Middlesex’s first century of the season courtesy of Sam Robson was not quite enough to secure victory after their LV= Insurance County Championship Division One match at home to Northamptonshire finished in a scores-level draw.

The top-flight’s bottom two served up a thriller as Robson’s 126 not out, sharing a fourth-wicket stand of 150 with John Simpson (75), saw the hosts close in on their 323 target.

Ten was required from the last over and three from the last ball but Robson could only scramble a two to the on-side and the draw did little for either struggling side’s prospects.

At the other end of the table leaders Surrey’s draw at home to Nottinghamshire was less dramatic with proceedings called to a halt with the visitors 118 for one in their pursuit of 297 in 52 overs.

Brett Hutton’s fifth five-wicket haul of the season was the highlight as the Nottinghamshire seamer took his Championship tally to 41, level with Durham’s Chris Rushworth at the top of the wicket-taking standings.

Leg-spinner Calvin Harrison chipped in with three for 99 to bowl out the hosts for 340 40 minutes after lunch but there was not enough time left in the day for either side to fashion a victory.

Essex moved into second place with a 46-run win at Lancashire as Rob Jones’ 111 proved in vain for the hosts, who were bowled out for 383 with 11 balls remaining in pursuit of what would have been the county’s record run-chase of 430 to win.

Luke Wells (75) and Josh Bohannon (68) contributed half-centuries after the visitors’ overnight declaration on 292 for eight but Matt Critchley and Doug Bracewell both claimed three wickets apiece.

Nick Gubbins’ four-hour defensive masterclass earned Hampshire an unlikely draw after they had slipped to 115 for seven still needing needing 55 to avoid an innings defeat against Somerset at Taunton.

Gubbins scored 50 not out off 241 balls and shared in a match-saving stand of 100 with Liam Dawson (68no) either side of tea, Hampshire closing on 215 for seven.

In Division Two, Derbyshire captain Leus du Plooy made a magnificent 128 but the bottom side came up 19 runs short as they came agonisingly close to chasing down a target of 380 in 58 overs against Sussex.

Du Plooy’s third hundred of the campaign makes him the division’s leading scorer with 979 runs but when he was caught in the deep Derbyshire still needed 54 from 41 balls, and when the eighth wicket fell with 11 balls remaining the hosts settled for the draw.

A total of 552 runs were scored in the day at Hove as 19-year-old James Coles was last out for a career-best 180 as Sussex declared 25 minutes after lunch on 384 for nine.

Yorkshire’s victory push was thwarted by the weather and Worcestershire’s third-wicket pair of Jake Libby (64no) and Gareth Roderick (34no) at New Road.

The home side began the day on 22 without loss in their second innings and had been reduced to 49 for two – still 116 runs short of avoiding an innings defeat – when play was halted for bad light and then rain.

Play resumed three hours later when the Libby and Roderick put on an unbroken stand of 110.

Rishi Patel scored his fourth century of the summer – a career-best 179 – but his Leicestershire side had to settle for a draw in a heavily-curtailed game of just two innings at Glamorgan.

Leicestershire, starting the day 28 for none, posted 451 for six in reply to their hosts’ 403 for nine.

Off-spinner Saurav Worrell was the star of the show with a brilliant six-wicket haul as Barbados handed Jamaica their only defeat of the West Indies Men’s Rising Stars Under-19 50-over Tournament in St. Vincent & the Grenadines.

Worrell ripped through the Jamaican batting at Arnos Vale on Wednesday, finishing with figures of 6-28 off 20 overs, to restrict the Jamaicans to 106 all out to complete a 75-run win.

Captain, Nathan Sealy, also chipped in with 3-13 off 9.4 overs. Adrian Weir (33) and Brian Barnes (32) were the only Jamaican batsmen to score more than eight.

Earlier, Joshua Dorne hit 64 and Zion Brathwaite hit 40 as Barbados posted 181 all out off 45 overs.

Michael Clarke took 4-34 to lead the Jamaicans with the ball and got good support from Deshawn James who took 3-32 off eight overs.

Jamaica, despite the defeat, finished the tournament top of the table with four wins out of five games.

The Windward Islands finished second after their third win in five games with a 56-run win over Guyana at the Park Hill Playing Field in Colonarie.

The Windwards posted a formidable 285-5 off their 50 overs batting first, the highest total in the tournament.

Divonie Joseph led the way with the first century of the Championship, an unbeaten 110 off 132 balls including nine fours and four sixes, while Tarrique Edward provided good support with 64.

Jonathan Rampersaud took 2-49 for Guyana.

Rampersaud also showed good form with the bat, reaching 58* off 46 balls as Guyana reached 179-7 off 38.5 overs before rain ended proceedings with Guyana 56-runs short of where they needed to be.

Earlier, Mavendra Dindyal made 37 and Rampertab Ramnauth 33 as Edward ended with 4-40 from his 10 overs.

The day’s third match saw Trinidad & Tobago pull off a nail-biting three-wicket win over the Leeward Islands at Sion Hill.

