Curran puts Essex on the back foot

Round-up

Kevin Curran's best performance with the ball since 1993 earned Northamptonshire a first-innings lead of 89 over second-placed Essex on the second day of their Championship match at Northampton.

Curran picked up 4 for 32 as Essex hit the self-destruct button and were all out for 275. By the close Northamptonshire had stretched their lead to 103 without loss.

Derbyshire were left fighting a rearguard action at Cheltenham after Gloucestershire's Shaun Young hit a career-best 237. The visitors ended 190 runs behind with seven second-innings wickets intact and facing a fifth Championship defeat.

Darren Lehmann's 86, his best innings in a home match, and some hostile seam bowling in helpful conditions carried Yorkshire to the brink of victory over Durham at Scarborough. Yorkshire reached 372 to gain a first-innings lead of 220 and then reduced the visitors to 61 for 5 at the close. Bradley Parker dominated the latter stages of Yorkshire's innings with a stylish unbeaten 74.

Despite losing the entire first session to rain at Trent Bridge, Warwickshire tightened their grip on Nottinghamshire, firstly by extending their own first innings total to 344 and then reducing Nottinghamshire to 93 for 7, Dougie Brown taking four of the wickets to fall.

Paul Reiffel shone with both bat and ball as Australia opened up a 215- run lead over Glamorgan on the second day of their three-day game in Cardiff.

First he took the last five Glamorgan wickets for just eight runs in 46 balls as the Welsh county slumped from 218 for 5 to 254 all out to concede a 115-run first-innings lead.

Then, after the Australians had radically changed their batting order for the second innings, Reiffel came to their rescue with an unbeaten 35 to lift them from a perilous 42 for 5 to 100 for 5 at the close.