Northampton

(day one of four)

Northamptonshire 33-1 (10.2 overs) SD Peters 13 not out, RA White 10 not out, Kabir Ali 1-17 against Worcestershire

Lunch

Northamptonshire, with Johann Louw named in the side little more than 24 hours after arriving from South Africa, had begun their recovery from almost the worst possible start when heavy rain curtailed play before lunch. Brighter weather from the east augured better for the remaining sessions.

Kabir Ali required a few balls to discover the most penetrating line on off stump but when he did so Alex Wakely immediately nicked compliantly. Both Kabir and Steve Magoffin then made good use of the short ball, perhaps encouraged when Rob White misjudged a hook early on. Both White and Stephen Peters resisted an encore.

Tea

The expected improvement in the weather did not materialise and although drizzle never became stormier it was sufficient to wipe out play in the entire second session. Eventually, the groundstaff removed the covers with umpires Rob Bailey and Allan Jones due to inspect again at 3.30.

Close

Play finally got underway again some five hours after the break. But any cheer among those spectators who had remained through the drizzle, entertained only by the regular movement of the umpires to and from the middle to inspect, was short-lived. Six minutes and seven balls later, the teams trudged back as Stephen Peters and Rob White accepted an offer of bad light.

As before, the ball nipped around and White, whose sleepy footwork could be understood, almost edged the first one back from Steve Magoffin. Worcestershire are optimistic that Simon Jones, the former England bowler, will have recovered from his neck injury to return against Glamorgan, his former county, in the Friends Provident Trophy on Monday.

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