The Leewards were bowled out for just 94 in 34.3 overs batting first. The bulk of the damage was done by Ronillster Perreira who took 4-21 from his 10 overs. Vasant Singh took 3-15 from eight overs in support.

The Trinidadians then struggled to reach their target, eventually losing seven wickets on their way to 95 in 34.3 overs.

Kimani Nisbett and Michael Palmer took two wickets, each for the Leewards.

All teams will now turn their attention to the three-day format starting on Saturday.

Isa Guha believes Heather Knight’s England can complete a remarkable turnaround to win the Women’s Ashes but feels the series has already proven to be a “seminal moment” for the sport.

England were 6-0 down in the multi-format series after narrow defeats in the one-off Test and the opening T20 at Edgbaston last month, but have hit back to win the next three matches to level up the scores and victories in the final two ODIs over the next week will see them reclaim the urn.

Sage ambassador Guha has been across the action as part of both Sky Sports and BBC’s coverage and agrees with England bowler Kate Cross that the aura of world champions Australia has slowly been chipped away.

She told the PA news agency: “For me I always believed they could beat Australia, but it was a question of whether they did. Then there is one thing believing it and another thing actually doing it.

“There were so many times on that last Ashes tour where they would get themselves into positions to win and almost psychologically break down and not believe they could really get over the line against Australia.

“Something I heard from Kate Cross was they have taken away the Australians aura and that is what has allowed them to win these games.

“That ruthlessness to have the composure in the big moments is what had been lacking, but now they have won games it will unlock their potential even more, so that is what makes it even more exciting.”

Each match of the series has provided twists and turns with different starring roles – Tammy Beaumont hitting 208 in the Test at Trent Bridge while Sophie Ecclestone claimed a 10-wicket haul.

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Since the format switched to white-ball cricket, Sophia Dunkley, Danni Wyatt, Alice Capsey and Knight have all had key contributions and in doing so further cemented their place as role models for the next generation.

Ex-seamer Guha – involved in three successful Ashes series as a player – feels the impact of this summer’s battle will be significant regardless of the results in the final two ODIs at the Ageas Bowl (Sunday) and Taunton (Tuesday).

“I always knew it could be,” Guha reflected when asked if she anticipated such a thrilling series.

“There was always a feeling it could be possible, but it is mad.

“I remember being part of the 2005 Ashes and we were spurring each other on. People didn’t really know we were playing back then so that is probably the difference to now but there is something in the air. It feels a really seminal moment for our sport.

“I think women’s cricket is only going in one way. It is the fastest growing area of our sport and to see that investment paying off, that makes us all feel good about the bigger picture of women’s cricket at the top level.

“There is still a lot more to be done at grassroots level and in the pathways, but certainly the inspiration that is coming out of this whole series is incredible.

“To have a team that is competing with arguably the greatest team that has ever been, yeah that is enough to get excited about. Whatever the result, it has certainly been a win for the sport.”

Both the women’s and men’s Ashes are being played against the backdrop of cricket’s struggle to rid the game of discrimination.

The Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket (ICEC) report published last month identified ingrained racism, sexism and classism within the sport in England and Wales, with among its key recommendations that there be immediate equality in men’s and women’s international match fees.

Guha highlighted the viewing figures when reflecting on the need for equal pay.

She added: “The numbers are there for everyone to see as well.

“This is one I thought was really amazing. On Sky 965,000 watched England beat Australia over four days in the third men’s Test at Headingley, so that is a daily figure while 795,000 watched Heather Knight’s side win (the T20) on Saturday night.

“If there is any evidence the girls need to be paid more, there you go.

“The argument that always comes around is how many eyeballs they get and that is the perfect example of how women’s cricket is being captured. It has captured the imagination of the population.”

The Sage Small Business XI competition will see a small business owner be part of The Hundred as well as winning a £60k boost to their business. Enter now at www.sage.co.uk/TheHundred 

Another day, another poor performance from a West Indies team as India took firm control of the first Test in Dominica at the end of Wednesday’s opening day.

After Captain Kraig Brathwaite won the toss and chose to bat, the home side were bowled out for 150 in 64.3 overs. The West Indies batsmen were left in a spin as Ravichandran Ashwin took 5-60 and Ravindra Jadeja had figures of 3-26.

At stumps, India were 80-0, trailing by only 70 runs as Test debutant Yashasvi Jaiswal remained unbeaten on 40. At the other end Rohit Sharma was not out 30. Neither batsman seemed troubled by a West Indies attack that lacked penetration.

The only thing redeeming about the West Indies was Alick Athanaze, who scored 47 to top score for the home side. Brathwaite got 20, which was the second-highest score for the West Indies.

Raheem Cornwall was not out on 19 when the West Indies innings came to an end.

As things stand, the West Indies bowlers have a long day ahead of them on Thursday.

Alice Capsey warned Australia that England are yet to play their best cricket despite levelling the Women’s Ashes by winning the opening ODI at Bristol.

