Leicestershire 122 and 281 (Hill 63, Handscomb 62, Patel 58, Wright 45* Conners 3-75 Watt, 3-35)

Derbyshire 350-7 declared and 

Match drawn

How did not been for yesterday’s rain, Derbyshire would have been celebrating a first win of the season tonight.

As it is, they came close but fine batting by Patel, Hill, Handscomb and Wright enabled Leicestershire to escape with a draw. The innings of the latter, who faced over a hundred balls, was key to their survival.

I thought Derbyhire bowled fairly well, but again there is not enough devilment in the wicket to enable the win to be forced. 

Still, the performance was better and if it can be maintained at this standard then prospects for the season are better than they seemed a few days ago.

The end of the game was something of a shambles, as the umpires sought guidance on the time that was left in the game. It was both a poor reflection on the officials and on the laws of the game itself that the two sides went back out for a farcical and meaningless final over, relevant only for the visitor’s attempt to improve their tardy over rate.

Supporters and players deserve better.