Yorkshire 348 for 3 (Bean 164, Lyth 129) vs Gloucestershire
Lyth, 36, is seemingly getting better with age, the former England opener also scoring his fourth hundred of the ongoing campaign. He was helped along by fellow centurion Bean as Yorkshire closed on 348 for 3 from 96 overs.
Lyth, from the nearby Whitby, learnt his cricket on this ground and walked off with 129 from 243 balls to his name. Bean bettered him with 164 off 250 with six leg-side sixes included.
Lyth’s quartet of Championship centuries here – where he has also scored two in List A cricket – now includes one in each of the last three seasons.
Gloucestershire’s decision to bowl first upon winning the toss will surely be questioned. Their captain, Graeme van Buuren, struck late in the day alongside seamers Ajeet Singh Dale and Beau Webster. However, in fairness, when the toss was made there was a decent amount of cloud cover which quickly burnt off.
There wasn’t as much pace in this North Marine Road pitch as there usually is, and Lyth and fellow left-hander Bean advanced serenely against a visiting attack who failed to build any pressure.
New ball seamer Dom Goodman was the pick of their bowlers with nought for 29 from 17 overs.
Gloucestershire created very few chances during a morning session which concluded with Yorkshire at 106 without loss. Lyth was on 64, while he and Bean had swept sixes off Ed Middleton’s leg-spin.
Lyth had to fend one short ball from Singh Dale away from the end of his nose, but the extra bounce on offer was from a spongy surface rather than one that was hard and fast.
Lyth and Bean weren’t really threatened through the afternoon and into the evening – the two openers bettering the 180 they shared in the second innings of the second round draw at Bristol in mid-April.
Lyth led the way in the morning, but Bean was the dominant player in the afternoon and evening.
Bean swept his second and third sixes off Middleton and off-spinner Ollie Price after reaching his fifty in the early stages of the afternoon and both men had eyes on centuries.
Lyth was first to that milestone, off 179 balls, when he drove Middleton for four to take the score to 206 without loss in the 59th over.
It has been well-documented that Yorkshire Cricket has gone through the mill over the last few years, with not a great deal to sing from the rooftops about.
However, one major positive has been the opening partnership forged between these two players against the red ball.
They shared four century partnerships in last year’s Championship and have now added two more this year – both against Gloucestershire. It has certainly been the Master and the Apprentice, with fellow left-hander Bean – 22-years-old – only in his second full season of first-team cricket.
When Bean reached his century, off 184 balls, in the closing stages of the afternoon, Yorkshire had 216 on the board.
After tea, they bettered the 246 shared between Messrs Hobbs and Sutcliffe for the HDG Leveson-Gower’s XI against the touring New Zealanders in September 1931 – the previous highest opening partnership on this ground in first-class cricket.
All of Bean’s half a dozen sixes came over midwicket or long-on against spin.
Lyth offered a tough low catch to a diving Cameron Bancroft in the gully off fellow Australian Webster, though neither opener were able to see the day out, Bean caught at point off van Buuren’s left-arm spin at 307 for 1 in the 81st over. It was Yorkshire’s first triple century opening partnership for 10 years.
Lyth was then bowled by Singh Dale with a further 15 added to the total before Webster had James Wharton caught behind.