England secured a nerve-shredding two-wicket win to wipe out the 6-0 deficit suffered after losing the series’ solitary Test and the opening T20 clash.

Australia need to win only one of the two remaining ODIs at Southampton and Taunton to retain the Ashes but they have now lost three consecutive games for the first time since 2017.

“We were 6-0 down but we took a lot of confidence from the Test match because we saw how close we were to winning that,” said number three batter Capsey, 18, who struck 40 from 34 balls in England’s victorious reply of 267 for eight.

“We had another narrow loss in the opening T20 at Edgbaston, but we were pretty confident that once we got that first win we would go on a streak.

“The whole series we haven’t been at our best. In the T20s we were playing at 80 per cent and we weren’t at our best again here.

“But to get over the line in pressure moments when previously we would have crumbled a little bit is great. We were so calm out there, which is something we have focused on.

“It’s really exciting we haven’t played our best cricket and it’s six-all.”

The power hitting of Capsey and Tammy Beaumont was in danger of going to waste after England had reached 103 for one in the 12th over, chasing 264 to win.

Wickets fell at regular intervals and it was left to skipper Heather Knight and Kate Cross, coming in at 10, to get England over the line.

Cross joined Knight in the 44th over, with their partnership of 32 proving pivotal as England triumphed with 11 balls to spare.

Knight made 75 from 86 balls while Cross’ cameo of 19 from 20 deliveries included an audacious ramp shot over the head of Australia’s wicketkeeping captain Alyssa Healey.

Capsey said: “Crossy batted brilliantly – she can bat at three! She came in and played to her strengths.

“We saw her bravery whether it was the ramp or hitting Jonno (Jess Jonassen) down the ground. It was unbelievable to watch.

“She loves the ramp and probably plays it the best out of the whole group. If you don’t see a Kate Cross ramp you might be asking her: ‘Are you OK?'”

Looking ahead to the Ashes’ climax, Capsey added: “We’ve shown a lot of fight in this series that previously we might not have.

“Australia are the most successful cricket team and we knew it was going to be a real challenge.

“We were the underdogs coming into the series but we have put the pressure on the Aussies. They are still a quality side and we go again at the Ageas (in Southampton).”

Australia benefited from the hosts spilling four catches while wicketkeeper Amy Jones missed out on a stumping from a legside wide.

“It would have been really nice to snatch that one at the end when they were under the pump and eight down,” said Australia batter Beth Mooney, who top scored for the tourists with an unbeaten 81.

“We certainly haven’t put out best foot forward at this point and we know we’ve got to give a lot more when it comes to executing our skills.

“I don’t think we’re that far off. Unfortunately we didn’t capitalise on the opportunities to put pressure on England.

“We’ve let ourselves down in the last couple of games, but there’s no complacency.”

Dan Lawrence delivered a message to England ahead of the fourth Ashes Test, bludgeoning nine sixes as he recorded a second successive LV= Insurance County Championship hundred for Essex.

After missing out at Headingley last week as England went with an extra bowler following Ollie Pope’s injury, Lawrence, celebrating his 26th birthday, took the attack to Lancashire to rescue Essex from nought for two at Blackpool.

He was out from the final ball of day three but his belligerent 135 off 125 deliveries was his third century of the season and lifted Essex to 292 for eight and a lead of 429 in the Division One clash.

Lawrence is in the squad for next week’s penultimate Test at Emirates Old Trafford and his recent form could give England something to think about as they mull over whether to change a winning XI.

Essex were also bolstered by Doug Bracewell’s unbeaten 61 off 35 balls after earlier bowling Lancashire out for 145, with Sam Cook taking four for 42 while Paul Walter chipped in with three wickets.

Half-centuries from Dom Sibley and Tom Latham carried Division One leaders Surrey to a lead of 156 against Nottinghamshire at the Kia Oval.

Nottinghamshire carved out a 44-run advantage on first innings, largely thanks to 145 from Will Young, whose time at the crease was ended by an excellent agile catch from England discard Ben Foakes.

Surrey captain Rory Burns bagged his second duck of the match but Sibley’s 87 and Latham’s 60, plus 25 from Foakes, carried the hosts to 200 for five at stumps.

Warwickshire recorded an innings-and-46-run win inside three days over Kent, who were all out for 332 second time around at Canterbury, where Oliver Hannon-Dalby collected four for 59.

Felix Organ (97) and Kyle Abbott (89) put on 177 for the ninth wicket for Hampshire, who were asked to follow-on after posting 330 in response to Somerset’s 500. Hampshire closed on 34 for two at Taunton.

Sam Whiteman’s 114 plus 85 not out from Emilio Gay ushered rock-bottom Northamptonshire to 372 for seven and a lead of 314 against fellow strugglers Middlesex at Merchant Taylors’ School.

Matthew Potts took four for 55 as Division Two leaders Durham completed a nine-wicket victory over Gloucestershire at Chester-le-Street.

Potts’ haul included bowling Gloucestershire’s top-three of Ben Charlesworth, Chris Dent and Oliver Price as the visitors were all out for 188, and Durham knocked off a 52-run target in 11.4 overs.

