Five-wicket star Ben Coad continued his excellent recent form at the start of a helter-skelter opening day of Vitality County Championship cricket before captain Jonny Tattersall added a superb 90 not out off 152 balls as Yorkshire seized early control against Leicestershire at Grace Road.
The county’s road to what they hope will be Division Two promotion has taken them to the Uptonsteel County Ground, where they bowled the Foxes out for 98 inside 25 overs on the stroke of lunch.
Coad returned 5-15 from 10 overs bowled straight through with the new ball before Yorkshire closed on the day on 263-8 from 71 overs in reply, a lead of 165. James Wharton contributed 41 and Dom Bess 33.
Make no mistake, this was a remarkable day of Championship cricket, on par with the opening day against Essex at Chelmsford in May 2018 when the visitors were bowled out for 50 and 22 wickets fell. Yorkshire went on to win that match.
There was an indication that it would be action-packed when the players started to filter out for their morning warm-ups and took a look at a green pitch. It wasn’t green-tinged, it was just green.
But, after Jonny Tattersall won a crucial toss and elected to bowl, Leicestershire falling to 15-7 in 12 overs was still a significant surprise.
Picture by John Heald. Having won a crucial toss, captain Jonny Tattersall posted the day’s highest score with the bat to help strengthen Yorkshire’s position.
Yes, the pitch was helpful. Though Yorkshire’s bowlers still had to take advantage. And Coad and returning new ball partner Matthew Fisher (3-38 from eight overs) did just that, sharing the wickets.
Coad is now the leading wicket-taker in Division Two with 43, including a trio of five-wicket hauls or better in his last three matches dating back to late June.
Coad led the way, sparking the early Foxes collapse when he had opener Rishi Patel caught by Fin Bean at third slip five balls into the contest – 0-1.
Captain Lewis Hill followed caught at second slip off Fisher, Adam Lyth also helping Coad oust Rehan Ahmed from the same position not long afterwards.
With Coad rocking back Ian Holland’s leg-stump with one that jagged back a long way, Leicestershire were 3-4 in the ninth over.
Coad had Louis Kimber lbw as he tried to take the aggressive approach, heaving to leg, and Fisher trapped Indian Ajinkya Rahane lbw in much more conventional fashion – angled in, kept a touch low, 11-6 in the 12th over.
Picture by John Heald. Ben Coad bowls Ian Holland this morning.
Liam Trevaskis was also lbw to the same bowler four balls later – 15-7, and we were just about an hour into the day.
From there, every credit to Leicestershire, they did extremely well to get up to 98.
Record books were being thumbed for lowest scores in the entire County Championship, never mind just these two sides.
But wicketkeeper Ben Cox counter-attacked with some effect, posting 51 off 31 balls with two sixes – one swept off Coad, the other ramped off Fisher.
He shared 37 with Tom Scriven (18) for the eighth wicket, also adding 39 for the last with Chris Wright (12).
Scriven feathered behind to Jonny Bairstow trying to attack against Coad before Thompson had Scott Currie lbw, leaving Leicestershire 59-9 in the 20th.
Picture by John Heald. Matthew Fisher contributed three wickets on in his return to first-team action for the first time since May.
It will have been a frustration to Yorkshire that their hosts managed to get up to 98, with Wright bowled by George Hill. Cox didn’t face another ball after reaching his half-century.
Batting did become easier after lunch when the sun was out instead of the floodlights being on. Though there was still plenty in it for the bowlers. It would be a surprise if that changed much throughout the course of the game.
Bean edged new ball seamer Wright to gully in the ninth over before Lyth was adjudged caught behind off Holland’s seam – 21-2 in the 12th.
Will Luxton was brilliantly caught at third slip by Currie off Scriven, one-handed going to his right, as Yorkshire fell to 30-3 in the 18th.
But Bairstow took the Cox route, attacking for 18 off 12 balls with four fours – two creamed on the up through the covers off seam.
Scriven had him caught at slip on the attack as Yorkshire fell to 56-4 before Tattersall and Wharton shared 53 to take the visitors into the lead during the second half of the afternoon.
Picture by John Heald. James Wharton cuts on the way to 41.
Both played nicely, Wharton pushing a couple of his eight boundaries almost arrow straight down the ground. He will have, therefore, been mighty frustrated when he pulled a short ball from leg-spinner Ahmed down to long-on two balls into the England man’s opening over.
That left Yorkshire 109-5 in the 34th, a score which became 142-6 in the 41st in the opening stages of the evening when Hill was bowled by one angled in from Wright.
Tattersall has looked good on a number of occasions with the bat this season, and he is closing in on 500 runs. And this was no doubt a captain’s innings.
Along with Wharton and Bess, they looked the most at ease at the crease. Cox was excellent, but in a completely different manner. He attacked and was inventive when the pitch was at its toughest.
These three were more controlled.
Tattersall worked the ball nicely and reached his fifty off 73 balls during the early stages of the evening, by which stage Yorkshire were 162-6 and leading by 64.
Picture by John Heald. George Hill wraps up the Leicestershire innings by bowling Chris Wright.
Tattersall and Bess shared 46 for the seventh wicket. The latter drove nicely and dominated that stand before being bowled by Scriven in similar fashion to how Holland had been by Coad earlier. It jagged back a long way and left Yorkshire at 188-7 in the 51st, a lead of 90.
Thompson top-edged a pull to long-leg as Scriven struck for a fourth time, 210-8, with Yorkshire now aiming for a batting bonus point.
And that is what they got. It could yet be two in the morning after Tattersall and Fisher united to share 53 unbroken through to the end of the day. Fisher will begin the second day unbeaten on 28 having made an impressive return following ankle issues.
