Luke Wells has departed for 45 just after he and Josh Bohannon had reached a 50 partnership for Lancashire.

Miguel Cummins having him caught behind by Ollie Robinson in the 38th over.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Tim Murtagh is some performer.

The Middlesex seamer has just picked up his third wicket of the innings, bowling Jamie Smith for 19.

Murtagh, who turns 40 in August, has figures of 3-17 from 12 overs. Remarkable stuff from the Irishman and Surrey are in trouble.

Essex could do with building a couple of decent partnerships at Edgbaston.

Nick Browne and Paul Walter are just beginning to settle. Opener Browne has battled his way to 22, while all-rounder Walter has 17.

Big afternoon session on the cards.

Lord's is looking an absolute picture in the April sunshine as Surrey go past 100.

Image source, Getty Images

Ejiggs: Notts should withdraw from the County Champ as they've no interest in the competition. Not won for 3 years but allow key players (Hales, Patel, Ball, Gurney etc) to sit out. Not made any changes to management. Clearly only interested in income from white ball game.

It's not going so well for them at New Road today either. Worcestershire are 131-0 with Daryl Mitchell just going past fifty.

for Bedinghampublished at 13:47 British Summer Time 22 April 2021

13:47 BST 22 April 2021

Durham 92-2 v Derbyshire

David Bedingham has led Durham's fightback from 7-2 with a fine half-century.

Alex Lees has provided good support. The opener is on 36.

While wickets were tumbling around him, Surrey opener Mark Stoneman stood firm in the morning session.

The former England opener has 40 and a rebuilding job on his hands with 20-year-old Jamie Smith alongside him.

They've all had some lunch, so let's see what the afternoon session has in store...

Adrian Harms
BBC Sussex

A tremendous morning for Sussex who having lost the toss, have reduced Yorkshire to 102– 5 at lunch.

There was no sign of the wickets to come as Yorkshire weathered the early storm from Ollie Robinson, and at 60 without loss looked well set for a big score.

But the introduction of George Garton changed everything, as he picked up the wickets of Lyth, Root, and Kohler Cadmore, and then held a fine slip catch to dismiss Ballance. The icing on the cake for Susses was the wicket of Harry Brook on the stroke of lunch bowled by Delray Rawlins.

Chris Silverwood is at Hove watching the action, and no doubt keeping an eye on Jofra Archer who has been bowling in the nets

Anthony Gibson
BBC Somerset

This was much more like the Somerset seam bowling unit that swept all but Sir Alastair Cook before it in last season's Bob Willis Trophy.

On what is basically a decent batting pitch, their accuracy and persistence steadily built pressure, and that in turn produced wickets - four of them in the hour before lunch.

For Leicestershire, the openers Marcus Harris and Hassan Azad shaped well in a partnership of 40, but after that, it was all Somerset, even if Harry Dearden was unlucky with his lbw decision.

Kevin Hand
BBC Radio London

It was Middlesex's older heads of Tim Murtagh and Toby Roland-Jones that stepped up to perform in front of their new captain as Surrey struggled with the bat on the first morning.

There were a few eyebrows raised when the hosts' new skipper Peter Handscomb elected to field under blue skies at Lord's but Murtagh's double-wicket maiden settled any doubts.

There is a touch of grass left on the top and the ball has seamed and swung - the former being key for Roland-Jones.

The visitors opener Mark Stoneman is still there at the interval and if he can settle again then with clear skies overhead Surrey will hope to build a foundation to take the remainder of the innings forward.

Don Topley
BBC Essex

Sir Alastair Cook looked imperious this morning at Edgbaston, as he made 46 before edging to Michael Burgess off the bowling of Craig Miles. The opening partnership was worth a season’s best of 55. Tom Westley was adjudged lbw to give Miles his second wicket of the morning, Westley made just 4.

A third wicket, of recently capped England international, Dan Lawrence was brilliantly caught by Matthew Lamb at mId-wicket off the bowling of his England tour companion, Olly Stone.

Warwiçkshire have wrestled back the initiative from Essex in an intriguing morning’s session which saw 3 Essex wickets fall for just seventeen runs. Nick Browne is still there on 20 not out as Essex went to lunch on 81-3.

Nick Webb
BBC Radio Wales

The over before lunch changed the balance of the first session at Northampton as David Lloyd chipped Wayne Parnell to square leg for 65 to give the South African his first wicket for his new county.

Lloyd, in his new role as opener, took the attack to Northants on a bright but chilly morning,hitting 11 boundaries in his 98-ball innings.

Adam Rossington put Glamorgan in on a green-tinged pitch but saw Lloyd and Nick Selman put on 66, the visitors’ best start of the season.

Veteran Gareth Berg then bowled a miserly spell to peg them back, Selman bowled without playing a shot for 17 and Andrew Balbirnie trapped lbw for 3.

Kevan James
BBC Radio Solent

That was a pretty uneventful first session which probably suits Hampshire more than the visitors.

The bowling was accurate rather than spectacular, which meant runs were hard earnt.

Australian Dan Worrall is playing his first game for Gloucestershire after finishing his quarantine period.

He hits the deck hard and has some pace. He was once likened to Malcolm Marshall - the comparison was more to do with his angled run up rather than letting the ball go at a fair rate of knots. His run up didn't seem that wide this morning!

The pitch at the Ageas bowl hasn't offered the same amount of assistance to the seam bowlers that last week's pitch did in the first session.

Keeping wickets in tact at this stage should prove beneficial later on.

Martin Emmerson
BBC Radio Newcastle

Durham won the toss and chose to bat in brilliant sunshine and under a cloudless skies in Chester-le-Street. It was an interesting decision because the square was re-laid over the winter and it was difficult to know how it would play.

And it seems in the early exchanges the low bounce would prove crucial. Although there was nothing unusual in the manner of the departure of Will Young, who edged a ball from Sam Conners to the slip cordon when on one, Scott Borthwick fell next delivery for a first ball duck to a ball which appeared to stay low.

And from the other end we witnessed some nervous moments as balls from the left-handed Luis Reece, bowling from the Finchale End, pitched on a length, just outside the line of off-stump and daisy-cuttered to the keeper.

At lunch Alex Lees and David Bedingham have put on 73 runs. Bedingham should have been run out on one, but despite being in no man's land the throw to the stumps was not the best from Fynn Hudson-Prentice and the batsman made it home.

There was also a scare for Lees when he was dropped by Wayne Madsen at second slip. That was off the bowling of Conners when he was on 13.

Durham are now 80-2. Lees has 36 and Bedingham 42.