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Hazy and sun-kissed, just as the summer was supposed to be. A general feeling of better late than never prevailed as south London basked in 25 degrees of heat. And not just because of the delightfully warm weather.
Surrey defeated Durham by ten wickets thanks to two tucked to midwicket by captain Rory Burns on the final day of cricket at the Kia Oval. The championship of 2024 County Championship is within sight with one round remaining. Silverware is now as certain as it should have been at the beginning of the week.
As of this writing, Somerset trails the defending champions by 28 points; to close the gap to 12 heading into the last match, Somerset must chase down 393 against Lancashire. Thus, the pressure would be on Surrey to defeat Essex in Chelmsford the following week. Three-peats are difficult, but if they are confirmed in the latter days of September or on Friday in the event that Somerset loses, the wait will be worthwhile.
On days one and two, Surrey did not back down from a challenge, but on day three, they were spared from going above and beyond. Durham arrived on 1 for 1, and six balls into the morning session, they had already lost two more wickets.
Sam Curran pocketed four of the remaining spots, matching Worrall’s four top five finishes. With three wickets taken, including the last wicket of Chemar Holder, the left-armer concluded with 4 for 23, giving Burns and Dom Sibley a good laugher as they easily reached a score of 25 by 3:33 p.m.
“I’d be lying if I said the guys wouldn’t be tuning into the scorecards or the streams,” Curran said. “Hopefully Lancs can get that victory and stay up as well.”
The fact that a player of Curran’s calibre can make such a significant impact in just his second County Championship game of the year speaks volumes about the calibre of the team. Similarly, on day two of his seventh appearance of the summer, Ryan Patel, a bit-part player, pulls off a face-saving century when Jamie Smith and Will Jacks are abroad representing England.
Even though Durham was devastated by the loss, their splendour was already realised. Bonus points validated Division One status for one further season, albeit they never truly participated in the altercation. On Thursday night, they’ll stay in London to celebrate a hopeful return to the top flight since 2016.