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County Championship: Somerset counter Rikki Clarke's career-best figures

Surrey's Rikki Clarke took a career-best 7-55 against Somerset
Image: Surrey's Rikki Clarke (right) took a career-best 7-55 against Somerset

Rikki Clarke took a career-best 7-55 but Somerset still managed to score 269 against Surrey thanks to Steven Davies' 86.

Surrey v Somerset scorecard

A dramatic opening day ended with Surrey reaching 42-0 in 14 overs before stumps, despite Craig Overton and Somerset's other so-far luckless seamers beating the bat on numerous occasions, in a game crucial to both teams in the five-way scrap to avoid relegation from Division One of the Specsavers County Championship.

Marcus Trescothick and Ed Byrom (42) put on a trouble-free 96 for the first wicket after Somerset had won the toss.

But Trescothick fell leg-before to Gareth Batty's off-spin in the last over before lunch, after biffing 13 fours, and then Clarke set to work in a brilliant exhibition of seam bowling as Somerset plunged to 138-6.

That left wicketkeeper-batsman Davies, playing against his former county, to lead a spirited lower-order counter-attack in which he added 53 and 59 with Craig Overton and Dom Bess respectively for the seventh and eighth wickets.

Most importantly for Somerset, Davies' heroics meant two valuable batting bonus points were gained; fittingly, it took a recall for Clarke - who had taken 5-32 in his post-lunch spell - to finish off Somerset's resistance.

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Fifteen wickets fell during an all-action opening day of the match between Middlesex and Lancashire at Lord's.

Middlesex v Lancashire scorecard

The hosts were all out for 233 - Tom Bailey returning 5-54 and Ryan McClaren 4-63 - before Lancashire responded with 113-5.

Having dismissed the hosts inside 62 overs and two sessions, Lancashire went out after tea and lost both openers to consecutive deliveries and with only 22 on the board.

Haseeb Hameed was trapped lbw by Toby Roland-Jones (2-30) to start the clatter, with Tim Murtagh weighing in with 2-33.

Jeetan Patel's quickfire century spared Warwickshire from complete collapse but Matt Fisher's maiden five-wicket haul in first-class cricket put Yorkshire on top at Headingley.

Yorkshire began the day only one point above the Division One drop zone but Fisher's 5-54 in his first championship match of the season saw already-relegated Warwickshire dismissed for 219.

Yorkshire v Warwickshire scorecard

The other standout display came from the unlikely figure of number eight Jeetan, who made exactly 100 from 112 balls, while Ian Bell (51) was one of only two batsmen from Warwickshire's top seven to reach double figures.

Yorkshire moved further into the ascendancy by closing on 62-1, with opener Adam Lyth clearing the boundary rope twice with a couple of pulls to go to stumps on 35 not out.

Hampshire new ball partners Kyle Abbott and Fidel Edwards gave Essex a champion's hangover as the division one winners suffered a batting collapse at the Ageas Bowl.

Hampshire v Essex scorecard

Former Test fast bowlers Abbott and Edwards shared four wickets for 23 to leave Essex on 33-5 at stumps after Hampshire had posted 254 thanks to classy fifties from James Vince and George Bailey.

DIVISION TWO

There was little to separate promotion rivals Northamptonshire and Nottinghamshire as Notts made 80-5 in response to their hosts' 194 - Luke Wood (Notts) and Rory Kleinveldt (Northants) taking four wickets each for respective sides.

Glamorgan's Kiran Carlson posted a career-best 137 not out as they accumulated 342-7 against Gloucestershire, while Sussex skipper Luke Wells was another centurion in their meeting with Durham.

Wells made 122 and Stiaan van Zyl contributed 92 in Sussex's 346 all out with Durham 8-1 in response, while no play was possible between Derbyshire and Kent at Chesterfield due to a wet outfield.

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