Yorkshire v Sussex - Spinner Dom Bess makes Dawid Malan’s pre-play prediction come true

BY FAR the most interesting thing that Dawid Malan said after scoring 199 on the third day of this match, assuming that we take as read his desire to win back his Test place, was the challenge that awaited his Yorkshire colleague Dom Bess on day four.

Reflecting on the batsman-friendly conditions at Emerald Headingley, Malan said: “There’s hardly been any movement.

“Hopefully it breaks up a bit tomorrow and Dom can show what a quality spinner he is and put us in a position to win the game.

“It’s not turning by any imagination, but for him to come here and have to work batsmen out and find a way to win a game, it’s a fantastic situation for him to be in.”

Malan was highlighting the essence of the matter, which was that if Yorkshire were to find a way to win on a surface on which 909 runs had been scored for the loss of only 20 wickets, then Bess would have to do the bulk of the heavy lifting and find a way to take wickets in conditions that would only assist his development, both for Yorkshire and potentially at international level.

For on a final day that will live long in the memory of those Yorkshire members and supporters who had been deprived of live cricket for more than 20 months, Bess was the catalyst for a win –sealed by an innings and 30 runs with just 32 balls left – that closed the gap on leaders Lancashire to four points and increased the probability that both Roses rivals will be playing in Division One later in the year.

Not only did Bess take two of the first three wickets, after Sussex had resumed on 38-0 in their second innings, 207 runs short of making Yorkshire bat again, he blew the door open as surely as a stick of dynamite blows open a safe, producing a double-wicket maiden deep into the evening session just when it seemed that Sussex would leave with a draw.

The clock was on the stroke of 5pm, the total was 180-4, and there were 22 overs left in the contest when Bess ran in to bowl the opening ball of his 30th over.

It was floated up invitingly outside the off stump and Aaron Thomason, the Sussex No 4 who had just grafted over a four-hour half-century, drove hard and loose at it, edging to first slip, where Adam Lyth took a reflex catch to his left.