Derbyshire declare before rain arrives

Derbyshire were frustrated by rain which washed out most of the third day of the LV=Insurance County Championship match against Leicestershire at Derby.

The home side batted on in the morning to secure a third batting point before declaring on 350 for 7, a lead of 228.

But before Leicestershire could begin their second innings, the rain set in and play was called-off for the day after a pitch inspection at 5pm.

At least the forecast for Sunday is more encouraging so Derbyshire’s bowlers should have a full day to try and secure a first victory of the season.

Derbyshire skipper Leus du Plooy said: “We find ourselves in a lovely position so it’s a little bit frustrating but we can’t do anything about it.

“The story of the whole season so far has been a little bit wet so hopefully we have a chance of a full day tomorrow.

“The boys will be ready for tomorrow. It’s a great chance for us to start our season in the way we wanted to because we’ve been poor in the first three games and we definitely want to put things right.”

In the 17 minutes of play, Derbyshire added another 24 runs with Zak Chappell securing the extra point with a top-edged pull for six off Wiaan Mulder who finished with figures of 5 for 67.

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