Ben Coad’s five for 33 led to Worcestershire being skittled for 242 in reply to Yorkshire’s 407 at New Road, where the hosts were grateful for nightwatchmen Ben Gibbon and Adam Finch as they ended the day on 22 without loss in their follow-on.

James Coles’ 101 not out steered Sussex from 72 for four to 193 for five and a lead of 188 against Derbyshire, who were earlier all out for 407 after Brooke Guest’s 105 at Hove.

Michael Neser, an outside bet for Australia in Manchester next week, thumped an unbeaten 176 as Glamorgan rallied from 93 for seven to post 403 for nine declared against Leicestershire, who closed on 28 without loss in their rain-hit clash.

England levelled the Women’s Ashes series with a thrilling two-wicket win over Australia in their opening ODI at Bristol.

The multi-format series now stands at six points apiece with remaining ODI matches at Southampton and Taunton to play.

Australia need to win only one of those games to retain the Ashes, but the momentum is very much with England after three successive victories.

Back-to-back T20 wins had revitalised England but crossing this particular line against opponents who had won 41 of their last 42 ODI matches will generate huge belief that they can upset the odds.

Australia’s 263 for eight was overhauled with 11 balls to spare, thanks largely to captain Heather Knight’s unbeaten 75 from 86 balls and a brilliant late cameo from Kate Cross, and their fate would have been worse had England not dropped four catches and shelled a stumping opportunity.

Six England bowlers shared the wickets as bowlers as Beth Mooney, reprieved on 19 and 39, top scored with an unbeaten 81.

England were always ahead of the required rate after Tammy Beaumont and Alice Capsey brought up a rapid hundred in the 12th over, but Australia’s ability to take wickets at regular intervals left the contest in the balance.

Australia chose to bat as morning showers and overcast conditions gave way to blue skies but captain Alyssa Healy – who made 170 against England at the 2022 World Cup final – fell third ball after opening up with two boundaries.

Cross’ lbw review was upheld and England rejoiced knowing a major blow had been struck.

England should have built on that but Ellyse Perry was dropped on six driving Cross to Sophie Ecclestone at first slip, an initial sign that Australia would ride their luck.

Perry and Phoebe Litchfield were quick to punish anything pitched short as Australia reached 62 for one off 10 powerplay overs.

Litchfield – 36 from 34 balls – saw her innings end in spectacular style as she targeted a seventh boundary off the bowling of Nat Sciver-Brunt.

The ball looked as if would clear Ecclestone but the spinner thrust out a left hand above her head and celebrated the dismissal by putting a hand over her mouth in amazement.

Perry survived again on 36 attempting to hit Ecclestone over the top and Sarah Glenn spilled a presentable chance at mid-on.

But Perry did not have a third life on 41 as Glenn the bowler atoned and Sciver-Brunt accepted the chance at short mid-wicket.

England were left to rue careless hands again as Tahlia McGrath flashed Cross hard to point and Beaumont failed to hold on diving to her left.

Mooney was also fortunate as she miscued a Glenn full toss and Cross put it down diving forward at mid-off. Those errors ended up costing England 79 runs.

McGrath, dropped on seven, reached 24 before Capsey beat her defensive prod for a first ODI wicket and Mooney breathed again after striding down the pitch to Ecclestone only for Amy Jones to miss a stumping wide down the legside.

Australia’s progress was slowed by losing two wickets in the space of three Lauren Bell deliveries.

Ashleigh Gardner departed to an excellent Sciver-Brunt catch over her shoulder running towards the mid-wicket boundary, while Annabel Sutherland lost her off stump for nought as Australia slipped to 185 for six.

But Mooney and Jess Jonassen prevented a late-innings collapse by sharing a seventh-wicket partnership of 55 as England were set a challenging target on a slow surface.

England’s reply was aided by wayward bowling which saw the amount of extras in the first three overs exceed the entire number of the Australia innings.

Darcie Brown and Perry sent down two no-balls and 10 wides as England sped away, despite the early departure of Sophia Dunkley for eight.

Beaumont and Capsey went on the offensive to such an extent that 84 runs came from the opening 10-over powerplay.

Three figures were brought up by Beaumont smashing Sutherland for a six over long-off, but she soon holed out after making 47 from 42 balls.

Capsey contributed 40 from 34 before picking out Sutherland on the long-on boundary off Gardner and it was often a case of poor shot judgement as Australia profited and piled on the pressure.

Sciver-Brunt (31) top edged a reverse sweep off Jonassen, Danni Wyatt (14) drove Megan Schutt to backward point and Amy Jones gave Georgia Wareham a return catch.

England’s self-destruct button was pressed again as Ecclestone found Wareham on the boundary and Gardner claimed a third victim as Glenn drove straight to Litchfield at short cover.

But Cross made a superb 19 not out from 20 balls, including an audacious ramp shot as she provided the cameo Knight craved to get England home.

