Durant Cricket National Counties Championship Final - Day One

Buckinghamshire’s bowlers led the fightback after their batters had collapsed on an eventful opening day of the Durant Cricket National Counties Championship final against Devon at West Bromwich Dartmouth. 

Buckinghamshire slumped from 121 for two in the final over before lunch to 185 all out in their first innings, a total that would have been more meagre had Conner Haddow (13) and Tom Weymes (16 not out) not added 33 for the last wicket. 

But Devon struggled in turn, struggling to 99 for seven in 51 overs by the close to a demanding combination of pace and spin. 

A greenish pitch kept the bowlers interested throughout but it did not entirely explain how 17 wickets went down for 284 runs Buckinghamshire captain Tom Hampton had opted to bat first on it. 

There was no hint of the batting travails to come when Alexei Kervezee (31) and Aadi Sharma (35) added 57 for Buckinghamshire’s third wicket with former Worcestershire and Netherlands batter Kervezee striking six fours and a six with a one-handed pull off Ben Privett. 

But the innings unravelled in the space of 12 balls either side of lunch. Kervezee survived an LBW appeal from paceman Kaz Syzmanski only to be given out caught at second slip when Devon followed up with a second appeal. 

Ross Richardson followed six balls later, LBW to Szymanski, and Sharma, fresh from a century for Northamptonshire Second XI, fell to the sixth ball after lunch when he was caught behind fanning down leg-side to Matt Skeemer. 

When George Harvey edged Szymanski to first slip, Buckinghamshire had lost four wickets for nine runs but the collapse continued in spectacular fashion when Devon captain Jamie Stephens took three wickets in four balls in his first over of off-spin. 

Ed Bragg popped a catch to short leg, Cameron Parsons was bowled for 16 and Hampton gave a bat-pad catch to short leg next ball. 

Stephens added a fourth wicket when Haddow was stumped giving him the charge which ended the frustrating last wicket stand but Devon soon ran into trouble. 

Privett went to the first ball of the innings, when he glanced a leg-side loosener from Parsons to wicketkeeper Richardson, and Max Finzel’s first Championship innings lasted 12 balls before Ed Bragg undid him with one that bounced. 

James Horler and Somerset Academy prospect Fin Hill repaired the damage but Horler then slashed Parsons to gully and Hill edged slow left-armer Haddow to slip. 

Haddow, who took nine wickets in the match when Buckinghamshire beat Staffordshire in an Eastern Division One match at this ground six weeks ago, added another wicket when he had Ben Beaumont LBW in his next over. 

Devon got bogged down and found themselves further in the mire when Haggett nibbled a catch behind after Bragg switched ends and Elliot Hamilton, who had battled 145 balls for 30, was LBW just before the close, sweeping Alexei Kervezee’s off-spin. 

Durant Cricket National Counties Championship Final 

First day of four 

West Bromwich Dartmouth: Buckinghamshire 185 (Jamie Stephens 4-29), Devon 99-7.