McKay reaches landmark before Northants hit back
Fri 21 Aug 2015
Clint McKay moved past 50 LV=CC wickets in claiming a third five-wicket haul of the season but Northamptonshire fought back strongly on the first day.
McKay (19.2-4-54-5) took the first four wickets to fall at Wantage Road before Alex Wakely (123) helped guide Northants to 325 all out.
The captain shared consecutive stands of 71 with Josh Cobb, 78 with Steven Crook, 69 with David Murphy and 38 with Rory Kleinveldt, who went on to dismiss Lewis Hill (9), Ned Eckersley (0) and Angus Robson (13) as Leicestershire closed on 30-3.
County made one change to the team that beat Derbyshire as Wayne White came in for his first Championship appearance of his second spell at the club in place of Andrea Agathangelou. Mark Cosgrove continued his good record with the coin and put Northamptonshire into bat.
McKay started the day requiring two wickets to move to the landmark and claimed them both as he exploited the early conditions. The Victorian trapped Ben Duckett (1) lbw and had his opening partner Rob Newton (9) held by Ben Raine at mid-off after the batsman got a leading edge.
Two further wickets fell in the first hour. Both Rob Keogh (14), trying to leave, and Richard Levi (0), attempting a cut, dragged into their own stumps. McKay eventually came out of the attack having bowled eight overs, taking 4-23.
He left Northants reeling at 42-4 before Wakely led a recovery. A delightful back-foot drive off Raine, who later had to leave the field due to injury, and an imperious pull against White were among ten fours during his 68-ball fifty.
Wakely was offered solid support by Cobb and the duo went to the luncheon interval on 51 and 11 respectively with the score at 89-4 after 30 overs.
Leicestershire’s bowlers started strongly after the break; Cobb was fortunate to survive the second ball of the session when an edge off McKay was put down by Robson at first slip while there was a shout for lbw against Wakely on 52.
County did not have to wait too long to claim their fifth success as a top edge from Cobb (30) off Charlie Shreck (22-6-60-3) went high into the sky and landed in the safe gloves of Niall O’Brien.
The wicket came in the 38th over and Wakely had only scored four runs in the afternoon session at that point. But the home captain began to move his tally along again, opening the face to run White towards vacant third man before a second pull stroke took him to 90.
Clipping the off-spin of Rob Sayer through mid-wicket nudged him three away from a century and a paddle sweep for his 18th boundary brought up his fourth first-class hundred from 149 balls.
Crook (40) and Murphy (38) followed Cobb’s lead but both were dismissed before tea. Sayer enticed Crook to step out of his crease and the in-form all-rounder saw O’Brien whip off the bails, and Murphy guided Cosgrove to substitute Agathangelou at second slip.
Northants reached 269-7 at tea with Wakely (114) and Kleinveldt (9) the unbeaten batsmen. The home side added a further 56 in a final session that saw McKay and O’Brien take their bowling and fielding dismissals to five apiece.
Centurion Wakely and Kleinveldt, who made 43 in good time, were held off Shreck before the Australia and Ireland internationals combined to see off Muhammad Azharullah (10).
Leicestershire had a tricky 15-over period to bat and Kleinveldt followed up his good work with the bat. He had Hill caught off the glove down the leg-side by Murphy, removed the off stump of Eckersley, and induced a thin edge as Robson's attempted drive ended in Murphy's hands.
Nightwatchman Sayer (1*) and Cosgrove (5*) saw the team through to stumps but Leicestershire still trail by 295 with seven first innings wickets remaining.
