ANDREW GALE’S superb century and more wickets for Rich Pyrah and Ryan Sidebottom left Yorkshire on course for an emphatic win over Nottinghamshire in their LV= County Championship clash at Headingley.
Having bowled the reigning champions out for just 143 on Wednesday, the Tykes resumed on 234 for five with captain Gale unbeaten on 47. He quickly lost Adil Rashid and Pyrah but David Wainwright made 19 and, when last man Oliver Hannon-Dalby emerged, Gale stepped on the accelerator, powering to 145 not out as a last wicket stand of 82 – to which Hannon-Dalby contributed two in almost an hour – took Yorkshire to 336.
Nottinghamshire’s unconventional opening pair of Mark Wagh and Paul Franks failed again and it was once more left to Alex Hales to carry the innings with 83.
Adam Voges added 42 in a partnership of 105 but Notts old boy Sidebottom took three for 44 and Pyrah a stunning three for 19 in 15 overs to reduce the visitors to 175 for six, still 18 behind.
Durham dismissed Sussex for 194 to claim a first-innings lead of 98 at Chester-le-Street, before moving to 166 for five in their second innings.
Chris Nash (65) and Andrew Hodd (67) were the only Sussex batsmen to offer serious resistance in the face of three for 52 for Callum Thorp and Ian Blackwell’s impressive figures of 10.3-4-8-2.
Blackwell’s batting, by contrast, produced fireworks as he smashed 51 from 46 balls, while Dale Benkenstein will resume on 38.
Warwickshire recovered well after conceding a 174-run first-innings deficit to Worcestershire at New Road.
Moeen Ali (92) and Matthew Pardoe’s maiden first-class half-century, 54, guided the Pears to 375 as Boyd Rankin took five for 57, but the Bears reached 76 without loss second time around with Varun Chopra unbeaten on 57.
In Division Two, Glamorgan face a battle to stave off defeat after falling to 95 for four in response to Surrey’s mammoth 575 for five.
Surrey’s Zander de Bruyn reached 172 and Tom Maynard added 123, the pair putting on 216.
LV County Championship - Division One Emirates Durham ICG Durham 292 (G J Muchall 74, W R Smith 59, M S Panesar 4-88) & 166-5 (I D Blackwell 51) v Sussex 194 (A J Hodd 67, C D Nash 65) New Road Warwickshire 201 (D G Wright 5-62) & 76-0 (V Chopra 57 no) v Worcestershire 375 (M M Ali 92, J G Cameron 56, M G Pardoe 54, W B Rankin 5-57) Headingley Carnegie Nottinghamshire 143 (A D Hales 85, R M Pyrah 5-58, R J Sidebottom 4-30) & 175-6 (A D Hales 83) v Yorkshire 336 (A W Gale 145 no, A Lyth 64, L J Fletcher 4-97) LV County Championship - Division Two Derby Derbyshire 154 (G K Berg 4-18) & 193-3 (W J Durston 96) v Middlesex 230 (C J L Rogers 70, A P Palladino 5-39) The SWALEC Stadium Surrey 575-7 dec (Z de Bruyn 172, T L Maynard 123, C P Schofield 99, G J Batty 52 no) v Glamorgan 95-4 Northampton Essex 433 (A N Cook 155, J C Mickleburgh 112, J S Foster 64, W P U J C Vaas 5-76) v Northamptonshire 256-4 (S D Peters 105, A G Wakely 54 no)
