Report & Reaction: Hampshire Men v Somerset, Rothesay County Championship

Day Four

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Hampshire continued their unbeaten start and Somerset their winless opening to the Rothesay County Championship season with a draw at Utilita Bowl.

Sean Dickson, Tom Abell, and the weather quelled any chances of a final day route to a positive result in either direction – with a total of 175 overs, or around five sessions, lost in the match.

Dickson ended up unbeaten on 77, and Abell 27, after a 56-run partnership which had wiped out Hampshire’s lead and taken Somerset away from any danger of losing.

Ben Brown’s side took 13 points from the match, to Somerset’s 10, to display a healthy 43 points from their opening three rounds and remain within touching distance of the Division One pacemakers.

The only thing stopping this match from becoming a day four draw was either an inspired morning of bowling or the forecasted rain blowing in the opposite direction.

Neither happened, with the first part largely down to Dickson and Abell’s stoic batting.

Hampshire had the ideal start as Tom Lammonby fell in the fifth over of the day having added two to his overnight score of 22.

The left-hander couldn’t control a guide to third after Kyle Abbott had extracted some bounce off a length, and edged to Tom Prest at first slip.

On three occasions, Abbott thought he had Dickson lbw but each time the South African, and his team-mates’, vociferous appeals were turned down.

Abbott was the pick of the Hampshire bowlers with his unerring accuracy with his eight morning overs only conceding 12 runs, with 83 per cent of the deliveries resulting in dots.

But he, nor Brad Wheal, James Fuller, Liam Dawson or Brett Hampton, could do anything to move the steadfast Dickson and Abell.

The duo blocked and left with a clean head while chipping away at Hampshire’s lead.

A Dickson pulled two took the visitors into the lead – having been behind the match since losing six wickets for 40 runs in the first innings – shortly before rain brought an early lunch.

Light and then heavy rain prevented a restart until after tea, and even then only three and a half overs - in which the only action of note was a dropped catch at first slip - were possible before bad light suspended proceedings again.

After two sessions had been lost on day one, and early finishes for bad light on the following two days, there was little surprise when the hands were shaken on a draw at 17:00 BST, with Somerset sweating over a minus over rate and a potential points deduction. 

Day Three

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Migael Pretorius’ bowling and Sean Dickson’s batting swung the advantage away from Hampshire in their Rothesay County Championship fixture with Somerset.

South African Pretorius picked up five for 64 as Somerset only allowed the hosts a first innings lead of 152, despite Nick Gubbins’ 82 and Liam Dawson’s 72.

That edge was whittled down to 49 for the loss of just Archie Vaughan as Dickson ended his start-of-the-season drought with a calm unbeaten half-century before the dingy light descended on Utilita Bowl.

Hampshire began the day with a 10-run lead and the hopes of a large extension of that, which would mean they could win the match without batting again.

But Tom Lammonby’s work with the old ball and then Pretorius’ with the new stymied them – despite managing to pick up two batting bonus points.

Gubbins and Dawson had ground out a 76-run partnership the previous evening, but opened up a little in the morning – with the former taking a particular liking to Alfie Ogborne.

The stand grew to 125 in a demoralising first half an hour of the day for Somerset – which also saw Dawson dropped by Tom Abell at midwicket – before the visitors began to fight back.

Left-armer Lammonby had only bowled five wicketless overs in the opening two matches of the season, but his two maiden overs on the second evening had been the best on show for his side.

He found good movement with the old ball and struck three times before the 80th over.

Gubbins got stuck on the crease and was plumb lbw, Dawson couldn’t keep a cut shot down and was well held by Vaughan, and Brett Hampton lasted three balls before he was leg-before to a ball that swung back.

Ben Brown was the constant as three of the last four batters reached double-figures in quick time but couldn’t stick around.

James Fuller went first and hit 15 in 21 balls, including two stunning cover drives, but departed in the fifth over of the new cherry, as Pretorius nibbled one in to take the edge to second slip.

Toby Albert – who dropped down the order because a back spasm – was lbw while falling over an angled in ball from Pretorius.

And after Kyle Abbott had whacked an 11-ball 20, Pretorius completed his second five-wicket haul for Somerset with a legside catch behind to James Rew.

Ogborne ended the innings when Brad Wheal – after 19 off 16 - had his stumps rearranged, leaving Brown on 30 and still yet to be dismissed on his home ground as club captain.   

A lead of 152 would have been below Hampshire’s hopes, but still large enough to mount a victory effort.

But an increasingly flat pitch and a stout top-order batting performance quelled their hopes of a quick victory, and made the draw the favourite result, especially with rain forecast on the final day.

Vaughan and Dickson’s opening partnerships list had read a dismal: 21, 14, 4 and 14 but they roused to 50 with little fuss.

Vaughan departed after looping a catch up for deep square leg for the second match in a row, but Dickson battened down the hatches and refused to give away his wicket.

The former Kent batter had a top score of 11 in five innings this season but never looked in danger – except for a wild unprovoked swing which barely missed his leg stump – to reach his fourth fifty for Somerset in 108 balls.

