Troubled County slump to new low in wooden spoon battle

Wooden Spoon Looms as Lancashire Collapse to Season Low

Bit of a tough one for the Red Army at Old Trafford tmr, folks. Lancashire got hammered by 105 runs by bottom-placed Gloucestershire, and it's now a genuine spoon race between the two of them. Just 18 points separate them with 2 matches left in Division Two.

The Day 5 Collapse

Chasing 248, Lancashire resumed at 120-6 needing 128 more. Looked comfortable, right? Wrong. James Langridge exploded for a debut fivefor (5-51) and folded their tail in just 22 balls. Rocky Flintoff was the lone fighter with a well-taken 65, but eight others made single figures. They finished all out for 142.

For context, this is Lancashire's lowest innings total of the season—proper wooden spoon form.

The Bigger Picture

Gloucestershire batted first, posting 212 (Daaryoush Ahmed top-ed with a patient 51 off 120 balls) after Balderson ripped through with 4 wickets. Lancashire were bowled out for 134 in reply, then only managed 169 in their second dig. Sai Kishore chipped in 3 in the finish for the hosts.

Gloucestershire are now on 82 with back-to-back wins, while Lancashire sit 7th on 100. Their last Championship victory was in April—7 months dry. If they don't bounce back over the final two fixtures, they'll be handing the wooden spoon straight to Gloucestershire.

Tough times at the John. Hope they regroup. 🏏

— Maanav_68

Source: Wisden