Report & Reaction: Hampshire v Worcestershire, Vitality CC

Day Four

Kyle Abbott put Hampshire in pole position to secure their best Vitality County Championship since 2005 after beating Worcestershire by 235 runs.

Abbott took four of the five remaining Worcestershire wickets to return five for 36 and his fourth five-wicket haul of the season.

Hampshire collected maximum points to move above Somerset and into second ahead of a trip to Taunton to conclude the season next week, with James Vince’s side last finishing as runners-up under Shane Warne’s captaincy.

Worcestershire needed 277 more runs to win on the final day, but only lasted until 11:30 BST as Abbott ran rampant.

Abbott broke through in the sixth over of the day as he skidded a short delivery into Ethan Brookes’ ribs.

The first innings centurion attempted to pull, but it dragged off his glove and to Toby Albert at leg slip – who took a stunning diving catch.

Jake Libby scored a patient half-century the previous evening but only added a further two runs before he became Abbott’s second scalp in two overs.

The South African found significant inwards movement to take an inside edge onto pad which was safely pouched by James Vince at first slip.

Albert produced a second brilliant piece of fielding of the morning as Joe Leach’s penultimate Championship appearance ended in a run out when Logan van Beek turned down a single.

Tom Taylor came out to bat at No.11 with a runner, but either side of some Amar Virdi swinging, but only lasted six balls before he edged Abbott behind.

Abbott now has 46 scalps in the Championship this season, having completed the game an hour into day four with the hosts bowled out for 158.

Day Three

Liam Dawson returned 50 wickets in a Vitality County Championship season for the first time after scoring an eighth fifty of the season as Hampshire closed in on victory over Worcestershire.

Spinning all-rounder Dawson reached a half-century of scalps by adding Kashif Ali and Adam Hose to his tally – in doing so beating the 49 wickets he claimed last season – with no spinner in the country taking more this year.

Along with his bowling exploits, no one has passed 50 more times than Dawson in Division One in 2024, as he moved to 907 runs with a 51 which set Worcestershire 394 runs to win.

The visitors ended the day five wickets down, still 277 runs short of victory – but with Jake Libby still undefeated on 55.

Both sides are now only playing for positions after Hampshire’s improbable title challenge ended with Surrey's victory over Durham, and Worcestershire’s survival already secured.

Having elected against enforcing the follow-on the previous evening, Hampshire’s second innings lacked in fluency, but still ended up at in the vicinity of the destination they would have aimed.

The inability to score runs quickly was largely down to Joe Leach’s expertise with a nipping ball – he took three for 17, with six pressure building maidens, across his first two spells.

The 33-year-old is retiring after next week’s fixture against Lancashire, but proved he was still as skilful as ever to pick up Hampshire’s top three – although none of the wickets were classic dismissals.

Toby Albert fell in the second over of the morning when he was strangled down leg and was caught behind, Fletcha Middleton lasted a further four overs before he was caught and bowled while playing across one, and first innings double centurion Nick Gubbins was caught at slip after the ball had looped off the wicketkeeper’s glove.

Ben Brown quickly followed when Amar Virdi straightened one to pin him, but James Vince was keeping the scoreboard progressing with an often sketchy, sometimes glorious 44.

Vince dragged Virdi onto his own stumps while sweeping but after lunch Tom Prest and Dawson returned with a lucidly attacking game plan to whip up a 72-run partnership at a whisker under a run-a-ball.

Dawson followed his first innings century and five-wicket haul with a 63-ball fifty but fell soon after when Logan van Beek destroyed his stumps.

Things turned frenetic again as James Fuller swished behind, Prest was leg before when stuck on the crease to Virdi, Kyle Abbott was bowled on the swing and Felix Organ was run out after a strike confusion with Mo Abbas – which prevented Virdi from a second career 10-wicket haul.

With an imposing, but not impossible target, Gareth Roderick failed to show the resolve of the first innings by getting bowled by Abbott beauty in the sixth over.

Kashif Ali played for turn that didn’t come from Dawson to fall lbw in the 14th over before two fine slip catches from Vince accounted for Rob Jones and Adam Hose – the latter was Dawson’s 50th wicket of the season.

Jake Libby had staunchly battled to 49, but when initially trying to reach the milestone, he ran out his partner Brett D’Oliveira, before eventually getting to a 47th first-class fifty with a less risky ambled single off 106 balls.

Libby remained unbeaten at close, with Ethan Brookes hanging on along side him.

Day Two

Nick Gubbins equalled his first-class best before Ethan Brookes scored a scintillating maiden Vitality County Championship century but couldn’t prevent a hefty Hampshire lead.

Gubbins shone to reach 201 as Hampshire picked up maximum batting points in their improbable title charge, before Muhammad Abbas ran rampant to leave the visitors 61 for five.

Worcestershire's Brookes and Gareth Roderick countered in a flurry of sweeps and high-quality batting to put on 196, with scores of 132 and 94 individually to confirm their side's safety in Division One.

But Liam Dawson claimed his fifth five-wicket haul of the summer to boast a 189-run first-innings lead, however Hampshire did not enforce the follow-on – instead closing the day on three without loss.

