County Championship: Lancashire on top of Northamptonshire thanks to Josh Bohannon & George Balderson

Centurion Josh Bohannon and George Balderson celebrated a 150-run stand at NorthamptonLV= County Championship Division One, County Ground, Northampton (day two)Northamptonshire 232: Whiteman 79; Hartley 2-47, Balderson 2-49, Williams 2-52Lancashire 392-7: Bohannon 175, Balderson 83*, Vilas 37; White 3-79Lancashire (6 pts) lead Northants (2 pts) by 160 runsMatch scorecard

Josh Bohannon indulged his liking for Northamptonshire’s bowlers yet again with an imperious century to put Lancashire in control at Wantage Road.

The 26-year-old hit his third successive hundred against Northamptonshire, a season’s best 175, to become the second Division One player to pass 1,000 runs this summer.

Bohannon batted almost the entire day, sharing a partnership of 150 with George Balderson – a Red Rose record against Northamptonshire – to guide the visitors to 392-7, a commanding lead of 160.

Northamptonshire toiled resolutely in the heat for little reward, with seamer Jack White the pick of their bowlers with 3-79.

Having steered his side to 54-2 the previous evening, nightwatchman Will Williams took an early boundary off Ben Sanderson before the Northamptonshire seamer removed him with a rising delivery he could only fend to second slip.

Williams’ replacement Phil Salt saw a couple of balls zip past the bat and another flew off his inside edge just past the stumps, but he had more joy against Tom Taylor, who offered too much width and was punished with three boundaries in a single over.

But Taylor eventually got his man when he top-edged a pull and Emilio Gay ran back from his position in the slips to take the catch.

Dane Vilas, who survived an lbw appeal on 10, took advantage of that let-off to build a partnership of 92 with Bohannon before chopping on to his leg stump for 37, then George Bell was pinned in front without scoring.

But Bohannon remained unruffled at the other end to complete his century before crashing Keogh for six over long-on to move past 1,000 runs for the season and lift Lancashire beyond the home side’s first innings total of 232.

Bohannon found a new ally in Balderson, who helped extend the Red Rose advantage into three figures.

Taylor finally separated the pair by having Bohannon caught behind off a bottom edge, but Balderson, ensured there was no respite for the home side as he moved on to 83, with Tom Hartley on 22, after adding a further 53 by stumps.

Report supplied by ECB Reporters’ Network.