Ben Stokes starred in his first red-ball appearance for Durham in the County Championship after pulling curtains over his international career in June.
Ben Stokes’ all-round show stuns Derbyshire
After a successful nine-match run in the One-Day Cup that ended with a defeat against Middlesex in the semi-final, Stokes has now turned his focus to the County Championship.
The former England Test captain started off with 53 in the first innings of his fourth appearance in the Championship this year, and added another fifty to his tally in the second innings, before registering a five-wicket haul against Derbyshire, which included three wickets in a single over.
After Durham scored 283 in their first innings, Stokes was back with ball in hand, striking twice in four overs to help keep Derbyshire down to 156. Matthew Potts scalped a five-wicket haul as none of the Derbyshire batters could breach the 30-run mark.
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Stokes then improved on his first-innings score with an unbeaten 66, helping Durham set Derbyshire 423 as Ben McKinney scored 140 and Will Rhodes 52.
Having saved the best for the last, Stokes now took 5-17 bowl out Derbyshire for 84, helping Durham win by a mammoth margin of 338 runs. His spell included three wickets in four balls. Stokes opened the 12th over by sending Brooke Guest back for 11. With the next ball, he trapped Anuj Dal leg-before. Ben Aitchison survived the next ball but edged the one after that to slip.
With this comprehensive victory, Durham sit at the top of the table with six wins in nine games. They next play Gloucestershire from August 27 at Chester-le-street.
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