Murtagh bowls Middlesex to easy victory

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Middlesex 459-8 dec & 31-0 beat Lancashire 266 & 223 by 10 wickets

Tim Murtagh took 6-60 as Middlesex cruised to a 10-wicket win and maintain their 100 per cent home record this season.

The win looked routine when Lancashire were reduced to 45-5 before lunch, still 148 runs behind.

Ashwell Prince (86) and Joss Buttler (50) put on 117 to eliminate a large chunk of the deficit before Murtagh broke the stand and with it most of Lancashire’s resistance.

They eventually set Middlesex just 31 to win and Chris Rogers and Sam Robson needed only 23 balls to rattle off the required runs.

Murtagh had set the home side on the path to victory by trapping Luis Reece lbw late on day three, and he struck early on Wednesday to remove nightwatchman Simon Kerrigan.

Toby Roland-Jones had Karl Brown lbw for a duck and Steve Finn took wickets in successive overs to leave Lancashire reeling on 45-5.

Prince and Buttler survived until lunch and continued to thwart the Middlesex attack in the afternoon, picking off boundaries at intervals.

Both reached their half centuries as their partnership stretched beyond 100 and cut the Middlesex lead to 31.

Buttler was dropped by wicket-keeper John Simpson but he couldn’t make the most of his let-off as he was pouched at second slip by Dawid Malan to give Murtagh his third wicket.

In his next over, Murtagh had Tom Smith caught behind to put Middlesex in sight of victory.

Glen Chapple hit six fours in a cameo of 32 as Lancashire avoided an innings defeat, but the end was nigh once Prince edged through to Simpson trying to play expansively.

Chapple followed shortly afterwards and Murtagh castled Kyle Hogg to dismiss Lancashire for 223.

Middlesex had 19 overs to score 31 but Robson’s four boundaries ensured they got over the line after just 23 deliveries.

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