Sun 23 - Wed 26 Jun, 11:00
Report: Warwickshire v Hampshire, County Championship
Day Four
A dogged rearguard action from Warwickshire denied Hampshire a third successive victory as a hard-fought Vitality Championship match ended in a tense draw at Edgbaston thanks to Sam Hain’s defiant 111*.
Chasing 498 to win, Warwickshire resumed on the final morning on 40 for one and batted out the day for 321 for nine thanks largely to a seventh-wicket partnership of 183 between Sam Hain (111 not out, 254 balls) and Michael Burgess (79, 162).
They came together with their side in serious trouble at 123 for six but batted with patience and technique to consume 55 overs and steer the match towards a draw.
Hampshire pressed hard in the closing overs but had to settle for a draw having largely outbowled a home attack including Chris Woakes. For Warwickshire, though their fourth-day resolve saw them escape defeat, their wait for a championship victory goes on. In Division One, only they and neighbours Worcestershire have still to record a win this season.
Warwickshire badly needed that resolve in the second half of the day after their top order collapsed in the first. They took a big hit from the fifth ball of the morning when Keith Barker bowled Will Rhodes.
Hampshire winkled out another three in the morning session. Danny Briggs, having eked 26 from 81 minutes, flashed at a wide ball from Barker and nicked it. Dan Mousley edged spinner Liam Dawson to slip and Ed Barnard was bowled by a beauty from James Fuller.
When, to the ninth ball after lunch, Jacob Bethell played back fatally to Kyle Abbott and fell lbw, Warwickshire were 123 for six with 66 overs to survive. That is the sort of challenge that Hain and Burgess relish, both having batted the Bears out of many a hole, and they duly got their heads down again.
Hain struck his 800th four in first class cricket on his way to reaching 50 (116 balls) and grew in fluency as the afternoon went on. Two sixes pulled over long-leg off Fuller saw off the old ball and the new one also failed to part the seventh-wicket pair.
Hain biffed a Felix Organ full toss to the boundary to reach his 18th first class century and Burgess passed 4,000 first class runs and struck his 500th four in an innings of high diligence. Warwickshire were closing in on safety when, with 11 overs left, Burgess edged a cut at Organ and the ball rebounded off the wicketkeeper to Nick Gubbins at silly point.
A fired-up Fuller then rattled Woakes’ off stump and Hampshire were buzzing with 40 balls in which to take the last two wickets. With the tenth of those, Fuller hit Craig Miles’ off stump, leaving last man Olly Hannon-Dalby with five overs to survive.
A Fuller lifter rapped Hain on the hand, a blow that required lengthy treatment, but with only 21 balls left the batter soldiered on, abetted by Hannon Dalby (a steel-nerved 0 not out, 11 balls) to see his side to a draw.
Warwickshire coach Mark Robinson said:
“There is some relief to have come out of the game with a draw. We probably feel we deserved a draw but, at times during the game, we have been a bit careless. We probably shouldn’t have been in that position.
“Batting on the last day is never easy and Hainy showed great concentration and that partnership with Burgess, from six wickets down after lunch, got us close to safe with 12 overs to go but we all know in this game, there is often a late twist. You’ve got to give credit to Hampshire, they kept running in and Fuller’s spell at the end was aggressive and hostile on a relatively docile wicket. It was a very nerve-racking finish.
“Our effort yesterday when we didn’t get our rewards was brilliant in terms of application and effort in the field and all the things that you want a Warwickshire team to do and it is those standards and that togetherness that enables you to pull off the sort of fightback we showed today, not in a perfect way, but good enough to earn an honourable draw.”
Day Three
Warwickshire worked tirelessly in the heat as Hampshire took advantage of a flattening pitch to set up an intriguing final day in this Vitality County Championship match at Edgbaston.
James Vince and Liam Dawson harvested merciless centuries as Hampshire piled pressure on Warwickshire on the third day.
Vince scored an unbeaten 166 (197 balls), his 29th first-class century, and Dawson 120 (157), his 15th, in a sixth-wicket partnership of 255 in 53 overs as the visitors amassed 453 for six declared.
That set the home side a victory target of 498 in a day and 12 overs and Warwickshire reached 40 for one by the close. Both teams will enter the final day with a chance of victory, but a draw is much the likeliest outcome on a pitch that is flattening out by the hour.
