Six for Dexter on mixed day for Middlesex
Close, day one: Lancashire 266 v Middlesex
Neil Dexter took a career-best 6-63 as Middlesex shaded a topsy-turvy first day at Lord’s by dismissing Lancashire for 266.
Under overcast skies, Dexter produced a fine display of seam bowling and took two wickets in each of the three sessions to check the visitors’ progress.
Lancashire did recover from 138-5, with Joss Butler and Tom Smith both scoring 59, but they lost their last three wickets for just six runs.
Given the conditions, that may be a competitive total but Middlesex will hope to bat well on Monday in the hope of establishing a first innings lead.
Despite the threat of rain, play started on time and Middlesex unsurprisingly put Lancashire in having won the toss.
They removed openers Paul Horton and Luis Reece inside the first 15 overs, Toby Roland-Jones and Tim Murtagh the beneficiaries.
Dexter then chipped in with a couple of wickets before lunch, Karl Brown playing on and South Africa’s Ashwell Prince trapped lbw for just 17 – although he had been dropped early in his innings.
In the afternoon, the momentum began to swing Lancashire’s way with a stand of 54 between Buttler and Luke Proctor, before the latter was snagged by Rayner off Dexter’s controlled bowling.
Buttler and Smith added a further 43 ahead of tea, with the England one-day wicket-keeper reaching his 50.
The partnership was broken when Chris Rogers took a fine catch to remove Buttler and give Dexter his fourth wicket.
Lancashire went in for their cuppa at 190-6 and their skipper – 40-year-old seamer Glen Chapple – chipped in with 26 from 30 balls while Kyle Hogg also stuck around to support the stubborn Smith.
They had recovered to 260-7 but Dexter had Hogg lbw to take five wickets in an innings for only the second time in his career.
He surpassed that by having Simon Kerrigan caught later in the same over and Finn bowled Smith at the death to end Lancashire’s resistance.
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