Mickleburgh and Napier take control

Essex 216 for 4 (Mickleburgh 121*) trail Leicestershire 365 (Eckersley 147, Napier 5-77) by 149 runs
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Graham Napier's superb bowling and Jaik Mickleburgh's unbeaten century enabled Essex to enjoy the better of their second day against Leicestershire.

The hosts finished on 216 for 4 at Chelmsford, in reply to an all out total of 365 by Division Two's bottom side. The morning session saw Napier, with his brisk pace, produce a sensational spell after the visitors had moved beyond 350 with only four wickets down.

Napier got rid of the overnight pair of Ned Eckersley and Matt Boyce after they had put together a century partnership, and he went on to rip through the tail, claiming five wickets in the space of 15 deliveries at a personal cost of just three runs.

With offspinner Greg Smith chipping in with the wicket of Ollie Freckingham, the visitors lost their last six wickets for as many runs after they had resumed on 328 for 4 and moved to 359 before they were blown apart.

Napier embarked upon his destructive trail by having Boyce caught behind for 54 to end a stand of 147. He then ended the fine innings of Eckersley by deceiving him with a slower delivery - but not before the right-hander had moved to a career-best 147.

That effort contained 17 fours and two sixes and embraced 277 deliveries, and Napier followed-up those successes by having Josh Cobb caught, and bowling both Anthony Ireland and Alex Wyatt.

It gave him figures of 5 for 77 from 20.3 overs and followed his 7 for 90 when the counties met at Grace Road in their previous Championship match.

Napier's performance came on a day when fellow paceman David Masters missed the action after being caught up in a traffic jam following a pile-up on the M25. The former Leicestershire bowler did not arrive until after lunch - by which time the Essex reply was well under way.

Mickleburgh and Hamish Rutherford put the Essex innings on a firm foundation with a stand of 61, before the New Zealander was guilty of a careless stroke against Ireland to be caught by Wyatt at deep backward square leg.

Smith quickly followed when he edged to Joe Burns in the slips to provide offspinner Sykes, who was making his debut, with the first Championship wicket of his career.

Owais Shah perished when he pushed forward against Wyatt to be caught behind just before the 100 was raised and Ryan ten Doeschate lazily drove Freckingham to mid-off.

Amid the setbacks, Mickleburgh grew in confidence and punctuated the field with several well-timed strokes as he set sail for his first century of the summer.

He eventually got there by cover driving Shiv Thakor to the boundary, his 13th, and by the close he had added another three boundaries to move to 121.

Keeping him company was Ben Foakes, who will resume tomorrow on 25 and has so far helped the opener add 65 for the fifth wicket.

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Roderick shines in familiar surrounds

Worcestershire 182 and 31 for 0 trail Gloucestershire 326 (Dent 79, Roderick 71, Gidman 62) by 113 runs
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Gareth Roderick justified his promotion in Gloucestershire's batting order by scoring 71 as the hosts gained a first innings lead of 144 over Worcestershire at Cheltenham.

Starting the second day on 83 without loss in reply to 182, Gloucestershire were bowled out for 326, Chris Dent making 79 and Alex Gidman 62. Gareth Andrew was the most successful bowler with 3 for 56. By the close Worcestershire had progressed to 31 without loss in their second innings and trailed by 113.

Roderick, who earned a Gloucestershire contract by scoring more than 1,000 runs in a season for Cheltenham Cricket Club in the West of England Premier League, relished being back in the town.

The 21-year-old South African wicketkeeper-batsman was given a chance at No. 3, rather than his customary middle-order position, when skipper Michael Klinger fell for 36, caught at point off a delivery that seemed to stop on him, with the total on 101.

Dent, unbeaten on 56 overnight, looked aggrieved to be judged stumped trying to sweep Moeen Ali, having hit 13 fours in his 114-ball innings. At 129 for 2, Gloucestershire were still 53 runs adrift.

But Roderick was set by then and found a reliable partner in Gidman as the home side moved into the lead before lunch, which was taken on 193 for 2. Gidman was first to his half-century in the afternoon session, off 76 balls, with seven fours, but his young partner lost nothing by comparison.

