Key events<\/p>\n
More on Williamson.<\/p>\n
Share<\/a><\/p>\n Nice to see two consecutive boundaries from Saif Zaib (14), who after a fabulous 2025 hasn\u2019t quite found his mojo this summer. Northants 59-3.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Williamson\u2019s retirement comes with NZ due to play two Tests at home against India this autumn followed by a four-Test tour of Australia.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Early lunch at Blackpool<\/p>\n Where it is raining again and I can see quite a large puddle forming.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Play due to start at 1.10 at GraceRoad<\/p>\n After an early lunch and if it doesn\u2019t start raining again.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Kane Williamson retiresNew Zealand\u2019s greatest: Kane Williamson Photograph: Andrew Boyers\/Action Images\/Reuters<\/p>\n New Zealand\u2019s greatest ever batsman has announced his immediate retirement from international cricket, just one Test into a three-Test series of England.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve thought about it for a while, but over the last few days it\u2019s become clear now is the right time,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve always felt a strong drive and hunger for international cricket, and I take pride in knowing I\u2019ve given it my all in every match I\u2019ve played for New Zealand.<\/p>\n \u201cContinuing with anything less wouldn\u2019t be right and I feel fortunate to step away on my own terms.<\/p>\n \u201cI leave feeling optimistic about where this group is heading. There\u2019s a huge amount of talent, and a real desire to do something special with this New Zealand team.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a team I love, and I feel incredibly fortunate to have been part of it for so long. It will continue to be dear to my heart.\u201d<\/p>\n Williamson is New Zealand\u2019s leading scorer in all forms of cricket, with 19,346 runs, including 48 centuries and six double centuries, though he retired from international T20s last winter.<\/p>\n In his 110 Tests, he averages 54.06, with 9,515 runs, all done in the most stylish yet low key style.<\/p>\n Williamson also led New Zealand to the \u201cbarest of margins\u201d 2019 World Cup final, the 2021 T20 World Cup final and the inaugural World Test Championship in 2021, which New Zealand won. He can now retire to his beloved surf board and coffee.<\/p>\n Head coach Rob Walter said Williamson would \u201cremain embedded in its DNA\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cAnyone who\u2019s had the privilege of working with Kane understands he is a very special player and person.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHis numbers and batting skills speak for themselves, but it\u2019s what he means to this Black Caps team, as well as world cricket – that will be his legacy.<\/p>\n \u201cHis impact on the culture and standards of this team will remain embedded in its DNA.<\/p>\n \u201cKane\u2019s always put the team first and although we\u2019re disappointed to see him go, we\u2019re happy to know he\u2019s content and at peace with his decision.<\/p>\n \u201cAn incredible player, awesome teammate, a wonderful leader and a fantastic ambassador for our sport.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n A handsome pull for four by Harrison off the suntanned Clarke, is followed by an edge just short of the slip cordon. The wobbly camera adds an extra sea-sick action for those yearning for a cross-channel ferry.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Clarke has a second at Northants (Northants 28-2), and Will Williams is making the ball sing too. I can\u2019t see the clouds on the livestream but I suspect they are many and nefarious.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n There\u2019s about to be an inspection at Blackpool with the weather looking a little more perky<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Ignore me, they\u2019re on at Trent Bridge. Early wickets at Northampton, where New Zealand\u2019s Krisitan Clarke, signed on a two-match contract with Glos, has bowled Vasconcelos for 2; and Hove, where Sean Hunt has got rid of Zain ul Hassan.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Delays at Grace Road, Trent Bridge and Blackpool, but all up and running otherwise.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Shoaib Bashir though is playing for Derbyshire<\/a> up at CLS, and ex Derbyshire bowler Duanne Olivier for Durham, but no sign yet of Ben Stokes.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Kent rest Zak Crawley<\/p>\n After a torrid spring with Kent, and losing his England place, Crawley has stepped away from CC cricket for the next two matches, despite the temptations of the Blackpool pitch<\/p>\n A Kent statement read: \u201cThis period will allow him to recharge so he can fully commit and give his all for the remainder of the season, with his immediate focus shifting to T20 cricket through to the end of the Vitality Blast.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Live stream of Robin Smith’s memorial service<\/p>\n Those who would like to watch the service at Winchester Cathedral in memory of Smith, forever square cutting fast bowlers with joy and abandon, and who died aged 62 in December, can join the link here<\/a> at 2pm.<\/p>\n RIP The Judge Photograph: Express\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n And an early email lands from Tim Maitland.<\/p>\n \u201cI can\u2019t shower you with the statistics, because I\u2019ve got to get one of my dogs to the vet, but before we dive into the rest of the County Championship<\/a> matches, we need to talk about the Oval.<\/p>\n \u201dIf Lord\u2019s producing a two-day pitch that got spread over four by the weather is on one end of the scale, then firmly sat right on the outer limit of the opposite end of the spectrum of undesirable is that green sward in SE11. <\/p>\n \u201dSurrey\u2019s County Championship challenge is dying on their inability to squeeze more than one victory out of the roads they\u2019ve been playing on in Kennington (and yes they might have been denied victory against Hampshire by the weather, but then I would counter with Leicestershire 691 all out against THAT Surrey boling line-up).<\/p>\n \u201dWhich makes next week\u2019s Test match at said venue a perfect case of the immovable object meeting the irresistible force. It\u2019s like Godzilla vs King Kong. The Oval\u2019s refusal to deliver results except under extreme duress against modern cricket\u2019s rebuttal of all we have learned about the longest form of the game.\u201d<\/p>\n Interesting! I absolutely get your point though actually thought it was quite a spicy pitch last week, it was only Lawrence, who played so outstandingly, who really had the mastery of it. I know Lee Fortis has said how the lack of rain in the south east this spring has made it very difficult this year. <\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n And a naughty-boy alcohol ban lies in wait for the rest. Though I\u2019m slightly surprised that they don\u2019t mostly keep off the sauce during a Test series anyway.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n The ever humane Emma John throws some persepective on the Ben Stokes saga.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n I was going to head to Blackpool to watch Liam Livingstone\u2019s first Championship game since 2021 and Joe Moore\u2019s CC debut behind the stumps, but I\u2019ve put it off for an hour or so thanks to an early rain update from Paul Edwards and a sad photograph of the covers from Ken Grime. Both are bravely sitting things out in a soggy tent. So no play there for a while, and probably not till after lunch.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Today’s fixtures<\/p>\n Division One<\/p>\n Grace Road: Leicestershire<\/a> v Essex<\/p>\n Trent Bridge: Nottinghamshire<\/a> v Somerset<\/p>\n Hove: Sussex v Glamorgan<\/p>\n Scarborough: Yorkshire v Warwickshire<\/p>\n Division Two<\/p>\n Chester-le-Street: Durham v Derbyshire<\/p>\n Blackpool: Lancashire<\/a> v Kent<\/p>\n Northampton: Northamptonshire<\/a> v Gloucestershire<\/p>\n New Road: Worcestershire<\/a> v Middlesex<\/p>\n