Foster was the stand-in captain for Essex against Northants

Essex's stand-in captain James Foster has praised his side's fielding performance against Northamptonshire.

The Eagles bowled out the visitors for 61 in their Pro40 encounter on Sunday as David Masters, Graham Napier and Chris Wright all took three wickets.

Foster told BBC Essex: "I think there were only two bad balls in the whole of the innings' 20-odd overs and that's a great achievement.

"We held our catches and did everything we had to," he added.

"Often you find somebody has a partnership in the middle, but we bowled exceptionally well and exploited it to the fullest," he added.

The Northants innings was the second low-score at Garon Park in the space of 48 hours, following Essex's 78-all out against Glamorgan in the County Championship on Friday.

However, Foster was quick to give credit to their fielding effort, rather than blame the Southend wicket.

"It was the sort of pitch where, if you stuck it in good areas, you're going to give yourself a chance," he said. "But it wasn't unplayable by any means."

"Yes, it was difficult conditions to bat, it was nibbling.

"But some of their dismissals was [down to] them playing away from their body and getting caught by the slips and the 'keeper - but credit to us there was a lot of pressure."

Essex remain unbeaten in Division Two in the Pro40 competition and will look to cement their place at the top of the league when they host Surrey on Tuesday night.