Monday 15 June 2015 19:32, UK
England Test batsman Ian Bell scored a welcome century as Warwickshire romped to a two-day victory over Worcestershire in their LV= County Championship Division One clash.
Bell has endured a low run of scores in Test cricket of late but is enjoying a brief pre-Ashes spell with his county and made 111 as they secured a first innings lead of 97 at New Road.
And Warwickshire’s seamers then ran riot as Worcestershire were bowled out for 80 in just 32.5 overs.
Replying to 230, Warwickshire resumed on 101-4, with Bell on 46 not out, and the classy right-hander went on to reach three figures off 181 balls.
Tim Ambrose departed early in the day without adding to his overnight 31 but Bell found a fine accomplice in the form of Rikki Clarke (67) who helped him to add 135 for the sixth wicket.
The duo then fell lbw in quick succession to Jack Shantry (5-92) and, at 246-7, it looked like Warwickshire’s lead might not be a significant one.
But Keith Barker had other ideas and he made 50 not out from 54 balls, receiving plenty of assistance from Jeetan Patel (17), Chris Wright (16) and Boyd Rankin (13).
Buoyed by their good work with the bat, the Warwickshire bowlers then scythed through the Worcestershire order.
Wright (2-14) kicked things off by removing openers Daryl Mitchell (0) and Richard Oliver (2), before Moeen Ali could not emulate the exploits of his England team mate Bell and was bowled by Barker (3- 26) for 7.
Rankin (3-23) joined the fun, clean bowling Tom Fell (23) and Alex Gidman (8), before Barker and Patel (2-6) took three quick wickets between them.
And it was all over with two whole days left to play when Charlie Morris (1) was caught by Barker off Patel to secure victory by an innings and 17 runs for Warwickshire.
Bell said afterwards: “I've been through highs and lows with England and I've had a few tricky Test matches.
“It's always nice sometimes to step away from that and go back to working hard in the nets and away from the limelight.
"Coming here to Warwickshire has been nice. Hopefully I'm getting a bit of form, and we can go to the Ashes and hit the ground running.
"Spending more time in the middle is always good. The team always comes first here and it's always easy to slot back in, that's something I've always found. Everyone makes you feel so welcome."
At Trent Bridge, 19-year-old off-spinner Matthew Carter is enjoying a debut to remember for Nottinghamshire after taking an amazing 7-56 to put the hosts well on top against Somerset.
Notts began the day at Taunton on 391-6 and were dismissed for 410, Rikki Wessels adding just four to his overnight 59 and Alfonso Thomas finishing with 5-73.
However, when Somerset replied, Luke Wood (2-44) removed Marcus Trescothick (16) and Johann Myburgh (0), setting the stage for Carter.
The youngster dismissed James Hildreth (41), Tom Cooper (8), Jim Allenby (0), Michael Bates (1), Alfonso Thomas (8), Abdur Rehman (25) and Tim Groenewald (14), with opener Tom Abell proving the only man able to thwart him as he carried his bat for a gutsy 76 not out.
Somerset were dismissed for 200 but their visitors decided not to enforce the follow on and closed on 89-4 to lead by 299.
First innings centurion Brendan Taylor fell lbw to Groenewald for 7, Allenby (2-13) chipped in with a pair of wickets and Rehman removed Steven Mullaney (34) just before the close.
Carter said: "My first ball was a nervous one but the lads were talking to me and, after my first over was finished, I felt a lot more confident.
"It's always nice to see a ball turn, especially on day two, and that is a bonus for me because my height allows me to get extra bounce. It's a day I will never forget."
At Arundel Castle, Tim Linley took 5-63 as Sussex bowled Durham out for 301 on day one of their match before closing on 44-2 in reply.
Linley, who had a season with Sussex in 2006 but did not make a championship appearance, has now joined for a month on loan from Surrey and the seamer bagged his first five-wicket haul since 2012.
Getting just enough movement from a good length, he took three wickets in 15 balls in his first spell before picking up two more in three deliveries during the afternoon.
His workload was heavier than expected because Ajmal Shahzad broke down just four overs into his comeback when he suffered a recurrence of the pectoral muscle injury that had sidelined him for five weeks.
Despite contributions of 51 from Mark Stoneman and 46 from Michael Richardson, Durham were struggling on 197-7, but Gordon Muchall saved the day with an expertly compiled 81 not out.
John Hastings (23) helped Muchall put on 36 for the eighth wicket and Chris Rushworth (39) gave him excellent support in a ninth-wicket stand of 63.
And Rushworth (2-27) continued to thrive when Sussex replied, bowling Michael Yardy (20) and Luke Wells (13) to leave the match nicely poised.
Reflecting on his performance, Linley said: “I had a knee operation in October, so I'm feeling my way back a bit, and the chance to come to a club I know was one I couldn't turn down. It's turned out to be a great day for me.
"It is a great opportunity for all parties, because there isn't really a spot in the Surrey first team at the moment and I need to be bowling a lot of overs again.”
