MATCH REPORT: Hurst makes half century on debut as Notts match is drawn
Matty Hurst made a fine unbeaten fifty on his first-class debut as Lancashire’s LV= Insurance County Championship game against Nottinghamshire was abandoned as a draw.
Only 15 overs and one ball were possible on the final day in which time Lancashire advanced their first innings to 272 for seven from the 84.1 overs bowled over four days.
The result means Lancashire take six points while Nottinghamshire’s seven points look to have sealed their top-flight status with one round of games left.
When play did get under way – following a thirty-minute delay for rain – with Lancashire resuming their first innings on 225 for six, Tom Bailey was quickly into his stride steering Calvin Harrison to third man for four to bring up the fifty partnership with Hurst from 99 balls.
Paterson hit back by having Bailey taken at first slip for 27 but Hurst, 35 not out overnight, moved on steadily to reach a 112-ball half century with a sumptuous cover drive for four off Hutton.
Jack Blatherwick helped steer Lancashire to a batting point with two fours in his unbeaten 18 and that that proved to be the last of the action as rain took the players from the field just before noon.
Further bursts of heavy rain followed to finally curtail proceedings at 2.15pm.
“It’s frustrating, but we’ve had a few positives from the week,” said Red Rose captain Keaton Jennings.
“Matty made his debut and stood up and played beautifully. Today he looked like he had been here for many years rather than making his debut.
“It takes you back to the first time you went out to bat in a first-class game. It’s a big event in your life.
“It’s huge for him to come out on top and get a fifty not out. He’ll take a huge amount of confidence from that, as he should.
“I’m over the moon for him, and hopefully he can continue to kick on and make good choices with the bat.
“The chat yesterday was how can we win the game from here, hence Wellsy and myself tried to push the process forward.
“Next week there’s another opportunity to try and win a fixture, and it will be fantastic if we can push ourselves up the table and see where we can get to at the end of the year.
“Every time you pull on a Red Rose shirt you want to make sure you perform to the best of your ability.
“As a player you don’t want to lose games. It niggles at you. It hurts whether you can win the championship or get relegated. You want to win and compete.
“Next week is an opportunity to do that and you want to leave the season having known you’ve played some really good cricket.
“I think we’ve played some really good cricket in patches. There’s been a couple of missed opportunities that can we look back at in hindsight, but at the same time we can look back on some memorable moments where we’ve got through some tough times.
“Hopefully next year we can go on and win something.”
Ken Grime
Photos: Barry Mitchell & Luke Adams
