Six-wicket star George Hill praised Yorkshire’s top order for their contributions to Yorkshire’s commanding position at the halfway stage of their Rothesay County Championship clash with Essex at the Ambassador Cruise Line Ground.
Yorkshire lead Essex by 207, at 114-1 in their second innings.
The White Rose claimed a first-innings lead of 93 having bowled the hosts out for 123 in their first innings midway through the day. Hill led an on-point display with the ball, claiming a superb 6-51.
Ben Coad was also a chief contributor with 3-20 from 18 overs, and the pair formed a devastating partnership at the start of the day, with Essex slipping badly from 27-3 overnight.
But late in the day, Adam Lyth posted an unbeaten 79, while Fin Bean chipped in with 19 and James Wharton 16 not out. Lyth and Bean shared 72 for the first wicket to put a significant dent into Essex’s hopes of a comeback.
“It was a really good day,” said all-rounder Hill. “Lythy and Beany just sort of nipped that in the bud at the end.
“Beany would be a bit upset about not going on, but he did an awesome, awesome job for the team facing 100 balls there.
“He’s a bit upset, but he’s batting beautifully. He’s not out of form by any stretch of the imagination, so runs are definitely around the corner for him.”
Hill has now taken 19 wickets this season and is up there amongst the leading wicket-takers in Division One.
Hill and Coad both bowled nine-over spells at the start of the day, the former 1-27 and the latter 2-10.
“I’m pretty happy to be fair,” he continued.
“It’s always fun bowling with Coady, because there’s not going to be many runs at the other end. We just spoke about myself and him all morning, trying to be as patient as possible with our lines and lengths, and it worked really well.
“I think we did really well to sort of drag it back after not batting particularly well on the first day, getting three wickets that evening. Then today, just wearing them down was awesome.”
Hill is almost becoming a Ben Coad 2.0. Always threatening, always keeping the runs down.
“I’ve got a long way to catch Coady up,” he smiled. “He’s a bit of a guru.
“He’s brilliant to learn off. He keeps it so simple, he just wobbles it down there. Obviously he’s got unbelievable skills, but doesn’t give any freebies away, which is what I’m trying to do.”
Hill does actually look a bit sharper this season, pace wise, than he has before.
“I’m not sure,” he added. “I haven’t looked at the speeds, but I feel in pretty good rhythm.
“I’m probably feeling more like an actual bowler rather than a batter that bowls a bit – seeing myself as an actual threat now with the ball, which is good for my confidence.”
