Key events
Three wickets for Pretorius at Taunton as Warwickshire struggle, 84-4, though Rhodes and Barnard have more than doubled the score since they came together.
Still raining at The Oval (Surrey 8-0) and drizzle at the Rose Bowl has restricted Kent and Hampshire to eight overs, Hants 19-1 (Middleton out for 13)
Stokes batting at Chester-le-Street…
…alongside the Ollie Robinson with a point to prove (the other one). Robinson 29 not out at quite a clip, Stokes a 27 ball eight. Durham 86-4, a wicket a piece for Worcestershire’s Waite, Smith, Taylor and Allison.
They’re back on here, as Keaton powers four past square leg and onto the hospitality tent and then plays and misses at Olly Stone. Lancs 40-1.
If you want to follow England women’s prospects against New Zealand in the second ODI, James is fully immersed here:
“Good morning Tanya,” hello Geoff Wignall!
“I’m surprised by your weather report. Memory, which lies so often, tells me it’s always dry and sunny with gentle breezes, fluffy clouds and darting swallows when watching games at Southport. With guaranteed dry pitches. The locals aren’t called Sandgrounders without reason.
“It’s where I first played the game (badly) and first watched it too.
“Many glad memories of the Lancs side of that time – Lloyd and Engineer, Lever and Higgs, flat Jack and Harry Pilling, even the very end of Statham’s time.
“And of course Jackie Bond with his unique version of the all-rounder’s role: captain and mid-off.
“Glorious afternoons transfixed by the likes of Sobers and D’Oliveira too (not that anyone has ever been or seen the like of Sobers).
“Sometimes of course it was the bit part players who made the most impression -Edwin Smith returning the marvellously neat figures of 25-5-100-5 for Derbyshire sticks in the mind.
“(Incidentally did you know that Statham ended his career with five consecutive maidens against Yorkshire at OT, with his final ball to DB Close? After a six fer in the 1st innings. They last well, these Lancashire quicks.)
“All of which is a very long-winded way of saying that if this should be Jimmy’s championship farewell, it provides a personal delight that it should be at Trafalgar Road and envy for those witnessing it. Fingers crossed for another masterclass.”
Thank you, what lovely memories.
Tim is watching at Chesterfield: “Two in two balls for Yorkshire at Chesterfield. Vishwa Fernando had Luis Reece caught at first slip with the last ball of the 15th over. He’s made 11. Then in the first ball of the 16th, Jordan Thompson took the top of Brooke Guest’s off stump for 17. Derbyshire 35-3.” A good effort by Derbyshire’s batters at Lord’s last week, let’s see if they can pull this one back.
In Division Two, wickets galore. Both Gloucestershire (v Glamorgan) and Derbyshire (v Yorkshire) three down. Hill and Goldsworthy are rebuilding for Leicestershire (58-2) against Middlesex; Australian Daniel Hughes enjoying himself against Northants, Sussex 54-1.
Rain on the press tent roof – and they’re off. Lancashire 29-1.
Pennington’s first spell as a soon-to-play-for-England bowler is fine and dandy: 6-4-3-0. Just a wicket missing from the final column.
Good morning Martin O’Donovan-Wright! “Re: Notts winning the toss and fielding… could I suggest, as a Lancashire supporter with no ulterior motive (coughs), that any bowler – no matter which county they play for, in order to be totally fair – with 700+ test wickets should get to choose whether or not they bowl first.” That seems entirely right and proper. On the upside, Southport and Birkdale may sell more tickets for Monday and Tuesday now.
“It’s ridiculous how we’ve gone from last week’s baked-out 1976-throwback pitches to lush green swing bowlers’ wet dreams in the space of a week,” writes Tim Maitland.
”I’m sulking because I cast my wandering affections in the directions of Surrey v Essex, which lasted two overs before the rain came.
”The only constant seems to be the live scores on the ECB being a clusterf**k.”
Rain has stalled Surrey’s advance at 8-0 at The Oval; Warwickshire, 31-1, have lost Davies for 9, batting against Somerset; Wells and Jennings are surviving nicely at Southport – Pennington running in hard and showing just why he’s caught the selectors’ eye – but, hang-on, it is Dane Patterson who makes the breakthrough, clipping Wells’ off bail for seven. Lancs 26-1. Hampshire are 19-0 v Kent and Durham recovering, 33-2 against Worcestershire.
