Yorkshire skipper David Byas today praised the fighting qualities of his team after they scored a double top at the weekend.

Ten points from their rain affected drawn match with Derbyshire at Derby on Saturday gave them an eight point lead at the top of Division One of the PPP healthcare Championship table.

And their 35 runs win over Gloucestershire Gladiators at Headingley yesterday pushed them up to No 1 in Division One of the Norwich Union National League.

Yorkshire's heady success at the moment is all the more remarkable because they are without without several of their most experienced players either through Test calls or injuries.

Their England pair of Darren Gough and Craig White have missed the last couple of games and Yorkshire have also been without Chris Silverwood and Anthony McGrath from the start of the season. Ryan Sidebottom recently went down with a groin injury and Paul Hutchison and Richard Harden have just returned to first team action.

But Byas said: "Although we have not been at top strength our youngsters have responded magnificently and 17-year-old paceman Gary Ramsden and off-spinner Jame Middlebrook did us proud yesterday. We also owe a lot to our Australian, Darren Lehmann, who is in tremendous form and in a class of his own.

"I predicted before our game with Gloucestershire that it would be payback time after our three humiliating one-day defeats at their hands last season and I was proved right. It was great to get one back on them and move level on points with a better run rate.

"Things are going very well at the moment but it is still very early in the season and there is certainly no room for complacency to creep in.

"I have not forgotten that we began very well last summer before we fell away badly in the second half of the season and I do not want the same thing to happen again."

Yorkshire on Wednesday begin a four day match against Zimbabwe at Headingley and the Tourists will be determined to bounce back after their humiliation in the first Test at Lord's.

Darren Gough will be rested from Yorkshire's side while Craig White remains doubtful at this stage because of the hamstring strain he suffered while practising with England last week.

Zimbabwe will today re-group from the second-biggest thrashing in their brief Test history having become one of the few touring sides to be intimidated rather than inspired by playing at Lord's.

They badly missed injured top fast bowler Henry Olonga, who will return for the second Test which begins at Trent Bridge on June 1 and may be fit to face Yorkshire this week.