Derbyshire 216 for 4 (Madsen 89, Guest 87*) vs Northamptonshire
Derbyshire captain Wayne Madsen continued his prolific start to the season by leading an impressive fightback on the opening day of the Rothesay County Championship Division Two match against Northamptonshire at Derby.
The 41-year-old followed a century in the first game against Gloucestershire and 96 at Leicester on Monday with 89 out of a fourth wicket stand of 169 with Brooke Guest who was unbeaten on 87 when bad light ended play at 6pm.
Madsen, who this week signed a one-year contract extension, passed 25,000 runs in all formats as his side recovered from 29 for 3 to close on 216 for 4.
Northants' decision to bowl first on a cloudy but dry morning had looked a good one when they made early inroads with the new ball.
Both David Lloyd and Caleb Jewell started confidently until Luke Procter struck twice in consecutive overs from the City End.
Lloyd was beaten by one that swung in to trap him on the crease and Harry Came played and missed several times before he edged low to third slip for an 11-ball duck.
Jewell has enjoyed life on the county circuit, scoring half centuries in each of his first four innings, so not surprisingly looked in good touch until he got a ball from Liam Guthrie that moved away enough to take the outside edge.
Northants would have been relieved to see the back of the Australian but that was their last success of the session as Madsen and Guest played with assurance against inconsistent bowling.
Justin Broad and Dom Leech paid the price for straying in line and length with Guest reaching his 50 which came off 69 balls in the penultimate over before lunch.
The break did not disturb the concentration or eye of the Derbyshire pair who were quickly into their stride with Madsen clipping Procter to the ropes before straight-driving him for another four.
He posted his 50 with a seventh four, courtesy of a misfield on the midwicket boundary, which also brought up the century stand from 142 balls, with the visitors struggling to impose any sort of control.
Guest pulled Guthrie for six and the runs continued to flow until Madsen was drawn into driving at a wide ball from Broad and was caught behind.
But the stand with Guest, Derbyshire's highest for the fourth wicket against Northants at Derby, had put the hosts in a decent position before rain delayed play for two-and-a-half hours.
Conditions improved enough for the match to resume at 5.35 with 22 overs to bowl but after Guest dispatched Leech to the point boundary, the umpires took the players off the field for bad light seven balls later.