Three teams have confirmed their fifth overseas player ahead of the 2023 Republic Bank Caribbean Premier League (CPL). 

Australian all-rounder Ben Cutting will be joining the Jamaica Tallawahs. Cutting has played at the CPL before with the St Kitts & Nevis Patriots in 2018. With experience in the best T20 leagues around the world he will bring power batting and skillful bowling to the Tallawahs line up.

Tristan Stubbs will be joining the St Kitts & Nevis Patriots. A powerful batter who has recently broken into the South African international team, Stubbs has experience of playing in T20 leagues in England, India and his native South Africa. This exciting talent will bring firepower to the Patriots team.

Saim Ayub will join the Guyana Amazon Warriors, an international batter for Pakistan in T20 International cricket. With a proven track record of success, he will be a real boost for the Amazon Warriors.

The Amazon Warriors have also announced that Rahmanullah Gurbaz will not be available for some of this year’s CPL due to international commitments. Gurbaz will be replaced by Pakistan international Mohammad Haris for that period.

England’s assistant coach Paul Collingwood believes this summer’s Ashes excitement could spark a cricket boom in the country.

Three thrilling Tests and three nerve-racking finishes at Edgbaston, Lord’s and Headingley mean this is already the most exciting men’s Ashes in a generation, while the women’s series is also reaching new heights as it plays out in front of record crowds.

Collingwood made a fleeting appearance in the final match of the 2005 series against Australia, a rivalry that became a national obsession and made mainstream stars of players like Andrew Flintoff and Kevin Pietersen.

That still stands as a high watermark for Test cricket in modern times and, although the Ashes in no longer on free-to-air television, Sky Sports have reported record viewing figures for both series and Collingwood feels a real connection is being made with old and new followers.

A fitting climax looks all but certain, with England 2-1 down and seeking a rousing comeback victory and Australia aiming for a first away win since 2001.

“It’s been enthralling, gripping stuff and it feels like it’s not just the the regular cricket fans who are switching on, it’s reaching a bit further than that,” Collingwood told the PA news agency ahead of next week’s fourth Test at Emirates Old Trafford.

“People just can’t wait for the cricket to be on. The 2005 Ashes was an inspiration for people to get involved, to go out there have have a try and participation went through the roof. That’s what we want.

“It really feels like there’s nothing better going on in the sporting world right now. These guys are entertainers. When the team is playing like it is, it’s amazing to watch, there hasn’t been an hour when it’s been boring.

“I’m sitting on the edge of my seat watching and you don’t want to move. The Ashes is one step on the journey this side wants to go on in taking this exciting brand of cricket on and we hope everyone will follow us.

“Baz (McCullum, head coach) and Ben Stokes didn’t keep it a secret when they took over – they want Test cricket to be as entertaining as it can be and that’s been behind everything we’ve done over the last year.”

Both teams have had a chance to get away after England kept the series alive with victory in Leeds, the last significant gap in the schedule before the contest concludes with back-to-back Tests.

There are selection issues to settle on both sides and injury niggles to monitor. England will recall record wicket-taker James Anderson at his home ground, with Ollie Robinson likeliest to make way on grounds of fitness and form, but they will look to keep the majority of their winning team together in Manchester.

“This break will have recharged the batteries, which we needed because it’s been high intensity stuff and it can be draining,” Collingwood said.

“It’s even draining for us on the sidelines. The guys have shown they can make good decisions under pressure, but it’ll be good to get those bodies and minds back in shape.

“As coaches it’s about creating a relaxed environment and making sure the boys enjoy themselves, that’s what really allows them to bring their best game into Test matches.

“You want to be at 100% and I think in my career I tended to hit 60 or 70% because there was always that fear of making mistakes.

“These guys aren’t worried about negative consequences and it allows them to show their skills off.”

England claimed a dramatic draw in the first Ashes Test against Australia on this day in 2009 after James Anderson and Monty Panesar staged a dogged last-wicket stand in Cardiff.

The tailenders survived the final 69 deliveries in a tense rearguard action at Sophia Gardens to deny the tourists first blood and spark wild celebrations in the stands.

England had resumed on day five at 20 for two, 219 runs behind after Australia had overhauled their first innings total of 435 and established a platform for victory with a mammoth 674 for six declared in which Simon Katich, Ricky Ponting, Marcus North and Brad Haddin had all reached three figures.

The hosts looked to be heading for an innings defeat as Kevin Pietersen, Andrew Strauss and Matt Prior went by the time the score had reached 70, although Paul Collingwood’s resolute 74 steadied the ship with support from spinner Graeme Swann, who made 31.

However, the Durham all-rounder’s stubborn resistance ended after a 245-ball, 344-minute stay at the crease when he edged Peter Siddle to Michael Hussey at gully.

England had been reduced to 233 for nine and the writing was on the wall.

As Panesar walked out to join Anderson in the middle with his side still six runs behind, a minimum of 11.3 overs remained and few gave two men hardly renowned for their expertise with the bat any real chance of resisting.

