Boss drawing comfort from solid Bears start

WARWICKSHIRE head to Durham today hoping to build on what first-team coach Ian Westwood described as a solid performance in securing a share of the points in his first game at the helm.

- By BRIGG FORD

The Bears were under the cosh when Division One newcomers Sussex posted 528 in their first innings at Edgbaston last week.

But an opening-wicket stand of 116 by skipper Alex Davies and Rob Yates laid the foundations for a “comfortable draw; in Westwood’s words, and he was buoyed by some standout performances in their Rothesay County Championship curtain-raiser.

Yates went on to score 180 runs in the match, there were half-centuries for Davies, Dan Mousley and Ed Barnard, while Ethan Bamber and Taz Ali both took four wickets on their first-class debut for the club.

Seven of the starting XI were aged 26 or under - injury ruling out seasoned campaigners Olly Hannon-Dalby and Chris Rushworth - but Westwood was pleased with how his new-look side gelled.

“There were lots of positives to take and some great individual perfor-mances,’ he reflected. “We got quite far behind so to get a comfortable draw in the end and for everyone to contribute was pleasing.

“Having got three early wickets on the first morning we were keen to push on. We didn’t make the most of it, perhaps a bit of inexperience, we were trying a bit too hard.