Batting shambles

Yorkshire had a bowling injury crisis on their hands against Middlesex at Lord's yesterday but it was a batting shambles which led to their defeat by 58 runs in the AXA League under the Duckworth-Lewis system for calculating rain-hit matches.

Rain in the tenth over, when Middlesex were 42 for one, caused a long enough delay to reduce the game to 28 overs a side with Middlesex going on to reach 177 for four.

Yorkshire were set a winning target of 187 but their hopes were quickly dashed as their first five wickets crashed for only 39 and they were eventually bowled out for 129 with 23 balls remaining.

With Chris Silverwood unable to play because of a suspected stress shin fracture and Ryan Sidebottom ruled out with a groin strain, Yorkshire were robbed of a further fast bowler when it was learned that Gavin Hamilton had broken a toe while batting in the championship match the previous day.

Bradley Parker, instructed to join the party as batting cover for Michael Vaughan who is suffering from a stiff back, found himself in the side because Yorkshire had no other fit alternative, while the Pudsey Congs pair of Matthew Hoggard and James Middlebrook were both given their Sunday League debuts.

Australian Justin Langer made sure Middlesex were in command with the bat after they had been put in, the left-handed opener plundering 86 off 79 balls with eight fours and two sixes, one of his sixes being palmed over the rope by Hoggard and the other caught on the wrong side of the boundary by Matthew Wood.

Middlesex had a slight wobble at 59 for three but then Paul Weekes (42 not out) joined in a rousing stand of 110 in 14 overs with Langer, who batted until the final over when he was lbw to Paul Hutchison.

With only two recognised seamers in the side, Yorkshire had to bring on Anthony McGrath as first change with his recently acquired medium pace and he proved to be the pick of the bowlers, taking two for 27 off his maximum six overs.

McGrath had Keith Brown caught behind by Richard Blakey just before the break for rain and he later produced a splendid delivery which rattled Richard Johnson's middle and off stumps.

Yorkshire needed a swift start to worry Middlesex but their early order batsmen simply could not cope with Tim Bloomfield and left-arm Chris Batt who each bowled their overs off the reel.

Bloomfield accounted for Vaughan in the first over and at 23 he bowled Darren Lehmann whose legside heave was probably the worst shot he has played since joining Yorkshire.

Batt knocked back Wood's stumps and had McGrath caught off his right thumb at slip by Langer, the batsman removing his glove in considerable pain as he walked back to the pavilion.

Skipper David Byas, usually so reliable when fast runs are needed, looked uncomfortable all the time and, when in some desperation he drove Batt to mid-on, he had hung around for 38 balls, his 18 being made up of 12 singles and three twos.

Parker suddenly launched a counter attack and Blakey was a sleeping partner to such an extent that his first run brought up the 50 partnership, Parker's contribution being 32.

He added only a single, however, before off-spinner Keith Dutch came on to have him caught behind and the slow bowler continued to hasten Yorkshire's downfall, finishing with four for 22, Blakey and Richard Stemp being stumped within the space of three balls.

Even all the injury problems could not excuse this shabby performance by Yorkshire who have now lost all hope of winning the AXA League after being so confident they could take the title only a few weeks ago.

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