But to huge popular acclaim resist they did, at times uncertain over whether to take runs when they presented themselves, but growing in confidence once successive Anderson boundaries had ensured the Australians would have to bat again.

Anderson ended up finishing unbeaten on 21 while Panesar contributed seven runs to a total of 252 for nine to secure a draw, the significance of which only became apparent as the summer progressed.

England went on to win at Lord’s and the Oval either side of a draw at Edgbaston and an Australian victory at Headingley, taking the series 2-1 and in the process regaining the Ashes they had surrendered so tamely Down Under during the winter of 2006-07.

Will Young marked his Nottinghamshire debut with an unbeaten century to anchor the visitors’ response on day two of their LV= Insurance County Championship match against leaders Surrey at the Kia Oval.

The New Zealand international, who is on a three-match contract with the Trent Bridge outfit, provided immediate value with a fluent knock of 106 not out that guided them to 248 for five at the close, trailing Surrey by 107.

Young shared a second-wicket partnership of 134 with Haseeb Hameed, who hit 67, while Surrey’s Jamie Overton took two wickets on his return to bowling action for the first time this summer after recovering from a back injury.

Surrey had earlier posted 355 all out in their first innings, with Nottinghamshire all-rounder Lyndon James picking up the last two wickets to register career-best figures of six for 74.

Tom Westley’s 28th first-class hundred and his century partnership with Paul Walter rescued Essex from a poor start at Blackpool before a late fightback by Lancashire saw the visitors bowled out for 282.

Skipper Westley made 135, his third century of the season, with Walter eventually out for 76.

Tom Bailey, with six for 59, led a good reply by Lancashire, who closed on 37 for one to be 245 behind.

Rob Yates compiled a double century to put Warwickshire in a commanding position against Kent at Canterbury.

The visitors declared their first innings on 549 for seven, a lead of 378, before reducing Kent to 55 for one.

Yates hit his highest first-class score of 228 not out, with 23 fours and a six, having batted for nearly nine hours, while Australia’s Glenn Maxwell made 81 in his first Championship appearance for four years.

Chris Rushworth bowled Tawanda Muyeye for a duck early in Kent’s second innings, with the hosts ailing 323 runs adrift.

Ryan Higgins struck a sixth half-century of the season to guide Middlesex to only their second batting bonus point of the campaign and a first-innings lead over Northamptonshire in the Division One basement battle at Merchant Taylors’ School.

Higgins made 64 not out to steady the ship from 127 for five to a total of 277, which edged them 58 in front. Mark Stoneman contributed 51, while Northamptonshire off-spinner Rob Keogh returning three for 52 and Ben Sanderson three for 77.

Returning to make an impact with the ball when Northamptonshire batted again, Higgins removing both Ricardo Vasconcelos (22) and Justin Broad (five) as the visitors finished on 55 for two.

James Rew became Somerset’s youngest double-centurion in first-class cricket as Somerset took control against Hampshire at Taunton.

The 19-year-old extended his overnight score of 77 to 221 before being last man out in his side’s first innings total of 500.

Kasey Aldridge (88) and Dom Bess (54) also contributed to Somerset’s impressive recovery from 80 for five before Hampshire limped to 58 for two at close.

In Division Two, Alex Lees scored his third century in as many innings to guide leaders Durham into a strong position against Gloucestershire at Chester-le-Street.

Lees anchored the innings with a flawless 195, his highest score as a Durham player, while Graham Clark made 82 after the hosts were reduced to 109 for four in reply to Gloucestershire’s 316.

Brydon Carse finished the day unbeaten on 60 in Durham’s 433 for eight, which gave them a 117-run lead.

Opener Finlay Bean hit a career-best 135 to consolidate Yorkshire’s position against Worcestershire at a showery New Road.

The 21-year-old, dropped twice on the opening day, put on 177 with Adam Lyth (79) – Yorkshire’s best opening stand for seven years.

Worcestershire fought back, with seamer Adam Finch taking five wickets for 100, but Yorkshire maintained their grip after Matthew Fisher and Ben Coad dismissed both openers as the hosts finished 46 for two.

On another rain-affected day in Cardiff, Glamorgan lost captain David Lloyd for six on his return to action, but steadied the ship to reach 54 for one at close against second-placed Leicestershire.

Lloyd – soon to be leaving the Welsh capital – was bowled by Matt Salisbury before 32 from Zain-ul-Hassan as part of a 44-run partnership with Sam Northeast restored the hosts’ composure.

Derbyshire wicketkeeper Brooke Guest hit an unbeaten 80 to frustrate Sussex’s promotion hopes at a rain-hit Hove as his side reached 212 for three in reply to Sussex’s 402, trailing by 190.

Chris Woakes admits his triumphant return to Ashes cricket left him “quite emotional” after accepting his time as a Test player might have come to an end.

Woakes stepped up with bat and ball after being thrust into last week’s must-win clash at Headingley, 16 months after he last donned his England whites on the ill-fated tour of the West Indies.

Defeat in Grenada spelled the end of Joe Root’s captaincy and ushered in the ‘Bazball’ era, with Woakes watching on from the outside as English cricket turned a new corner under Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes.

