Date-stamped : 24 Aug97 - 03:08 Brown removes openers By Mike Beddow at Edgbaston First day of four: Worcestershire (20-2) trail Warwickshire (252) by 232 runs THIS fixture frequently has a bearing on the destiny of the cham- pionship. The two counties have shared four of the last nine titles, and a fifth is still a possibility this year. Worcestershire are the more likely aspirants after rising from 14th to fourth in three matches. Warwickshire, though not out of con- tention, have more attractive options in the NatWest Trophy and Sunday League. At first, this was how they measured up yesterday. Worcester- shire again defied obvious limitations in their attack by bowling out a side for the fourth innings in succession, and some of Warwick- shire`s batting could have popped out of the one-day manual. Capitulation was imminent at 146 for six, but their con- tin- gent of all-rounders raised 252, which, on this seamer-friendly pitch, may be better than its face value. Worcestershire`s open- ers have al- ready gone, whisked away in four balls from Dougie Brown. The resumption of Warwickshire`s regular opening partnership - Nick Knight and Andy Moles reappeared after finger fractures - had a settling effect in a rain-shortened first session. What hap- pened afterwards was less convincing. Worcestershire`s seamers found a better line and, on a vari- able surface, batting errors became infectious. Knight was out cut- ting, Moles driving, and David Hemp pulling. Only Trevor Penney`s prod to short-leg lacked intent. Mark Wagh accumulated sensibly but lapsed into a flailing backfoot shot, soon to be emulated by Brown. As five of the wick- ets had fallen to Alamgir Sheriyar and Maneer Mirza, there was another reason for self-reflection. Both bowlers were nurtured in the Birmingham League with War- wickshire connections. Sheriyar reached New Road via Leicester- shire, and Mirza developed in the Edgbaston youth programme. The corrective methods applied by Neil Smith were robust until he brushed a legside catch to Steve Rhodes. Graeme Welch carried on the recovery until Mirza pitched the ball up to complete a ca- reer- best four for 51. Source :: The Electronic Telegraph (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/) Illingworth takes his rare chance By Mike Beddow at Edgbaston Second day of four: Worcestershire (133-2) trail Warwickshire (252) by 119 runs FOR Richard Illingworth this has been the traditional summer of the county beneficiary: raffles, collections, golf tournaments and other assorted functions. The only blank days have come when he should have been playing cricket. Until this week his season had amounted to a Bradford League match for Windhill, in which he dislocated his bowling shoulder, a hand- ful of second XI outings, a one-off comeback in a Sunday League fix- ture, and a Birmingham League game for Barnt Green last Saturday. This is his first championship appearance since last Septem- ber. On the first day he bowled only three tentative overs, but yesterday, with the bat, he turned the clock back 10 years to a maiden century against Warwickshire at New Road. His role then was as a night-watch- man, as it was yesterday when he hit an un- beaten 76, dominating a part- ner- ship with Graeme Hick which had reached 124 when rain ended play soon after lunch. Illingworth can be an infuriating player to bowl at, a capable stroke-maker when the length is full but sometimes twitchy on the off-stump line. This latter tendency was evident yesterday when both Keith Piper, behind the wicket, and David Hemp, at second slip, missed catches off Graeme Welch, whose frustration was compounded when he had an appeal for a catch at short leg turned down against Illingworth. Warwickshire also claimed a catch when Hick drove Dougie Brown to Nick Knight at cover, but the benefit of any doubt went to the batsman. Source :: The Electronic Telegraph (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/) Centurions pile on the agony for Knight By Mike Beddow at Edgbaston Third day of four: Warwicks (252 & 8-1) trail Worcs (448) by 188 runs DIFFERENT priorities were served during a stand of 239 by Richard Illingworth and Graeme Hick. Worcestershire attempted to drive home their late challenge for the championship as Warwick- shire made a significant policy announcement for the NatWest Trophy final. Neil Smith, son of the county`s chairman, M J K, is to lead the side at Lord`s and thus he will be given an opportunity to emulate his father, who led Warwickshire`s first Gillette Cup- winning side in 1966. The club`s cricket management was swayed by Smith`s record of 10 wins in 11 one-day games during the absence of the appointed cap- tain, Tim Munton, who has not played this season, and his official deputy Nick Knight. Though Knight is back holding the reins in this match, as he will for the remaining championship fixtures, Smith will con- tinue to oversee a twin-pronged attack on limited-overs trophies. It was probably not easy for Knight to shut out disappointment on and off the field yesterday. There was no Allan Donald to break Worcestershire`s resolve and no Dominic Ostler to accept two of the three chances which favoured Illingworth`s progress to a fourth hundred and his third as a night-watchman. It was a model of professionalism, full of dabs, drives and de- termination over 319 minutes. Meanwhile, Hick`s innings was di- vided into phases of equal quality: the calmness of a first fifty in 3.25 hours and a more typical surge to a 95th century with a straight six off Smith. Ashley Giles brought some relief to Knight with two wickets, but when Tom Moody pulled Brown for six, Worcestershire had three cen- turions in an innings for only the third time in the post-war period. Source :: The Electronic Telegraph (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/) Knight darkens Moody`s all-round vision By Mike Beddow at Edgbaston Warwicks (252 & 241-5) drew with Worcs (448) THERE were two winners when Warwickshire were forced to unload one of their overseas players at the end of the 1990 season. They re- tained Allan Donald, a successful choice beyond any doubt, and Worcestershire picked up Tom Moody. At the time, Moody was a fledgling member of Australia`s squad and he was lost to English cricket in 1993 in the mistaken belief that he would be touring with his country. Duncan Fearn- ley and his committee did not need to be prodded into getting him back the following year. The correction of an unwitting error, and Moody`s subsequent ap- pointment as captain during 1995, is coming to fruition this year with Worcestershire`s late appearance among several counties casting an eye on the championship pennant. To maintain their challenge, they needed a third successive win in this game. This might have been achieved with some- thing to spare but for the loss of 87 overs on the first two days. Warwickshire required 196 to avoid an innings defeat or, more pertinently, Worcestershire had to take nine wickets. Three were secured before lunch, Moody leading by example. Keith Piper obligingly deposited Maneer Mirza`s third ball straight to long leg, but Moody`s off-spin was soon necessary be- cause of deteriorating light. In no time, he held a miscontrolled drive by David Hemp. Warwickshire became 53 for four with Mark Wagh`s bat-pad thrust to silly point off Richard Illingworth. Frequent showers and Nick Knight`s progress to a first Edgbas- ton fifty of the season then began to conspire against Moody`s vision of taking a side to the summit in both hemispheres. In the last two Aus- tralian summers, he led Western Australia to the Sheffield Shield fi- nal. His success as a captain is part of a natural evolvement of his career. When he first came to Eng- land, he was regarded as a specialist batsman, but this was to ignore others parts of his reper- toire. With Worcestershire, he has become most things: opening bats- man, middle-order strokemaker, new-ball bowler, stock medium-pac- er, and now an off-spinner of no mean ability. The various hats will be flying off the peg if he is to be appointed player- coach next year. Source :: The Electronic Telegraph (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/) Contributed by The Management (help@cricinfo.com)