The Derbyshire bowling attack had a good opening day against Northamptonshire, bowling the hosts out for just 219 having been asked to bowl.
Saif Zaib however did hit a battling 90 off 144 balls to lead a Northamptonshire fightback after a top-order collapse on the opening day of this Vitality Championship match.
Zaib found fine support from Justin Broad (45) in a partnership of 73 in 19 overs which enabled the hosts to post 219, a score that had looked extremely unlikely at 89 for six soon after lunch.
For only the second time in Derbyshire history all seven bowlers used took a wicket, Zak Chappell, Martin Andersson and Jack Morley taking two apiece in a fine all-round bowling display.
Luis Reece (39) and Brooke Guest (20) then comfortably saw the visitors through to 65 for one at the close, trailing by 154 runs, Broad taking the one wicket to fall.
Playing on the same surface used for last Thursday’s Vitality Blast quarter final and one expected to offer turn, the hosts opted to bat first in overcast conditions after winning the toss. Playing with a rejigged batting line-up, the gamble seemed not to have paid off as wickets tumbled although Northamptonshire’s spinners would have drawn encouragement from the turn found by their Derbyshire counterparts.
Indian international Prithvi Shaw was first to go when he edged the second delivery of the day from Chappell to third slip, the bowler’s 50th first-class wicket for Derbyshire. Home skipper Luke Procter (12) who played two textbook drives through mid-off, was then trapped leg before wicket by Reece before Gus Miller (6), promoted to open, was undone by an Andersson delivery which swung back in to also pin him lbw.
Rob Keogh’s (5) stay was equally brief, Andersson moving one away and drawing the edge, keeper Guest taking an excellent diving catch.
James Sales (23) played some attacking shots but he was the fifth wicket to fall before lunch when he drove loosely to Chappell and was caught low down at third slip by Aneurin Donald.
Lewis McManus (14) started positively after lunch, driving Chappell down the pitch for four but became teenage quick Harry Moore’s maiden first-class wicket on Championship debut, courtesy of a pull straight to fine leg.
That brought together Zaib and Broad together who began to restore a measure of respectability to the hosts’ innings.
Zaib worked Reece through square leg for four before lunch and eased into a glorious cover drive off Moore after the interval, while Broad drove Chappell down the ground and punched him through the covers as Northamptonshire passed 100 in the 37th over.
As Derbyshire deployed spin from both ends, Alex Thomson immediately found some turn to pose Broad some challenges before the all-rounder swept him to the ropes. Zaib meanwhile also found the sweep an increasingly lucrative bet against the spinners.
The pair took Northamptonshire past 150 up in the 50th over before Morley spun one away from Broad, drawing the edge with David Lloyd taking a good low catch at second slip. Ben Sanderson fell quickly in the next over, offering short leg an easy catch when he prodded forward against Thomson.
Zaib though progressed serenely to his half-century, reaching the milestone off 100 deliveries as he played Thomson through midwicket. He survived a strong shout for a catch at short leg off Morley when the umpires adjudged the ball had been hit into the ground first. Zaib responded by dispatching Morley imperiously over long-off for six and powering Thomson through extra cover.
But Morley then picked up a second wicket when he turned one back in to hit Dom Leech’s leg stump as he attempted to sweep.
With Northamptonshire nine wickets down, Zaib pressed the accelerator, clubbing Morley’s left-armers through mid-off and then sweeping him high over deep square for four and six. His downfall finally came was stumped coming down the pitch to Lloyd.
When Derbyshire began their innings after tea, Sanderson bowled a typically miserly spell from one end, Broad making the initial breakthrough from the other. He found some additional bounce from back of a length, surprising Harry Came who was caught on the crease, fending the ball to Sales who took a good low catch at second slip.
Reece meanwhile started to find the boundary, cutting Broad crisply to deep point, while he and Guest both pulled Yuzvendra Chahal fluently for boundaries as Derbyshire finished the session without further incident.
Bowler Zak Chappell said: “We bowled well (as a unit). There was a little bit in it early, we did manage to get a little bit out of it, a lot better than we were at Sussex last week which is a positive.
“We’ve got some nice variation in our attack. Jack is a bit quicker, Thommo is more up and down which creates a challenge for the batters with them being quite different.
“On a used wicket you can think bowling first isn’t always the best thing but it’s worked out pretty nicely. We need to get a bit of a lead in this first innings, we need to keep our heads down and keep churning away at this total.”
Membership 2025 | Expectations Evolved
For more than 150 years, we have battled as underdogs. As we move into a new era of Derbyshire cricket, we strive for more.
We understand what it means to wear the Rose and Crown, to follow in the footsteps of the game’s greats and to represent this county with pride.
And while everyone thinks they know the Derbyshire story, it’s time to flip the script, to re-define everything you know and push for greatness.
Projects take time, and our time is now. In 2025, we play with Expectations Evolved.
