Dan Worrall, the previous Australia worldwide pacer who’s change into considered one of Surrey’s key weapons in successful two straight county championship titles, has helped ship their first main blow en path to a potential hat-trick.
Worrall, who performed three one-day internationals for Australia again in 2016 earlier than making his profession in England, the place he now holds UK citizenship, has proved an enormous favorite at The Oval.
His common provide of wickets was instrumental in Surrey’s 2022 and 2023 triumphs.
On Monday, ending off his first match of the 2024 marketing campaign, the evergreen 32-year-old struck the important thing blow to assist the champions outclass Kent by an innings and 37 runs of their early season division one conflict at Canterbury.
Worrall, whose three wickets on Sunday had already ripped the guts out of the house crew’s second innings, returned within the morning to snaffle the important thing scalp of Ben Compton – grandson of the England legend Denis Compton – for 17 within the fifth over of the day.
It was a magnificence, too, with Worrall’s supply nipping away to take the sting of Compton’s bat and provides England keeper Ben Foakes a easy catch.
It felt just like the decisive blow however Kent did present resistance, with Joey Evison making 53 and Matt Parkinson a career-high first-class rating of 39 earlier than the hosts lastly succumbed halfway by the afternoon and have been bowled out for 262.
Worrall ended up with 4-31 for a match whole of 6-79, whereas Cameron Metal, English cricket’s main wicket-taker to date this time period with 20, took 3-38.
With a most 24 factors within the bag for his or her first win of a rain-affected English spring, Surrey have moved into second place within the division one desk, eight factors behind leaders Essex, who on Sunday accomplished a three-day innings and 124 run thrashing of Nathan Lyon’s Lancashire.
In the event that they do go on to realize the hat-trick, Surrey will depend on one other main contribution from Worrall, identified affectionately to one and all as ‘Frankie’ after the West Indies nice.
Worrall was Surrey’s main wicket-taker with 39 en path to their 2022 triumph and he improved his haul to 48 final time period in a season wherein he was additionally named within the Skilled Cricketers’ Affiliation’s crew of the yr.