Hampshire LV= Championship Division One at Rose Bowl, Southampton Loss

 

Day 3

NOTTS CAPITULATE TO A HUMBLING DEFEAT

As expected Hampshire easily beat Notts by 122 runs in a day where 11 of the 13 wickets taken went to spin bowlers in the 71.1 overs that were actually bowled. Notts paid the price for indifferent bowling and fielding on day 1 and the daft dismissals of Duckett and Clarke in the first over of day 2 which gave the initiative to Hampshire which they never relinquished. Ultimately though it was a bad toss to lose with the wicket badly deteriorating. Hampshire with 1 win in 6 home this season in the championship gambled on winning the toss, and luckily for them the coin landed in their favour. The flaw of the conference system is that teams in the first division are producing sub standard result wickets with no fear of relegation, its a system which is no use to English cricket. The old divisional system was much better and produced more interesting games at the end of the season for most of the counties, not just the top six.

Play got under way at 1300 in hot and humid conditions with 75 overs left in the day, Patterson-White (Pavilion End) and Fletcher opened the bowling. In the third over of the day, Wheal (3) was stumped by Moores off Patterson-White, 146 for eight. Barker launched Patterson-White for a straight six. Barker fell to a catch on the deep square leg ropes by Paterson off Patterson-White, 169 for 9. Paterson replaced Fletcher in the 63rd over. Patterson-White picked up his 5th wicket (for 41) as Fuller (21) was caught at first slip by Mullaney, Hampshire 178 all out. Career best bowling figures for Patterson-White, following his maiden century at Taunton.

Notts needed a very distant 250 to win as Barker (Pavilion End) and Abbas opened the bowling. Hameed (8) lasted 34 balls before ballooning a delivery from Abbas low to Organ at short square leg, 21 for 1 in the 10th over. Dawson was introduced for the 13th over and became an all spin attack as off spinner Organ came on. Notts were on 45 for 1 off 15 overs with the Duckett on 22 and Slater on 12. Notts had used the heavy roller in an attempt to deadened the strip, however Notts collapsed after team.

Hampshire turned to Abbas and Barker once again after the interval. Abbas had a furious over against Duckett (33), he was lucky to survive one leg before shout but went the same way later in the same over, 64 for 2 after 22 overs. Dawson came on for the 25th over and Slater edged him for 4, but straight after Slater (35) edged him to Gubbins at short leg, 72 for 3. Mullaney looked all at sea and leaden footed and he departed caught at slip by Weatherley off Dawson for a 28 ball three, 80 for 4 in the 31st over. Clarke (9) fell in the same fashion, 81 for 5 in the 33rd over. Organ returned for the 36th over and had Patterson-White caught and bowled for 4, 86 for 6. Moores hit Dawson for a straight 6 but was out attempting a reverse sweep off Organ and edging the ball onto his stumps, 97 for 7 in the 42nd over. Notts reached three figures via a four through fine leg by Evison off Organ. Hutton was also out attempting a sweep off Organ (3 for 22) and departed for 3, 105 for 8 off 46th over. Evison hit Dawson for a straight 6. Fletcher was leg before to Dawson for 4, 118 for 9 in the 51st over. At 1810, Evison (22) became the last wicket to fall caught at silly point by Gubbins as Dawson (5 for 45) picked up his fifth wicket. Notts 127 all out off 54.3 overs. Notts had lost in three days with nine balls remaining in the day. They disappointing went down with little fight with only three batsmen reaching double figures.


With Yorkshire v Warwickshire likely to have a positive result tomorrow , it will mean Notts will lie in 4th place going to the last round. Favourites last week their chances of winning the crown will rely on beating Yorkshire, Warwickshire failing to beat Somerset and a draw up in Liverpool.


As Notts lick their wounds, will they be tempted to make changes to their line up? MAG

Day 2 

BARKER 7-FER GIVES HAMPSHIRE COMMANDING POSITION

After another difficult day for Notts, Hampshire ended the day in a strong position leading by 204 runs with another three wickets standing. After winning an important toss they also took advantage of getting the better of the conditions bowling in cloudy conditions in first two sessions and batting in much brighter conditions after tea. On a poor pitch which is not quite as bad as the scores suggest, but which is not going to get any better, Notts batted disappointingly. Keith Barker the vastly experienced left armer seamer bowled extremely well taking the first seven Notts wickets that fell. Frustratingly though his first two today were presented to him in the opening over as Duckett and Clarke threw their wickets away. He proved too good for Mullaney and Moores as Notts crashed to 39 for 5. There was even talk of Notts following on, but the two left handers Slater (55) and Patterson-White (53) batted extremely well, proving that runs were not impossible on the wicket, but they received precious little support with only Hutton reaching double figures. The end result was that Notts trailed by 71 runs after the first innings. Notts fought back well as the overworked seamers once again fought very hard to still give Notts hope as Hampshire crashed to 28 for 4. Vince who played the best innings of the match added 82 in 26 overs with Dawson to put Hampshire in the driving seat. But Fletcher and Patterson-White, who should have bowled earlier, got three late wickets in the evening sunshine including a cracking ball by Fletcher to remove Vince as stumps were drawn at 1828 with Hampshire on 133 for 7.

