Image source, Rex Features

A weather-hit week. It has been cold, bleak and windswept.

And, to make the rest of the country feel even more cold and fed up, back-to-back county champions Surrey are the only beneficiaries.

The only winners in our seven matches, altholugh there have been some individual highlights, like England opener Ben Duckett's double hundred, a first top flight century for Worcestershire's Gareth Roderick, tons for Middlesex duo Ryan Higgins and Max Holden - and George Bartlett's first hundred for Northants. .

There are even less games when the County Championship's next round of fixtures start this Friday - only five of them.

But please rejoin us just before 11 o'clock on Friday morning.

We'll be waiting.

Only five games on the County Championship schedule for the next round of fixtures, commencing this Friday.

Two in the top flight. three in Division Two.

All games 3-6 May.

Division 1

Lancashire v Kent (Manchester)

Somerset v Essex (Taunton)

Division 2

Derbyshire v Sussex (Derby)

Middlesex v Leicestershire (Lord's)

Yorkshire v Glamorgan (Leeds)

Division One:

Chester-le-Street: Durham (358 & 131-2, 12 pts) drew with Essex (488, 14 pts)

The Oval: Surrey (359, 22 pts) beat Hampshire (151 & 197, 3 pts) by an innings and 10 runs

Edgbaston: Warwickshire (361, 14 pts) drew with Notts (400 & 75-1, 15 pts)

Kidderminster: Worcestershire 451-9 dec (16 pts) drew with Somerset 309-9 dec & 141-3 (12 pts)

Division Two:

Bristol: Gloucestershire (322 & 127-3, 13 pts) drew with Middlesex (203 & 449-7 dec, 11 pts)

Leicester: Leicestershire (452-8 dec, 15 pts) drew with Northants (453-7 dec, 15 pts)

Headingley: Yorkshire (450-5 dec & 59-1, 16 pts) drew with Derbyshire (447, 13 pts)

So that's the last one done.

Hands are shaken.

Leicestershire got past the 450-mark to collect maximum batting bonus points, but Northants were one wicket short of collecting an extra bowling point.

So it is 14 points each.

The Foxes move on to Lord's to face Middlesex, while Northants are back in action on 10 May with a home game against Gloucestershire.

Andrew Radd
BBC Radio Northampton

The sunshine has deserted us for now and I suspect possibly for the rest of the match.

I have a feeling that they'll have to put the lights on if we stay on.

Two overs left before the 110-over cut-off - and still a bonus point each to play for

Ollie Price (52*) and James Bracey (14*) steer Gloucestershire safely to a draw against Middlesex at Bristol.

That is it at Headingley after bad light stopped play.

The result gives Yorkshire 16 points to Derbyshire's 13.

Martin Emmerson
BBC Radio Newcastle

Durham have come back into this Division One for the first time in eight years.

They will look back on April - and it will read three draws (one of them against the league leaders) and a win.

It's official in Kidderminster too. Somerset have escaped with a draw.

Flood-hit Worcestershire's two-match stay at their Chester Road second home is over for another year.

When the Pears next host next a Champo game on 25 May it will be back at New Road.

Before then Somerset host leaders Essex at Taunton next week.

Worcestershire now have 11 days off before facing Kent at Canterbury.

The rain has brought an early end to this one with 19 overs still outstanding.

The captains were perhaps only a few more overs from shaking hands anyhow as a weather-affected game petered towards a draw.

Essex will take 14 points from their second draw of the campaign to move level on points with leaders Surrey at the top of Division One.

This marks another encouraging result for Durham who have started their return to the top tier with a win and three draws. They sit in fifth place.

The fans at Chester-le-Street have lost five days of cricket to rain out of eight this so far this season.

Yorkshire and Derbyshire have come off the pitch in Leeds for bad light.

It could be the end for this match as well.

They're coming off in Kidderminster.

It is for bad light but that will almost certainly be the end of this game.

Tom Lammonby is unbeaten on 81.

Frank Watson (BBC Hereford & Worcester): "If there was any issue with the Worcestershire bowlers today it would be that perhaps they haven't made the batsman play as often as they might.

Game over. Official confirmation that the Warwickshire-Nottinghamshire game has ended in a draw.

Both sides are without a game next week.

They each return to action on Friday 10 May when the Bears visit The Oval to face Surrey and Notts host Lancashire at Trent Bridge.

Rain stops playpublished at 16:43 British Summer Time 29 April 2024

16:43 BST 29 April 2024

Durham 358 & 131-2 v Essex 488 - Durham lead by one run

The rain gets heavier at Chester-le-Street and the umpires take the players off and signal for the covers.

There's 19.4 overs scheduled still to play, but we may not get back on here with the match situation as it is.

It leaves Alex Lees two short of his 8,000th County Championship run.

David Bedingham has taken away the little jeopardy that remained for Durham in this game.

He has moved to 33 off 34 balls, contributing the lion's share of a 43-run stand with Alex Lees (48) as Durham move into the lead with a scheduled 20 overs remaining of the match.

The captains may well shake hands before that, of course.

Dave Bracegirdle
BBC Radio Nottingham commentator

Off they come at Edgbaston.

Now that Warwickshire had sorted out their over-rate, it was just a matter of getting to a point where the umpires say it's getting a little bit dark, do you want to come off?

And they have.

David Bedingham has enough of being watchful.

He tonks Matt Critchley back over his head for a rare six and then cuts the next ball off the back foot for four.

Then a riskier shot is not quite so cleanly struck over Critchley, but it reaches the boundary after a couple of bounces.

Critchley is into 10th over and struggling with his length a little. It costs him 15 runs and Bedingham races to 30 off 28 balls.

Middlesex snaffle another Gloucestershire wicket after Tom Helm has Cameron Bancroft (32) caught by Leus du Plooy. The home side are 84-2 in their second innings and need 247 runs for victory.

Tom Scriven (14*) and Scott Currie (25*) are sticking around for Leicestershire against Northants. The hosts are 389-8 and trail by 64 runs.

Yorkshire have taken 19 overs to reach 55-0. Adam Lyth (19*) and Finlay Bean (30) have comfortably taken them to a 58-run lead over Derbyshire.

100 up for Durhampublished at 16:21 British Summer Time 29 April 2024

16:21 BST 29 April 2024

Durham 358 & 103-2 v Essex 488 - Durham trail by 27 runs

David Bedingham is fed up and looks to hit out against Matt Critchley.

He doesn't quite get enough of it, loops high in the air and for a moment there's hope of a catch.

But it drops safe and the two runs bring up the Durham 100.

They trail by just 27 runs now.