County Championship round-up: Somerset's Craig Overton claims first five-wicket haul of his career against Durham

 

Jon Culley
Wednesday 21 May 2014 23:43 BST
Comments
Craig Overton is returning to form after a stress fracture of the back
Craig Overton is returning to form after a stress fracture of the back (Getty Images)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Bowler of the Day

Craig Overton, the 20-year-old Somerset all-rounder and twin brother of fast bowler Jamie, claimed the first five-wicket haul of his career as Durham were dismissed for 326 at Taunton, where Somerset will expect to claim victory.

Under the watchful eye of Kevin Shine, the fast-bowling coach at England's national performance centre, Overton dismissed Mark Stoneman three runs short of a century when he was caught behind off an attempted hook, then bowled Michael Richardson for 116 before dismissing Mark Wood and Jamie Harrison from consecutive deliveries. Ryan Pringle was his final victim as he returned figures of 5 for 63 to go with an unbeaten 45 at No 9 in Somerset's first innings.

Overton's progress in 2013 was wrecked by a stress fracture of the back – this is only his 11th first-class match – but he was selected nonetheless to join the ECB Potential Emerging Player Programme in South Africa earlier this year.

Chasing a target of 248, Somerset made rapid inroads, scoring 112 without loss in 23 overs, with Marcus Trescothick unbeaten on 58. They need 136 more to secure a second win of the season.

Extras

Ben Stokes, the England all-rounder who broke his wrist when he punched a dressing room locker during the one-day series in the West Indies in March, is expected to play in Durham's Championship match against Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge starting on Sunday.

Stokes scored 97 for Durham's Academy on Saturday and has confirmed his fitness in a number of Second XI Twenty20 matches this week, in the latest of which – against Derbyshire's Second XI – he hit 47 off 23 balls and took 4 for 23.

However, his team-mate Scott Borthwick, the batsman and leg-spinner, is out for an estimated two weeks after chipping a bone in a finger while fielding.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in