Date-stamped : 27 Jul97 - 10:36 Dowman to rescue again By D J Rutnagur at Grace Road First day of four: Notts 296-9 v Leics MATHEW DOWMAN, having saved Nottinghamshire`s bacon against War- wickshire in the previous match, again took on the mantle of saviour of a side deprived by injury of senior batsmen Paul Pollard and Paul Johnson. But for the young left-hander`s phlegmatic and mature 125 not out - his second century of the season - in a stay of 380 min- utes, Leicestershire`s ploy in bowling first on a relaid pitch that was as green as the county`s cap would have been an unqual- ified suc- cess for the next highest contribution was 32 by acting captain Tim Robinson. Although they had Notts under pressure all day, Leicestershire will not be satisfied with their gains and if the bottom line in- di- cates that James Whitaker`s reading of the verdant pitch was erro- neous, it was because they did not bowl with disci- pline. The pitch was two-paced. The ball from David Millns that made the breakthrough, with 19-year-old debutant Guy Welton the victim, was brutal for its bounce. There were others that stopped. It was off one of those that Dowman gave his only real chance, at 62, spoon- ing the ball to extra cover. Leicestershire say that West Indian all-rounder Phil Simmons has agreed to return as their overseas player next summer. Source :: The Electronic Telegraph (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/) Dowman cuts free in style for Leics By D J Rutnagur at Leicester Second day of four: Leicester-shire (143-3) trail Notts (342) by 199 runs LEICESTERSHIRE will claim with some justification that Old Trafford`s reputation as being England`s most rained-upon ground is a myth. Seven full days have been washed out at Grace Road this season and the weather again bit hard into yester- day`s play, preventing the contest with their neighbours from taking shape. The frequency with which the rain swept in and the short in- tervals at which it struck were more irksome than the time lost, which was 38 overs` worth. The damage may not seem exces- sive but seems enough to make a decisive result unlikely with- out the stimulus of decla- rations. There was, however, some attractive batting on display. Mathew Dowman, who had kept Nottinghamshire`s innings from disintegrat- ing on Wednesday, went on to make 149 and added 48 with his last partner, Andrew Oram, who made only five but defended his wicket for 45 balls without yielding. When Leicestershire replied, Darren Maddy made an unbeaten 75, his sixth innings of over 50 this summer. It should be noted that all his major innings have been against strong attacks and the author- ity of these performances should make him a certainty for this win- ter`s England A tour. Though the centre of a rescue operation, Dowman played with freedom, driving crisply through the covers in the typical fash- ion of left-handers and square-cutting well when given room. He de- served the luck of half-chances, one of which came with a skimming drive to short extra-cover where Adrian Pierson nearly brought off a catch. Nottinghamshire`s seamers obtained more purchase from the pitch than their opponents`, and yet Leicestershire batted pur- posefully. There was an element of ill luck in the three dis- missals they suf- fered. Vince Wells, caught behind, seemed to feel that the deflection came about from above the wrist, and Iain Sutcliffe and James Whitaker were victims of balls that kept low. Source :: The Electronic Telegraph (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/) Leics overcome Tolley hat-trick By D J Rutnagur at Leicester Third day of four: Leics (267 & 5-0) need 253 runs to beat Notts (342 & 182) A CAREER-BEST six for 61, including a hat-trick, by left-arm pace bowler Chris Tolley secured for Nottinghamshire a first- in- nings lead of 75 but Leicestershire retaliated through Alan Mullally, and James Ormond to put themselves into a winning posi- tion. Mullally, who took four of his five wickets in a post-tea spell, and Ormond who, running uphill, bowled tirelessly and at high pace, had Paul Nixon to thank for their triumphs. He collaborated in six of the eight dismissals they jointly inflict- ed and raised his own tally of catches for the match to 10. Leicestershire`s overnight pair of Darren Maddy, who completed his third century of the summer, and Neil Johnson, who remained unbeaten with a polished 76, seemed to be propelling Leicester- shire to a formidable total when Tolley intervened with his hat-trick midway through the morning. Maddy, who had reached his century off 213 balls, with 13 fours, was his first victim, lbw playing half-forward. Like his two pre- vious three-figure innings, this one also ended on 103. Glancing the next ball, Ben Smith, one of Leicestershire`s match- winners at Canterbury last week, was caught behind and then Nixon was magnificently held, low at first slip, by Nathan Astle. The carnage reduced Leicestershire to 201 for six and it was thanks to the controlled aggression of Johnson, 45 at the time of the hat-trick, that enabled the remaining four wickets to add 66. Despite a faltering start, Nottinghamshire, to their credit, tried to step up the scoring rate to preserve a competitive edge to a rain-affected match. Their innings began to fall apart when Mullally, with successive balls, dismissed a fluent Astle, brilliantly caught at slip by Johnson, and Usman Afzaal. Mullally was the main wicket-taker and deserving his figures but Ormond, only 19, was no less a hero for meeting the extra de- mands his captain made on him in view of David Millns failing to find his rhythm until he was called on to mop up the tail. Source :: The Electronic Telegraph (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/) Leicestershire stay in the hunt By Patrick Murphy at Grace Road Nottinghamshire (342 & 182) drew with Leicestershire (267 & 217-9) THE rain that has bedevilled Leicestershire all season altered the equation on this final day, as the county champions made a de- cent fist of a difficult target. Leicestershire had survived a sticky first hour to advance with increasing assurance on their target of 258 and fourth place in the table, given favourable results elsewhere. A hooked six by Vince Wells in the last over before lunch had clarified the champions` intentions against a callow attack weakened by the asbence of the seam bowler, Paul Franks, but a revised target of 158 off a minimum of 32 overs on a deteriorat- ing pitch was a tall order at the tea interval. After 20 overs in the morning a score of 24 for two was scarcely the most secure of platforms. Admittedly one of those dismissed was the nightwatchman, Adrian Pierson, pinned lbw by a ball that kept low - hardly a collector`s item on this relaid pitch. With Pierson out at 16 for two, Wells and Iain Sutcliffe opted for survival early on. As Franks was out with a toe injury, the priority was to see off the opening bowlers. Then Andrew Oram saw his first ball eased through midwicket by Sutcliffe and 43 came off the next 11 overs. Despite losing almost 16 days` play, Leicestershire have kept plugging away, hoping that the weather relents and their opening bowlers, David Millns and Alan Mullally, recapture last summer`s consistency. Mullally believes he is close to the form that brought him nine England caps. On the day that England`s latest left-arm swing bowler, Mike Smith, experienced the painful gap between county and Test level at Headingley, Mullally took five for 62 here. Source :: The Electronic Telegraph (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/) Contributed by The Management (help@cricinfo.com)