Gary Naylor points out that the email link on the top of the page is wrong. Apologies, if you sent anything to that address I won’t have got it. I think I’ve fixed it but if not, the right address is: tanya.aldred.freelance@theguardian.com.
”I grew up a few miles down the coast ” writes Gary, “and it’s always windy, usually knocking 5 degrees off the temperature. The sand gets blown off the dunes and into your eyes and bleaches the skin too!” Hoping it works on wrinkles.
Round the grounds – Durham have had a bad start against Worcestershire, Borthwick lbw for 0, Ackermann caught for one. Ben Stokes is turning out for Durham in pre-Test tuning mode. Other Test players warming up for Lord’s this final mid-summer round are: newbies Jamie Smith and Pennington, Matthew Potts, Dan Lawrence and Chris Woakes.
The newly-called up Pennington with the second over, fast and accurate. Glad to see that his trouser hems still rest fractionally above his ankles, though not quite as short as they were when I first saw him play for Worcestershire back in the 20tweenies. Notts’ opening attack is quite something – Lancs will do very well to see it off.
Olly Stone with the new ball from the Grovenor Road End. Less likely to blow over in the more-than-nippy cross-wind than he used to be.
Stat-attack: (thank you Paul Edwards) Nathan Lyon needs one wicket to have 800 first-class wickets in what will be his last appearance for Lancashire in 2024.
Did a lap of the Trafalgar Road. Hundreds and hundreds of grey tip up seats, lots of eager punters in anoraks, a dad pointing out Jimmy Anderson to his young son. Very grey clouds. Nicely apt that, although the punters might be disappointed not to see Anderson bowling, they will get to see his heir apparent – Dillon Pennington.
Lancashire have lost the toss and will … bat!
Southport is overcast – windy, chilly but dry. I’m already bitterly regretting my decision not to bring a coat. Notts won the toss and HH immediately spoils the party by choosing to bowl. A quiet boo rings out when it is announced.
Rob Key gets out his black pen – Bairstow, Foakes, Leach out; Pennington, Smith in
Jamie Smith and Dillon Pennington called up for the Test team
A Sunday morning Test announcement, I feel suddenly transported back to 1985. Two new caps, Surrey wunderkind wicket-keeper Jamie Smith – which marks, you’d have thought, the end of Jonny Bairstow’s 100-Test career, and gently closes the door on Ben Foakes. Ollie Robinson, the Durham one, can feel unlucky. Pennington beats Sam Cook to the first ‘replacement-for-Jimmy’ spot, Gus Atkinson, Chris Woakes and Matthew Potts make up the rest of the pace attack. Shoaib Bashir takes the spin spot. Ollie Robinson, the Sussex one, is left to ponder what might have been.
England Men’s Test Squad:
Ben Stokes (Durham) Captain
James Anderson (Lancashire) (First Test only)
Gus Atkinson (Surrey)
Shoaib Bashir (Somerset)
Harry Brook (Yorkshire)
Zak Crawley (Kent)
Ben Duckett (Nottinghamshire)
Dan Lawrence (Surrey)
Dillon Pennington (Nottinghamshire)
Ollie Pope (Surrey)
Matthew Potts (Durham)
Joe Root (Yorkshire)
Jamie Smith (Surrey)
Chris Woakes (Warwickshire)
Fixtures
DIVISION ONE
The Oval: Surrey v Essex
Taunton: Somerset v Warwickshire
Trafalgar Road: Lancashire v Nottinghamshire
Southampton: Hampshire v Kent
Chester le Street: Durham v Worcestershire
DIVISION TWO
Grace Road: Leicestershire v Middlesex
Cheltenham: Gloucestershire v Glamorgan
County Ground: Northamptonshire v Sussex
Chesterfield: Derbyshire v Yorkshire
Preamble
Hello from a train chugging damply towards Liverpool. The sky is heavy with grey clouds, of the type that Jimmy Anderson might order – which is handy as today he makes his first Championship appearance of the season, at Southport. After that comes his swansong at Lord’s and then – who knows? So, in short, this could be the last chance for anyone not going to the Test to see him bowl in the flesh.
Of course he could roll in, slim as a pin, for Lancashire for another three years, but the organisers at Southport and Birkdale CC won’t mind – they’ve already sold all 2,300 tickets for today – so don’t travel if you haven’t got a ticket as you won’t get in!
Festival cricket also at Cheltenham and Chesterfield, the top of the table clash at The Oval and much much more you lucky people.