Dawson and Gubbins began the day by setting a new fifth wicket partnership record for Hampshire against Worcestershire – beating the 209 between Jim Bailey and Neville Rogers in 1946.

The stand reached 220 before Dawson advanced, swatted and skied Tom Taylor to Adam Hose, to begin a hair-raising 10 over spell where Hampshire attempted to reach 450, while losing regular wickets.

Gubbins continued his reign and reached the second double century of his career in 315 balls with a powerful strike through the leg side.

But around him, Surrey loanee Amar Virdi took advantage of the aggression to pick up his first professional five-for since 2021.

Tom Prest chipped to midwicket to give Taylor his fourth, before off-spinner Virdi got one to turn sharply to pin James Fuller, found Felix Organ slogging to deep midwicket and Kyle Abbott leg before when going back.

It was left to Abbas to clip off his legs to the boundary to reach 450 and a fifth batting point before he left Gubbins unbeaten when he edged to second slip.

Worcestershire’s response continued the wicket rush as Abbas produced one of his spells where he has the ball on a leash.

Jake Libby was done between bat and pad to a ball that nipped in and took the top of the off stump, before Kashif Ali tried to cover his stumps but edged to first slip.

The Pakistan international produced another teaser by holding one outside off stump for Rob Jones to nick off, before adding an Adam Hose lbw after lunch to leave Worcestershire 30 for four.

Dawson began his haul with a smart piece of field movement to switch Fletcha Middleton from short leg to short mid off, before some extra bounce saw Brett D’Oliveira glove one to the re-placed Middleton.

Roderick had weathered the storm from his end and found a bullish Brookes keen to score quickly – his second time past fifty in 52 balls as he quickly zoomed ahead of his top-order partner’s scoring rate.

With Dawson, and Felix Organ, in operation for much of the innings, Brookes took to sweeping to survive and score.

He played 44 variations on the shot during his innings - it brought him 13 boundaries and 71 of his runs.

His century came in 128 balls and was celebrated with great gusto on and off the field, as he and the increasingly attacking Roderick broke a 124-year record for the sixth wicket for the Pears versus Hampshire – eventually ending on 196.

By getting to 250, tied with their three bowling points, Worcestershire secured their Division One status for another season.

But that positivity melted into a sticky collapse – with the last five wickets falling for 16 runs.

Roderick was leg before to Organ – who wrestled things back after an expensive opening few overs – before Dawson took over.

Brookes died by the sweep when he picked out deep square, Logan van Beek and Virdi were lbw before the innings ended with Joe Leach pouched at slip.

Without Roderick and Brookes’ stand, the next highest partnership was worth 31, and only D’Oliveira scored more than four runs.

Hampshire’s didn’t make them go again, and Hampshire openers Middleton and Toby Albert went through six overs unscathed.

Day One

Nick Gubbins and Liam Dawson collected their third Vitality County Championship century of the season as Hampshire piled on the runs during the opening day of their clash with Worcestershire.

Left-handed batter Gubbins demonstrated immense control in his 153 to pass his highest score for Hampshire – after arriving from Middlesex in 2021.

He put on 129 with half-century maker James Vince and Liam Dawson – who also passed 10,000 first-class runs.

Hampshire are mathematically still in the title race – starting the round 27 points adrift of Surrey – and ended the day on 373 for four.

Vince chose to bat first on a pitch previously used earlier in May for the victory over Surrey, with Felix Organ’s inclusion suggesting hope of spin being prevalent throughout the four days.

But the hopes of a solid platform to build from was not helped by both openers departing before the end of the sixth over, as Tom Taylor enjoyed the new ball.

Fletcha Middleton was his first victim with a beautiful delivery that shaped to swing in but nipped away to clean bowl the batter.

Toby Albert followed when he pushed to first slip, the ball after he had been forced to change his bat after Taylor had chipped the shoulder with some extra bounce.

Worcestershire’s early cheer was dulled as Vince and Gubbins bedded in with their huge experience.

Gubbins was the unlikely aggressor of the pair with cuts off Logan van Beek his favoured method of scoring quick runs.

But neither he nor Vince were able to freely score against a regimentally disciplined attack, with hard graft keeping the scoreboard ticking.

The 129-run stand with Vince ended in strange and controversial style.

Vince attempted a big sweep against Amar Virdi but missed the ball. As everyone’s eyes followed the ball skid off towards the fine leg boundary, Worcestershire had started celebrating. A bail had been dislodged.  

The umpires conferred as Vince remained unmoved – thinking it had been broken by the wicketkeeper’s glove or arm – but ultimately he was given out bowled.

There was no question about Virdi’s second scalp as Ben Brown tried to give himself room but only thinly edged to opposing wicketkeeper Gareth Roderick.

As with earlier in the day, two wickets in quick succession only began a long batting partnership – this time Gubbins found Dawson to stay with him.

Dawson was dismissive with a quartet of early boundaries and took himself past 10,000 red ball runs on his 202nd appearance.

Worcestershire remained tight in their bowling but couldn’t find another breakthrough, although they dropped Dawson when he was on 62.

Gubbins reached his century in 198 deliveries before Dawson skipped through the 90s with a pulled six and cover-driven four to reach three figures for the 17th time in his career.