More batting woes for Northants as they slump to defeat to Worcestershire

Another batting collapse proved costly as Northants slumped to their second successive Bob Willis Trophy defeat, this time going down by 78 runs to Worcestershire at the County Ground.
Jack Leach certainly enjoyed claiming the wicket of Ben CurranJack Leach certainly enjoyed claiming the wicket of Ben Curran
Jack Leach certainly enjoyed claiming the wicket of Ben Curran

Chasing 263 to win in 68 overs, Northants looked in decent shape and in little trouble as openers Ben Curran and Ricardo Vasconcelos guided them to 48 without loss.

But when Curran was trapped in front by seamer Jack Leach and dismissed for 17, the rot quickly set in.

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Vasconcelos fell to pace man Josh Tongue in almost identical fashion a few balls later for 37, although the opener looked to be unfortunate to be given out to a ball that looked to have pitched outside his leg stump.

Saif Zaib edged a wide delivery behindSaif Zaib edged a wide delivery behind
Saif Zaib edged a wide delivery behind

Alex Wakely (2), Charlie Thurston (11), Richard Levi (8) and Saif Zaib (5) then all came and went very quickly as Northants subsided to 94 for six - losing those six wickets for just 46 runs.

Such collapses have been something of a common occurrence in this competition, and will be a concern for head coach David Ripley.

Gareth Berg played some nice shots, but was then bowled through the gate by Tongue for 18 to leave Northants 130 for seven, leaving skipper Adam Rossington to go on the counter-attack.

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He went into T20 mode, crashing a quickfire 44 from 49 balls, but when he chanced his arm once too often and top-edged a skier from Leach to wicket-keeper Ben Cox, the game was seemingly up at 150 for eight, with Northants still needing 113 to win.

Ben Curran clips a leg-side delivery to the boundaryBen Curran clips a leg-side delivery to the boundary
Ben Curran clips a leg-side delivery to the boundary

And that proved to be the case, despite some lusty blows from Nathan Buck and Blessing Muzarabani, who took the score to 177, but the match was soon ended emphatically when Jack White had his off-stump removed by Ed Barnard.

That left Buck stranded on 24 not out from 17 balls, while for Worcester there were three wickets for Tongue and Dillon Pennington, and two apiece for Leach and Barnard.

Earlier in the day, Worcester had taken their second innings score on to 255 for six declared, and it was a special day for their batsman Tom Fell.

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He finished on 110 not out, scoring his first red ball century since since beginning treatment for testicular cancer in 2015.

Josh Tongue celebrates claiming the crucial wicket of Ricardo VasconcelosJosh Tongue celebrates claiming the crucial wicket of Ricardo Vasconcelos
Josh Tongue celebrates claiming the crucial wicket of Ricardo Vasconcelos

Fell was a rising star at New Road and as a 21-year-old made 1,127 first-class runs at an average of 42 in 2015 - but his 100 at the County Ground was his first in red ball cricket since one he scored against Middlesex at the end of that summer.

Fell's knock, allied with 48 not out from Barnard, allowed Worcestershire to declare on the final morning and set Northants a target that was to prove beyond them, with the hosts being bowled out for 184

Northants return to action in the Bob Willis Trophy on Saturday when they host Glamorgan at the County Ground.

The defeat to Worcester leaves them rock bottom of the Central group, with just two rounds of matches to play.