Roderick hit seven boundaries of his own in progressing to fifty off 107 deliveries and it was Gidman who went after a stand of 105, caught behind by Ben Cox, diving to his right, off Alan Richardson.

That was 234 for 3 and 28 more runs were added before Roderick was taken at slip by Daryl Mitchell, edging a ball from off-spinner Ali. The crestfallen batsman had to drag himself off, having set his sights on a Cheltenham century.

Before a run was added Benny Howell was run out by Alexei Kervezee's throw, attempting a single as Hamish Marshall played a delivery to backward point. Marshall contributed 20, but when he was bowled to give seamer Graeme Cessford his first Championship wicket Gloucestershire went on to lose their last four wickets for 25, Andrew claiming all but one of them in a spell of 3 for 15 from College Lawn End. Gidman was left unbeaten on 37.

Worcestershire openers Mitchell and Matthew Pardoe survived 18 overs to the close with few alarms.

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Tredwell's belated success, but pitch wins

Hampshire 405 for 9 dec (Carberry 154) and 200 for 4 dec (Dawson 78*, Carberry 66) drew with Kent 513 (Key 180, Nash 126)
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A placid St Lawrence pitch dictated that Kent's County Championship clash with second division rivals Hampshire ended in a dull draw in Canterbury.

After four days of slow scoring on a docile wicket that led to the loss of only 23 wickets and three centuries, the sides shook hands on a draw at 4.50pm with Hampshire on 200 for 4 in their second innings - an overall advantage in the match of 92 runs.

Hampshire, trailing by 108 on first innings and resuming on their overnight total of 15 without loss, had little or no trouble in batting out the final day to secure their sixth draw of the campaign for a seven point return. As for Kent, who have yet to win on home soil, they banked eight points for their seventh draw in 11 starts.

The hosts knew they would need quick wickets at the start of the final day if they were to push for their second successive Championship win, but they needed 14 overs before celebrating their first breakthrough.

With the total on 45 Jimmy Adams made a late decision to shoulder arms to England off-spinner James Tredwell and departed leg before. Former Kent opener Michael Carberry moved to his second half-century of the game by pulling a Sam Northeast long-hop for four to reach the landmark from 133 balls and with eight fours.

The left-hander perished 16 runs on however, when he edged behind to give Tredwell the second of his return of 3 for 87. Liam Dawson, who also scored a first innings 50, proved rock solid second time around in scoring an unbeaten 78 off 166 balls.

He lost third wicket partner James Vince to a top-edged sweep that ballooned to Rob Key at leg slip then Sean Ervine who, in attempting a back-foot force against Charlie Shreck, only picked out Darren Stevens close in at gully.

Dawson and Adam Wheater batted through the 50 minutes after tea without further alarm allowing the teams to shake hands on the stalemate.

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John Buchanan to leave New Zealand cricket

John Buchanan will leave his job as New Zealand's director of cricket more than two years after taking the influential post. A NZC press release said Buchanan has moved out of the role due to family circumstances, and that he would be moving back to Australia.

More to follow

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Fuller joins Cheltenham hat-trick club

Gloucestershire 83 for 0 (Dent 56*) trail Worcestershire 182 (Leach 82*, Fuller 5-43) by 99 runs
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James Fuller became only the fourth Gloucestershire player to take a hat-trick at Cheltenham as Worcestershire were bowled out for 182 on the opening day.

Having won the toss, the visitors crashed to 22 for 6, Fuller removing Matthew Pardoe with the final ball of the eighth over and then striking with the first and second deliveries of the 10th, sending back Moeen Ali and Alexei Kervezee.

Joe Leach came to Worcestershire's rescue with a career-best 82 not out, sharing a seventh-wicket stand of 120 with Gareth Andrew, who made 54. Fuller finished with 5 for 43 from 19 overs.

By the close, the home side had made a confident start to their reply and were 83 without loss, Chris Dent unbeaten on 56 and Michael Klinger 27 not out.

