Keaton Jennings hits career-best 318 as Lancashire pile on runs vs Somerset in County Championship | Cricket News

Lancashire’s Keaton Jennings proved the major talking point in the week’s County Championship as an extraordinary innings vs Somerset ended in the final over after 426 balls and 582 minutes when the opener holed out at long off for 318

Keaton Jennings’ career-best first-class score of 318 and a century from Luke Wells helped set up a potentially thrilling final day as Lancashire push for victory against a beleaguered Somerset at Trafalgar Road in Southport.

After Wells moved quickly to three figures from his overnight score of 99, the focus of the day became Jennings, who dominated the visitor’s increasingly ragged bowling attack, as he made the highest individual first-class score at Southport, the fourth highest by any Lancashire batter in history and the highest by any Lancashire batter since 1990.

And with the Red Rose scoring quickly throughout the afternoon, their advantage could turn into a match-winning one if an overnight declaration follows after they closed day three on 624 for nine with a lead of 178.

In the morning, Wells had celebrated reaching his second century of the season as early as the first over of the day but he was soon returning to the pavilion after edging Jack Brooks through to wicketkeeper Steven Davies for 109.

Luke Wells also notched a century for Lancashire, hitting 109

Jennings was joined by Josh Bohannon, who has had a lean time of things recently, but the Bolton-born batter proved to be a superb foil for the former England Test opener as the second-wicket pair began constructing a match-defining partnership.

At lunch, Lancashire were 271 for one but, if that made unhappy enough reading for Somerset’s attack worse was to follow in the middle session as the hosts scored an improbable 176 runs from 32 overs as they secured their maximum batting points.

Bohannon was nine short of his century when he was eventually bowled by Roelof van der Merwe, selflessly attempting to still push the scoreboard along, but the second-wicket partnership of 211 – a record in itself at Trafalgar Road – will live long in the memory of those who were there.

Lancashire had a one-run lead over Somerset’s first innings total of 446 at tea but it felt like more with eight wickets in hand and the evening session to come.

Steven Croft ran a boundary-less 25 before he was caught by Brooks off Van der Merwe while skipper Dane Vilas came and went for seven after playing on to the same bowler.

It was left to Rob Jones to offer the best support to Jennings as the fifth-wicket pair compiled another entertaining partnership worth 113 which ended when Jones was caught well by a tumbling Amar Virdi on the long leg boundary off the part-time off-spin of Matt Renshaw for 38.

Renshaw would enjoy an unlikely cameo as the day came to a close, claiming the wickets of George Balderson for one and Tom Bailey for four either side of Van der Merwe bowling Luke Wood for three.

But this was Jennings’ day and an extraordinary innings ended in the final over after 426 balls and 582 minutes when the opener holed out to Siddle at long off for 318 as Van der Merwe finished with five for 174.