Bad light brought tea forward by 10 minutes, and when they belatedly returned, only four overs of spin were possible before things turned terminally dark.

Day Two

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Nick Gubbins continued where he left off at the Kia Oval as his unbeaten 58 put Hampshire in the box seat of their Rothesay County Championship clash with Somerset.

Top order batter Gubbins struck a century against Surrey in the previous round to secure a draw, having scored 43 in the first innings.

He played the anchor in stands of 80 and an unbeaten 76 with Tom Prest (42) and Liam Dawson (50 not out) as Hampshire wiped out Somerset’s 184 to take their lead to 10 by close.

Brad Wheal and James Fuller had ended up with four wickets each, but Migael Pretorius bolstered Somerset’s meagre score with 47 not out in a 48-run partnership for the 10th wicket.

After a half-hour delay to the start of play, Hampshire needed just 10 deliveries to continue their day one dominance, as Craig Overton was powerless to not edge a Brad Wheal beauty behind.

James Fuller entered soon after to take a wicket in each of his first two overs of the day, with Tom Abell and Jack Leach leg before. They helped Fuller reach eventual figures of four for 42 in his first appearance of the season.

With Somerset 136 for nine an hour before lunch, Hampshire would have been expecting to be batting before the interval, but Pretorius and Alfie Ogborne hung around and added some much-needed runs.

Pretorius was the natural attacker, while Ogborne got his head down and defended. They were abetted by defensive fields and lax fielding in their 48-run salvo off 84 balls in exactly 60 minutes.

Ogborne was eventually bowled by Wheal, to give the Scotland international his third four-wicket haul in as many matches, with Pretorius unbeaten on 47 and Somerset bowled out for 184.

With the sun and blue skies now making conditions perfect for batting, the hosts’ opening batters Mark Stoneman and Fletcha Middleton got through 59 balls with ease, but both fell in quick succession.

Ogborne, who is playing his third first-class match for Somerset with all three coming against Hampshire, had shown control before a peach of a delivery was edged behind by Middleton.

Four balls later and Middleton was joined back in the dressing room by Stoneman as Pretorius found a gap between bat and pad to send the middle stump tumbling.

South African Pretorius should have then been on a hat-trick as his pinned Prest with the next delivery, but he turned around to see umpire David Millns’ arm raised for a no ball.

Prest made hay with Gubbins in continuing to wipe out Somerset’s total as they negotiated accurate but flat bowling.

Prest picked off the poorer balls with seven boundaries, while Gubbins put his wicket at a huge premium with his defensive strokes impressed onto the eyelids of every spectator at Utilita Bowl.  

Their partnership was broken when Pretorius had his lbw, but Dawson entered to take his place.

Dawson had spits of aggression – best shown with four boundaries, including a pinged pulled six in back-to-back Ogborne overs – but largely battered down with Gubbins.

Gubbins reached his half-century in 111 balls, Dawson in 92 balls as Hampshire took the lead.

Bad light ended proceedings seven overs early, with Hampshire having a platform to amass a big first-innings lead on day three.

Day One

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Kyle Abbott continued his impressive career record against Somerset as Hampshire made the most of little play on day one of their Rothesay County Championship fixture.

Abbott added two wickets to take his tally to 71 scalps versus Somerset, with 40 of them coming at an average of 12 at Utilita Bowl.

Fellow fast bowlers James Fuller and Brad Wheal also picked up a pair of wickets as Somerset collapsed to 94 for six at lunch – with three wickets falling in 11 balls just before the interval.

But the visitors were spared any more damage as rain prevented any play taking place after lunch.

Lewis Gregory’s abdominal injury meant that James Rew captained his county for the first time in the Championship – having previously led the Second XI and England Under 19. In doing so, he became the county’s youngest ever skipper.

His first act was to call incorrectly at the toss, allowing Ben Brown to choose to bowl under threatening grey skies.

The wait for the first wicket only lasted 34 balls, as Sean Dickson was late to deal with a Wheal in-ducker and was pinned in front.

Archie Vaughan and Tom Lammonby stabilised and attempted to build a foundation but having eased to a 55-run stand both fell within 13 deliveries to Fuller.

Fuller had been left out of the opening two rounds of the season in favour of former Somerset tearaway Sonny Baker. But Baker, who is on an ECB Development Contract, was rested, leaving the door open for Fuller.

Having been hit for two boundaries in his opening over, he tightened up before rolling his fingers down one to find some away movement and the edge of Vaughan’s bat.

To dismiss Lammonby, Fuller pitched it further up and angled it across the left-hander. He found the edge through to Brown.

The morning looked like it would end fairly even at 93 for three around 10 minutes until lunch, but Abbott returned to make it clear who the session belonged to with Wheal.

Tom Banton couldn’t have been more unlucky with his wicket. The middle-order batter whipped a half-volley with gusto but was sensationally caught by Nick Gubbins.

Then five balls later, Rew tentatively pushed behind. Tom Abell added one run before Kasey Aldridge was beaten for pace and had his off stump clattered by Wheal. 11 balls had seen one run and three wickets.

Rain at lunch meant no further action was possible, with an early finish confirmed just before 16:30 BST.