Vaughan Fails But Yorkshire Edge Closer to Safety

The odds against a positive result in this match lengthened with every Lancashire wicket that fell in Liverpool yesterday. Defeat for Yorkshire's relegation rivals against Kent would make a draw here a very acceptable result for the hosts, and on a flat wicket that should be comfortably within their compass, even after yet another failure from Michael Vaughan.

The former England captain was out for 14 yesterday, the fourth time he has failed to reach 20 in the four innings he has played since his tearful resignation last month. A perfectly timed turn off the hips and a typically silky cover drive had promised much, but the half-stopped pull at a Charl Willoughby bouncer which resulted in the ball spooning high to mid-on was as ungainly in execution as it was confused in intent. The comfort with which Anthony McGrath and the in-form youngster Adam Lyth batted out the remainder of the day only served to emphasize what a good chance Vaughan had missed.

The first two sessions were dominated by Ian Blackwell. Somerset's overnight batsmen, Arul Suppiah and James Hildreth, went quickly, Suppiah driving slightly airily at a Matthew Hoggard outswinger to be caught behind and Hildreth being caught by a juggling Jacques Rudolph at first slip off Tim Bresnan. But as so often this season, Yorkshire failed to drive home their advantage. They might have done so had Gerard Brophy not missed stumping Blackwell when he was on 18, the wicketkeeper failing to take the ball cleanly when the newly capped Adil Rashid saw Blackwell advancing and directed the ball down the leg side.

Rashid did have one piece of luck, when Craig Kieswetter's cut rebounded off Richard Pyrah at silly point and into the hands of Bresnan at short extra cover. Otherwise the leg-spinner dropped short far too often and Blackwell did not miss out, going to his hundred off 137 balls with the third of three boundaries in one Rashid over.

He received solid support from Peter Trego and rather more entertaining support from Willoughby, who backed away from every ball he faced but managed to flat-bat Bresnan back over his head for six.