Alfonso Thomas: Leicestershire coach ‘over the moon’ with milestone win

To make the picture clearer, Thomas reeled off name after name of those who contributed to what was a milestone victory for a club that, in the not so distant past, found themselves needing to justify their status as a first-class outfit after years of struggles.

Stand-in captain Ben Green tore through Yorkshire’s top order on the way to 3-27 on a memorable first day that included teenage pace bowler Alex Green coming up with his maiden first-class wickets. The 19-year-old went on to claim five scalps in the win.

“That was exciting,” Thomas said of Green’s display. “People get out of their seats when they see pace. But it was not just pace, it was more the accuracy that he bowled with that was very impressive.”

With the bat, opener Rishi Patel and Rehan Ahmed, who top-scored with 128, forged a defining early partnership when the hosts went in to chase down Yorkshire’s first-innings total of 185.

New Zealander Nick Kelly also weighed in with his first hundred for the Foxes as they cruised past that mark and piled on the runs to reach 453 – giving them a lead of 268 before bowling Yorkshire out for a second time.

“There were eight sessions in the game and we won all eight, so that’s a testament to how well the guys have gone about things and how we suffocated Yorkshire from day one and just kept our foot on the throat, which is something that we talk about a lot,” Thomas said.

“It was just satisfying to see all the components coming together. From the first session to the last session, we showed what we are capable of.”

Leicestershire’s first top-tier County Championship win for more than two decades was also a timely one, with the competition now going into a two-month hiatus as white-ball cricket takes over the domestic schedule until August.

The Foxes are next in action in the T20 Blast against Lancashire on Friday.