If Yorkshire beat Essex at Chelmsford next month and then go on to win the Cheltenham and Gloucester Trophy final at Lord's, they will have to thank the grandson of Dr Who for giving them a helping hand!

Yorkshire hearts missed a beat after that splendid C&G fourth round victory over Northamptonshire on hearing that their opponents in the quarter-finals would be Essex - who kicked them out of the Benson and Hedges Cup at exactly the same stage a few weeks ago.

Essex went all the way to the B&H final but they did not become the last county to have their name inscribed on the Cup because they were soundly beaten by Warwickshire - for whom 23-year-old Jim Troughton hit a splendid 37 during a marvellous stand of 84 with England's outstanding young prospect Ian Bell.

Jim is grandson of the late Patrick Troughton, whose craggy features became familiar to millions of television viewers as Dr Who.

He is also the son of another fine actor, David Troughton, who a few years ago sat gripped by the action at Bradford Park Avenue while his son represented an England Schools XI.

A nimble left-hander with quick reactions and fine footwork, Jim has already plundered a Championship century for Warwickshire this season and if he goes on making progress at his present rate then he will become famous in his own right.

And he has helped Yorkshire basically by knocking Essex off balance.

Until the B&H final, Essex were looking world-beaters under Ronnie Irani's flamboyant captaincy, and the last thing Yorkshire were wanting was another visit to Chelmsford and another possible drubbing.

But Bell and Troughton together dragged Essex back down to earth and with Yorkshire now having started to put together some reasonable one-day results they will travel to Chelmsford in a much happier frame of mind.

Troughton deflated Irani's ego with three consecutive boundaries from cracking cover drives but Yorkshire will also have made a careful note that Essex lost some of their bounciness from the second ball of the match when Shaun Pollock dismissed England captain Nasser Hussain for a duck.

Hussain had pulverised Yorkshire in the B&H quarter-final with explosive batting which rushed him to an unbeaten 136 and he reserved much of his punishment for Matthew Hoggard, slapping him for a total of nine fours and helping himself to 14 off his final over.

Hoggard has found vastly improved form since that dark day, however, and he's already itching to change the script this time by sending Hussain's poles flying before he's managed to settle in.

If Hussain does go early, then Yorkshire's chances will soar.

Warwickshire will be justifiably proud to become the last name to be engraved on the B&H Cup as the competition bites the dust after being around for 30 years.

Many of the knockers of the B&H, including those players and officials who liked to do it down, seem to have changed their tune now that the competition has been scrapped.

It has finally dawned on many of them that there is going to be a big early season gap next year and that without the B&H, England's Test and one-day players are going to have fewer opportunities to sharpen up.

The 20-overs tournament which replaces the B&H will not be played until June, when it will be spread over a fortnight, but this frenzied form of cricket will not produce any future Test cricketers.

And if the younger generation are attracted to these games - which is the main reason why they are being held - they should not expect to see any current England stars involved in the action.

The last thing they or England will want is for them to risk serious injury and the same concern is likely to be expressed by the counties for their senior players.

The ECB hope to persuade the kids to come and watch this new brand of cricket but whether they can be tempted without the appearance of big names is another matter entirely.

'Wood batting is a hit

Is a good pinch-hitter a valuable asset in one-day cricket or does he get in the way of better quality batsmen who are waiting in the queue for the crease?

Opinion seems fairly well divided on the issue and cogent arguments can be made for or against.

It seems to me, however, to be simply a case of if the gamble comes off it is worth it and if it doesn't then it's a waste of time.

Chris Silverwood has been cast in the role of Yorkshire's regular pinch-hitter this season and I have to admit that I was doubtful at first over whether he could make a good job of it.

Now I have to say that, although the move has not always paid off, Silverwood has played the part to perfection on the times that it has.

And the fast bowler can feel proud that he has already blasted a spectacular half-century while batting at number three in each of the one-day competitions.

His most remarkable effort was his 56 from 42 balls with five fours and two sixes in the Benson and Hedges Cup quarter-final clash with Essex at Chelmsford after getting off to quite a slow start, 19 balls being needed to move into double figures.

But Silverwood's 58 from just 32 deliveries with 11 fours and a six against Durham Dynamos last Sunday in the Norwich Union Division One encounter at Riverside was also hugely entertaining, as was his career-best one-day score 61 off 75 balls with five fours and a six off Northamptonshire's attack in the Cheltenham and Gloucester Trophy fourth round tie at Wantage Road.

Silverwood's defensive technique never leaves one confident that he will survive for very long but he has got an extremely sharp eye and can play some blistering strokes.

He is very adept at placing the ball over the heads of the inner ring of fielders who have to be so positioned during the first 15 overs of the innings and that is why he can be so effective as a pinch-hitter.

Many of his boundaries come from lusty blows over mid-wicket but he has also got an excellent straight drive and it was this particular shot that brought him consecutive sixes off an astonished Ronnie Irani at Chelmsford, the second clearing the ground and stopping just inches short of the river.

Silverwood's batting can be as cheery as his personality and if nothing else his pinch-hitting role acts as a safety valve for the tensions which can build up through more often than not being Yorkshire's senior fast bowler.

With Matthew Hoggard missing more Yorkshire matches than he plays in because of England commitments and with Gavin Hamilton unable to bowl at the moment because of a serious loss of confidence, a lot rests on Silverwood's shoulders, particularly as Craig White does not put in the number of overs he used to do.

Before this week's game against Sussex at Arundel, Silverwood had collected 18 Championship wickets at 29.61 runs apiece which was only one victim fewer than leading wicket-taker Steven Kirby.

Fast bowling remains his chief responsibility but no-one at Yorkshire will complain if he goes on smacking sixes and flogging fours.

Updated: 11:29 Saturday, June 29, 2002