Injury saw Woakes miss the entirety of last summer and, although he returned to the limited-overs set-up in time to win the T20 World Cup in November, the 34-year-old was beginning to believe the Test team had left him behind.

Watching the all-rounder take three Australian wickets in each innings in the third Test, then guide his side home with an unbeaten 32, that now seems hard to imagine.

But Woakes, who opted not to put his name forward for this year’s Indian Premier League in a bid to keep his red-ball skills sharp, is honest enough to say he was worried.

“It’s quite emotional actually. You sometimes think the ship has sailed, of course you do,” he said of his match-winning return.

“You do wonder, especially when the team was going so well last summer and I wasn’t involved. It’s hard.

“Obviously I had injuries and stuff, but I made a big decision at the start of summer not to go to India and, you know, it’s days like these which make that sort of decision pay off, comfortably.

“Sometimes you don’t always get the rewards that you deserve, but I felt like I played well in this game and got the rewards I deserve.”

Those rewards included scoring the winning runs, clattering Mitchell Starc through point for a boundary which sent a sold-out crowd wild.

“It literally doesn’t get any better than that, I don’t think,” he reflected.

“The feeling of that roar, the Western Terrace going mad. It’s pretty special, pretty cool. If you could bottle that up forever and come back to it, you would.”

Attention now turns towards Emirates Old Trafford, where England will look to level the series scoreline at 2-2 to set up a decider at the Kia Oval.

The tourists have two chances to become the first Australian men’s side to win an Ashes series on English soil since 2001, but Woakes has warned that the task will not get any easier.

“In our dressing room the belief is we can win 3-2, I think it’s always been there,” he said.

“You don’t want to look too far ahead, you have to play what’s in front of you, each ball, each day, each session, each Test match as it comes. I’d imagine when you’re so close to getting something, the harder it gets, and I’m sure the Aussies will be feeling that now.

“Once you get so close to something, it’s actually hard to get that over the line, isn’t it? We’ve got turn up in Manchester and put in another performance. They’re an extremely good side and we’re going to have to be at our best to beat them again.”

England captain Heather Knight insists the pressure is all on Australia after the home side’s fightback in the Women’s Ashes.

Australia appeared to be cruising towards a successful Ashes defence after winning the solitary Test and the opening ODI to take a 6-0 lead in the multi-format series.

But England have reduced the deficit to two points after winning back-to-back T20 games and head into the three-match one-day international series with renewed confidence of upsetting the world’s number one women’s side.

“We had to win five games on the trot to win the Ashes so I guess the pressure was on us as we were massive underdogs at that point,” Knight said ahead of Wednesday’s opening ODI in Bristol.

“But the pressure’s all on them now, they’ve only got to win one game (to retain the Ashes). If we can keep doing what we’re doing, keep ramping up that pressure a little bit.

“We’re still the underdogs in the context of the whole series. I feel like the pressure’s not massively on us.”

Test stars Tammy Beaumont and Lauren Filer have returned to the England squad with Knight promising that her side will continue to “disrupt” Australia.

Beaumont became England’s first Test double centurion while Filer touched speeds in excess of 75 miles per hour at Trent Bridge to live up to her reputation as the fastest female bowler in the country.

“We see her (Filer) as someone who can disrupt a bit and bowl in those middle overs and try to take wickets,” Knight said.

“She’s obviously played a lot at Bristol as well, knows the ground well and is really exciting.

“In the past, we might have got a bit down and had the ‘here we go again’ thing against the Aussies, but there’s a real belief in that room that we can match this cricket team.

“We’ve always seen ourselves as the disrupters in this series, having to do things differently to beat this really good team.

“I’m sure they’ll come at us hard but our job is to keep trying to disrupt, keep trying to put them under pressure and bring our best cricket.”

England’s men’s team have kept their own Ashes hopes alive by winning at Headingley since the women’s side wrapped up a 2-1 T20 series win on Saturday.

That feel-good factor in English cricket is something Knight is keen to tap into during the remaining ODI games at Bristol, Southampton and Taunton.

She said: “It was great to see the guys win. I think they have actually been quite parallel series – they obviously lost the first two games which were very close as well.

“There’s a real buzz around the country, which is awesome, that’s what Ashes series can do. We’re buzzing off the amount of people that have come to watch us.

“We’re just trying to keep the momentum going and if the boys can keep doing well and we can keep doing well then maybe we can both have the great escape. Time will tell.”

Australia all-rounder Tahlia McGrath says the visitors are not panicking after successive defeats.

McGrath said: “It was disappointing not to have played the cricket we would have liked, right through the T20 aspect.

“But we’ve had some good discussions and we’re still pretty confident. We’re here to win the Ashes and we’ve still got our noses in front. There’s no panic stations.”

Asked if just retaining the Ashes with an 8-8 draw would be enough for Australia, McGrath said: “I don’t think so. We want to win every game of cricket.

