Craig White completely dominated Yorkshire's batting in a glorious exhibition of sumptuous strokeplay on the first day of the Championship match against Leicestershire at the Scarborough Cricket Festival yesterday.

While wickets crashed around him, White reeled off a series of extra cover drives which were a joy to watch as he dashed to 161 out of a final score of 276.

White rode his luck, twice being put down by skipper Vince Wells at first slip on 31 and 84 and then by Ashley Wright at cover on 150, but it was a magnificent effort which contained 26 fours and lasted for 216 deliveries.

With the ball moving around alarmingly on a warm morning, White came in at five for two in the fourth over after Vic Craven had clipped Devon Malcolm to square leg and Matthew Elliott had been bowled pushing forward at Indian paceman Javagal Srinath.

White did not depart until the first over after tea, when he tried to turn a full-length ball from Malcolm to long leg and was bowled leg stump.

After Chris Taylor and Michael Lumb had fallen to catches behind the wicket off Srinath and Wells the situation grew even more serious as Malcolm accounted for Gary Fellows and Richard Blakey with consecutive deliveries.

Fellows became another victim for wicketkeeper Neil Burns, while Blakey was lbw to an inswinger.

White had made 57 out of 101 for six at lunch and when Richard Dawson was lbw to a Srinath shooter Yorkshire were 118 for seven and the odds were against them picking up even a single batting bonus point.

However, White reached his century from 134 balls, receiving sensible support from Andy Gray in an eighth-wicket stand of 107, which brought a batting bonus point and took Yorkshire half-way towards a second before Gray was lbw to Wells for 25.

Steven Kirby showed plenty of enterprise in putting on 29 with White and then 22 with last man Ryan Sidebottom to bring further respectability to the Yorkshire score.

In reply, Trevor Ward was lbw shuffling across his stumps to Sidebottom at 17 in the eighth over.

Leicestershire had moved to 32 for one when the umpires considered the sea mist, that had interfered with play throughout the day, was sufficient to abandon play for the day with 6.5 overs remaining.