Shantry Stars as Hampshire Defeated on Final Day

Wickets for Jack Shantry (5-51) and Saeed Ajmal (3-71) ensured Worcestershire picked up an important victory by an innings and 33 runs over Hampshire, on day four of the LV= County Championship match at New Road, despite a half-century for Joe Gatting (59).

A counter-attacking innings from Gatting was not enough to save the game as Saeed Ajmal began well picking up the first two wickets of the day inside the opening hour.

Although late resistance was shown by a battling Danny Briggs (42*), Shantry then finished off the innings with Hampshire reaching 262, the seamer grabbing the final two wickets to claim his five-wicket haul whilst also reaching 50 wickets for the season.

Hampshire began the day needing an extraordinary batting effort to avoid defeat, but things began poorly after Gareth Berg (12) was trapped LBW by Ajmal with just the third ball of the day.

Gatting remained resolute and the right-hander brought up a well-made fifty, his second in as many games, to see the visitors bring up the 200 at 203-7 before Ajmal struck once again to see the batmsna depart and with it any hopes of building any sort of a lead.

The efficient Shantry was then introduced to the attack and he quickly accounted for the loss of both Brad Wheal (10) and Jackson Bird (10) to see Hampshire’s innings come to a close. Briggs was the man to finish unbeaten, just eight short of his half-century, but Worcestershire once again impressed with a solid bowling display to seal their second four-day victory of the season.

Words: Will Brewster