This has been the season of miracles and there was just a hint of another at Taunton on Thursday. At the start another 90 minutes were lost after another squally shower and thereafter the match was drifting to the anticipated draw, which was enough for Essex.
Alastair Cook and Tom Westley guided Essex to the serenity of 102 for one; it was time, even for the diehard locals, to accept the inevitable. Then Cook, having reached a dutiful 53 in 53 overs, with one stroke of luck on five when he survived a compelling lbw appeal against Jack Leach, was caught at forward short-leg off the same bowler. Eighty minutes later Essex were bowled out for 141.
Pushing and prodding against Leach and the other left-arm spinner, Roelof van der Merwe, was a dangerous business. A cordon of six close fieldsmen crouched and waited and suddenly the catches began to come. The ball was turning sharply, a torment for new batsmen, who now came and went with startling rapidity. None of the locals was going home early. Leach snaffled five for 32, Van der Merwe four for 41.
With Somerset’s lead 62 and with only 67 minutes left, the captain, Tom Abell, forfeited Somerset’s second innings, an unusual move with such a slender lead but the obvious one in the circumstances. One assumes Cook would have already packed his bag by now. Well, he had to dig out his pads and bat and take guard again. For the second time in the day Essex were grateful for his composure and skill. No more miracles/calamities (depending on one’s provenance) were forthcoming. Nick Browne was dropped off Leach on 0. He was later caught at slip. But at 5.20pm, with Essex only 18 runs adrift of what would have been a very strange victory, the game and the season came to a close.
So Essex’s second County Championship triumph in three years was confirmed. No one here could begrudge them that. They received a warm reception from the crowd at the end. Meanwhile there was more raucous applause for the Somerset team, valiantly second once again.
In the best weather of the match the two best sides in the country shook hands. Among them was Marcus Trescothick, who had spent part of his last day as a professional cricketer as a drinks carrier for the fielders in his faded old Somerset cap (though far from his first one in 27 years at the club). Then at 5.15pm out he came in pristine whites as a substitute fielder, clutching a helmet, before falling to his knees in the gully.
Seldom has a sub received such an ovation. At the end he led the players from the field and the Essex team lined up to bid Trescothick farewell. “I feel ready [to go] now,” he had said earlier in the day. “I was scared of it [retirement] for a long time and the prospect of seeking different employment.”
It is hard to imagine anyone with a greater passion than Trescothick for playing cricket. He stopped contending for his place in the Somerset first team two months ago. “It was easier than expected to put my bat down as the coaching role took over.” And amid the passion there was a touch of realism. “I can’t do it like I used to. I have to put my glasses on for a start. It’s not as easy as it used to be. Why would I want to go out there and struggle?”
He will remain a familiar figure in the cricketing bubble; the certificates are mounting up and he has all the makings of an excellent batting coach; and he is a highly regarded broadcaster. But this will be quite a wrench. He has always been happiest when batting.
Afterwards Jason Kerr, Somerset’s coach and a close friend of Trescothick, admitted he had been badgered all week by his senior pro, who had made sure to pack his whites since he was so eager to get on the field. “He’s been incredible in that dressing room,” Kerr said. “He gives all the time.”
Kerr was just as full in his praise of Abell, the captain, who had been “outstanding” in all facets of the game. “He’s incredibly disappointed at the moment.” Which was hardly surprising since Somerset have now finished second in the championship three times in the past four years. It is a record to be proud of but it did not feel much like that at Taunton.