Top-six concern as Yorkshire CCC suffer rare defeat in the desert

The champions lost by four wickets against MCC in Abu Dhabi in the traditional curtain-raiser to the English season.

Under Gillespie, Yorkshire have won 33 first-class matches and drawn 32 en route to winning back-to-back Championships.

The previous defeats were against Sussex at Headingley in the opening Championship game of 2013, against Durham at Scarborough later that summer, and on their last two visits to play Middlesex at Lord’s.

It is a remarkable record, and one that Yorkshire would not want to have seen dented in the desert, pre-season match or otherwise.

Last year, they won this fixture comfortably, hammering MCC by nine wickets inside three days. This time, it was an altogether more challenging affair as MCC won with 10.2 overs remaining, their batsmen making relatively light work of a target of 256.

Ian Bell, the MCC captain, top-scored with 66, and Ben Foakes – who led the way with 91 in the first innings – steered the representative team home with an unbeaten 32.

Yorkshire missed the experience of Tim Bresnan, who left the field with a leg injury after bowling two overs and stayed off as a precaution with the Championship campaign less than four weeks away.

Yorkshire were also without pace bowlers Ryan Sidebottom for this match (recovering from a side problem) and Matthew Fisher (hamstring niggle), along with their England contingent at the World T20, although Gillespie said none of the injuries are serious.

For the Australian, the main purpose of the match – and the two-week tour overall – was for the squad to gain outdoor practice and miles in the legs.

To that effect, it was a success, with the players getting a good workout and youngsters such as spinner Karl Carver and all-rounder Will Rhodes impressing.

“Our objectives have been achieved,” said Gillespie. “We’ve got miles in the bowlers’ legs on turf, players have spent time out in the field, batsmen have got used to batting on grass in their spikes again, and so on.

“It’s been great to have a look at some young players, and we had some young players step up in our T20 games and also in the four-day fixture. Taking that forward, it gives us good food for thought regarding selection in various forms of the game.”

This match was finely balanced after three days of hard-fought action. Yorkshire went into day four on 239-7 in their second innings, a lead of 215, with Rhodes on 41.

The 21-year-old added two to his tally before he fell in the day’s fourth over, caught behind driving at Graham Onions, who then bowled Steve Patterson.

Jack Brooks and Carver added 37 for the last wicket before Brooks overbalanced trying to sweep Samit Patel and was stumped for 25.

Adam Lyth had Nick Browne caught at short-cover by Alex Lees as MCC lunched on 34-1, which became 54-2 when Rory Burns was run-out from mid-wicket by Gary Ballance.

Bell and Westley added 84 for the third-wicket, Westley injecting impetus with 58 from 67 balls before he was stumped trying to attack Carver.

Jack Leaning had Patel caught at mid-wicket by Ballance, and MCC slipped to 199-5 when Carver got Bell for the second time in the match, caught by Lees at mid-off. Leaning had Rikki Clarke stumped, but Foakes duly completed the formalities.

Yorkshire took plenty from the game but will reflect that one of the areas that dogged them last year – namely, the inconsistency of their top-six batting – resurfaced.

Only Ballance (105) in the first innings and Lees (86) in the second made significant scores, which left the bowlers with plenty to do.

“The reality is that we could have batted so much better,” admitted Gillespie. “Where we can be better is that we lost wickets in clumps in both innings, and, had we minimised that, we could have set the MCC a much bigger total and put pressure on them.

“It would have been nice to win, but that’s part and parcel and it wasn’t through lack of effort.

“We have to take stock and say, ‘Look, this is pre-season and we do have a number of players unavailable’, although don’t misinterpret that as an excuse.”