Duckett (9) was out to the first delivery of the day, tickling a leg side loosened from Barker to Alsop behind the stumps. Four balls later, Clarke (0) drove Barker low down to Wheal at mid on, 29 for three. Mullaney (2) carried on his poor form playing across the line to Barker and being plumb leg before, 31 for 4. Moores (4) was next to adjudged leg before to Barker the ball appearing to be outside the line, 39 for 5. Wheal replaced Abbas from the Northern End for the 22nd over. Barker with figures of 5 for 19 off 11 overs made way for Ian Holland. An offside boundary for Patterson-White off Wheal in the 26th over took Notts pass 76 the follow on target. After 2 overs for 16 from Holland, Fuller came on from the Pavilion End. A single for Patterson-White off Wheal brought up the 50 partnership with Slater in the 28th over. The following over saw another bowling change with Liam Dawson introduced. Fuller after one over from the Pavilion End immediately changed ends. Slater reached 50 off 85 balls in the same over as Notts reached three figures. After a ball change, which like the Lancashire game proved a regular occurrence. Barker changed ends and appeared from the Northern End for the 32nd over. Felix Organ bowled the last over before lunch as Notts went to the interval on 107 for 5 off 35 overs with Slater on 53 and Patterson-White on 34.

Slater departed in the second over after lunch as Barker picked up his 6th wicket having Slater (55) caught at second slip by Weatherley, 109 for 6. The sixth wicket had added 70 runs, the only substantial partnership of the innings. In the 40th over, Evison (2) was given caught behind to Barker for 1, 115 for 7. A leg side boundary for Patterson-White off Barker saw him to 50 off 88 balls. Abbas who had bowled since lunch from the Pavilion End was replaced by Wheal for the 49th over and he bowled Patterson-White to a delivery that kept low on 53, a major blow for Notts. Next ball,Fuller returned and a reckless shot from Hutton saw him caught at deep mid wicket for 16, 145 for 9. Paterson was last man out caught in the covers for 6. Fletcher 3 not out. Notts were all out for a disappointing 155. On a grafters pitch only two Notts batsmen could graft, they were too many soft dismissals. Barker 7 for 46.

The opening attack was Fletcher ( Northern End) and Hutton. Paterson replaced Hutton for the 10th over and picked up a wicket with his first delivery having Holland (16) caught at first slip by substitute Calvin Harrison on for the injured Clarke. Two balls later, Alsop was caught at mid wicket by Hameed off a short leg side delivery for a duck, 26 for 2, Paterson had picked up a lucky wicket. Next over,Weatherley (7) was caught by Moores off Fletcher, 28 for 3. Wickets were falling rapidly as in the following over with Gubbins fell leg before to Paterson for 2, 28 for 4 in the 12th over. Paterson had once again got wickets in a cluster. At tea, Hampshire were 33 for 4 off 17 overs with Vince on 4 and Dawson on 0.

Hutton replaced Fletcher after tea from the Northern End. Mullaney came on for the 24th over and Evison in the 29th over. The sun was now out and Vince and Dawson stood firm the 50 partnership taking 118 balls. The Hampshire 100 came up in the 34th via an on driven boundary by Vince off Mullaney who unfortunately offered little threat. Notts were desperate for a wicket so Mullaney brought back Fletcher in the next over and also turned to Patterson-White. Vince got to a high class 50 off 88 balls with a third man boundary off Fletcher. Patterson-White got the breakthrough having Dawson leg before for 29, 110 for 5 in the 38th over. Organ got off the mark with a swept six off Patterson-White. Fletcher knocked back Vince's off stump for 52, 116 for 6 in the 43rd over, Vince looked a class above his teammates. Organ fell leg before to Patterson-White to 11, 126 for 7. Seven more runs were added before stumps were drawn with Hampshire on 133 for 7 off 49 overs with Barker on 11 and Wheal on 1.

Hampshire will enter the third day as favourites to win, as Notts will now have to bat exceedingly well and with a lot of patience to win. Rain is forecast for tomorrow..... MAG

Day 1

FUMBLES LEAVE MATCH FINELY BALANCED

On a predominantly sunny day at the Rose Bowl, honours ended about even, Hampshire won an important toss and elected to bat on a slow green pitch which is expected to deteriorate as the match progresses.

Run scoring proved problematical all day.

Hameed and Evison came into the Eleven for Northeast and the unlucky James. Kyle Abbott was still absent from the Hampshire team. A crowd of around 1,200 gathered as Fletcher (Northern End) and Hutton opened the bowling and kept things tight. In the 10th over, Weatherley (11) was caught at second slip by Duckett off Hutton, 15 for 1. In the following over, Ian Holland was leg before to Fletcher for 3, his 60th victim of the season, 15 for 2. After a spell of 8 5 9 1 for Fletcher he was replaced by Evison. Paterson came on for Hutton in the 18th over. In the 24th over, Alsop (16) attempting to leave the ball inadvertently bottom edged a delivery from Paterson onto to his own stumps, 45 for 3. A cover driven boundary by Gubbins off Evison brought up the Hamphire 50 as they went to lunch on 53 for 4 off 29 overs with Gubbins on 18 and Vince on 3. A good morning for Notts

If catches win matches, what do dropped catches do?

