Tight victory not enough
Durham v Surrey at Chester-le-Street. 12, 13, 14, 15 September 2016
Durham 401 (KK Jennings 201*, MHA Footitt 5/90) and 246 (MD Stoneman 92, G Clark 54, SM Curran 7/58) Surrey 367 (JJ Roy 120, G Onions 5/90) and 259 (ZS Ansari 51, JJ Roy 96)
Durham won by 21 runs
Durham 24 points, Surrey 7 points
In their last home match of the season, Durham gained a victory which appeared to save them from relegation. Another victory, away against Hampshire, ensured a fourth-place finish but ultimately it was not enough to prevent Durham starting the next season in the second division. This followed relegation after receiving assistance in addressing the club’s financial issues.
There was no doubting the determination of the Durham players to avoid relegation. The ECB allowed Ben Stokes to play and to bowl a limited number of overs. With a lack of clear guidance on what limited meant he bowled 47 overs in the match. Mark Wood also played and got through 35 overs despite a painful ankle which later turned out to be broken.
Durham’s first innings was based around an unbeaten double-century from Keaton Jennings who set a county record of seven for the most centuries in the season. He finished the summer as the leading run-scorer in the country and went on to make his England debut, in India over the winter.
In the Surrey first innings Jason Roy, batting in the middle-order, shared a fourth wicket partnership of 164 with Zafar Ansari and there was a late flurry of runs for Gareth Batty and Stuart Meaker. Graham Onions five wickets helped him towards 50 wickets in the season which he achieved for the seventh time.
Durham’s hopes of setting a stiff target appeared to be in jeopardy when they slipped to 83 for five after Sam Curran had taken four wickets in seven balls. Graham Clark then made a rapid fifty to add 109 with the more restrained Mark Stoneman. Sam Curran kept picking up wickets to finish with what remain his best first-class bowling figures; a reflection of how little red-ball cricket he has played recently.
Needing 281 to win, Surrey seemed on course for victory at tea. Following another century stand between Roy and Ansari they required just 113 with six wickets standing. Ben Stokes then had Roy caught down the leg side off the first ball after tea to deny him a second century in the match. Despite a defiant innings from Sam Curran three further wickets for Stokes and two for Onions ensured a Durham victory.