No place like Lord’s for Lewis
Jeremy Blackmore watches last year’s contenders battle it out for a share of the points
Lewis Gregory hopes his record partnership with Dean Elgar that rescued Somerset after another toporder batting collapse, can be the spark to reignite his county’s Championship season.
Lord’s is proving a lucky ground for the all-rounder who took his first fivewicket haul there in 2013 and followed it up with his maiden first-class century during this match.
The batting troubles that have plagued Somerset all season surfaced again on the opening morning, leaving them reeling at 80-5.
Gregory, whose maiden List A hundred came also with Somerset five wickets down, proved yet again that he is a man for a crisis.
He joined form man Elgar in a stand of 249, a Somerset record for the sixth wicket against Middlesex, striking 17 boundaries and a six in his 137. His stay at the crease lasted five and a half hours to frustrate the Middlesex bowlers still hunting their first win of the season.
While the Lord’s pitch flattened out in inevitable fashion over the course of the match, conditions were particularly testing when Gregory came to the wicket.
“I have to give a lot of credit to Deano,” said Gregory. “He kept me calm and didn’t let me get too carried away. We were in a tough position and we just had to keep scrapping and see how many we could get.
“It’s very special to get my first firstclass 100 and to do it at a place like Lord’s is unbelievable. I got my first fivewicket haul here as well, so it’s a great set to have.
“I’ve always known the ability has been there and I’ve been able and capable of something like this. It’s only going to give me confidence.
“We’ve struggled this season and we’re not denying that. We haven’t got enough runs in the County Championship. Hopefully this can be the catalyst to going on for the rest of the year and the boys digging in and putting on big partnerships together.”
With the match petering out in another inevitable Lord’s draw, Somerset skipper Tom Abell was able to spend some valuable time at the crease on the final day, to register his first half-century of the season. Middlesex meanwhile were left waiting on the results of a scan on Adam Voges who pulled up in worrying fashion after top-scoring on Sunday afternoon.