By Bryon Butler at Lord's
First day of four: Warwicks are 372-5 against Middlesex
SUNSHINE and Brian Lara: all day long. Warwickshire's captain scored his first hundred in 40 innings, his first in England since 1995, and his first for his county since the distant days of 1994. At best he was imperial; at worst just handsome.
Warwickshire won't choose to say the wait was worthwhile. They have had to work very hard at being patient and understanding, but they also knew that one day, some day, the great man would start getting things absolutely right again. This, they are hoping rather fervently, was the day.
Middlesex were accommodating hosts. A flat and flaxen pitch, a short boundary in front of the Mound and Tavern stands and an attack, minus Angus Fraser, which was never generous but doomed to sweat and swear.
Lara eased himself into the day with a couple of edged fours just after midday, neither a chance, but then moved swiftly through all his gears. His follow-through became almost theatrical, the time between crack of ball on bat and then ball hitting fence seemed to get shorter and shorter.
He made regular use of a paddled sweep, played late and very fine, but the real profit came from his driving, cover and straight. He never focused on the short boundary, but never forget it.
Lara's first fifty came in 75 balls (10 fours), his second in 69 (seven), his third in 57 (six) and his fourth in 57 (one six and six fours). It added up to a fair day at the office: 224 not out in 277 balls with one six and 33 fours.
Middlesex bowled manfully, occasionally fitfully, and sometimes even fretfully. One or two sharp eyes even noticed Phil Tufnell take a little swing at the stumps and dislodge the bails after one particularly painful over against Lara. His follow-on gesture was clearly intended to indicate it had been an accident. Richard Johnson at all times, just got on with his job: 20-7-45-2.
Lara was on an altogether higher plateau than the rest; and by way of contrast, his support came in all manner of styles and tempos. Nick Knight scored 36, before he was bowled, on the move, by Chris Batt; Anurag Singh made 41 before he was caught at point of Johnson; and, in the evening glow, Neil Smith bullied his way to 33 not out.
Singh, quick-witted and quick-footed, enjoyed his visit to Lord's with Cambridge, but he showed no inclination to trade the blows and runs with Lara. He took his supportive role so seriously that his innings consisted of 11 scoring shots (including eight fours and a six) and 104 'dot' balls.
Knight, cagily, Singh, dutifully, and Smith, gustily, all helped Lara in big partnerships - but it was Lara, always, who held centre stage. He made the art of batting look ludicrously easy.
Everything seemed inevitable and, naturally, Lara broke another awesome record: the highest score by a Warwickshire batsman against Middlesex, beating the 210 scored by Tom Cartwright (who else?) at Nuneaton in 1962.
Day 2: Middlesex grit their teeth for uphill fight
By Bryon Butler at Lord's
Second day of four: Middx (194-4) trail (Warwicks 466) by 272 runs
THIS catchweight contest is already in gentle freefall. Middlesex, bottom but one in the championship, cannot hope to win; and Warwickshire, with a stubbornly modest season, could find patience is all they need.
Promotion or relegation thoughts might have changed its hue and filled some of the empty seats, but the only thing filling Lord's was the noise of construction on the new media centre - a noise like a thousand dentists' drills in tooth-edging harmony.
Brian Lara filled the first day, magnificently, but added only a couple of singles in the morning before Richard Johnson trapped him leg-before with a low one. His 226 (one six, 33 fours) amounted to almost half Warwickshire's total.
Warwickshire, resuming on 372 for five, added another 94 for the loss of the last five wickets - with Neil Smith contributing 61 before he was caught by Paul Weekes, via the ribs of David Nash, from Phil Tufnell's first delivery. There were also some accomplished shots by Ashley Giles and bullish blows from Tim Munton.
Middlesex's Himalayan task began dodgily. David Goodchild ran himself out, pursuing a daft single, and Munton dismissed Mike Gatting and Justin Langer with the first and last balls of his second over. Gatting played very straight, but down the wrong line, and Langer, looking in prime form, was simply leg before.
Owais Shah and Weekes, however, played with common sense, sensible technique and a lot of spirit. They both made their fifties and Middlesex now need another 123 to avoid following on. The pitch is still bountiful - but the road ahead is wearily long.
Day 3: Wickets the best therapy for Munton
By Bryon Butler at Lord's
Third day of four. Middlesex (297 and 157-2) trail Warwickshire (466) by 12 runs
TIM Munton took seven for 76 in 28 overs to force Middlesex to follow on; but he, or an obliging Warwickshire team-mate, may have to produce something similar yet again to squeeze a victory out of opponents who are in no mood or position to be charitable.
Middlesex followed on 169 behind but, at the second time of asking against tiring bowling, they emphasised that the pitch is still beautifully mannered. David Goodchild (73) and Justin Langer (55) put on 130 for their first wicket but both perished in the last hour.
Munton's performance, however, was at the heart of the day, and nothing gave his colleagues more pleasure, a reminder of what a damaging bowler and popular professional he has been over the past decade or so.
He missed last season because of back trouble and a hamstring problem has reduced his Championship appearances this summer to three. He has even experimented with a short run.
Munton's most significant wicket of the day, on the blandest of wickets, was the obdurate Paul Weekes (89 runs, 265 balls, 12 fours), who was caught at second slip, but he hurried through the tail with four for eight in 25 balls.
Day 4: Gatting running out of time
By John Beaumont at Lord's
Warwickshire (466 & 150-8) drew with Middlesex (297 & 373)
MIKE Gatting's prospects of joining the elite group of players who have scored a century of centuries receded further at Lord's yesterday.
The stage was set for Gatting on a benign pitch and with Middlesex left to bat through the final day to deny Warwickshire their fourth championship win of the season. A third century of the summer would also have been a fitting tribute to his father Bill, who died 10 days ago.
Gatting, however, untypically threw away his wicket nine short of the 95th first-class century of his career. Having been dropped off a steepler by Mark Wagh at long leg off Graeme Welch, Gatting drove loosely at the next ball and gave Nick Knight a stinging slip catch.
At 41, time is not on Gatting's side and his expression as he trudged back to the pavilion suggested that he realises he might not gain entry to cricket's exclusive club. The former England captain's appetite for runs remains as voracious as ever and there were some vintage strokes yesterday, particularly when he leaned back to cut Ashley Giles for three fours in an over through a packed off-side field to the short Tavern boundary.
His third-wicket partnership of 87 with Chris Batt denied Warwickshire the early breakthrough they so badly needed and the pair batted for all but five minutes of the morning session before Batt was lbw as he advanced to Giles for a career-best 43.
Batt was discarded by Sussex last season after playing only once for them, a decision they probably now regret. He was picked by Middlesex in May, he took three wickets on his debut against Oxford University and his brisk left-arm seamers have now brought him 22 wickets. On the evidence of yesterday, he can clearly bat as well.
Warwickshire, who spent seven full sessions in the field during three of the hottest days of the year, appeared to have resigned themselves to a draw when Gatting, who struck 15 fours in his 176-ball innings, tucked into Giles, but Brian Lara's decision to take the new ball revived their interest.
Lara had reluctantly enforced the follow-on, knowing his bowlers were exhausted after Middlesex extended their first innings into the third afternoon, but Welch found reserves of energy to account for Gatting and Paul Weekes in successive balls.
No sooner had Welch nudged the door open than Owais Shah and Keith Brown slammed it shut again with a half-century stand for the sixth wicket as Middlesex moved closer to safety. Shah completed his second half-century of the match in the first over after tea before he pulled Wagh's occasional off-breaks to Anurag Singh on the square-leg boundary and David Nash was then lbw as he played back to Ward.