It remains to be seen whether Hampshire’s pragmatic approach on the third day proves successful. They plumped for steady accumulation, only very belatedly showing some aggression after tea when Vince and Dawson were each past 100. That policy of attrition may well transpire to have asked too much of their bowlers to force victory in such batter-friendly conditions.
When Hampshire resumed on 88 for two, Nick Gubbins (47, 151) and Felix Organ (31, 90) took no risks. They extended their partnership to 50 in 19 overs before Gubbins, having struck just three fours in 202 minutes, edged Danny Briggs to slip.
Vince lifted his second ball, from former team-mate Briggs, over long on for six, but thereafter the pattern of defending and nurdling resumed and continued throughout a turgid morning. Organ’s stubborn defiance ended when he was slickly caught at point by diving substitute Che Simmons off Olly Hannon-Dalby.
The former Yorkshire seamer then trapped Ben Brown lbw and at 184 for five further quick wickets would have left Warwickshire scenting their first championship victory of the season, but Vince and Dawson took full advantage of the easing conditions. They batted through the afternoon for 139 runs in 34 overs, Vince reaching his first century of the season from 185 balls, against an attack which persevered nobly.
When, deep into the last session, the lead passed 450 a declaration appeared overdue, but Vince and Dawson stayed to turned the screw on a tiring attack under the broiling Birmingham sun. Dawson swung Dan Mousley to deep mid-wicket where Will Rhodes judged the catch well. After James Fuller raised the 450 with the sixth six of the innings, the declaration arrived. Hampshire had 12 overs to get into Warwickshire’s top order and they struck an important blow in the ninth of them when Kyle Abbott’s first ball trapped Alex Davies lbw. The home side have a lot of batting to do to get safe on the final day – but very favourable conditions in which to do it.
Warwickshire skipper Alex Davies, said:
“It was a tough day. It was very hot day and the pitch is good now and very nice for batting on. The partnership between Vince and Dawson was massive. It just broke the back of our attack. The ball got soft and in that heat the fast bowlers can only bowl so many overs. We are managing Woakes on his workloads and Hannon-Dalby’s run in all year for us and been fantastic.
“The pitch got flat and up against two good batters it was tough – that’s how it goes sometimes.
“We always talk about trying to win games, we want to win every game we play, but we’ll see how we go in the first session and assess it from there. There is one short boundary but the priority must be to bat the first two sessions and keep ourselves in the game and then, if we have a sniff of winning later on with some wickets in hand, you can be sure we’ll be going for it.”
Day Two
Dan Mousley’s late wicket will give the Bears momentum at the halfway stage of their Vitality County Championship match at Edgbaston.
Fletcha Middleton (58, 87) struck his second half-century of the match, but an edge to Michael Burgess 14 balls before the close will give the hosts impetus on a great cricket wicket.
With a lead of 132, Hampshire (88/2) have an advantage, although Warwickshire are very much still in the game.
After the hosts resumed on 51 for two, the ground echoed to perhaps the earliest ever cry of ‘get on with it’ when, at 11.01am, a long delay ensued while the ball was inspected and then changed. Former Bear Keith Barker wielded the replacement to spectacular effect with a burst of three for 17 in 25 balls. He trapped Danny Briggs lbw, had Sam Hain superbly caught by Ben Brown, standing up, and hit Ed Barnard’s off-stump.
From 83 for five, Mousley and Bethell applied themselves diligently. Destructive batters in the Blast (Bethell smashed 50 from 15 balls last week – this time he scored just two from his first 15), they showed they also have the technique to dig in against good bowling. They added 74 in 22 overs before Mousley was lured into driving away from his body at Barker and edged behind.
Michael Burgess (35, 77) joined Bethell to add 64 in 21 overs before Barker returned to strike twice more. Bethell edged a big drive to first slip where James Vince accepted that catch and another two overs later when Chris Woakes edged a footwork-free waft.
Craig Miles smote three quick fours but then played down the wrong line to Abbott. Mohammad Abbas finally collected a deserved wicket when Burgess chopped on.
Barker’s left-arm swing earned him 14 hauls of five wickets or more as a Warwickshire player. He bagged his ninth for Hampshire with six for 74 in a gripping contest in the Birmingham sunshine
With the evening session to enlarge their lead, Hampshire began badly when Toby Albert edged Olly Hannon-Dalby’s second ball to slip, but then advanced meticulously. Middleton continued his good form from the first innings to reach a 60-ball half-century and Nick Gubbins (24 not out in over two hours) unfurled an innings of low entertainment for the spectators but high value to his team as the advantage ticked upwards.
