The Week in County Cricket

ECB Media Manager and former Guradian writer Andy Wilson highlights five key stories from the past week in county cricket

THE BOYO DONE GOOD
Pride of place this week has to go to James Harris. Middlesex's Swansea-born seamer was already feeling pretty chipper when he opened up from the Nursery end at Lord's on Wednesday morning, 10 days before his 25th birthday, having claimed the first two wickets in Durham's second innings the previous evening to take his tally for the spring to 19. The original plan had been for Harris to battle into the gale blowing across from the pavilion for two or three overs before making way for the off-spin of Ollie Rayner, and conserving his energies to succeed Steve Finn with the wind at his back. Instead he kept going for the best part of the morning session, ending with figures of nine for 34.

The amiable Welshman reflected later on some dark times in the two full seasons since he left Glamorgan for London, confirming that the only previous occasion on which he had taken 10 wickets in a first-class match had been in his second appearance, way back in 2007 in Bristol - when he became the youngest ever to do so after claiming seven for 66 on his 17th birthday.

He also handed a slice of the credit for his welcome renaissance to Steve Watkin and Robert Croft, his former Glamorgan team-mates who had encouraged him to return to his original action during a loan spell back in Wales late last summer.

But the lion's share went to his Middlesex bowling coach Richard Johnson, who also happens to be the last bowler from the county to take all 10 wickets in an innings, at Derby in 1994 - a feat denied to Harris when Finn had Usman Arshad caught in the gully.

The last Middlesex bowler to take nine in an innings at Lord's was Fred Titmus, in 1964. Harris joined a select band of 11 to have done so this century in the Championship - Finn (at Worcester in 2010), Alan Mullally, Andy Bichel, Zaheer Khan, Mushtaq Ahmed, Simon Kerrigan, Martin Bicknell, Abdur Rehmann, Graham Onions, Michael Kasprowicz (twice) and most recently Chris Rushworth, for Durham against Nottinghamshire last season.

But his figures were better than all of those, only beaten this century by Ottis Gibson, England's fast bowling coach in the Caribbean, who took all 10 Hampshire wickets for 47 in 2007.

They were also the best in a first-class match at Lord's since the great Gubby Allen claimed 10 for 40 against Lancashire in 1929, a year that also cropped up on the news later that night as weather experts confirmed it had been the sunniest April for 86 years. Watch out for another Wall Street Crash in October.

Meanwhile Middlesex, who seemed to be heading for a defeat that would have condemned them to the relegation zone on the third evening of their last game against Somerset in Taunton, are now top of the Division One table with two wins out of three, and will head for Hove and a top-two showdown with Sussex on Sunday in buoyant mood.

DRAWING COMFORT
Kent and Leicestershire are languishing in the bottom three of the Second Division, yet they too had every reason for exuberance after a thrilling fourth day in Canterbury on Wednesday - one of those pleasant surprises in which the County Championship specialises.

Tuesday evening's grim weather forecast had suggested that Leicestershire's hopes of converting the strong position earned largely by Clint McKay's all-round efforts into that long-awaited Championship win would be washed away. Ultimately the loss of a few overs before lunch may well have denied them, but credit the two teams for conjuring a breathless final session, in which the old warhorses Darren Stevens and Charlie Shreck each excelled against his former county, and Daniel Bell-Drummond provided another reminder of his talent with his first century of the campaign.

Leicestershire's winless run may now stretch to a 36th match, but their loyalists are more convinced than ever that under the upbeat leadership of Wasim Khan and Mark Cosgrove, it is only a matter of time before they sing a victory song - where better than against Kevin Pietersen's Surrey at The Oval next week?

Meanwhile Kent will relish another home fixture, against a Glamorgan team also looking for their first win, but reasonably content to have competed strongly in consecutive draws against Leicestershire, Surrey and Derbyshire - and having offered a sign of their expectation of challenging for promotion with a controversial declaration against Derbyshire on Tuesday. Division Two is bubbling up nicely.

RIPENING PEARS
Now to the M5, and contrasting fortunes between junctions 6 and 25. Near the top of the motorway in Worcester they're buzzing, after an innings win that has injected fresh life and credibility into what was always going to be a survival battle in Division One. Ben Cox, the 23-year-old wicketkeeper from Stourbridge (junction 4), scored his second first-class century. Joe Leach, a 24-year-old allrounder from M6 territory in Staffordshire, made a significant contribution. And Charlie Morris, the 22-year-old seamer originally from Hereford (junction 8 for the M50), bowled so well that the county's director of cricket Steve Rhodes compared him favourably to Alan Richardson. All this, and Moeen Ali back for the derby against Warwickshire which starts at Edgbaston on Saturday.

ALL'S WELL FOR NORWELL
Down around the Bristol exits things are also looking up, after Gloucestershire's first Championship win in Chelmsford since 1930. Liam Norwell was the key figure, taking 10 wickets in a first-class match for the first time in his career, and beating the previous innings best he had set on his debut against Derbyshire back in 2011. Norwell had born the brunt of Martin Guptill's assault in Gloucestershire's last match, also against Derbyshire, conceding an eyewatering 137 runs in 27 overs in what threatened to be a damaging defeat for the new coaching regime of Richard Dawson and Ian Harvey. Now they will head north to Lancashire in much better spirits.

GAYLE GATHERING FORCE
But the other side of the Somerset Levels, the mood is black, after Marcus Trescothick's team were the victims of Worcestershire at New Road. The veteran opener admitted afterwards he was shell-shocked, saying he could not remember losing three consecutive Championship matches. All things considered it is probably timely for Somerset to take a break from Division One action, with a tour game against New Zealand starting in Taunton on Friday. They will surely also be lifted by the imminence of the NatWest T20 Blast, in which they will field a useful Jamaican opener called Chris Gayle. On the most recent Indian Premier League evidence, he seems to be in reasonable nick.

This time next week, the Blast will almost be upon us. Holders Birmingham face Midlands rivals Notts at Trent Bridge in the opening Friday night televised match, when Yorkshire switch on their new floodlights for the visit of Derbyshire and Hashim Amla to Headingley. Shahid Afridi is due up in Durham with the Steelbacks, Mahela Jayawardene at Canterbury with the Sharks, and Grant Elliott at Lancashire with the Foxes - with more overseas stars such as Gayle, Brendon McCullum and Glenn Maxwell due in the coming weeks. Somerset and Yorkshire have already announced sell-outs, Essex aren't so far off, and ticket sales are more than 30% up on the corresponding stage last year. Don't leave it too late.