Durham are not done yet – skipper

Sep 22 2008 by Luke Edwards, The Journal

DURHAM captain Dale Benkenstein has warned Nottinghamshire and Somerset his side can still win the County Championship title for the first time in their history despite the drab draw with Sussex over the weekend.

After rain had wiped out the entire first day’s play, Durham were always going to struggle to force the win that would have kept them neck and neck with Notts going into the final game of the season.

Nottinghamshire’s comprehensive win over relegated Surrey has given them a 10-point lead at the top of the table with Somerset just two ahead of Durham in second place. But Benkenstein argued Durham would travel to Kent on Wednesday knowing they still have an excellent opportunity to win the championship, despite the fact they will need both Notts and Somerset to drop points even if they win in Canterbury.

He said: “We’re still in with a chance, with just the last five days to go, of winning the championship. That’s where you want to be. That is what we would have wanted at the start of the season, to be going into the final game knowing we could be champions if we win it. We’ve just got to go down there and concentrate on our own game. We’ve got to win the game and hope things go our way elsewhere, but the most important thing is we win our game.

“We’re happy with a good draw from the Sussex game, because it still gives us a chance of winning in the last round. It was always going to be a struggle to win the game after we lost the whole first day because of the weather which has caused us so much disruption this season.”

Benkenstein, who is expected to remain as captain next season despite recently repeating his desire to step down as skipper if a suitable English candidate emerged, was frustrated by Durham’s failure to secure maximum batting bonus points as their last six wickets tumbled for just 55 runs on Friday to leave them 20 short of the 400 target.

Gareth Breese and Shivnarine Chanderpaul had taken them to 325-4 before the umpires decided to take the players off for bad light the previous night with eight overs left. It was a call which could, Benkenstein, suggested, end up costing them the title.

He added: “On Thursday, coming off for bad light we were really in control. Going off then had a bit of an impact, because we could probably have got another 30 runs in those last six overs.”

Durham’s destiny is no longer in their own hands and Notts, who face Hampshire at home, will be favourites to take the crown.