NOT EVERYONE at the Guildford festival was repining over the unfortunate prognostication that Andrew Flintoff received yesterday. Rikki Clarke has long been regarded as an underrated cricketer, one whom England selectors appear to have less time for than Australian batsmen. Nonetheless, the highest score of his career, which he achieved here, will be noted by those in charge.

Clarke, unbeaten on 165 overnight, finished with 214 off 258 balls, including 30 fours and three sixes. This may not have been the highest score of a run-filled match, or necessarily the most memorable innings, but it was unquestionably the beefiest piece of batting. The pity was that there was no selector present to view it.

Here is an allrounder who, at 24, has time aplenty in which to add to his two Test caps, who is already closing in on 1,000 runs for the season and who has been working diligently on his medium- pace bowling. Nobody ran in harder in sweltering conditions on the first two days of this match. His innings was completed before unexpected heavy rain caused an abandonment mid-afternoon.

What a purposeful innings it was, too. Surrey were facing the prospect of following on when Clarke came to the wicket on Friday. This is a small, attractive ground, an ideal venue for a festival even if the pitch was too flat for a contest over four days. Surrey were intent on surpassing their highest ever total, 811, and this looked quite feasible until Cameron White collected two further wickets, giving him figures of 5 for 148. They had to settle for the third largest score in their history, by when it was evident that there would not be a positive result. In retrospect, Mark Butcher could have declared behind Somerset the previous afternoon.

White was but one of four leg-spinners who bowled a total of 137 overs between them: festive cricket indeed. This was a delight to watch and should be encouraged at every opportunity. No matter that Ian Salisbury had rather greater success with the bat, reaching his first half-century of the season, or that Michael Munday, who has graduated from Oxford University and is intent on a career in the game, finished wicketless. His time will come.

But can the same be said, in international terms, of Clarke? For one thing, Duncan Fletcher, England’s coach, watches so little county cricket and Clarke was passed over for the one-day series against Sri Lanka when he was tipped to be included. He is unquestionably talented and a crowd-pleaser, and if he continues to perform as he did here, a headline-maker, one who could yet replace Flintoff, his role model.