Cricket: Franklin on fire for county

Allrounder James Franklin has responded to his dumping from the New Zealand cricket team with a stunning performance for his English county side Gloucestershire.

Franklin claimed a hattrick with the ball and thumped a century with the bat as his team somehow lost their division two first class match against Derbyshire at Cheltenham.

A veteran of 26 tests and 65 one-day internationals, Franklin was left out of the Black Caps squads named to tour Sri Lanka from next month.

He didn't even make the A-squad to play in India, with selection convener Glenn Turner unimpressed by the 28-year-old's previous county form.

Franklin responded with the county's first hattrick for nine years, split over two innings. The last two victims of Derbyshire's first innings came courtesy of catches to former New Zealand teammate Hamish Marshall.

The third came from the first ball of the second over of the second innings.

"I had no idea I had taken a hat-trick until the umpire mentioned it about four overs into my spell," Franklin told the county's website.

"I've taken one before in test cricket, but never in first class."

Franklin became the second New Zealander to bag a test hattrick, against Bangladesh at Dhaka five years ago.

His 109 from 181 balls for the John Bracewell-coached Gloucestershire was Franklin's first first-class century in England.

- NZPA