The third round fixture of the County Championship between Derbyshire and Leicestershire has ended as a one-off affair on the close of Day 3 at Leicester.
Derbyshire tightened their grip on the fixture after a lead of 318 runs in the first innings and putting pressure on the opposition with wickets at regular intervals.
Derbyshire began the day on 437/4, with Matt Mckiernan and Leus du Plooy being the batters at the crease. The duo helped the team to win with grit and patience. However, Ed Barnes secured a breakthrough, as he sent Mckerinann packing after a well-made 101 off 191 balls.
After this partnership saw its end, Barnes was up to his task to clean the tail and finished with figures of 5/101, while Derbyshire put up a mammoth score of 531.
The home team had an arduous task up to their sleeve as they trailed by 318 runs at the start of the second innings. They started cautiously, but Alex Thomson made inroads by picking wickets of Hasan Azad and George Rhodes at the brink of the Tea session.
Anuj Dal induced an edge of the captain Colin Ackermann, who contributed 3 off 11 balls. The opener Samuel Evans again provided a hefty contribution of 37, before he was convicted LBW off Sam Conners.
On the last session of Day 3, Wiaan Mulder played a knock of 25 off 35 balls but was dismissed as of the same method as Evans. Louis Kimber is batting at 33* off 98, and Ed Barnes played out the initial few balls to end the day.
With the home team still falling behind by 172 runs, it might prove to be a challenging task for them to consolidate enough, while Ed Barnes and co. will look to get early wickets on the morning session of Day 4 to secure their first win of this season.
Brief scores:
Derbyshire - 531/10 (1st innings)
Matt Mckiernan 101, Leus du Plooy 61*;
Ed Barnes 5/101
Leicestershire – 146/6 (2nd innings)
Louis Kimber 33*, Ed Barnes 0*;
Alex Thomson 3/36
Derbyshire lead by 318 runs.