“First and foremost we want to retain the Ashes and doing that eight-all doesn’t sound the same as winning them outright.”

England have moved early to throw their backing behind Jonny Bairstow, retaining the wicketkeeper for next week’s fourth Ashes Test at Emirates Old Trafford.

The selectors have resisted the temptation to send a mid-series call out to Surrey’s Ben Foakes, with Bairstow retained as the only gloveman in an unchanged 14-man squad.

The Yorkshireman has endured a difficult series behind the stumps, missing eight chances of varying difficulty in the first three games, leading to calls for Foakes to be restored.

But England have nipped such talk in the bud at the earliest opportunity by naming the same group for next Wednesday’s clash in Manchester, another must-win for the hosts who are 2-1 down with two to play following their victory over Australia at Headingley.

Foakes has repeatedly been hailed as the best wicketkeeper in the world by captain Ben Stokes, but the 30-year-old was the odd man out at the start of the summer when Bairstow’s return to fitness following a badly broken leg and the rise of Harry Brook left England with a dilemma.

Bairstow’s movement has not looked as sharp since returning from injury, hardly any surprise after he sustained three separate fractures in his left leg, ligament damage and a dislocated ankle, but he retains the backing of a hierarchy who like to stick to their guns when it comes to personnel.

He has only fired once with the bat in the current Ashes series, making a run-a-ball 78 on the first day of the series, but he has shown before just how dangerous he can be when the mood is with him.

He was England’s Test player of the year in 2022, setting the tone for the ‘Bazball’ era with four exhilarating hundreds last summer. Head coach Brendon McCullum and Stokes both promised his place would be kept open when he suffered his freak accident on a golf course and have been as good as their word.

He will now be hoping to pay that faith back at Old Trafford. Ollie Robinson also takes his place in the 14 despite back spasms rendering him a peripheral figure in the previous match.

Robinson will join up with the side and is being monitored by the medical team, but is favourite to make way for the return of record wicket-taker James Anderson at his home ground.

England quick Mark Wood is eager to hit Australia with more “thunderbolts” in Manchester next week and aims to prove “lightning strikes twice” after his Headingley heroics.

Wood marked his return to Ashes cricket with a stirring player-of-the-match showing in Leeds, taking match figures of seven for 100 and hitting 40 vital runs from just 16 deliveries.

His efforts helped change the tone of the series, getting England on the board after back-to-back defeats and leaving the path open for the hosts to reclaim the urn against all odds.

Wood’s raw pace provided an X-factor that had been absent at Edgbaston and Lord’s, with his first ball of the match doubling up as England’s fastest of the summer.

He continued cranking it up in his first red-ball outing for seven months, at one stage reaching 96.5mph during a ferocious opening spell, and Australia’s batting looked entirely less assured due to his mere presence on the park.

Wood revealed his England captain and Durham team-mate Ben Stokes had given him one simple instruction when he let him loose.

“Ben just asked me, ‘Are you ready? Are you ready to bowl some thunderbolts?’ I said yes and that was it,” he said.

“He was ready to unleash me. I know him well and he knows me well. Having that relationship with someone makes it easier.”

Asked if he was ready to dish out more of the same at Emirates Old Trafford next Wednesday, Wood replied with a grin: “Absolutely. Lightning strikes twice, eh?”

Wood is arguably the most consistently fast bowler ever to play for England, a crown he likely lacks only due to the absence of accurate historical data.

But the sheer physical exertion the 33-year-old puts himself through means he has had to endure long spells out of the side.

Since debuting in 2015 he has played just 29 of England’s 109 Tests, missing many of those through injury, yet Wood has set his sights on finishing strongly this summer.

There are just three days between the fourth and fifth games of the series, but, with a week to get himself ready, he fully intends to be on parade for both.

“I did four in Australia last time and three of them were in a row. It’s a big ask, but one I’ve done before and I will lean on that experience to try to do it again,” he said.

“I will speak to the physio, but I imagine I will bowl once or twice, do a couple of gym sessions, maybe some running, but it won’t be too drastic. I have to let the body recover.

“This was my first game in a very, very long time, especially in Test cricket. I will let the body recover, get myself in a good space, let the wounds recover and get myself up for the next one.”

Wood wears his heart on his sleeve on and off the field and could not hide his satisfaction at taking up a starring role midway through a contest that has captured the imagination of the public.

“It fills me with great pride to say I can do well against Australia. It’s challenging because they are a top, top side,” he said.

“It’s one of the best feelings I’ve had. Look at facing Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc. One, it’s not easy. Two, it’s really intimidating.

“They’re bowling fast, they get good bounce and more often than not they come out on top. Luckily this time it’s the one out of 100 I’ve managed to get through.

“The 2005 Ashes was the absolute pinnacle for me – I was at a great age, a teenager, and my hometown hero (Steve Harmison) was playing.

“I don’t feel like it’s to that magnitude, but it’s great to have the support, which has been amazing everywhere we’ve been. You feel it on the street walking around, people messaging you. It’s amazing as a nation that we can carry this weight of support with us.”