County Championship: Joe Leach takes 5-41 to lead Worcestershire fightback against Leicestershire

LV= County Championship Division Two, New Road, Worcester (day two) Leicestershire 173: Ackermann 52; Waite 3-17, Leach 3-45 & 180: Hill 49; Leach 5-41, Waite 4-21 Worcestershire 83: Pollock 30; Wright 5-32, Davey 3-26 & 26-2: Davey 2-19 Worcestershire (3 pts) need 245 points to beat Leicestershire (3 pts) made the double breakthrough by knocking out openers Azhar Ali - for a pair - and Ed Pollock in their first over.

Gareth Roderick and Jack Haynes managed to survive until the end at 26-2 but the unreliability of the field suggests the Foxes are the favorites on Saturday to claim a second victory of the season.

Leicestershire had already been beaten for 180 after the Joe Leach's impressive 5-41 and Matthew Waite's championship-best numbers of 4-21.

It was the 16th five-for in Leach's glittering career, while Waite eclipsed his previous record of 4-35 in the corresponding game last season.< /p>

After the first day dramas, when 22 wickets fell, play went at a calmer pace for the first half of the day as Leicestershire sought to capitalize on their 90 first-inning lead.

Captain Lewis Hill's patient 49 was largely responsible for the visitors' ability to set an intimidating goal on an unevenly rebounding wicket.

But just when Roderick and Haynes put their heads down, the game ended early when the bad light, followed by rain, forced the players away with 14 overs remaining

Report provided by ECB Reporters' Network.