Northamptonshire were bowled out for 50 in their chase of 204 against Durham in a crucial Division Two top-of-the-table clash at Northampton.
Durham resumed from their overnight score of 246-7 on the final day, but Northants needed just more than 10 overs to bowl them out for 261 and set themselves 204 to win. Their chase didn’t go as planned, however. Left-arm spinner Callum Parkinson, on a wicket that was offering considerable turn, took six wickets for 20 runs to trigger a collapse that saw Northants get bowled out in 22.2 overs and lose by 153 runs, with over two sessions still left in the day.
None of their batters could get to double figures, while 10 extras were bowled in the innings. Among the batters, number nine Louis Kimber scored the most: a 15-ball eight, while Luke Procter and Calvin Harrison scored seven each.
Parkinson landed the first blow, having opener Ricardo Vasconcelos stumped in the second over, before Matthew Potts trapped Procter leg before in the fifth. Nathan McSweeney, at No.4, fell to Parkinson and Potts took his second to send Saif Zaib back in consecutive overs to reduce Northants to 23-4.
They soon went down to 27-6, with Parkinson removing both Harrison and Bartlett in the same over. The left-arm spinner completed a ninth first-class five-for by going through Sales’ defence and got his sixth by having Kimber caught by Mayank Agarwal. Ben Stokes finished the proceedings by dismissing Yuzvendra Chahal.
Callum Parkinson’s figures today:
— Durham Cricket (@DurhamCricket) September 5, 2026
1️⃣1️⃣-3️⃣-6️⃣-2️⃣0️⃣
Superb. 💛💙#ForTheNorth pic.twitter.com/lg22Zwo8Dz
Earlier in the game, Durham batted first and got to 205, courtesy of David Bendingham’s 81, while Chahal took four wickets. Northants hit back with 263, taking an important first-innings lead and were in a strong position after picking up three quick Durham wickets towards the end of third day's play to have them at 246-7, before bowling them out quickly on the final day as Chahal took a five-wicket haul. But their capitulation saw them lose important points in the promotion race.
Northants stayed second in the Division Two table with 155 points, closely followed by Kent in third, who have 151 points and an ongoing game against Worcestershire. Durham are comfortably placed at the top with 210 points and three rounds left to play.
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