Surrey have final word in misty-eyed encounter at Scarborough

Splendid Scarborough plays host to a fascinating Championship encounter, reports Huw Turbervill

Surrey mean business. Not just because they are the revenue-churning juggernaut of the English game; but because they are super serious about winning this summer’s County Championship.

That they are hellbent on their first title since 2002 was obvious at wondrous North Marine Road, Scarborough: such a joyous, romantic cricket venue, with its sea mists (known locally as frets), swooping gulls, wooden benches and charming tea room.

For a time it looked as if a depleted Yorkshire might defeat the leaders, leading by 75 runs on first innings. But Surrey turned the game on its head, thanks to a superb spell by Morne Morkel.

South Africa’s loss is Surrey’s gain. The county will enjoy two years of this brisk, bouncy quick, rather than the 33-year-old adding the 14 caps he needs for a Test century. You have to assume he did not come cheap, but you get what you pay for.

It is not just him, though. Surrey are leaving nothing to chance. They signed Theunis de Bruyn for two matches after the withdrawal of Virat Kohli, who was meant to be here (what a shame), and he batted nicely for 38. They felt they could do better than Arun Harinath (first-class average of 31). They also have Dean Elgar back for the season’s finale.

There are many in cricket who do not appreciate Surrey, yet it is not just about big signings. Director of cricket Alec Stewart has incubated a batch of youngsters that look set to serve club and country well in the forthcoming years.

Top of this pile is Ollie Pope, who made an extremely impressive 69 not out in the first innings before he ran out of partners. It took his aggregate for the season in Division One to 654 runs at 93.43.

Yorkshire were without seven players. They do not begrudge the absence of Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, David Willey and Liam Plunkett with the senior England team, but they were a bit annoyed about Tom Kohler-Cadmore and Matt Fisher being on Lions duty. They argue that a Championship match against Surrey would provide a better education for them. That Adil Rashid did not provide the hosts with some variety in their attack is just a crying shame. He is expected to depart this summer, if another county stumps up for him.

Yorkshire batted well after a sticky start (166 for 6). Yet another promising wicketkeeper/batsman Jonny Tattersall (no relation to Roy) top-scored with 70, and put on 100 with a belligerent Tim Bresnan (48). Earlier Gary Ballance looked fluent for his 54, now he is no longer captain, as the hosts ended day one on 299 for 8. The shine was taken off the day by an allegation that Ryan Patel was racially abused by a member of the bumper crowd of 4,384. It was a tough day for the visitors, with Rikki Clarke venting his frustration on Twitter about the team’s treatment by spectators. There was a promising spell by Amar Virdi, who took two wickets, and that was warmly received by the crowd. Pope kept tidily enough in the absence of Ben Foakes, who was also with the Lions.

I enjoyed sitting in the crowd on days two and three. They seemed knowledgeable, wanting to talk to me about the match, cricket and this magazine. They were not especially rowdy, save for the odd chant of ‘Yorkshire! Yorkshire! Yorkshire!’ over by the wooden benches.

Captain Steve Patterson and Jack Brooks bumped the score up to 337 on the second morning, but Jade Dernbach removed them both to finish with 4 for 104. He is bowling steadily this summer, winning over the (four-day) sceptics, although he committed a Level 1 offence.

Surrey started steadily thanks to the prolific Rory Burns’ 59, save for losing Mark Stoneman, who showed his annoyance – the second Level 1 offence of the day, earning Surrey a five-run penalty (lifting Yorkshire’s total to 342).

Pope, who has been on Surrey’s books since he was nine, picked up more devout followers from the day-two crowd of 3,909 as he cover drove beautifully. “Will Pope play for England? Is the Pope a catholic?” is the joke doing the rounds. He has a similar build and modest strut to Root (no pressure there then), and his bat twiddling could come from the Stewart manual. His defence also looks solid, getting a big stride in when defending on the front foot. Yorkshire’s attack was a little samey with four right-arm seamers but they gave precious little away, especially Patterson. Bresnan seemed to have some of that old snap and bounce back.

Morkel came in to play a lively cameo, including hitting a thumping six over midwicket into the benches. The mists rolled across the ground like a magician’s conjuring tricks, despite the rest of the country basking in 30°C heat. The number of hold-ups was in double figures, and when the umpires finally took them off, Surrey still had much work to do at 219 for 7.

The sun back out again on the third day, Pope added another 35 to haul the Surrey total to 267.

The ballad Scarborough Fair looks at how a man instructs his former love to do a series of impossible tasks. One cannot say Surrey’s task from here on in was impossible, but a deficit of 75 looked significant.

Morkel had other ideas, though. His steepling bounce, delivered from the Pavilion End, was a right handful. He had a little help. Alex Lees’ horrible run continued with a wretched shot; Adam Lyth was brilliantly caught down the legside by Pope; Ballance poked to point; Jack Leaning nibbled, and Tattersall was trapped leg before. Dernbach again gave him fine support, but 152 was a poor show, with young Harry Brook having a disappointing game.

Burns and a Stoneman looking a bit more like his old self knocked 89 off the 228 target on the third evening. Burns then marched to 97 on the final day (although whether his 722 four-day runs at 65.64 this season nudges the selectors remains to be seen). Again, Rashid was sorely missed. Yorkshire have work to do to secure their top-flight status. They have played half of their games, and lie in the relegation zone.

Apart from the Patel incident, this match was a showcase for the Championship, with 50,000 extra viewers also enjoying it thanks to the four-camera live streaming organised by Surrey, Yorkshire and Sky Sports Digital – a first in the county game (most counties stream, but only with static cameras).

A banner declaring ‘no to city-based tournaments! You don’t have to euthanase us!’ spoke volumes. It is not a magic formula – wonderful venue (although the town itself is struggling to find its identity in this era of package holidays and impending Brexit), generally good weather, two fine teams. Long may it continue.