LIVE BLOG: Lancashire v Northamptonshire, Day One
6.05pm, CLOSE Day 1
Northamptonshire 1st inns 302-5 (96 overs) Zaib 17 Leech 2
Emilio Gay will remember a fine day after making an excellent 144 but it was a tough day for the Red Rose bowlers on a pretty flat track, George Balderson taking 3 for 29.
5.40pm
Northamptonshire 1st inns 296-5 (91 overs) Zaib 13 Leech 0
Agony for Emilio Gay who departs one run short of his career-best.
Gay edged a drive off George Balderson to Phil Salt after making a fine 144. Balderson now has figures of 3-24.
Dom Leech has come in as nightwatchman.
5.15pm
Northamptonshire 1st inns 266-4 (85.2 overs) Gay 123 Zaib 0
Lancashire can finally celebrate a wicket as Will Williams traps Luke Procter lbw for an excellent 75.
4.50pm
Northamptonshire 1st inns 247-3 (80 overs) Gay 123 Procter 69
Lancashire take the new ball immediately with Tom Bailey returning for a new spell.
4.20pm
Northamptonshire 1st inns 221-3 (73 overs) Gay 114 Procter 60
Emilio Gay drives his 10th four to go to his fourth first-class century, and first since last September. It came off 191 balls.
Luke Procter has also reached his half-century from 139 balls including 5 fours.
They have now added 162 runs to set a new Northamptonshire fourth wicket record partnership against Lancashire, surpassing Mushtaq Mohammad and Jim Watts at Liverpool in 1972.
3.40pm, TEA Day 1
Northamptonshire 1st inns 191-3 (65 overs) Gay 96 Procter 49
That has been an outstanding session by this Northamptonshire pair who have batted through since lunch adding 132 runs for the fourth wicket.
Even Tom Bailey has turned to spin, bowling it in the last over before tea.
3.30pm
Northamptonshire 1st inns 178-3 (62 overs) Gay 89 Procter 45
Luke Wells has come into the Red Rose attack as we head towards tea. but Lancs are struggling for a breakthrough this afternoon on a good batting strip.
Emilio Gay has equalled his best score of the season.
3.00pm
Northamptonshire 1st inns 160-3 (55 overs) Gay 82 Procter 35
Emilio Gay and Luke Procter have posted Northamptonshire's third century partnership of the season, and this represents an excellent recovery from a poor start.
2.35pm
Northamptonshire 1st inns 134-3 (48 overs) Gay 67 Procter 29
Emilio Gay and Luke Procter are building a good partnership, now worth 75 runs. Both batters working the ball into the gaps and punishing anything wide or over pitched.
2.10pm
Northamptonshire 1st inns 101-3 (40 overs) Gay 56 Procter 7
Spin at both ends now with Tom Hartley into the attack for the first time today, operating from the James Anderson end.
2.00pm
Northamptonshire 1st inns 95-3 (36 overs) Gay 50 Procter 7
Emilion Gay, who has played quite positively since lunch, reaches a 107-ball half century with a driven three to the long-off boundary.
1.45pm
Northamptonshire 1st inns 81-3 (32 overs) Gay 37 Procter 6
Luke Procter glances a four down to fine leg off Tom Bailey as we get under way after lunch.
Jack Morley continues after the break from the Brian Statham end.
1.00pm, LUNCH Day 1
Northamptonshire 1st inns 74-3 (31 overs) Gay 35 Procter 1
Three wickets represents a fairly good morning for Lancashire after Northants won the toss.
George Balderson 2-11 and Jack Morley 1-19 were the wicket takers while Emilio Gay has batted nicely for his 35.
12.30pm
Northamptonshire 1st inns 59-3 (22 overs) Gay 20 Procter 0
Got him!
Phil Salt completes an excellent stumping after Sam Whiteman advances down the pitch to Jack Morley.
Morley sees Whiteman coming and flights the ball wider outside off stump to strand the batsman, out for 20. Nice work.
12.20pm
Northamptonshire 1st inns 54-2 (20 overs) Gay 20 Whiteman 16
After 80 minutes we have spin for the first time, with Jack Morley coming into the attack.
Sam Whiteman, Northamptonshire's overseas left-hand bat from Western Australia, takes advantage of a couple of looseners but then misses a leg side pull that goes through to wicketkeeper Phil Salt.
12.10pm
Northamptonshire 1st inns 43-2 (17 overs) Gay 19 Whiteman 6Will Williams returns to the attack replacing Tom Bailey at the Brian Statham end.
11.47am
Northamptonshire 1st inns 29-2 (11.1 overs) Gay 13 Whiteman 0
George Balderson strikes again!
Justin Broad had made 3 but clips the first ball of Balderson's second over straight to Jack Morley who pulls off a good catch, low down, at midwicket.
11.35am
Northamptonshire 1st inns 23-1 (9.1 overs) Gay 2 Broad 0
What a bowling change!
Keaton Jennings turns to George Balderson who has Ricardo Vasconcelos caught driving for 9 by Steven Croft at backward point off his first ball!
11.15am
Northamptonshire 1st inns 12-0 (5 overs) Vasconcelos 8 Gay 2
it's been a fairly quiet start to the opening day so far, although as I write Ricardo Vasconcelos has a big leg side heave at a short Tom Bailey delivery but fails to connect.
Bailey and Williams, Lancashire's leading wicket-takers by a distance this season, continue to probe for an early breakthrough.
10.30am
TOSS
Northamptonshire have won the toss and bat.
TEAMS
Lancashire: Keaton Jennings (capt), Luke Wells, Josh Bohannon, Phil Salt (wkt), George Bell, Steven Croft, George Balderson, Tom Hartley, Tom Bailey, Will Williams, Jack Morley.
Northamptonshire: Ricardo Vasconcelos, Emilio Gay, Justin Broad, Sam Whiteman, Luke Procter (capt), Saif Zaib, Lewis McManus (wkt), Jack White, Alex Russell, James Sales, Dominic Leech.
9.30am
Good morning from Emirates Old Trafford ahead of the first day of our LV= Insurance County Championship match against Northamptonshire.
We have bright sunny conditions at the ground this morning and the pitch has recovered well following the rain over recent days, meaning play will start on time at 11am.
TEAM NEWS
Lancashire will be without Daryl Mitchell who misses the final match of his scheduled overseas spell following his unforeseen late selection in The Hundred.
Daryl is required to leave the UK in order to apply for a new visa therefore it was decided between the player, the Club and New Zealand Cricket that he would use this week as a rest period.
Jack Blatherwick (hamstring) and Luke Wood (toe) have both recovered from minor injuries sustained in the build up to last week's draw against Warwickshire at Edgbaston.
Northamptonshire have added Dominic Leech to their squad with the Yorkshire seamer joining on a short-term loan while Rob Keogh, Ben Sanderson and Tom Taylor miss out from last week’s line-up to manage injuries and workloads.
Lancashire squad: Keaton Jennings (capt), Luke Wells, Josh Bohannon, Phil Salt (wkt), George Bell, Steven Croft, George Balderson, Tom Hartley, Tom Bailey, Will Williams, Luke Wood, Jack Blatherwick, Jack Morley.
Northamptonshire squad: Ricardo Vasconcelos, Emilio Gay, Justin Broad, Sam Whiteman, Luke Procter (capt), Saif Zaib, Lewis McManus (wkt), Jack White, Alex Russell, James Sales, Dominic Leech, Gus Miller, George Weldon.