This intriguing match may have a fascinating second half in wait for those spectators, particularly those who are connoisseurs of threes. With a very long boundary on the Pershore Road side of the ground, this has been a veritable festival of threes – there have been 15 already.
Warwickshire all-rounder Dan Mousley said:
“It’s a really good cricket wicket and it feels like the wicket is getting better for batting so if we can nip a few out in the morning, then we are definitely back in the driving seat. We bowled really well in that last session and didn’t quite get our rewards. Hopefully tomorrow those rewards will come.
“It was pleasing for me and Jake to put on some important runs. We have batted a lot together over the years and it feels quite natural batting with him. We complement each other pretty well. I said to him after he’d faced 15 balls and was on two, ‘you were on 50 the other night!’ He played really well and showed what a good player he is.
“It is a change of mindset from T20 to championship and there are some things on the technical side to change but at the end of the day it’s still a ball and you have still got to hit it.”
Day One
Warwickshire restricted in-form Hampshire to a sub-300 score but were left to rue the loss of openers Will Rhodes and Al Davies in the space of four balls at the end of an entertaining Day One.
James Vince’s side arrived at Edgbaston seeking a third successive championship win but having chosen to bat on a good pitch they were bowled out for 298.
Only Fletcha Middleton (74 from 135 balls) passed 50 against Bears’ seam attack which extracted every ounce of assistance available from the conditions.
Olly Hannon-Dalby was the pick of the bowlers. His first wicket was his 350th in first class cricket and he built pressure in every spell on his way to 16-5-35-3.
The Yorkshireman was well-supported by Ed Barnard (three for 61) – who received his Warwickshire ‘White Bear’ cap before the game – and Craig Miles (three for 71).
Chris Woakes returned to Warwickshire’s team for the first time this season but it was Hannon-Dalby who delivered the breakthrough with a peach of an outswinger which Toby Albert edged to wicketkeeper Michael Burgess.
That apart, Hampshire advanced solidly through the morning and reached lunch on 104/1.
Middleton and Gubbins added 102 in 30 overs but were uprooted during an aggressive post-lunch spell by Barnard.
Gubbins edged to first slip and Middleton played back to one that kept low and lost his off-stump. When Vince edged Hannon-Dalby to third slip, a serene 119 for one had become an uneasy 148 for four.
Ben Brown (32, 51) and Liam Dawson (46, 66) stopped the slide with a stand of 61 before Miles struck twice in an over. Brown leg-glanced too fine and was caught by the wicketkeeper and James Fuller lifted carelessly to backward point.
On the first hot day of the championship season, Warwickshire’s bowler persisted well, not least Hannon-Dalby who struck for a third time when Dawson played on.
Keith Barker (40, 74) batted comfortably against his former team-mates but Barnard’s third wicket followed when an outswinger took the edge to end Felix Organ’s punchy 26-ball 23.
Woakes, on his 100th first class appearance for Warwickshire, returned to the attack to take the new ball and quickly secured his 365th wicket in those games when Abbott leading-edged to gully. When Barker top-edged a swipe at Miles to fine leg, Hampshire had fallen two short of a third batting point.
Warwickshire looked well set on 48 without loss before Rhodes lifted Abbott to cover and three balls later Alex Davies fell to a stunning return catch as the visitors ended a largely trying day with a smile.
Warwickshire all-rounder Chris Woakes said: “It was a good day for us. They were in a really strong position at lunch so to bowl them out for under 300 was pleasing. We’d have liked to have been none down at the close but the day has probably ended even.
“The pitch played pretty well for everyone. As a bowler you felt in the game if you got the ball in the right areas, there was plenty of carry and a bit of bounce, but as a batter if you get through your first 25 balls, you can capitalise.
“I did feel slightly rusty out there but I am fairly pleased with how it went. It would have been nice to get some more wickets but I felt in a better rhythm after lunch.
“It’s nice to play my 100th first class game for Warwickshire. It feels like it should have happened much sooner but of course when you play for England you sometimes don’t play much county cricket, so I haven’t played many championship games in the last five years for good reasons.
“I always love playing for Warwickshire but I still very much have ambitions to play for England for as long as possible. Last summer I had a really good summer and I would like to back that up.”