The first Gloucestershire player to take a hat-trick at the College Ground, where the club have been playing fixtures since 1872, was Charles Townsend back in 1893. The feat was repeated by Mike Procter in 1979 and James Franklin in 2009. Fuller joined the group after having Pardoe and Kervezee caught behind, with the wicket of Moeen, who played on trying to withdraw the bat, sandwiched in between.

In the over that divided Fuller's three wickets, Will Gidman had Daryl Mitchell taken by wicketkeeper Gareth Roderick and from 18 without loss Worcestershire nosedived to 18 for 4. Worse was to follow in Craig Miles' first over as he had both Thilan Sameraweera and Ben Cox caught at second slip by Dent off successive balls.

It was left to Andrew and Leach to steady a sinking ship with determination and application, but both needed lives early on.

They took the total to 63 for 6 at lunch. In the afternoon session Andrew was first to his half-century off 91 balls, with 10 fours. Leach soon followed, his fifty occupying 109 deliveries and also featuring 10 boundaries.

For a while Gloucestershire bowled without much luck. Then skipper Klinger pulled off a stunning catch above his head at short cover off Benny Howell to dismiss Andrew. Shaaiq Choudhry soon followed, caught behind to give Fuller his fourth wicket, and at tea Worcestershire were 154 for 8.

The final session saw Graeme Cessford dismissed for a duck on his Championship debut by Tom Smith before Fuller wrapped up the innings, having Alan Richardson caught in the slips.

The pitch has seamed around early in the day and the ball also swung, but conditions looked very different when the hosts replied. Klinger and Dent, who reached fifty off 50 balls, with nine fours and a six, produced positive shots from the outset and looked in little trouble.

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Eckersley hundred cheers Leicestershire

Leicestershire 328 for 4 (Eckersley 133* v Essex

Ned Eckersley took full advantage of a friendly pitch to collect his second century of the season on the opening day of their LV= County Championship Division Two match against Essex at Chelmsford.

The right-hander combined disciplined defence with controlled aggression as he reached the close on 133 not out, including 15 fours and two sixes off 236 deliveries, as he resisted the attempts of six bowlers to remove him.

Essex must have feared the worst when the visitors chose to bat upon winning the toss and it soon became apparent they were destined for a hard day's labour.

Openers Greg Smith and Niall O'Brien scored so freely they had 91 on the board before Tymal Mills made the breakthrough by forcing O'Brien to play on for 54. Smith followed soon afterwards for 46 when he dispatched a long hop from leg spinner Tom Craddock into the hands of David Masters at deep mid-on.

Mills the breached the defences of Joe Burns, but Eckersley and Shiv Thakor put Leicestershire back in the ascendancy with a partnership of 97 in 28 overs.

Although Craddock was twice pulled for six by Eckersley, the legspinner always looked more likely to end the stand. He beat both batsmen with deliveries that lifted and turned and claimed deserved reward with a similar ball that Thakor could only glide into the waiting hands of Owais Shah at slip after he had made 36.

But his dismissal only paved the way for skipper Matt Boyce to join forces with Eckersley as they stayed together throughout the final session. They added 116 by the close of the first day and the docile nature of the pitch suggests the Essex bowlers face quite a bit more work.

Eckersley underlined why he has proved the mainstay of the Leicestershire batting this season. He went into the game with 623 runs for an average of just over 51 and showed he has the temperament and determination to make progress in stamina-sapping conditions.

It added up to a successful day for a Leicestershire side stranded at the foot of the table and still searching for their first Championship success of the campaign.

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Warne relaxed over Clarke-Watson rift

Shane Warne believes fierce arguments between Michael Clarke and Shane Watson over the latter's place in Australia's Test match batting order have been at the root of a rift that is nowhere near as dramatic as the former coach Mickey Arthur has alleged. A close friend and mentor to both Clarke and Watson, Warne paralleled his relationship with Steve Waugh, another pair who disagreed fundamentally on many cricket issues but found a way to work together.

