Key events
This was Kohli on Test cricket, back in 2020, at a time when he also criticised the possibility of four-day Tests, saying, “I don’t think that’s fair to the purest format of the game.”
“It is the representation of life. Whether you get runs or not, you have to clap when others are batting. You have to go back to your room, get up and come the next day.
“You have to follow the routine whether you like it or not. It’s like life where you don’t have the option of not competing. Test cricket has made me a better person.”
An impressive fourth day effort, though Surrey’s last wicket pair have survived the first 40 mins.
Ollie Robinson, who was not at all happy with the ball, gets his way and the umpires switch the ball at Hove.
The IPL to resume “soon” – though it isn’t clear whether those foreign players who have already returned home will return to India.
A hundred for Ben Foakes!
His first of the season, and as elegant and composed as ever, but the only centurion in Surrey’s innings, whereas Warwickshire had three. Surrey 399-9, trail by 266. I wonder if Warwickshire will risk their bowlers again and ask Surrey to follow-on.
An early wicket at Hove, where the nightwatchman Ben Allison is gobbled up by Hudson-Prentice. Worcs 120-4, need another 231. The smart money with Sussex.
It will be good to keep an eye on Che Simmons today, after he found pace and bounce from that mild Edgbaston pitch. Simmons, 21, born in Barbados but a British passport holder, signed for Warwickshire in 2021 and made his first-class debut last year, sparking interest with three wickets in 15 balls against Essex.
“It was a really good collective effort and to see Che come in and bowl the way he did late in the day was great to see,” said Warwicks coach Ian Westwood. “It was an amazing spell for eight overs with some real pace and bounce and just showed how exciting a bowler he can be.”
The ECB reporters network spoke to Nottinghamshire’s Liam Patterson-White last night, whose century yesterday was so well-earned, I don’t think he’d passed fifty in the last three years.
“The last couple of years haven’t gone that well for me with the bat but I’ve been working hard, particularly on my mindset at the crease. I’m naturally an attacking player but I’ve tried to focus on batting time and not getting too far ahead of myself. I feel like it is in a really good place right now and obviously it showed today. It is also really special to make a big contribution with the bat here at Trent Bridge.
“We have such a strong squad here and no spot is guaranteed but I’ve been determined that when I get the chance I will make the most of it. Just to get into the side is a real privilege and a great opportunity to show what I’m all about.
”Having Mohammad Abbas coming in for his first game, taking a five-for, he is a class act and without the effort the seamers have put in I don’t think we would have won so fast. I was pleased for Lyndon (James) – it is always nice to see a close friend perform well. He has worked hard on his bowling and he deserved his success.
“There was a lot of live grass on the pitch the first couple of days, one where you try to utilise the new ball as much as possible. Freddie McCann’s hundred in the first innings was the stand-out performance for me. It was really important for getting us ahead of the game and for him to bat like that in those conditions was really impressive.”
Weather watch
We had a light dusting, barely dusting to be honest, of rain early this morning in Manchester. There’s a scattering of showers due in the south later, which might shuffle north and west.
You have to feel sympathy for a team when not only are the wheels bouncing down the road, but the chassis fell off at the roundabout. Poor Keaton Jennings must be running out of things to say.
“The disappointing thing for me is we’ve had four, five, six, seven opportunities in the game to win it and we squandered all those opportunities. They lost three or four wickets and they’ve got away from us in both innings.
“It’s massively concerning and emotions aside, it’s just not good enough. Today we’ve been 116 for two and we get bowled out 50 runs later.
“I’ve got to ask questions of myself, the way we were going about bowling to the tail – are the decisions taken at that time the right ones? Obviously not, because the game judges you – it spits out at you what is deserved.”
Virat Kohli retires from Test cricket
For all the fire and fury, Kohli did more to keep Test cricket alive during the last decade than anyone else. A beautiful few sentences:
“There’s something deeply personal about playing in whites. The quiet grind, the long days, the small moments that no one sees but that stay with you forever. As I step away from this format, it’s not easy – but it feels right. I’ve given it everything I had, and it’s given me back so much more than I could’ve hoped for.”
Sunday’s round-up
A 14-wicket day at Trent Bridge as Hampshire were steam‑rollered to a 366-run defeat. Liam Patterson‑White and Jack Haynes dominated the morning session with centuries, and Hampshire were set 483 to win, or four and a bit sessions to bat. It wasn’t to be.
Seven wickets fell after tea as Hampshire were whistled out for 116 in their second innings, the top scorer No 11 Sonny Baker, with 27. Lyndon James grabbed five wickets, Brett Hutton four – there was only time for Mohammad Abbas to add two catches to his first‑innings five-fer against his old team. The Nottinghamshire juggernaut steams on, three wins in the bag, firebox ablaze.
There was bouncing delight for the cherry-red caps of Northamptonshire, after snatching a 70-run victory against Lancashire. It was almost 20 years ago that they last beat Lancashire, courtesy of Jason Brown’s 10 wickets and 147 from Usman Afzaal. This time, the crucial intervention came from on-loan leg‑spinner Calvin Harrison, who has an appetite for red-rose batters. With Lancashire seemingly cruising to their target of 236, he had Marcus Harris stumped and Josh Bohannon lbw – which precipitated a collapse of seven for 28 runs.
Earlier, Ben Sanderson had given Northamptonshire something to bowl at when he crashed 65 from 28 balls. The win was the first under Darren Lehmann’s tenure; Lancashire, preseason favourites for promotion, slip to the bottom of Division Two.
At Canterbury, Kent were bowled out for 176 after following on – a spanking by an innings and 161 runs and Glamorgan’s first win of the season. Chris Benjamin was stranded six runs short of a maiden Kent century in the first innings, and three wickets each from Asitha Fernando and Timm van der Gugten soon sliced through the second – all out in fewer than 50 overs. There were firm words from Adam Hollioake: “I wasn’t here last year but I heard about it so we’re not just going to start sulking and feeling sorry for ourselves.”
Despite an unbeaten 85 from Ben Foakes, Surrey are struggling at Edgbaston after Warwickshire reduced them to 369 for nine, 296 runs short of the follow-on. Three surprise wickets from Rob Yates and two from the rapid Che Simmons gave life to the final day.
Worcestershire need 244 to win at Hove, but the force is with Sussex after they removed Henry Nicholls just before the close; 185 from Adam Lyth put Yorkshire on top at Chelmsford.
Scores on the doors
DIVISION ONE
Chelmsford: Essex 123 and 64-4 v Yorkshire 216 and 426-6dec
Trent Bridge: Notts 333 and 345 BEAT Hampshire 196 and 116 by 366 runs
Hove: Sussex 284 and 256 v Worcestershire 180 and 117-3 Worcs need 244 to win
Edgbaston: Warwickshire 665-5dec v Surrey 369-9
DIVISION TWO
Canterbury: Glamorgan 549-9dec BEAT Kent 212 and 176 by an innings and 161 runs
County Ground: Northamptonshire 238 and 273 BEAT Lancashire 276 and 165 by 70 runs.
Preamble
Good Monday morning and the best of luck to all those sproglets of CCLive! readers currently pouring over a GCSE English Literature paper. Just three games left in this round after yesterday’s sudden denouements – Warwickshire have weakened Surrey in a surprising chokehold, Essex are in deep trouble against Yorkshire and Worcestershire face an uphill chase.
Play starts at 11am, do join us between zooms.
