Tony Palladino praised the determination of the Derbyshire players as the county secured a hard-fought draw on the final day versus Durham at The 3aaa County Ground.
Derbyshire were seemingly in a spot of bother on 185-6, a lead of only 92. But battling knocks from Daryn Smit (34), Palladino (26 not out) and Ravi Rampaul (18 not out) ensured the fixture would end as a draw.
England paceman Mark Wood was the main threat from the visitors on the final day as he returned career-best figures of 6-46 off 23 overs.
Palladino was pleased his side were able to see the day out and secure a healthy 10 points from the match, and believes it will also give the squad confidence heading into the Royal London One-Day Cup, which starts this week.
He said: “We had a bit of a sticky period where we lost a few wickets and they were on top, so to come away with a draw in the end was a good result.
“Mark Wood bowled brilliantly. He’s very fit so he just ran in all day and bowled a lot of overs in this game and put us under a lot of pressure. But we stuck at it well and showed great determination to see it out.
“We didn’t have a target in mind at the start of the day. We knew that if we batted time that the runs would come as the outfield was quick, and after we had cleared the deficit we knew any runs after that would hurt them.
“At the end it was important that we took a bit of time out of the game and once the required run rate got over 10 an over they were happy to shake hands which we were pleased to do as well.”
Palladino added: “I love fighting for the team and trying to get a result. Obviously it’s not a win, but it’s a draw and points in the bank.
“We are now moving into the Royal London One-Day Cup with a positive mind-set and it was important that we came away with something in this game to take forward.
“We’ve got quality operators and a nice balance side, so we go into the competition with confidence. For us, it’s important that we play as a team with everyone chipping in and I’m sure if this happens we will be on the right end of results.”
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