Date-stamped : 07 May97 - 06:16
Habib strikes rich vein as Durham fail to mine seam

By Tim Wellock at Chester-le-Street

Leics (287-4) bt Durham (263-9)  by  19  runs  (revised target)

THE  lesser   lights   seized   the   chance   to    shine    for
Leicestershire  as  Aftab  Habib  made  a  century  and  Jonathan
Dakin weighed in with a valuable all-round  performance  to  book
their place in the Benson and Hedges Cup quarter-finals.

Durham were left with a revised target  of   282   in   48  overs
when  a snow flurry interrupted their reply after five  overs and
they succumbed in  mid-innings   to   the   added   pressure   of
gauging  their  progress  under  the  new Duckworth/Lewis scoring
system.

Prior to this hiccup they had a fighting chance as the  visitors`
support  bowling  carried   little  threat.  But the loss of four
wickets  in  eight  overs  virtually   scuppered  Durham`s  hopes
and  they  must  rely  on  Leicestershire  beating Northants next
Monday to have a chance of reaching  the  quarter- finals for the
first time.

Leicestershire used only 13 players on their way  to  the  county
title  last season, but with three men injured and a new overseas
player feeling  his  way,  opportunities  have arisen  to  reveal
hidden depths.

Dakin, a 6ft  4in  left-handed  batsman   and   right-arm  medium
pacer,  contributed an unbeaten 29 off 15 balls as Leicestershire
thrashed 103 off the last 10  overs,  then  included  the  prized
scalp of David Boon  in  his  nine- over analysis of two for 53.

Dakin`s quicker ball  defeated  Boon  as  extra  bounce  produced
a  catch  for  the  wicketkeeper and  the  Australian`s  exit for
four was his first failure for Durham.

John   Morris,   left    to    shoulder    responsibility     for
maintaining  the challenge, lofted a full toss into Habib`s hands
on the midwicket boundary in the next over  to   end   a   classy
innings of 62.

Durham looked sunk at 141 for five in the 33rd  over  but  Martin
Speight  and  Nick Speak put on 68 in eight overs  before Speight
hoisted another leg-side catch to Habib.

His two catches helped to earn Habib  the  gold  award, though it
might  have been different  had  Morris  held  on  to  a steepler
at deep midwicket when the Middlesex reject was on 44.

In the next over Speight fumbled a stumping  chance  with  acting
captain  Vince  Wells  on  47 as  the  Leicestershire  pair moved
into overdrive after coming together at  22  for   two   in   the
seventh over.

Against ill-directed bowling, which produced 19  wides, they  put
on  221  before Habib holed out at long off for 111, made off 117
balls.

Source :: The Electronic Telegraph (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/)

<END> Contributed by The Management (help@cricinfo.com)