England's greatest wicket taker frustrated by 19-year-old Essex batsman in County Championship
Teenager defies Anderson, Lancashire
A teenage batsman has thwarted a Lancashire attack possessing the powers of England’s all-time leading Test wicket-taker James Anderson to seal a draw for Essex in the County Championship.
Having been set 478, Essex resumed on 2-89 on the final day of the Division One clash with Dan Lawrence batting throughout the day to see the hosts reach 6-316 when the match was declared a draw.
Lancashire had no answers for the 19-year-old, who scored an unbeaten 141 and shared century partnerships with Tom Westley (61) and Ryan ten Doeschate (41).
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The visitors sparked some hope when the wicket of Westley ended a 135-run third-wicket stand, followed by the scalps of Ravi Bopara and Adam Wheater in the space of eight overs.
But Lawrence continued to frustrate, finding another partner in skipper ten Doeschate. While the Dutch allrounder eventually departed with half an hour remaining in the day, Essex, and Lawrence, held firm.
Serious #digin from @Lawrenc28Daniel:
— County Championship (@CountyChamp) April 10, 2017
1️⃣4️⃣1️⃣ runs
3️⃣3️⃣3️⃣ balls
The @EssexCricket lad even keeps Lancs at bay & frustrates @jimmy9 pic.twitter.com/qtK1AyqlCx
His ton was his fifth first-class century, with the teenager ranking it his best to date.
"This is my favourite hundred because I've managed to bat all day and get the team out of a bit of a hole,” Lawrence told the BBC.
"It's important not to celebrate a draw.
“We had our backs against the wall and had a really tough first three days, and it took a lot of character from a lot of the boys today to fight through and get a draw.
"It's nice to know we're not going to fall down whenever someone puts a lot of pressure on us.
“We really want to thrive in Division One."
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Lancashire spearhead Anderson went wicketless in Essex’s second dig, having picked up three scalps earlier in the match.
In the other Division One match wrapped up on Monday, Surrey took less than an hour to bowl Warwickshire out for 362, sealing an innings-and-one-run victory.
Former Test batsman Jonathan Trott had resumed on 141, but added just 10 runs to his score before being dismissed, effectively ending any the Bears’ hopes of hanging on for a draw.