We have reached the penultimate edition of this long-running series. All the county cricket has been played out and I have only just wiped away the tears from my eyes to write about it. Yes, as predicted a few weeks ago, Somerset somehow contrived to finish as runners-up in all three competitions this season. That is not to take anything away from the boys - they have played brilliant cricket all year but just couldn't push over the finish line. They were defied by team brilliance in the Championship and the individual brilliance of Imran Tahir and Ian Bell in the CB40 final at Lord's on Saturday. I'm pretty sure that these guys are going to features heavily in my team of the season next week, but it'll be scant consolation!The Championship was particularly painful but you cannot fault the excellence of the Nottinghamshire effort to net them another title. Having had three days pretty much wiped out away to Lancashire, and with Somerset having secured maximum batting points and a draw at Durham, Nottinghamshire needed to get from 89-2 overnight up to 400 and then take three Lancashire wickets to win the title by virtue of games won (both sides finished level on points - even more choking!). They were indebted to two things - some pretty generous bowling and the swift batting of Samit Patel and Aussie Adam Voges, making 96 and 126 respectively. They got over the line with one wicket to spare, the much maligned Darren Pattinson and departing Ryan Sidebottom the heroes. With about 40 minutes to go to get the three wickets, Sidebottom and Andre Adams got the ball in the right areas and the slip fielders made no mistake. Well done Notts. Bastards.
The CB40 final was another disappointment. On a decent Lord's track, Somerset could only muster 199, after a rapid start from Marcus Trescothick and a good middle-order partnership between youngsters Compton and Hildreth. Keith Barker put the ball in the right areas and Imran Tahir overcame a tricky start to get his variations going on a dusty pitch - the batsmen had no answer. The bowling response was great, Mark Turner aside, but they came up against a skipper back on his game at the right time before the Ashes. Ian Bell's 107 off 95 singlehandedly finished the Sabres off. Well done Warwickshire. Bastards.
Right now to the internationals very briefly:
3rd ODI (The Oval) - Pakistan 241 (49.4 overs) (Fawad Alam 64 off 86) beat England 218 (45.4 overs) (Morgan 61 off 74, Strauss 57 off 54, Umar Gul 10-0-42-6) by 23 runs. A quite wonderful display of bowling from Umar Gul wins the game for Pakistan to keep the series alive. The Oval track was flat and good for batting as usual but also had an abrasive quality to it that allowed the bowlers to find some reverse swing under the lights, leaving Luke Wright stranded on 48* having shown technique to go with his usual lusty striking to deny the bowlers. The game was lost in truth after Morgan aka "The Finisher" departed, having failed for once to see things through. Strauss again showed flair in his strokeplay as Pakistan fed his strength, but once the ball started reversing, England displayed palpable weakness to the moving ball, as they have all summer in truth. Their bowling was pretty good, led by another economical spell from Jimmy Anderson (10-2-26-3). After his opening burst had restricted their start, Pakistan played studiously to recover, led by the technical excellence of Fawad Alam, who is more suited to test matches but never gets selected! A defendable score was achieved through some free swinging from Abdul Razzaq. I don't believe he is a threatening bowling option any longer, but his striking is superb at the death and wins games on his own.
The game was undermined by further allegations of spot-fixing in this match - how stupid would you have to be in the current light to continue with this practise when everything is being scrutinised so closely? I can see no logical truth to these new allegations. Least of all the bitter swipe taken by PCB chairman Ijaz Butt at the England players, accusing them of being involved in throwing games. Not only does is this a false accusation which should lead to Butt's removal from his post and a libel case, but it also belittles the achievement of his bowlers in dismissing England for the victory.
Bastard
RM
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