Ollie Robinson's career-best return gives England an Ashes lift

Whether Ollie Robinson will play in the first Ashes Test at Edgbaston in 39 days' time is not yet known; whether he will even play against Leicestershire on Thursday must be uncertain. What is beyond doubt is that he is one of the very finest fast-medium bowlers in the land. Moreover, as he completed a career-best match-return of 14 for 117, it was possible to believe that he is ready to take over the leadership of England's attack from James Anderson, should Burnley's Methuselah ever retire.

For on an afternoon when Anderson took a full part in Lancashire's push for victory at Trent Bridge, Robinson dominated Sussex's bowling effort at New Road, taking six of the seven wickets to fall today in five spells. The first of these removed Ed Pollock and Jack Haynes before the cathedral bells stopped ringing and the last only ended when Robinson went down with cramp in mid-over. By then his figures for the innings read 28.4-7-58-7 and for this wonderful match, 45.4-10-117-14. They do him nothing simple justice and ECB officials should note that he is planning to play at Grace Road.

And yet it wasn't enough to bring Sussex their second victory of the campaign. For on what is already one of the finest and most cherishable days of the domestic season, Robinson's effort was matched by that of Azhar Ali, whose magnificent unbeaten 103 not out in 371 minutes was responsible for guiding his side to a draw that was only agreed when 12.2 overs were left in the game. By then, the home side's lead was 142 and the draw was almost certain but it was fitting that Azhar's edged four off Steve Smith's legspin brought up his own century and prompted the shaking of hands. In certain respects, one felt that Sussex supporters should have offered the same gesture to their hosts. This day's cricket was a shared endeavour of incomparable richness.

And yet, like many such days, it gathered to a climax that few could have predicted during a first hour that was dominated by the Sussex bowlers. Pollock pushed forward tentatively at Robinson's seventh delivery of the morning and such a technique rarely suffices against someone who sends the ball down from roughly nine feet and is capable of extracting 80mph bounce from a third-day pitch. Smith took the resulting catch with absurd ease. Eight overs later, Haynes was much more culpable when driving at a wide ball from Robinson without any foot movement. Oli Carter caught the edge and Worcestershire, still 55 runs in arrears, were one or two loose shots away from the sort of collapse favoured by detonated cooling towers.

Such situations are more or less made for Azhar and the Pakistani batter now took gentle control of the last hour of the session. Confronted mainly with support bowlers, he faced 104 of the 174 balls Sussex bowled in the morning and the players lunched with the scores level. It was a two-hour passage of play filled with small advances and tiny triumphs, the sort of session you only appreciate when you have learned to watch first-class cricket.

The cricket immediately on the resumption captured the changing balance of the match. Azhar square-drove Fynn Hudson-Prentice's second ball of the session for four and it was as good an attacking shot as we'd seen all day. Then Robinson gave it a whirl from the New Road End for the first time in the match but having enjoyed no success in three overs, he returned to the Diglis. The 49th over seemed even more propitious for Worcestershire: first Sussex successfully petitioned to have the ball changed but that is so often an indication that a team does not like the shape of the game; then a cover-drive off Hudson-Prentice took Azhar to his fifty off 151 balls. He had battled away for 178 minutes and it little mattered that his innings would contain 11 fours. It was the sort of effort that sets an example to younger colleagues but one understands that Azhar is already doing that off the field at New Road.

Still neither Robinson nor Sussex would give things up as a bad job. Adam Hose was leg before to the visitors' spearhead after batting nearly two hours for 41 runs that suggested he should have been given more opportunities at Edgbaston last season. Brett D'Oliveira made 22, which was useful in its way but he had hardly settled home supporters' nerves when he edged Hudson-Prentice to Carter.

Worcestershire took tea with a lead of 78 and five wickets in hand but a nervous hour lay ahead. Gareth Roderick edged a good ball from Robinson low to Smith at second slip, Matthew Waite carelessly nicked a nondescript delivery to Tom Alsop at first and Joe Leach had his off pole knocked back. As Leach trudged off, the lead was only 119, there were 27 overs left in the game and the new ball was eight overs away. But Josh Tongue kept Azhar stout company for 51 minutes and any possible asking rate grew from six to seven to eight to nine…

Robinson left the field and Worcestershire supporters, who were generous in their applause for him, reserved louder cheers for Azhar's progression towards a century. Then with that edge to the New Road Stand the game was done and this great ground is now relaxing in the evening sunlight. One hopes the players are relaxing, too, and that Smith enjoyed his first test of the format that so many of his compatriots treasure. On days like this it was so very easy to understand why.