Paul Collingwood revels in twilight as Durham stand on title threshold
• Nottinghamshire 78 & 246; Durham 256 & 7-0
For a reluctant captain Paul Collingwood has some record, and his Durham team are within 62 runs of adding a County Championship title to his CV. It would be, he says, the legacy of his post-England career.
Fittingly, Collingwood provided the momentum at the start of a second day in which the 2013 champions-elect batted twice. Resuming in the knowledge that a second batting bonus point combined with victory would clinch the pennant with a round of matches remaining, the 37-year-old swelled an overnight position of 207 for eight to the magic 250-run target with his highest score of the season.
A triumph for fight over finesse – he made the Chinese cut his own during the opening half-hour – his unbeaten 88 received a standing ovation from the Chester-le-Street members. It was only his fifth half-century of a season in which his personal return has been outstripped by that of the excellent team he leads.
Conceding his powers are on the wane, he does not intend to play on beyond next September, when his contract expires. "I doubt it," he sniggered. "That would be pretty much it for me, I would have thought. I am enjoying it but I'm nowhere near as good a player as I was, and that frustrates the hell out of you, particularly when you get a ball and think: 'I used to whack that.' I'm scrapping more than I ever have. I'm trying to play shots I used to be able to play and the ball isn't going anywhere. But I guess I am still contributing and I would be very upset if I wasn't."
Following an unhappy first spell as England limited-overs captain six years ago, his second delivered the only global trophy the team has ever won – the World Twenty20 in 2010. Yet his progress with Durham has been even more remarkable: 14 months ago, when he took over, they were winless and rock-bottom in Division One. That represents some transformation.
His influence on the dressing-room attitude should not be underestimated either. He has empowered young and old within the squad to take individual responsibility. "This has come at the right time for me," he said. "It's kept me fresh and it's given us the chance to take the club forward five or 10 years. It's not just about success on the pitch, it's about instilling a culture that can take us into the future."
After helping open a 178-run lead on first innings, he reverted to marshalling the country's most ruthless attack from first slip. On their own patch they have given up just one batting bonus point all season, and even though Nottinghamshire proved more steadfast second time round, they showed why.
The pitch liaison officer Jack Birkenshaw signed off the surface as satisfactory with Nottinghamshire one wicket down at lunch. Only two more went down in the afternoon but Durham never stopped probing and a spell of three for nine immediately after tea – triggered by the loss of top scorer Steven Mullaney – opened up the possibility of a two-day finish.
It still appeared on when Ben Stokes shrugged off the discomfort of a bruised toe to follow up his maiden five-wicket international haul on Monday evening with three quick wickets to polish off the Nottinghamshire tail. But with one over plus an extra half-hour available to knock off the 69-run target, Durham opted for the sensible route and stumps were drawn at 6.06pm.
"The way to win the championship is to win games, and our team has produced results," reflected Stokes, with Collingwood's Durham on the eve of a record fifth straight victory and the club's third title in six years.
County Championship 2013 Division One
Durham
Nottinghamshire
Paul Collingwood
County Championship Division One
Cricket
Richard Gibson
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