Yorkshire collapsed to 74 for nine inside 22 overs before clawing their way back into the match to the delight of a 5,372 crowd. When stumps were drawn, 18 wickets had fallen, none of them to spin, on a Scarborough pitch that Tim Boon, the ECB’s cricket liaison officer, gave his approval, praising its carry and pace.
What explained the clatter of wickets was the amount of swing that both sides obtained. Mohammad Amir bowled beautifully to return the remarkable analysis of 11.2-4-18-5, but James Porter and Ravi Bopara performed manfully into the wind. For Yorkshire, Ben Coad was a real handful with his late outswing but, in truth, Essex’s batting and bowling was that little bit better.
Yorkshire, though, are still in a match that might have been all but lost by lunch. Adam Lyth kept them in it with an excellent 68. While the rest of the batting capitulated to some high-class swing bowling, Lyth played with impressive stoicism, aside from one half-chance he gave on 28.
Lyth was last out, caught at slip off a fine Amir outswinger, having shared the highest and longest stand of the innings with Ryan Sidebottom. The pair batted for an hour adding 39.
The new ball did not swing for Yorkshire as much as it had done for Essex. Coad, though, removed the stubborn Nick Browne and Tim Bresnan nipped one back to beat Dan Lawrence.
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After Ravi Bopara pulled a short ball straight to square leg, Adam Wheater and the positive Ryan ten Doeschate compiled the highest stand of the day, 58, at four an over. Coad returned to find Wheater’s edge before Lyth held two sharp catches at second slip to remove James Foster and Simon Harmer.