Stokes is in the runs again as Glamorgan suffer late dismissals
BEN Stokes scored an impressive knock of 82 to continue his strong start to his LV= Insurance County Championship Division Two season as Durham were bowled out for 311 against Glamorgan at the Riverside.
Following his blistering innings of 161 against Worcestershire last week, Stokes fell 18 runs short of a second-straight century as he top scored for the hosts. Keegan Petersen was also in solid form with an innings of 78, although the home side will feel that they left runs on the field after being dismissed before the close.
Michael Hogan was on point with the ball for the Welsh outfit with figures of four for 67, including the key wicket of Stokes, that allowed the visitors to keep Durham in check. Two late strikes from Matthew Potts began a fightback, leaving Glamorgan with work ahead of them on day two, with Marnus Labuchagne unbeaten overnight on 16 as they finished 31 for two.
Glamorgan won the toss and elected to field, facing the leading run-scorer in the County Championship heading into the contest, Sean Dickson. However, the opener only added five runs to his total before Michael Neser found his outside edge and Sam Northeast clung on at second slip.
Alex Lees and Petersen responded against the new ball by building a solid foundation with a stand worth 62. Lees appeared on the brink of another score of fifty after driving David Lloyd to the fence, but then chopped on from the following delivery to fall for 44.
After lunch, Scott Borthwick (17) and David Bedingham (11) fell cheaply for the home side to Hogan and Andy Gorvin respectively, but Petersen worked his way past fifty for the second innings in a row.
The South African was fortunate on two occasions against Neser, edging a bouncer between Chris Cooke and Andrew Salter at first slip and seeing a top edge land safely. Petersen looked to have come through a tough period, but he then presented Lloyd with his second wicket as he played a loose drive that landed in the hands of Labuschagne.
Stokes made a measured start to his innings, but after the departure of Petersen he began to free his arms. His first signal of intent came with an element of fortune against his Ashes rival Labuschagne, edging his medium-pace over the slips. The left-hander then found his range with two crisp strikes to the fence against Lloyd, scattering the Glamorgan fields to the ropes.
The England captain brought up his half-century from a sedate 74 balls compared to his exploits against Worcestershire. However, he soon delighted the Riverside crowd by dispatching Labuschagne over the leg-side boundary with his first six of the innings, bringing up the Durham 250 in the process.
A promising partnership of 61 between Stokes and Ben Raine allowed the hosts to push towards 300 at speed. Raine (31) matched the intensity of his team-mate at the other end before Salter turned one through the gate, earning revenge after being struck 10 from the first five balls of the 79th over.
One wicket quickly brought a second as Hogan secured the vital scalp of the England captain with the new ball, with a rising delivery that he could only fend behind to Cooke for 82. Hogan then wrapped up the tail with two further strikes, but only after Durham scrambled past the 300-run mark to secure a third batting bonus point.
Potts responded for the hosts by taking two wickets to remove Salter (8) and Govrin (0) to swing momentum back into their favour before stumps.
■ FORMER Glamorgan player Brendon McCullum has been appointed as the new head coach of England’s Test side, with director of men’s cricket Rob Key telling fans to “buckle up and get ready for the ride”.
The former New Zealand captain will leave his job in charge of Indian Premier League Franchise Kolkata Knight Riders to take over a red-ball side that has fallen to bottom place in the World Test Championship after a dire run of one win in 17 matches.
Leading the revival is a sizeable task for the 40-year-old, who has never before coached at first-class or Test level, but he is renowned as one of the sport’s most progressive thinkers and dynamic leaders.