The Three Hundred

Yorkshire 320 for 7 

beat 

Warwickshire 281 all out 

by 39 runs 

ECB 50 Over Cup 

Tuesday 3 August 2021 

Played at York Cricket Club 

I come to praise The Three Hundred, not to bury it. The other ECB new competition. The Hundred. Launched to hyperbole. Gathering together the very best, overseas commentators that money can buy. Has garnered all the column inches & volume. But, one door opens. There is now a real opportunity for proper County Cricket to connect with fans & heartland.

Some people will tell you that The Hundred has pushed County Cricket further to the margins. Get outta here. It's just nudged it back to where it should be (ish). Played around the Counties. On outgrounds. In the school holidays. Temporary stands. Folding chairs. Marquees for the Ten Bob Millionaires. Beer tents. Cask Ale in the Club House. Food vans on the rugby pitch. Ice cream. Portaloos.

The boys next door

The mums and dads

New weds and nearly deads

Have you ever been had….

© Elvis Costello

Here we are at York Cricket Club. Not just down my street. But, just down someone's. Fifty, six ball, overs a side. The Three Hundred. The best of the rest. And. Here's an inconvenient truth for the ECB. It's the end of the 49th. The home team are 7 down for a very gettable 288. The first ball of the last over is an above the belt no ball. The free hit goes for SIX. The second for FOUR. The bowler, Ethan Brookes, is trying to bowl Yorkers. He's missing that length. The batsman, Matthew Waite, knows this. And is setting himself for the shot. The bowler, Ethan Brookes, knows this. And his arse is twitching. The batsman, Matthew Waite, knows this. And his mind is cleared and focused. The bowler, Ethan Brookes, knows this. And, he's fucking gone. And the ECB want to simplify the game. WHY?

SIX. FOUR. FOUR. SIX. THIRTY TWO off the over. And, here's the inconvenient truth for the ECB. The big crowd packed into York. They don't care that it's not The Hundred Most Valuable Batter, Ben Duckett versus The Hundred Most Strike Rated Overarm Chucker, Ben Klaassen (btw, who the fuck's he?). It could be anyone. Mano y Mano. The game. Right there. A 32 run over is something, let me tell you.

The boy next door, sat with his girlfriend & two mates. At Uni in York. Squeezed in the Temporary Stand between mums & dads. Wouldn't even be here if the game was at Headingley. He turned to the nearly dead (moi).

"How many off that over?"

"Thirty two Kid"

"That could be the difference between winning & losing that"

(note - Warwickshire lost by 39 - but he was close)

Yorkshire lost two wickets in their first over. Will Fraine off the first ball. Hoping to get an easy leave. Or a solid block. But, got an edge and caught behind. And Luxton off the fourth. With a MAD heave ho skyer. But then. An impressive rebuild, platform, and humpty finish. Ballance & Duke took it to 89. Hill and Tattersall were majestic. Putting on 110 for the fifth. Hill went for 64 off 65. Tattersall went for (top scoring) 70 off 67, at 265 for 6 with 3.2 overs left. Matthew Waite, well we've already dealt with his day. Forty two off sixteen. Ridic. Five players got past forty. The Bears were rocking on their back paws.

In the scorebook, Warwickshire's innings doesn't look too bad. Dan Mousley & Jacob Bethell both passing sixty. And putting on 115 for the sixth. But, it never really felt like they were in the chase. They lost 7,8,9 quickly. And it was all over with 16 balls left. Coad & Hill three wickets each.

My first ever visit to the York ground in this Dividend from The Hundred. So, I didn't know this, but the ground is on a sprawling, multi use site. Including a caravan site. And, one of those tanker wagon things had rocked up to empty shit & piss out of the campsite latrines. (Incidentally, you won't get that in The Hundred). And, inevitably, it stunk. And, good news, I could smell it. A bit. So maybe my smell & taste is returning & I can Blog about Beer again soon.

In the meantime, that meant I had to pass on the Leeds Brewery, Leeds Pale on Cask in The Pavilion.

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I have now Blogged from 973 games in 2,541 days