Arthur's alleged claim in leaked legal documents that Clarke had described Watson as a "cancer" on the Australian team has heightened scrutiny of a partnership that has often been strained. But Warne told ESPNcricinfo that while the views of Clarke and Watson had often diverged, the perception of the two senior players warring with each other had been enhanced by the national team's indifferent recent results and the allrounder's shuffling around the batting order by Clarke.

"I found when I was captain of Watto in the IPL. I just backed him 100% and he'd end up being player of the tournament," Warne said. "Pup's been doing that but I think what people have missed is they've debated over where Shane Watson should bat. Watto wants to open, Michael Clarke's thinking strong middle order, so I'm sure they've had a few heated debates about where he should bat.

"How that translates into they hate each other, they don't get along, blah blah blah, it's just been blown out of proportion I believe. And I know both the guys really well and I speak to both all the time. So I think it's not a factual statement. But because of the batting situation and the way the team's going, sometimes people can read too much into that. They might have disagreements of opinions over things, but that's okay. You don't need to always agree and it doesn't equal hating each other either."

Watson's relationship with Clarke reached a low point during the tour of India earlier this year when he was suspended from the Mohali Test match by a leadership group comprised of Clarke, Arthur and the team manager Gavin Dovey. Warne said his working axis with Waugh had been similarly tested by the decision to drop him from the Test team in the West Indies early in 1999. A few months later they found themselves celebrating on the Lord's balcony, having played equally vital roles in winning the World Cup.

"Coach Geoff Marsh still wanted to go with me, so it all got a bit ugly, and that was not great to be honest, it wasn't very easy," Warne said of the selection meeting in Antigua, 14 years ago. "But we always had respect for each other. We always had different views - Steve was a very defensive, negative type of person, he was always a match saver. He wouldn't go out there and tear an attack apart, he would just slowly go about it and grind them down. I was a bit more aggressive, had a bit more flair about my game and was more of a risk-taker. Sometimes that works, and that's why we had quite a successful period as captain and vice-captain because we contrasted."

Warne suggested that kind of contrast should be regarded as a strength rather than a weakness by Clarke and Watson, and encouraged the captain's authority to be challenged respectfully by others as the best way for the team to function. The new coach Darren Lehmann appears already to have helped in this way.

"They have disagreements in the change room on certain things and batting orders and that sort of stuff," Warne said. "But that's healthy, you don't want ten robots in there just going 'yes Michael, whatever you want Michael'. You want someone to say 'I disagree with that Pup, let's declare at 320'. In the end he's accountable because the wins and losses go against his name. I think he's pretty good at collecting all the information in the dressing room and then making his own decision.

"The big question is about respect versus being liked. We all like to be liked but it's more important to have respect. If you respect each other, no matter whether you have differences of opinions or you don't quite see eye to eye. You might not go out and socialise once you walk off the ground, but on that field you'd do anything for each other, and that's what we had for a long period. The only way to get that respect is to earn it, how people conduct themselves around the group, how they put themselves out for you, are they thoughtful towards you as well. It can't be one way traffic all the time."

You can follow Warne's views this summer on the Shane Warne Cricket app.

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Crook aids impressive narrow win

Northamptonshire 150 for 8 (Crook 63, Arafat 3-21) beat Somerset 140 for 8 (Kieswetter 38, Azharullah 3-16) by 10 runs
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Northamptonshire moved top of the group in the Friends Life t20 after clinching a narrow 10-run victory over Somerset at Wantage Road.

Rejuvenated Northamptonshire continued their impressive season with a fifth win in six matches and heaped more pressure on struggling Somerset after defending just 150 for 8 in front of their home fans. Somerset, who have reached Finals Day in each of the last four years, have work to do if they are to maintain their fine record in the competition and have now lost three of their opening five group fixtures.

They made a dream start to the match when, after losing the toss, Pakistani pace bowler Yasir Arafat removed dangerous Northants duo Richard Levi and Cameron White in the first over of the match. Arafat became the leading wicket-taker in the domestic T20 competition when he pinned Levi lbw and then had White caught in the deep.