The opening attack after lunch was Paterson (Pavilion End) and Fletcher. Hutton returned for the 36th over and had the dangerous Vince caught by Hameed at third slip for 30 off 42 balls, 87 for 4. Notts then uncharacteristically let slip a series of dropped catches, all off the unlucky Evison who justified his selection as the fourth seamer, In the 43rd over, Gubbins was dropped on 31 low down by Duckett at second slip. The Hampshire 100 came up in the same over. In his next over Evison had Gubbins dropped again,this time on 33, he had top edged a pull shot and Clarke running back from first slip failed to hold onto the chance. Paterson returned for the 46th over. Evison had another 2 catches dropped in the 49th over. Firstly Dawson was dropped on 6 low down at mid wicket then Gubbins was dropped at first slip on 49 by Clarke who injured his finger in his attempt to catch it. Gubbins luck ran out as he was bowled middle stump by Evison for 54 off 116 balls, 131 for 5 after 51 overs. Patterson-White had his first bowl of the match in the 52nd over. Dawson hooked Evison for 6 just over the head of Slater at deep backward square leg. Paterson replaced Evison for the 55th over as Hampshire reached 150. Dawson (31) fell to catch low down at second slip by Duckett off Paterson 154 for 6 in the 59th over. Mull o'clock arrived at 1528 as the captain bowled the 61st over. Hampshire got to tea on 175 for 6 off 64 overs with Barker on 12 and Fuller on 9. The dropped catches had hindered Notts.

Mullaney (Northern End) and Hutton opened up after tea. In the 68th over, Hutton bowled Fuller (13), the former Gloucester and Middlesex man losing his off stump, 183 for 7. Barker (13) got a leading edge off Paterson and was caught by Patterson-White in the covers, 188 for 8 in the 74th over. Wheal was yorked by Mullaney for a 5 ball duck, 193 for 9 in the 75th over. Then came a frustrating last wicket stand. A four through mid wicket by Organ off Paterson brought Hampshire their first batting point in the 78th over. The new ball was taken by Fletcher (Northern End) and Hutton with Hampshire 212 for 9 off 80 overs and with the floodlights on. The last wicket added 33, Organ (31) being bowled by Fletcher, 226 all out off 82.2 overs. Notts had bowled well with Hutton 3-40, Paterson 3 for 52 and Fletcher 2 for 32 the leading lights. Evison brought into the team to bolster the bowling options had the misfortune to have had 4 catches dropped off his bowling.

With the light fading, Notts were on a hiding to nothing with 11 overs left. Barker (Pavilion End) and Abbas took the new ball and in the third over, Hameed was caught by keeper Alsop off Barker for 2, 11 for 1. Slater and Duckett survived as bad light stopped play at 1809 with three overs still to bowl with Notts with 29 for 1 off 8 overs with Slater on 18 and Duckett on 9.

With the pitch lacking carry, run scoring will remain slow and the runs will have to be chiseled out. MAG

HAMEED DOWN FROM NORTHWEST TO REPLACE NORTHEAST

With the Indian players jumping on chartered jets headed for the Emirates and quarantine prior to the IPL second round, rather than fulfilling their obligation to complete a Test series in England; Haseeb Hameed has become available to Notts. Sam Northeast who started the season with Hampshire makes way. Joey Evison replaces Lyndon James to add a bowling option to the captain. Hampshire won the toss and elected to bat, did not select Kyle Abbott for their eleven.

Notts have announced their squad of XIV for the journey to south coast. A squad containing three spinners, whilst their host include both of their overseas seam bowlers in their squad - is someone double bluffing? It would take a wicket composed of crazy paving before PM would change his winning formula but he can't expect our three seam bowlers to keep going relentlessly week after week. This game might be the one where the workload needs to be spread five ways; if Lyndon can't bowl and the skipper is unwilling or incapable of putting in a decent shift then change is inevitable before one of the three breaks down.

Ben Slater

Ben Duckett

Sam Northeast

Joe Clarke

Lyndon James

Steven Mullaney c

Tom Moores x

Liam Patterson-White

Brett Hutton

Luke Fletcher

Dane Paterson

Joey Evison

Matthew Carter

Calvin Harrison

The Hampshire XIV

James Vince (14) Captain
Kyle Abbott (87)
Mohammad Abbas (38)
Felix Organ (3)
Tom Alsop (9)
Joe Weatherley (5)
Keith Barker (13)
Brad Wheal (58)
Nick Gubbins (31) 

Scott Currie (44)
Ian Holland (22)
Mason Crane (32)
Liam Dawson (8) 

James Fuller (26)