Durham go top after Paul Collingwood instigates Somerset’s demise

http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2015/apr/14/durham-somerset-county-championship-division-one

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Durham surged to the top of the table with this emphatic seven-wicket win over Somerset. They had to wait a little longer than anticipated since they finally encountered some resistance from the home side’s lower order, which meant that they were required to score 150 for victory. But on another sun-kissed afternoon that modest target was not a problem.

For most of the match the Durham captain, Paul Collingwood, was the puppeteer, pulling all the right strings at the right time as well as leaping to centre stage at crucial moments. When Somerset were strolling on the first day at 223 for two, it was his intervention with the ball that turned the game; on the second day when the Durham innings was wavering he was resolute and calm, thereby ensuring a significant first-innings lead. On the third he was only required to dismiss Somerset’s last batsman Jamie Overton with a bail-trimmer.

Durham, devoid of superstars, played the more disciplined cricket throughout. They were missing Mark Wood on drinks duty in the Caribbean and Ben Stokes, who is resuming as England’s all-rounder. The former may return, hungry for action, the latter may not be available for Durham for much of the season. No matter, Collingwood ensures that whichever players he has at his disposal they make the most of their talent. This is an attribute that may accelerate Collingwood’s career when he finally hangs up his boots.

In Somerset’s second innings his greatest asset was Chris Rushworth. He snatched three wickets on Monday night and was no less lethal on Tuesday morning. In his first over he removed Alex Barrow’s off stump and soon after he found himself on a hat-trick. Jim Allenby’s defensive vigil ended when he was palpably lbw. Next ball Lewis Gregory swished and was caught in the slip cordon. Tim Groenewald survived the hat-trick ball but he might struggle to tell you how as it whistled past his outside edge.

Rushworth, 28, will probably never play for England, despite possessing the right kind of figures. He now has over 200 first-class wickets at 24 apiece. He breezes in at fast medium, the archetypal county stalwart with no more frills than a Quaker matron. He is a solidly reliable citizen.

Yet he is also streaky. When everything clicks he gets wickets in clumps – last September he took 15 wickets in a day against Northamptonshire. Even though he is unlikely to get hauled down to Loughborough for specialist attention from the ECB bowling gurus, he is invaluable to Durham. On Tuesday Rushworth finished with six for 92. He did receive some rough treatment from the redoubtable Peter Trego, who reacted to Somerset’s plight in the only way he knows how. He counterattacked swinging those tattoo-laden forearms with gusto while cracking 79.

He found a willing ally in Abdur Rehman and together this perky pair added 99. If nothing else they demonstrated that the pitch, a good one which offered something to both disciplines, possessed few demons and that Rushworth, for all his virtues, was not Fred Trueman reincarnate.

At least this pair offered value for money to the punters since Durham were required to bat well into the final session to knock off their target. This was not much of a problem except when they were on 53, whereupon they lost both their openers. Keaton Jennings was deftly caught at slip by Allenby off Rehman; then Mark Stoneman was taken at deep point off Overton, an odd dismissal with a red ball but they all count. Such was Durham’s dominance that Collingwood was not even needed to knock off the winning runs.