Report & Reaction: Somerset v Hampshire, Vitality CC

Day Three

Skipper James Vince led from the front as Hampshire clinched runners-up spot in the Vitality County Championship with a five-wicket Division One victory over third-placed Somerset at Taunton.

The home side added 120 to their overnight second innings score of 60 for four before being bowled out for 180, skipper Lewis Gregory top-scoring with 59 and Jack Leach making 33 not out. Kyle Abbott finished with five for 37 from 18 overs.

Set 121 to win, Hampshire lost wickets to the first two balls of their second innings, bowled by Gregory, who was denied a hat-trick when Kasey Aldridge spilled a low chance at second slip offered by Vince.

It proved an expensive miss as Vince went on to hit 54 and Liam Dawson 44 not out, helping the visitors to reach their target on the third afternoon from 27 overs.

Hampshire took 19 points from the game to guarantee second place behind Surrey and Somerset only three, having seen their concerted challenge for all three trophies end without winning one is a desperately disappointing end to the campaign.

Hopes that their fifth-wicket pair Tom Kohler-Cadmore and James Rew could build them a significant lead in the morning session were soon dispelled when Kohler-Cadmore was bowled by Mohammad Abbas, having added only two to his overnight score of 15.

At 62 for five, the hosts led by just two runs. With a further 13 added, Aldridge, on 11, became Abbott’s fourth victim of the innings when edging to third slip.

That brought in Gregory, who wasted no time in launching a spirited counter-attack, hitting Liam Dawson for three successive fours and a six in the 32nd over.

James Rew, unbeaten on eight overnight, began solidly and the pair had taken the score to 108 when he drove loosely at a wide delivery from Abbas and was caught behind for 19.

Gregory went to a defiant 38-ball half-century, with 8 fours and a six, while Leach looked more competent with the bat than some of Somerset’s top order in a partnership of 55 that frustrated Hampshire for 12 overs.

Inevitably, it was Abbott who ended it, scattering Gregory’s stumps with a ball that nipped back between bat and pad to make the score 163 for eight, a Somerset lead of 103.

Off-spinner Felix Organ then chipped in with the last two wickets as Alfie Ogborne was caught behind cutting and Shoaib Bashir bowled pushing forward, while Abbott finished with match figures of nine for 74.

Lunch had been delayed for the fall of the final wicket and Hampshire’s second innings began after the interval.

It could hardly have started more dramatically as Toby Albert was caught behind off Gregory’s first ball and Nick Gubbins edged to fourth slip off the second.

The chance offered by Vince off the third was far from easy, but Aldridge appeared to get two hands to the ball just before it touched the ground. With so few runs to defend, Somerset had to take every opportunity.

Still, they had hope as Fletcha Middleton was adjudged to have edged Gregory to wicketkeeper James Rew to make it 21 for three, and Leach gained a leg before verdict against Tom Prest, reverse sweeping, at 46 for four – although replays showed the ball had hit his glove.

But that was as good as it got for Somerset. Dawson joined Vince in defying the spin attack of Leach and Bashir, calming any nerves in the visiting dressing room with a solid stand of 57 in 14 overs.

Vince went to his fifty off 58 balls with a four through mid-on off Bashir, misfielded by Leach, who looked the more menacing of the two England spinners in both innings, as his match figures of seven for 77 compared to Bashir’s none for 78 illustrated.

By the time Vince was stumped dancing down the pitch to Leach, Hampshire needed only 18 more runs and the outcome was all but settled.

Dawson had the satisfaction of hitting the winning runs off Bashir at the end of a crucial 56-ball contribution.

Day Two

Kyle Abbott wreaked more havoc on Somerset’s batting as Hampshire assumed a dominant position on the second day of the Vitality County Championship Division One game at Taunton.

The visitors gained a first innings lead of 60 in the battle for the runners-up spot by extending their overnight score of 62 for five to 196 all out, Toby Albert making 77 and Jack Leach claiming five for 52.

Then Abbott went to work, following his four first innings victims with three for 11 as Somerset slumped to 60 for four by stumps on another rain-shortened day.

The 37-year-old seamer has now taken 67 wickets against them during his prolific career, more than against any other county.

Heavy rain overnight and morning drizzle meant a major mopping up job for the groundstaff, and an early lunch was taken at 12.15pm after two pitch inspections, with play eventually getting underway at 12.55pm.

Somerset surprisingly began with seam bowling at both ends, but when left-arm spinner Leach was introduced with the total on 76 for five, his second ball saw Felix Organ edge to Kasey Aldridge at second slip for 12.

Albert, who had been dropped before scoring by Aldridge on day one, moved to an immensely valuable 116-ball half-century, with 5 fours.

Normally one of Somerset’s best fielders, Aldridge was at fault again when spilling a straightforward chance at square leg, offered by Ben Brown on ten.

Albert hit straight sixes off Leach and Shoaib Bashir as the seventh-wicket partnership with Brown prospered and took Hampshire into the lead before the opener’s 162-ball innings ended, caught behind flashing at a delivery from Aldridge.

