Bowling for Bensons
Cup final may be decided by 'bowl out'
Posted: Saturday July 11, 1998 05:49 PM
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Nasser Hussain of Essex makes his ground and avoids being stumped by Leicestershire wicketkeeper Paul Nixon (Laurence Griffiths/Allsport) |
LONDON (Reuters) -- The last Benson and Hedges Cup
final may have to be decided by a 'bowl out' indoors after
rain forced the clash between Essex and Leicestershire on
Saturday to be carried over into a second day.
With more bad weather forecast for Sunday there were fears
that the showpiece final at Lord's might have to be decided by
five bowlers from each side aiming two deliveries at a single
stump.
That would be a highly unsatisfactory end to the competition
which is being scrapped as part of a restructuring of English
domestic cricket.
Essex had just finished its allotted 50 overs on 268 for
seven when rain began to fall. No further play was possible.
It was the third highest score in the final since the
competition began in 1972 and the biggest since a reduction from
55 overs a side.
The Essex innings was built around a second wicket stand of
134 in 25 overs by captain Paul Prichard, who made 92, and
England test batsman Nasser Hussain, who hit 88 off 102 balls.
Prichard hit two sixes and 11 fours, Hussain one six and
eight fours, and Leicestershire were unable to capture a second
wicket until the 36th over.
Prichard was eventually caught at backward point by
Trinidadian Phil Simmons, one of the bowlers he had punished.
Simmons's nine overs went for 67 runs.
The Essex total would have been closer to its own record
of 290 if four wickets had not gone down -- all to skied catches
-- in four overs near the end of the innings.
The bowl out, never used before in a major Lord's final,
would come into effect if fewer than 10 overs of the
Leicestershire innings were possible on Sunday.
Prichard said he would rather share the trophy than undergo
cricket's equivalent of the penalty shoot-out.
"But if the rules say we have to have one, then we do," he
added.
Copyright 2003 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.
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