County Championship: Haider Ali & Leus du Plooy stand revives Derbyshire

Haider Ali's century was his first in the County Championship for Derbyshire

Brilliant batting by Leus du Plooy and Haider Ali halted Yorkshire's victory charge in its tracks and rescued Derbyshire on the second day of the County Championship match at Chesterfield.

Derbyshire's decision to move Ali down the order proved to be inspired as the Pakistani opener scored his first century for the county and shared an unbroken record-breaking fifth-wicket stand with du Plooy of 231 from 311 balls.

They had come together with Derbyshire heading for defeat at 17-4 after Dawid Malan's 106 guided Yorkshire to 353 and a lead of 242, despite spinner Mark Watt taking a career-best 5-83.

But Du Plooy's 96 and Ali's 129 lifted the home side to 248 for four and a lead of six runs when bad light, followed by an electrical storm, ended play with 10 overs left in the day.

Yorkshire had looked set for an even bigger lead until the dismissal of Malan sparked a collapse that saw the last five wickets fall for 28 runs.

The England batter completed his second hundred of the season from 130 balls but when he failed to get enough on a lofted drive off Watt, Suranga Lakmal took off to his left at mid-off to hold a superb catch.

Lakmal hurt his right elbow when he fell but was able to take the second new ball, although it was the spinners who did the damage.

Dom Bess was bowled as he pushed out at Alex Thomson and after dispatching Watt for a big six over long-on, Jordan Thompson drilled the left-armer to mid-on.

Matthew Revis edged a big drive at Ben Aitchison before Watt snared his fifth victim when Matthew Fisher drove to long-off on the stroke of lunch.

Yorkshire's advantage was still a substantial one and it looked more thanenough when Derbyshire's top order folded for the second time in the match.

Ben Coad struck in his second over from the Pavilion End when a full-length ball beat Harry Came's defensive push and Luis Reece went in the next over, trapped on the crease by Fisher.

Wayne Madsen went without scoring after he pushed out at Coad and was caught at first slip and when Fisher found the outside edge of Matt Lamb's bat, a two-day finish looked on the cards.

But after an uncomfortable start, Du Plooy and Ali counter-attacked to put Yorkshire on the back foot.

Bess came in for heavy punishment with Ali coming down the pitch to drive the off-spinner for six and Du Plooy swept him for his 10th four to reach 50 off 61 balls.

Ali forced Revis behind square to go to his half-century from 60 balls and when Coad returned to the attack, he dispatched him for three fours in the over.

Bess was launched down the ground for another six and by tea, the partnership was 150 in 29 overs with the arrears now down to 75.

It had been a spirited response to what looked a hopeless position and it was Yorkshire who now had some problems to solve.

They slowed the scoring rate at the start of the last session but there were few signs of the breakthrough Yorkshire were desperate for and Ali swept Bess for his 16th four to reach an outstanding century before opening up to take four boundaries in an over from the spinner.

The pair passed Derbyshire's previous highest fifth-wicket stand against Yorkshire of 184 by John Eggar and Alan Revill at Bradford in 1949 and when the weather closed in, it was the visitors who were relieved to get off the field.

Report supplied by ECB Reporters' Network.