Cork burst not enough for Lancashire

9:15am Tuesday 10th June 2008

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Chris Read steered Nottinghamshire to a comfortable draw against Lancashire at Old Trafford after a burst of three wickets in four balls from Dominic Cork.

Notts were in trouble at 46-3 after being set a victory target of 315 by Luke Sutton's positive declaration half an hour before lunch, especially with injury doubts over Adam Voges and Matthew Wood, two of their specialist batsmen.

But Read came in at number five to share a fourth-wicket stand of 70 with makeshift opener Paul Franks, and went on to an unbeaten 71 before shaking hands on a draw with Sutton at 5.20pm with 11 overs of the day's allocation remaining.

Voges, who suffered a bruised wrist batting against Cork in the first innings, was fit enough to bat at six and had reached 19 when the draw was agreed. Wood had been hit on the hip by a sweep by Sutton when he was fielding at short leg late in the Lancashire innings.

Lancs took 11 points to Nottinghamshire's nine, but remain 13 behind Read's team in the LV County Championship First Division table going into the Twenty20 break.

The fourth day had begun with Lancashire 146-4 in their second innings, and the match fascinatingly poised.

Francois Du Plessis completed his second half-century of the match in a sixth-wicket stand of 72 with Sutton, who declared on 234-6 immediately after his own dismissal.

Franks and Will Jefferson encouraged Notts' hopes of an unlikely victory by putting on 32 in six overs before lunch.

But Cork, who had taken 3-60 in their first innings, then seized the initiative for Lancashire in his fifth over.

He had Jefferson lbw with his third ball, and two deliveries later Sutton took a good low catch down the leg side to send back Mark Wagh for a duck.

Cork then bowled Patel for a golden duck with a full, swinging delivery, celebrating wildly as Lancashire sniffed their second Championship win of the season.

Things might have been different if they had taken either of two half chances in the next couple of overs.

First Franks poked Gary Keedy to short leg but Iain Sutcliffe could not hold what would have been a miracle catch.

Then from the first ball of the next over, Franks denied Cork a hat-trick with a push off his legs to mid-wicket.