Alleyne goes down with all guns blazing

Division One

Points table

This was a poor weekend for any office workers looking to spend a relaxing Saturday at the cricket. Only three games limped into a fourth day, and two of those ended before or immediately after lunchtime. Only at Cardiff did a match reach tea.

David Alleyne's defiant 109 not out was not enough to prevent defending champions Nottinghamshire slipping to a 60-run defeat by Warwickshire at Trent Bridge. Notts had seemed down last night when they slid to 77 for 5 chasing 377, but Alleyne and Mark Ealham added 113 by the close. They only put on another 10 this morning when Ealham fell for 56, but Alleyne found support from Graeme Swann (30) and Ryan Sidebottom (26) before running out of partners. Alleyne, who made his first-class debut back in 200, had never made a half-century before his first-innings 57 in this match.

Sussex resumed at Hove needing 55 to beat Yorkshire with five wickets in hand, and they cruised home without any alarms thanks to Matt Prior, who scored 43 off those to finish on an unbeaten 55. Robin Martin-Jenkins (17*) was content to play second fiddle as Yorkshire slid to their second defeat of the season.

Division Two

Points table

An early burst from a Welshman, Steffan Jones, appeared to have put the skids under Glamorgan as they fell to 69 for 7 chasing 213 to beat Derbyshire at Cardiff. Jones took the first five wickets to fall, finishing with 6 for 25. Nicky Peng and Robert Croft then swung the balance of the game again with an eighth-wicket stand of 91 before Ian Hunter removed Peng for 56. Croft kept Glamorgan creeping towards their target, but Jones returned to dismiss Andrew Davies, and Croft was left high and dry when Huw Walters fell to Hunter to give Derbyshire a 38-run win.