Somerset remained on top and it wasn't until all-rounder Steven Crook came out to bat that Northants gave themselves hope. Crook, in excellent form, cleared the boundary four times during his entertaining innings of 63 from just 36 balls and ensured Northants reached a competitive total.

In reply, Somerset openers Marcus Trescothick and Craig Kieswetter put the visitors ahead of the rate with a breezy 38-run partnership inside five overs before Crook continued his inspirational evening with the breakthrough wicket of Trescothick. The Northamptonshire fightback continued the following over when pace bowler Muhammad Azharullah removed Peter Trego and Nick Compton without scoring.

Kieswetter and Jos Buttler kept Somerset in contention and the latter appeared to be taking Somerset over the line before he was run out in the penultimate over following a mix-up with Arafat. That wicket signalled the end of Somerset's hopes and Azharullah made Alfonso Thomas his third wicket at the death to end with 3 for 16 from his four overs.

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Evans binds brittle Warwickshire

Warwickshire 254 for 6 (Evans 85*, Westwood 68) v Nottinghamshire
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A first Championship win since April and a couple of Friends Life t20 successes and Warwickshire's dismal season suddenly appeared to be looking up. Then came another in a succession of injuries that have blighted their defence of the title they claimed so emphatically in 2012. Chris Wright is the latest victim in this run of poor luck after a scan revealed that a stress fracture lay behind the back troubled that flared up at Uxbridge last week.

Conditioned in the modern way to accentuate the positives, Warwickshire are not inclined to make injuries an excuse. It was the Ashley Giles way and his successor, Dougie Brown, is of a similar mind. Yet there has not been a match, it seems, without two or three of last year's side missing, sometimes more. Inevitably, there are consequences in faltering form.

Only two of the team selected for this match have played in every Championship round; some, such as Keith Barker and Ian Westwood, have missed half or near enough. In addition to Wright, captain Jim Troughton is also absent with back trouble. Oliver Hannon-Dalby, signed in part as cover for injuries, is himself sidelined, also with a stress fracture. At least Laurie Evans has recovered from the broken hand inflicted by a ball from England's Steven Finn in May.

As if to prove it, Evans, the 25-year-old former Surrey batsman, has set himself up to achieve the target he had set himself for when Finn interrupted his progress, namely to complete his first Championship century. He was 15 runs away at the close of the opening day.

It was hard work at times, the result of a sluggish pitch and an appetite for work among the Nottinghamshire bowlers in spite of the building heat. You would expect it of Harry Gurney and Ajmal Shahzad, lithe young men both; less so, perhaps, of the more heavily burdened Luke Fletcher and the creaky Andre Adams. Yet all of them bowled a testing line and length and, for the most part, kept it up.

But Evans maintained his concentration well and picked his moments for some nicely executed shots on both sides of the wicket, picking up a dozen boundaries. "It was attritional cricket and they bowled well and I played probably the worst I have played at the beginning of an innings all year but it was a matter of hanging tough and getting through it and I played a lot more fluently later," he said. "I like to be attacking and I've got out in the past by trying to dominate at the wrong times and going at balls I shouldn't be so I was pleased to come through the difficult periods."

Evans anchored at least a partial recovery by Warwickshire, who lost Varun Chopra to a gloved catch to second slip early and then saw William Porterfield leave a ball from Adams that clipped his off stump. Westwood rode his luck somewhat, surviving dropped catches on 32 and 50 before clipping a ball from Samit Patel straight to mid-on for 67.

Tim Ambrose, who took it upon himself to up the pace of scoring after lunch, raced to 39 off 43 balls before brushing a leg-side delivery from Adams to be caught behind, but when Patel's left-arm spin bowled Chris Woakes and Rikki Clarke fell to a stunning catch by James Taylor at midwicket Warwickshire felt danger welling up again at 213 for 6.

Adams, who is 38 on Wednesday, finished the day on 3 for 49 from 24 overs, again underlining his durability. Adams is a strong man yet fragile in the sense that he needs to care for himself assiduously lest something goes badly wrong and ends his career. His skills with the ball, though, seem never to diminish.

