Dom Bess completed an impressive 3-55 from 21 overs as Yorkshire bowled promoted Worcestershire out for 389 during a weather-affected second day at Headingley.
Only 29 overs were bowled, with no play possible beyond 1.30pm due to bad light initially and then rain. Yorkshire were 24-0 from seven overs when play was halted.
It was an action-packed morning session, however, with Worcestershire securing promotion back to Division One for the first time since 2018.
They started this fixture knowing that two points would seal second place in Division Two behind champions Durham. So, having been inserted yesterday, they needed to reach 300 for two bonus points.
That is what they did inside the first half an hour of play today.
They resumed on 280-5 and reached 301-6 when spinner Josh Baker pushed a two into the covers off Matt Milnes, sparking jubilant scenes on the players’ balcony.
Off-spinner Bess struck twice today, as did Milnes.
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com. Matt Milnes claimed two wickets today.
While Baker hit Worcestershire’s landmark runs, captain Brett D’Oliveira was their man of the moment as he advanced from 90 not out overnight to 103.
This was his first century for the Pears since June of last year – reached in 199 balls – but he fell with his side one short of 300.
He was trapped lbw by Milnes, struck on the back pad, leaving the score at 299-6 in the 84th over.
Picture by John Heald. Brett D’Oliveira celebrates his century.
That was one of a nervy 10-ball period Worcestershire spent on 299, by Baker.
Milnes bowled nicely with the new ball this morning, taken immediately at the start of play.
His second wicket was that of Baker, who miscued to mid-on the ball after reaching 300. That left the score at 301-7 in the 86th.
In support of D’Oliveira, Kashif Ali yesterday posted a career best 93. Today, on-loan seamer Ben Allison completed a career best 75. The Essex man is spending a month at New Road.
He shared in stands of 77 for the sixth wicket with D’Oliveira and 79 for the eighth with Joe Leach as the county fell just short of 400.
Bess uprooted Allison’s off-stump with a yorker – 380-8 in the 100th – before wrapping up the innings by getting Leach caught at short fine-leg following a top-edged slog sweep.
Just a couple of balls previous, Leach had hoisted him over long-on for six in an aggressive 36.
Sandwiched in between the two Bess wickets, Matthew Revis had Ben Gibbon caught behind in his first over.
Yorkshire started the second innings confidently through Adam Lyth and Fin Bean, both who are within striking distance of 1,000 Championship runs for the season.
Lyth reached 12 and Bean 10, the pair needing 33 and 47 respectively to reach the milestone.
Picture by John Heald. Adam Lyth starts his innings.
Bad light initially forced umpires Steve O’Shaughnessy and Surendiran Shanmugam to take the players off the field inside the opening 10 minutes of the afternoon. Rain quickly followed and play was abandoned for the day just before 3pm.
The loss of 72 overs from the day’s allocation means Yorkshire have now lost circa 1,850 overs to the weather in Championship cricket this season.
