Seconds up against it
Fri 28 Aug 2015
Northamptonshire’s batsmen were at the crease for the majority of the second day to put their side in command of the three-day friendly at Wantage Road.
The second day dawned brighter, but breezy and cool. The previously breezy MacDonnell added just one to his overnight 51, before the deserving Maddock's fifth ball of the day removed his off stump as he pushed forward.
The latter could easily have made further inroads in his opening spell of 6-2-16-1, but Hill failed to hold a difficult leg-side chance from Thurston, and a horribly airy drive from Patel - a typical left-hander's 'get-out' shot - skewed from the outer part of the bat over the gully area for four.
Three more authentic cover boundaries from the bowling of Tom Wells took Patel to 50, from an even 100 balls, but a successful first hour for Leicestershire was rounded out by two strikes in quick succession by Rob Taylor.
Keeping a full length had seen Thurston (14) twice drive him to the ropes, but he eventually induced the false shot, and the edge was comfortably pouched by the ever-dependable Andrea Agathangelou at second slip. In his next over, Taylor found the inside edge to bowl Munsey (4).
The remainder of the morning session belonged to Northants, as Patel, looking ever more in control, moved to 79 (164 balls), with new partner Plater emerging from a dogged start (2* off 29) to reach 37 from 69 at lunch, the total now a healthy 204-3.
The afternoon session started well for Leicestershire. Patel had moved to 89, when a backward defensive shot to Oldfield's off-spin bounced slowly back on to his stumps, and with ominous heavy cloud around, Wells found some late inswing.
He clean bowled, with full-length deliveries, both Plater (39) & Claydon (12). The wicket-keeper, Khawaja drove tinnily but effectively through extra cover a couple of times. He was joined in a quick partnership of 35 by Taylor, whose run-a-ball 24 ended when he aimed, at Jigar Naik, a sweep too many for umpire White's liking.
Khawaja pulled a Naik delivery over the short boundary at mid-wicket to move to 32 as rain began to fall. The players left the field for 15 minutes, with the score on 292-7 in the 78th over. Naik missed a difficult diving chance to catch Chambers, at slip, off Oldfield, in the subsequent 5 minutes of play before further rain brought about an early tea at 303-7 (Khawaja 36, Chambers 8).
The same pattern seemed to be emerging at the start of the final session - the new ball bringing two early strikes for Leicestershire. Firstly, Chambers(16), having just played Maddock beautifully off his hip through mid-wicket for four, aimed an over-confident drive at the next ball, which was not full enough for the stroke, and nicked behind.
Then, 13 balls later, Atif Sheikh, with his radar slightly better calibrated than with the first new ball, drew Khawaja (45) on to the front foot to chase one he should have left alone, Hill again taking the straightforward catch.
From this point, the script began to differ. There ensued one of those periods of play loved by all cricket spectators - except those with an affiliation to the fielding side; a 16-over last wicket partnership!
It began inauspiciously with multiple balls passing the bat, most notably one from Sheikh, whose radar this timed honed in precisely to the box worn by Gleeson, splitting from it a sizeable piece of plastic. A 5-minute delay followed, for its replacement, and for its owner to be able to breathe comfortably again.
22 of Gleeson’s first 29 runs came to the vacant third man area. Dawborn, meanwhile, had reached a stoic 3* from 32 balls before streaking a boundary to third man off Taylor, then taking consecutive well-struck fours off Wells.
Gleeson then added fours in front of square, either side of the wicket, in Taylor's next over, and the partnership had real momentum as it reached the half-century mark. Wells finally broke it at 58, pinning Gleeson LBW, playing back to one to which he should perhaps have come forward. Wells deservedly finished with 3 wickets as he produced lengthy periods of miserly economy.
Leicestershire began their second inns with 20 overs remaining, trailing by a daunting 136. Ever more so when, after both openers successfully avoided their 'pairs' in the first over, Kurtz was caught in front in the second, adjudged LBW trying to work a full ball to leg.
Agathangelou's innings was eventful but brief - two inside edged singles and a couple of boundaries preceding a hard-handed front foot push at Chambers, the edge being smartly pouched low down by Munsey at second slip.
Hill and Taylor took the score on to 60-2 with only the odd moment of alarm, before the sun again dropped behind the stands, instantly rendering the light unplayable, seven overs being lost.