He willingly passes them on, too, frequently accompanying a younger bowling team-mate back to his mark, offering a word of encouragement or advice. He seems to have taken Shahzad under his wing in particular as Nottinghamshire try to mould the former Yorkshire quick into a bowler with more than simply pace and menace to his game.

The improvement is coming, too. Adams apart, no one troubled the batsmen more and it was he who was left fuming when Westwood had his moments of luck as Patel and then Alex Hales failed to do their duty in the slips. Nought for 49 did not do him justice.

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Warner admits guilt over Arthur sacking

David Warner's days as a Test opening batsman are done, and perhaps so too those as a serial source of trouble in Australian cricket. Speaking for the first time since the former national coach Mickey Arthur was replaced by Darren Lehmann, Warner admitted his repeated poor behaviour contributed directly to the sacking, and acknowledged that another misstep will mean he is "on the first plane home".

As it is, Warner will not be anywhere near Lord's at the time of the second Test. On Tuesday he will depart for Australia A duty in South Africa, where he will commence his re-education as a middle-order batsman and set his sights on emulating Michael Hussey's energy and adaptability in the position.

For Australia A, Warner will bat at No. 4, marking the first time he has slid down the order since his Test debut against New Zealand in 2011, and preparation for a potential return at No. 6 should he make the requisite number of runs to return later in the Ashes series.

"I've been spoken to about batting six and that's the role I'm looking forward to being part of this team," Warner said in London. "If I get into this team and I bat six, I'll be doing everything I can to fill that Mike Hussey role and come out and have that intent from ball one, because I see that as the acceleration number in the team. His intent that he had over the years he played was magnificent and I feel I can play that role as well.

"You have to sum up the game situation. You could be come in at four or five for nothing or you could be coming in at 400 and it's up to me to try to adapt to that situation, to try to come out and accelerate from there or to try to grind it out like the boys did the other night before stumps."

The frustration Warner felt at falling out of serious contention for the Trent Bridge match due to his suspension from the lead-up games was intense, to the point that he broke down in tears when informing his family he would not be playing in Nottingham.

"As a kid growing up you want to play in the Ashes and after that incident I went back to my room and I was pretty shattered for a week and a half, two weeks. I still feel the guilt of what happened. I feel myself it's led to me being in this situation at the moment. Things would have been different, I would have been able to play those warm-up games and I could have pressed my claims to play in this first Test but that's me. I put my hand up and accepted the consequences and now it's about me putting as many runs on the board these next two games and press forward.

"I rang my mum and dad and told them I wasn't playing. And I kind of broke down on the phone to mum and it's just one of those things you ask your mum and dad what could I have done better in those situations and you don't want to really go into it as much but I've matured a lot since that incident and now it's all about me trying to play cricket again."

Arthur's sacking, arriving so soon after Warner was suspended, provided a reminder of how much his behaviour had affected others. "It was probably another thing that was gutting, that I may have played a part in that," Warner said. "But that's the business we're in and James Sutherland explained the reasons why that happened and that's the thing that we have to do, we're professional athletes, we have to move on from that and now Darren is the coach and we respect him 100%.

"There's a lot of contributing factors to certain things that went on around the team. No-one likes a guy disturbing their preparation and that's what I felt I did, especially with the Champions Trophy. All that stuff came out before that game against New Zealand, I didn't play and then it was about me and not about the team's focus and that was the most disappointing thing I felt came out of that."

Lehmann has described Warner as having a "clean slate" under his leadership, and there are no longer any strict individual boundaries set out for him. Instead senior players, including the pivotal figure of the wicketkeeper and vice-captain Brad Haddin, are entrusted with the task of watching over Warner, by day and by night.

"Darren's just said to go out there and score runs and be myself," Warner said. "Just get that X-factor back that I can have for this team so hopefully I can score some runs. Definitely still enjoy myself off the field. There's no bans, there's no curfews, no nothing. The mistakes, I've learned, I've become more mature, off the field as well. I know if I stuff up again I'm on the first plane home. No-one needs to tell you that because you already know it."

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