Maynard ton keeps Surrey on track for promotion
Tom Maynard's third County Championship century of the season boosted Surrey's hopes of promotion from Division Two
12-Sep-2011
Tom Maynard's third County Championship century of the season boosted Surrey's hopes of promotion from Division Two as they reached 400 for eight against Derbyshire at the Kia Oval.
Maynard hit 123 from 157 balls, with 16 fours, and there were also fine innings of 73 and 61 respectively from Steve Davies and Zander de Bruyn as Surrey established a strong early position in a match they must win if they are to go up.
Jason Roy struck an attractive 52-ball 45, in which he got off the mark with a six over mid-wicket off Wes Durston, and also drove Tom Knight straight for six, while adding 97 for the fifth wicket with the powerful Maynard. It was a determined and spirited effort from Surrey after they had initially slumped to 12 for 2, losing both skipper Rory Hamilton-Brown and master batsman Mark Ramprakash to the new ball.
Hamilton-Brown, who was awarded his county cap during the lunch interval, had made just 6 when he edged to first slip a drive at left-arm paceman Mark Footitt after he had won an important toss to give Surrey first use of a dry, straw-coloured pitch.
Ramprakash soon followed, bowled off stump for a second-ball duck as he pushed forward defensively at Tim Groenewald, who was then distraught to see Durston - who had pulled off an excellent catch to remove Hamilton-Brown - drop a straightforward edge by Davies when the left-hander had scored only 19.
Surrey would have been 35 for three if Durston had held the chance, but soon Davies and De Bruyn were flourishing against some modest bowling in a stand of 120 in 31 overs for the second wicket. They were not parted until nine overs after lunch, when De Bruyn edged Footitt to wicketkeeper Luke Sutton. His 61 had taken him 110 balls, with nine fours.
Davies, although fortunate on one occasion to thin-edge Jonathan Clare just past his stumps for four, batted with a sensible mix of watchfulness and aggression and he had just slog-swept Durston for his 10th four earlier in the over when he missed a conventional sweep at the off spinner and was lbw to his 114th ball.
Roy's bright innings was ended by a smart piece of reflex work by Dan Redfern at short leg, who stopped a firm clip off his pads by the batsman and threw down the stumps in a flash as the momentum of Roy's stroke took him out of his crease.
Gareth Batty and Chris Jordan both hung around usefully to help add 25 and 73 with Maynard for the sixth and seventh wickets, Batty being trapped lbw for 13 by Groenewald and Jordan yorked by Footitt for 14 soon after being dropped at second slip.
Stuart Meaker was twice reprieved from Footitt no balls, at 362 and 392, when he was bowled and caught at backward square leg respectively, and with Tim Linley saw Surrey to maximum batting bonus points in the day's final over after Maynard's fine knock was finally ended by a catch to the keeper off Clare.
