Lords is not Cape Town or Dharamsala. It looks, as most cricket commentators are fond of saying, a picture, but there are no snow-capped mountain peaks to be seen in London NW8.
Not real ones, anyway. As for metaphorical sporting peaks, there have been many. The largest of which, in Tests at least, was posted, almost inevitably, by Don Bradman’s Australians with a whopping 729 for 6. That was in response to a pretty decent England first innings total however. For setting the proverbial ‘mountain to climb’, England against India in 1990 stands the tallest. Their 653 for 4 declared was built upon Graham Gooch’s record 333. A Lords record that is, until Glamorgan’s Sam Northeast overhauled it against Middlesex on Day Two here, with a chanceless and imperious 335*. Captain’s privilege was then duly invoked, by timing his team’s declaration at 620 for 3 just after passing Gooch’s ‘daddy’ triple score.
Early season wickets at Lords have a reputation as bowler friendly. Plenty of green under foot, skies darkened by April clouds and the proud seam of a Dukes ball causing it to swing and bounce in directions likely to discomfort the most adept of batters.
Kookaburra ball has batsmen laughing
Not here though. Instead, we have a placid track, that even on Wednesday had looked distinctly bereft of any green and a Kookaburra ball that whilst not laughing itself, had batters smiling and brought tears to the faces and blisters to the feat of weary bowlers. Middlesex captain Toby Roland Jones had elected to field. A monumental slice of bowler’s wishful thinking. Cold comfort perhaps that Sam Northeast said he would have done the same.
All of which meant that as Mark Stoneman and Max Holden emerged at the start of Day Three, with Middlesex on 138 for 1, they were not even beyond the foothills of the mountain before them. The summit of 620 was invisible, lost in clouds and even the climb to plant a flag in the follow-on target of 471 looked perilously steep for a team whose batting bonus points were as rare as hen’s teeth last season.
Where Sam Northeast had been in full Edmund Hillary mode, aided manfully by sherpa Colin Ingram, at least of couple of Middlesex’s batters would need to reach landmarks rarely touched in the recent past. Sam Robson had already stumbled and fallen as the sun set on Day Two.
For a while, footing was firm and progress steady. However, Stoneman tripped and fell whilst reaching for the flag to mark both a personal and team milestone. With Middlesex on 199 and himself on 97, he slashed Kieran Carlson to Douthwaite at cover. Had Middlesex reached lunch without further loss, they would at least have tucked into their rations feeling that the lower target of 471 was well in reach. Alas, Max Holden flicked Douthwaite to Sherpa Ingram at gulley on 53 and his ascent would go no higher.
Middlesex hopes for Leus du Plooy are high and justifiably so. He would have for company Ryan Higgins, so often last season’s mountain rescue specialist. Du Plooy’s debut innings for his new team was progressing nicely to plan until a falling rock in the shape of Mir Hamza persuaded the new Kookaburra to move just enough to trap him in front for a promising, but in context disappointing, 37.
Individually, knocks of 43, 97, 53 and 37 for the Middlesex top four look respectable. Alas, not set against 335 and not when you have a bowler loaded team.
Redoubtable Higgins leads assault on lofty summit
One of those bowlers, however, is also Higgins the redoubtable allrounder, who, batting at 5, one place higher than that to which he is accustomed, set about compiling the eighth first class ton of his career and his first at Lords. He did so at a decent lick too, punishing a wearying Glamorgan attack all around the wicket.
Not too much, bar a single previous 50, suggested that Jack Davies would provide such solid support, but he did, both calmly and confidently, although was finally undone on 60, falling LBW to Kiran Carlson. Never mind that Lords had provided one of the smoothest roads ever found to scale a mountain. His 153-run partnership with Higgins had got Middlesex in sight of their first landmark, the follow-on.
Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu was no mountaineer, but he did famously opine that a journey of a thousand miles begins with one step. And Ryan Higgins continued relentlessly, step by step, onwards and upwards now with Josh De Caires for company.
As shadows lengthened and overs remaining in the day disappeared beneath them, the pace of progress for Higgins and De Caires slowed and they set up camp for the night on 460 for 5, just 11 runs short of that first 471 follow-on target. Higgins, with a superb blend of aggression and restraint was unbeaten on 127. De Caires on 15.
Glamorgan toiled in the field as Middlesex had done before them. James Harris had once taken 9 for 34 here for the home side against Durham. How he will have longed for the conditions of that day as he went wicketless on his return. A third new ball may well be needed fifteen overs into the final day.
Most will see a draw now as highly likely if not inevitable. But for regular Middlesex watchers, the application shown by Higgins will be the most encouraging of signs for the season ahead.