Brown departed for 35, caught at backward point, aiming to reverse sweep Leach, to make it 159 for eight.

But Somerset’s hopes of restricting the lead suffered a blow when Bashir dropped Abbott at mid-on off Leach.

On two at the time, Abbott went on to score 18 before driving a catch to short cover off Lewis Gregory.

James Fuller then hit Archie Vaughan for six over long-on before perishing in the same over, caught at deep extra cover for a rapid 25, aiming another big hit.

Somerset had paid dearly for dropping three catches. But soon they were benefitting from one as Tom Lammonby escaped a low chance to third slip in Abbott’s first over.

It didn’t prove costly for Hampshire, however, as Lammonby fell for only a single, edging a catch behind off Mohammad Abbas.

Soon Abbott was wielding his customary spell over Somerset. Bowling from the River End, he pinned Vaughan lbw for 25 and then induced edges from Andy Umeed and Tom Abell, who both fell to slip catches as their side stumbled to 38 for four, still 22 runs behind.

Tom Kohler-Cadmore picked up a delivery from left-arm spinner Liam Dawson over mid-wicket for six as 16 runs were added before a short rain-break, which saw eight overs lost when play resumed at 5.20pm.

Only 2.2 had been bowled when another heavy shower sent the players off again, Somerset just having written off the first innings deficit.

A downpour followed and the umpires abandoned play for the day at 5.45pm.

Day One

Kyle Abbott and Liam Dawson claimed four wickets each as Hampshire boosted their bid for runners-up spot in the Vitality County Championship by skittling nearest rivals Somerset for 136 on the opening day of the final Division One match at Taunton.

Seamer Abbott returned four for 37 and left-arm spinner Dawson four for 28. Only Tom Kohler-Cadmore, with 63, offered much resistance after the hosts had won the toss and elected to bat first on a dry surface, expected to take spin.

By the close of a rain-interrupted day, Hampshire had struggled to 62 for five in reply, Toby Albert unbeaten on 38 and Jack Leach taking three for nine. But, having failed to claim any batting points, Somerset now have to win the game to overtake their opponents and finish second behind champions Surrey.

The home side’s batting problems began with the fourth ball of the second over when Tom Lammonby, promoted from number three to open with Archie Vaughan, fell lbw to Abbott without scoring. Soon it was four for two as Andy Umeed was caught by wicketkeeper Ben Brown off the same bowler for a second ball duck.

Tom Abell, on five, survived a confident appeal for a catch behind off Mohammad Abbas, who then bowled him through the gate for ten with the total on 29. Kohler-Cadmore’s response was to launch his innings with four boundaries in the space of five balls.

Vaughan had recovered from an uncertain start and was unbeaten on 19 when rain interrupted play with Somerset 52 for three from 14 overs. An early lunch was taken at 12.15pm and the action resumed at shortly after 1.20pm, with ten overs lost.

Hampshire immediately introduced Dawson to the attack and he quickly found some turn to pin Vaughan leg before for 29 with his sixth delivery to make it 63 for four.

With only a single added, James Rew edged Abbas to second slip where Albert snapped up a low two-handed catch. Kasey Aldridge went 22 balls without scoring before trying to sweep successive deliveries from Dawson, the second of which saw him fall lbw.

Lewis Gregory helped an increasingly restrained Kohler-Cadmore add 27 for the seventh wicket before being struck on the back pad by a delivery from Dawson and departing to another leg before decision for 16.

At 98 for seven, Somerset were in disarray. But Kohler-Cadmore stood firm to record his first Championship half-century of a red ball season heavily curtailed by participation in the Indian Premier League. He had faced 85 balls and struck 5 fours and a six over mid-wicket off James Fuller.

Leach looked to be lending decent support when caught at slip for nine aiming a big hit off Dawson. When tea was taken at 3.30pm, the scoreboard read 128 for eight.

Kohler-Cadmore did his best to farm the strike at the start of the final session and the scoreboard ticked slowly to 136 before he was caught behind driving at a ball from Abbott.

Last man Shoaib Bashir, who had survived being bowled first ball because of the distraction of Abbott’s towel flying to the ground as he released the delivery, quickly became the fifth lbw victim of a sorry batting display lasting just 53.5 overs.

Alfie Ogborne had battled away for 24 balls to score one not out and the young left-arm seamer lifted Somerset spirits by having Fletcha Middleton caught at second slip off the eighth ball of Hampshire’s reply. It would have been nought for two had Aldridge not spilled a routine slip catch offered by Albert off Gregory in the third over.

With the total on 13, Nick Gubbins edged Gregory to first slip where Abell took a good catch low to his right. Somerset were back in the game when James Vince, having hit Vaughan for six over deep square, aimed another big hit at Leach and skyed a catch off a leading edge to Abell at backward point.

Leach struck again when Tom Prest drove a catch to extra cover and then bowled Dawson between bat and pad. For the first time in a Championship match, Somerset had picked both Leach and Bashir, bowling the two England spinners in tandem towards the end of the day.