The Chronicle (South Tyneside and Durham)
Duo hit maiden tons in Durham run spree
DURHAM mustered their thirdhighest first-class total of 642-7 to take control of their LV= Insurance County Championship Division Two clash against Worcestershire at Seat Unique Riverside.
Rachin Ravindra continued his fine debut for the home side by scoring his maiden first-class double hundred, notching 217 before he was finally dismissed for the second-highest score made by a Durham debutant.
Paul Coughlin and Ben Raine also became centurions for the first time, sharing a record-breaking stand for Durham’s eighth-wicket worth 213 to leave their side in a dominant position.
Raine got the better of the visitors once more this time with the ball, claiming the wickets of Jake Libby and Azhar Ali to reduce Worcestershire to 140-3 at stumps, trailing Durham by 502 runs ahead of day three.
Resuming on 178 not out, Ravindra wasted no time in pushing his score towards 200 with three early boundaries.
The left-hander slipped through the gears and reached his doublecentury with a gentle nudge into the leg-side before saluting his new team-mates, becoming only the third Durham player to score over 200 on their debut.
Jonathan Bushnell failed to kick on from his overnight score of 61, adding only five further runs before Dillon Pennington prised him out.
Ben Gibbon was given a ough ride by Ravindra after being dispatched for back-to-back boundaries down the ground, but he earned a semblance of revenge by removing the New Zealander, who was out in a tame manner caught behind from a leg glance for 217.
The Worcestershire left-armer. completed a double-wicket maiden by sending Liam Trevaskis on his way before Ned Eckersley was out as Durham lost three wickets for just four runs.
However, Raine and Coughlin allowed the hosts to regain their stranglehold of the contest with a record-breaking stand for the eighth wicket.
Raine was first to pass 50 from 72 balls before Coughlin soon caught up with a flurry of boundaries, including two maximums over cow corner, for his first half-century of the campaign.
The milestones kept coming for the hosts as Coughlin and Raine surpassed the 200-run mark for the eighth wicket.
Coughlin had a straightforward path to three figures, nurdling a single into the leg-side to reach his ton from 117 balls.
Raine followed in the same over, although his heart would have been in his mouth as his sweep off Libby just had enough elevation to beat mid-on.
The pressure was on the visitors from the off as they batted as Chris Rushworth removed debutant Taylor Cornall from his second delivery with one which kept low.
Libby worked with Ali to see off the new ball with a partnership of 58.
However, Raine continued his impressive day to break the stand as Libby edged to Scott Borthwick at second slip.
Ali and Jack Haynes settled in on a flat wicket with another solid partnership worth 69 to edge the visitors towards the close but Raine again was the man for the hosts as he returned after a stoppage for bad light and dismissed Ali for 45, inside-edging on to his own stumps, to leave Durham in command.
Raine said afterwards: “A century in first-class cricket has been long overdue but I am over the moon.
“To be out there with my mate Paul Coughlin and to get over the line together was amazing.
“We have been playing cricket together since we were 11 so it was nice to be out there in the middle with him.
“We wanted to be thorough to score quickly but not recklessly.
“It was a nice correction for us from the past. Rachin Ravindra gave us a platform with phenomenal batting, some of his shots were remarkable.”