‘Kash and carry

Day 2 Surrey v Middlesex at the Oval


I’m loving the chance to write these cheesy headlines. I’m hoping for a superhuman century in each innings for the rest of the season so that I can spend more time than is considered reasonable thinking them up!

Anyhow, here is a brief synopsis of the day’s play at the Oval. It’ll be briefer than yesterday because I was at work today and the unfeeling monsters that are my employers have seen fit to block the BBC ball by ball coverage. Thankfully Harold has come to the rescue yet again by recording the day’s play. Big kudos here to Harold as I reckon he probably has to get up at some ungodly transatlantic hour to catch the commentary, so that my fellow enthusiasts and I can listen to the immaculate trinity that is Mark Church, Kevin Hand and Johnny Barran. It’s like the broadcasting version of The Three Musketeers, only with cakes instead of swords and twirly moustaches...

Mr Ramprakash carried all before him – again – in the morning and for a lot of the afternoon as well. I was going to say he also carried the squad, but that isn’t an entirely accurate description of what went on, as there was an extremely good first team championship debut for wicket keeper Gary Wilson, who managed a breezy 62 in support. Perhaps there wasn’t quite the same amount of scoring by the others: Tremlett and Gareth Batty managed 13 apiece, Spriegel hit 12 whilst Nel garnered 3 runs, and Dernbach was the last man standing with 2 not out. Ramps eventually succumbed whilst on a princely 223.

With Rob Key also hitting a sizeable double ton yesterday and Udal claiming an impressive five wicket haul in this game, it looks as if the senior players are showing the way once again...and I like that. I find it reassuring that great county players like Ramps and Key continue to be the best in the land. Governments may come and go, ash clouds may cause havoc...but some things stay the same. Well, at least until the ECB start tinkering with the County Championship format again.

The day might have belonged to Ramps, numerically speaking, but with a pitch that seems to be flatter than a female limbo dancer’s chest it was fairly inevitable that good batsmen were going to get in. Now, Scott Newman’s come in for a bit of stick from the Middlesex support because, how shall I put this, he hasn’t really scored many runs. Quite a few single figures from what I’m told. And the odd quacker. But is there a better track to regain your good form than the Oval? Certainly not in the case of Newman, who knows the ground better than most. Just like Ramps, no doubt he feels he has a point to prove against his former team. And let’s face it: he is a very good player when he gets going, and he scores very rapidly to boot.

Somewhat alarmingly from a Surrey point of view, Newman has got himself into the 70s with not much effort at all and at an incredible rate. England skipper Strauss also seems to have played himself into some form with an equally fast 50. If I was RHB I’d be a tad concerned that the total of 490 posted by Surrey over two days might well be whittled away in no time at all. Middlesex closed with 148 on the board for no wicket lost.

You’d still have the draw as the favourite, though. Day three beckons tomorrow and despite the Middlesex siege on the Surrey total there doesn’t seem enough time in the game to make something of it.

If nothing else, today was about Ramps showing why he is still the prized wicket in the county game. Age has not withered him, and I’m sure there were some weary Middlesex bowlers watching on the balcony today. This was his 11th double hundred for Surrey and his 16th in total. He now stands joint fifth in the all-time list of double hundred scorers, rubbing shoulders with the likes of Jack Hobbs, with a conversion rate far better than the man affectionately known as ‘The Master’.

It’s not bad company to keep, when you think about it.