County Championship 2022 | Bowling unit helps Essex seal their second victory of the season

Essex humbled the home team by an innings and 56 runs at Old Trafford to secure their second victory this season and climbed to the fourth position in the points table. 

On Day 4 of the fixture, Lancashire had only a wicket left, with James Anderon and Luke Wood at the crease. The inevitable happened in the fourth over, and Wood (27) provided a catching practice to the wicket-keeper, as he nicked off a half-volley ball of Porter, and the team was dismissed for 232. 

Earlier in the first innings, Essex had posted a score of 391 on the board, with Daniel Lawrence scoring 120 and Nick Browne returning with 71. Tom Bailey took three for Lancashire, and Luke Wood picked a couple of wickets. 

In reply, Lancashire were dismissed for a score of 103, with the top score of 44 from Phil Salt. The pacer Samuel Cook was the pick of the bowlers with four wickets to his name. 

After that, the home team were forced to follow on. The batter strived hard to stitch partnerships to save the fixture this time. The trio of Steven Croft (39), Dane Vilas (62), and Phil Salt (31) were successful with their attempts but could not convert their starts into big ones. 

The Protea spinner Simon Harmer picked five wickets and played a crucial role in putting pressure on the opposition in the second innings. 

This was the last league fixture of the first half of the County Championship 2022 season, and T20 Blast will take place from next week. 

Lancashire are placed in the fourth position with two wins, while Essex have the same wins, but the difference of 11 points puts them in the fifth spot of the points table. 

In their next league fixture from June 12, Lancashire will be up against Warwickshire at Birmingham. On the other hand, Essex will face Hampshire from June 26 at Chelmsford. 

Brief scores:

Essex - 391/10 (1st innings)

Daniel Lawrence 120, Shane Snater 72;

Tom Bailey 3/61, Luke Wood 2/83

Lancashire- 103/10 (1st innings) 

Phil Salt 44, Luke Wood 21;

Samuel Cook 4/18

Lancashire- 232/10 (2nd innings)  

Dane Vilas 62, Steven Croft 39;

Simon Harmer 5/89 

Match Drawn