Leicestershire crumble for a final time
A final curtain of gloom descended on Leicestershire’s miserable season when they crumbled to 112 all out to lose by 408 runs against Derbyshire.
Press Association25-Sep-2014
ScorecardMark Footitt finished a wonderful season with another five-wicket haul•PA Photos
A final curtain of gloom descended on Leicestershire’s miserable season when they crumbled to 112 all out to lose by 408 runs against Derbyshire.A 10th defeat of the Division Two season means Leicestershire are the first county since the Second World War to go through two seasons without winning a Championship match and in the last four innings of this campaign they managed only 508 runs.That suggested a victory target of 521 was purely notional but they folded in less than 30 overs, with Mark Footitt taking 5 for 34 to finish with 106 victims this year and become Derbyshire’s highest wicket-taker in all cricket since 1965, when Harold Rhodes took 124 and Brian Jackson 122.Wayne Madsen, Derbyshire’s captain, said: “The commitment, the energy and passion that we’ve played with over the last few months has shone all the way through to the end.”Often seasons can taper off when there’s nothing to play for in terms of trophies but I’m extremely proud of the players because the application we’ve shown has been exceptional.”Ben Slater scored 119, his second hundred in the game, and India batsman Cheteshwar Pujara made an unbeaten 100 before the declaration on 372 for 3 left Leicestershire with a mountain to climb but they barely made it to the foothills.Derbyshire, who celebrated the biggest ever margin of victory by runs in the club’s history, had been in a commanding position going into day three with a lead of 310 which skipper Madsen extended by another 210 before declaring shortly after lunch.Madsen added only three to his overnight 66 before he chipped Ben Raine to mid-on but the rest of the morning belonged to Slater and Pujara who cruised along at five an over to take the game way beyond the visitors.Pujara showed the elegant ease and timing that was absent in the Test Matches this summer to move to his first hundred for the county off only 115 balls at which point Madsen called a halt.Slater had reached his landmark from 251 balls, making him the 16th Derbyshire batsman to score two centuries in a match and the patient approach he adopted in both innings should have been the model for how Leicestershire set out in pursuit of their distant target.But once again, the top order was reduced to rubble in less than seven overs as Footitt roared in from the city end to add four more wickets to his impressive season’s haul.His first came from the third ball of the innings when Greg Smith missed a big drive and Ned Eckersley was beaten for pace pushing forward in his fourth over.Dan Redfern completed a miserable return to Derby when he was lbw to a full-length ball from Footitt, who had Angus Robson caught behind down the leg side.Any chance of Footitt taking all 10 disappeared when Niall O’Brien edged Tony Palladino to bag a pair and his third consecutive duck, while Leicestershire were in danger of losing before tea when Tom Wells was lbw driving at Ben Cotton.They did at least reach the interval but not without losing Rob Taylor who was bowled driving at Wayne White and the end came quickly as Derbyshire celebrated a fifth win in the last six matches.Leicestershire first-team coach Ben Smith said: “We couldn’t have asked for any more from the bowlers and the attitude and energy we showed in the field was very good but we weren’t anywhere near our best with the bat which is a shame because all season we’ve had batsmen who have performed.”