1. Stone pelts staggering Surrey
Sport is a brutal business; teams have to move fast to keep up. Surrey and Nottinghamshire, the winners of the last four pennants, met at the Oval last week. Surrey’s hat-trick of titles in 2022, 2023 and 2024 are receding quickly in the rear view mirror, with Notts’ success last year looking fresher.
After 23 wickets fell on the first two days, the 16 points on offer felt pivotal for both teams’ seasons. Those stakes made for a hard-fought match of first-class cricket, with many players contributing to a ding-dong battle.
The match turned after the fall of the fourth wicket in Notts’ second innings – their lead was 169 and, even with somewhat diminished batting resources compared to his title-winning sides, Rory Burns would fancy chasing anything below 250. But Joe Clarke is at the peak of his powers this summer, enjoying a quietly outstanding season, and Kyle Verreynne has the knowhow required to make runs when they matter. They put on 110 and Surrey were left to chase 329 for the points.
Ollie Pope made 111 in the chase, but no other Surrey man scored more than Burns’ 16. Olly Stone bagged a 10-wicket haul for Nottinghamshire and Dillon Pennington added five in a good match for the fast men.
The win gives Notts a three-point lead at the top of Division One. Surrey, incredibly, are eighth in the table, two points off a relegation slot, having won just one match in 2026.
2. Leach is a bloody marvel
As is traditional in late August, it’s time to muse on whether this could be Somerset’s year. If they keep securing first-innings leads of 311, they will prompt that speculation. Although, even with that mountainous lead, they did not make it easy for themselves in their win against Essex.
Josh Thomas’s century up top was supported by runs from Henry Nicholls, Tom Abell and James Rew, with a little knife-twisting from Migael Pretorius at No 11. Simon Harmer went wicketless for 124, his worst figures for Essex. When Jack Leach and Archie Vaughan showed him how it’s done, knocking over six visitors, the Taunton crowd started to dream again.
Perhaps mindful of the weather, Somerset captain Lewis Gregory requested that Tom Westley follow on. Second time round, Leach and Vaughan were resisted much more effectively, bowling a sapping 95 overs but getting five and three wickets, respectively, as a reward for their labour. With the 102 target just short of tricky territory (especially at this ground), Somerset cruised home, their 22 points reward leaving them, tantalisingly, just a couple behind the leaders.
3. Woakes’ folks win at the death
Troubles abound at Sussex, but what a rollercoaster summer is being served up for their fans. The players fought tooth-and-nail for every ball in their narrow defeat to Warwickshire.
Local hero Chris Woakes was the heartbreaker at Edgbaston, his 23 not out from No 8 steering Warwickshire home despite Sean Hunt’s five wickets giving him nine in the match. It had looked like the Bears’ concession of an astonishing 64 extras in 110 overs of a low-scoring match would prove decisive, but Michael Booth and Ethan Bamber’s runs from No 9 and No 10, respectively, more than compensated for that profligacy and the target was overhauled.
Next up, Warwickshire host Notts, who they trail by five points, while Sussex play Somerset in a match they cannot really afford to lose – psychologically if not mathematically.
4. Bess rides home with points pilfered from Hants
Yorkshire travelled to the Rose Bowl for a match against Hampshire that would see the losers’ blood pressure rise considerably. It was another tough contest that ebbed and flowed as nerves jangled.
The Tykes were in deep doodoo at 76 for six in their first innings, but Dom Bess (what a handy cricketer to have in the late-summer tranche of Championship matches) made the first of his several interventions, marshalling the tail to get up to 173. Nevertheless, despite George Hill’s fivefer and a couple of crucial scalps for third spinner, Adam Lyth, a deficit of 24 runs was conceded after both sides’ first innings.
Lyth was soon back in the day job, opening the batting and making a half century. Nevertheless, Yorkshire were bailed out for the second time by the late order, which had to be rejigged after two nightwatchmen had come and gone late on the second day; Jonny Bairstow unable to take his customary slot with a sore finger.
The home side set out in pursuit of 278 with Bess holding the reins, his captain injured. Lyth was again outbowling the specialist spinners but, with Andrew Neal set and Kyle Abbott going well at the other end, Hants were slight favourites, seven down but only 43 to get. Bess snared Neal and Abbott in quick time and Lyth applied the coup de grâce to leave Hampshire adrift in 10th place and Yorkshire comfortable (for now) in the mid-table logjam.
5. Potts soups up Durham’s attack
Durham are romping away at the top of Division Two, only Kent’s excellent form keeping them in sight. Alex Lees’ team matched their chasers’ hat-trick of wins last week with a comprehensive swatting aside of Derbyshire.
Though it’s usually Ben Stokes who catches the headlines at Chester-le-Street (well, it was until the last couple of days), another England player is providing the backbone of their promotion push. Matthew Potts goes about his work with diligence and no little skill, his naggingly accurate brand of fast-medium seam bowling bringing him match figures of 8/68, as Derbyshire could muster just 156 and 84 to go down by 338 runs.
Potts is the leading wicket-taker in the Championship with 49 at 17.7. Still only 27, he last played Test cricket on the ill-starred Ashes tour but, with real pace no longer quite the decisive factor it once was in selection, his accuracy, handy runs and big heart may yet offer a path back into the England camp. Few would begrudge him that.
6. Red Rose runs up the white flag
Lancashire have slumped to a fifth defeat in six matches. Northamptonshire handed them an absolute shellacking at Old Trafford, where even the sole glimpse of light in the dressing room – 17-year-old Joe Moores – joined the clown show, mistaking which side of the crease he was on and grabbing the ball. Moores has a big future, but he might benefit from a more professional environment elsewhere – and not catching the ball when wearing batting gloves.
Credit Northants though; all their batters made runs and all their bowlers took wickets. Surely captain and Lancashire lad, Luke Procter (39 and 46 with the bat, one for 16 and two for 23 with the ball), must look on with something approaching pity at the fall of his old county, who finished second in Division One as recently as 2022.
No fans have a right to demand their team win all the time, but Lancashire have lost their last three matches by 316 runs, nine wickets and 140 runs. Fans do have the right to expect their team to be competitive and not, harsh word though it is, to surrender so meekly.