundaries including a rasping extra cover drive in the 13th over off the bowling of Sayer. The partnership between Cook and Richardson reached 50 in 52 deliveries and the Foxes were in need of a breakthrough.
It was not immediately forthcoming and after the Jets moved into three figures in the 21st over, Richardson reached a classy 50 from 65 balls (7x4). However, disaster then struck from Richardson’s perspective; he looked for a second run off Sayer but Cook stayed put, Pettini throwing to the bowler from the cover boundary to end his stay at 51.
Opener Cook reached his half-century after 26.3 overs but had only faced 55 deliveries at that point. His willingness to play the anchor role was a key feature of the chase.
Cook lost another partner when Clark (5) slashed Klein to cover point with Durham at 122-3 at that stage. Collingwood soon settled, striking a six to mid-wicket in Sayer’s last over. The off-spinner had bowled well but finished without a wicket.
Collingwood, who offered an early half-chance when edging Sayer just beyond Cosgrove at slip, was a good foil to Cook, scoring 39 of their 57-run partnership. Klein finished with fine figures of 2-37 before Wells struck twice in the 38th over, Cook chopping on to his wicket and Steel (0) leg before to a full delivery.
The Foxes may have sensed an opportunity with Durham at 179-5 but Collingwood put his foot on the accelerator, moving to 50 from 45 balls (6x4, 2x6) before going on to hit the winning boundary to end on an unbeaten 65.
Leicestershire’s next game is also in this competition at Notts Outlaws on Sunday. The game is a second outground fixture in succession, being played at Welbeck.
TEAM | Pettini, Delport, Aadil, Cosgrove, Eckersley (capt), Hill (wk), Wells, Chappell, Sayer, Klein, Griffiths.
Bowling figures for Leicestershire: Klein 10-0-37-2, Chappell 10-0-48-0, Griffiths 5-0-34-0, Sayer 10-0-51-0, Wells 8.2-0-43-2.
