Chris Rushworth’s top wicket record was 531 in his 136th match for Durham
| LV = County Championship Group One, Emirates Riverside, Chester-le-Street (fourth day): |
| Durham 246 & 389 – December 5: Young 103, Burnham 102 *, Eckersley 86; Tongue 2-59 |
| Worcestershire 213 & 164: Mitchell 62; Rushworth 4-52, Wood 3-47 |
| Durham (20 points) defeated Worcestershire (4 points) by 258 runs |
| Scorecard |
Chris Rushworth became Durham’s all-time top first class wicket taker when Worcestershire was beaten by 258 runs on Chester-le-Street.
With a nominal value of 423, the guests went 60-0, but top scorer Daryl Mitchell (62) soon fell to Mark Wood (3-47).
Rushworth (4-52) caught Jack Haynes on the first slip for a record-breaking 528th wicket for the county.
Visitors then lost their last seven wickets for just 45 runs to roll for 164 after tee.
Rushworth finished the match numbers 9-10 to help Durham score two straight wins, putting him second in Group A, three points behind leaders Essex with one game in hand.
Worcestershire climbed to fourth place after five straight draws despite losing the campaign for the first time.
Mitchell added just 17 runs to his night overnight before being stowed away by a lifter from England called Paceman Wood and making a catch to Jack Burnham.
Jake Libby added a dogged 36 balls out of 117 and Haynes made 24, but there was little opposition when Rushworth, whose father was looking over a fence in the parking lot, broke off with match figures of 9-108 – to overtake Graham Onions as the leader prime county wicket taker.
Despite the heroics with the ball by Rushworth, sacked by Durham at the age of 19 before providing a second chance for Sunderland after excelling in club cricket, the bat set the platform for victory on the final day.
Saturdays centuries of Will Young and Burnham and a quick 86 from Ned Eckersley took a Worcestershire win out of the equation and gave the hosts four sessions to roll out the pears.
Milestone “was on my mind” – Rushworth
Chris Rushworth told BBC Newcastle:
“I couldn’t be prouder. I don’t think I’ve ever felt this emotional on a cricket field. I played in Lords final and won a championship, but that only rounded it off.”
“Before, other milestones never really crossed my mind, but because this one was so big and was pretty close for a while, it had crossed my mind.
“For someone who’s been at the club for so long, it now feels like we’re playing like a Durham team. We compete hard, we play amazing cricket and everyone loves every minute of it.”
Worcestershire manager Alex Gidman:
“We were outdone by a better team. They played a lot better than us in their home conditions and we have to take it on the chin.”
“We wanted to lose a game at some point and we didn’t play cricket well enough in the four days.
“Their bowling attack is as good as this season. The boys are disappointed that we didn’t play well enough but we will support them to the full.”
“A fantastic piece of cricket history to testify”
Analysis – Martin Emmerson from BBC Newcastle
I never thought I’d be happy if a grown man were moved to tears in the middle of a cricket field. But when the moment got too much for Chris Rushworth, it was a fantastic piece of cricket history to witness.
A few years ago he worked in a call center after being fired from the club and even sold door-to-door satellite systems. But he never gave up on his dream and when the county gave him a second chance he took it with both hands.
Many times he has borne the weight of expectation on the river and has been an excellent servant to his home club. It was fitting that if anyone should break Graham Onions’ record of 527 first-class wickets for Durham, it should be another boy from the Northeast.
Rushworth embodies so much of what this club is about and there seems to be a new spirit among the players this season. The batting is strong, they were up in all five games by halftime and the bowlers could go to any other county.
They dominated this from start to finish and only the weather could have ruined a special day. “