Title deciders are on the horizon

JACQUES RUDOLPH acknowledges Yorkshire's County Championship double-header against Nottinghamshire could go a long way towards deciding the title race.

The two counties meet at Headingley Carnegie on August 3 with the return at Trent Bridge the following month.

Yorkshire lead the First Division following yesterday's draw with Essex but the impetus has swung Notts' way thanks to their 10-wicket victory over Warwickshire the previous day.

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The results mean the White Rose county's advantage at the summit has been cut to six points with Notts having two games in hand.

Rudolph, who hit a fine 106 as Yorkshire just failed to force a win at Chelmsford, said: "Nottinghamshire have narrowed the gap at the top but we can't concern ourselves with that. It is out of our control. Clearly, the two games against Notts will be important and I believe they may even be championship deciders.

"If we have one or, hopefully, two good performances against them then I believe we will still be in the title race."

Rudolph, who will be back in action tomorrow when Yorkshire take on Middlesex at Lord's in the Clydesdale Bank 40-Over League, added: "We play Notts at Headingley first and it will be interesting to see what sort of pitch we prepare, whether we go for one that suits the spinners or one for the seamers, which will possibly be best for us.

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"The important thing is to just keep doing what we have been doing."

On the run chase that saw Yorkshire fall 36 runs short of the 369 target set by Essex, Rudolph said: "We have proved this season that we can chase down totals. We did it two or three weeks ago against Warwickshire.

"It is disappointing not to get the result, even though the game was a great advert for Championship cricket.

"Essex deserve credit for helping that with the declaration. They could have batted on to get a lead of over 400 but they wanted to be positive."

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On his own innings, Rudolph said: "It was great to get to 100 because I have been reaching 50 but then getting myself out. It was very satisfying and I felt it was one of my more mature innings. Hopefully, I can keep my form up between now and the end of the season."

Yorkshire expect to welcome back Ajmal Shahzad tomorrow at Lord's after an ankle injury ruled him out at Chelmsford.

The White Rose county boast a 100 per cent record in the competition and Rudolph admits the players are looking forward to the game.

He said: "I have not played at Lord's with Yorkshire and am really looking forward to it. This is a big week for us in the 40-over league as we have three games.

"We are in a good position and want to build on that."