NatWest T20 Blast: Durham vs Derbyshire
Well, that was fairly horrible.
Thank goodness for Alex Hughes, the only batsman in our innings who showed a modicum of common sense on a tricky pitch. There were too many expansive shots on a tricky track and we were horribly outclassed in this game.
As was always likely to be the case, of course. That Durham side is very experienced and has some canny players in its ranks (not my attempt at speaking Geordie, for the record...). Phil Mustard is one of those match-winning players that Graeme Welch referred to as needing at Derbyshire. He quickly took any chance of an upset away with a brutal innings, being especially severe on Greg Cork, while England man Ben Stokes again highlighted his great talent.
Cork minor cannot have expected such a tough baptism, but he will learn that the margins of error in the senior game are much less than he has met so far. I liked his attitude and composure with the bat and he'll come back strong. Time is very much on his side.
On the basis of today I'm not especially looking forward to the next three months, but we must carry on regardless and hope that some of the team find their best form.
As I said last night, there's places in the squad for the future up for grabs.
Sadly, none of those with points to prove did much about it today.