Day Four
A brave century by Sam Northeast at the Kia Oval could not prevent a Hampshire defeat by 139 runs against Surrey, for whom 19-year-old off spinner Amar Virdi finished with 4 for 79. Their 20-point win kicks off Surrey’s Specsavers County Championship Division One campaign in fine style.
It took Surrey until 4.46pm to wrap things up, however, with Hampshire finally bowled out for 332 – after resuming their second innings on 116 for 4 – as Northeast led Hampshire’s resistance with an assured near six-hour 129, his first score above fifty for the club since joining from Kent earlier this year.
Northeast was joined in a spirited ninth wicket partnership of 68 by Brad Wheal, with the fast bowler holding on stubbornly for 49 balls across 90 minutes before Jade Dernbach skidded one into the tailender’s pads with the fifth ball after tea to dismiss him for 10. It was the 17th lbw of the game.
Then, No 11 Fidel Edwards also hung around determinedly, resisting for 41 minutes for his 5 not out. There were 23.3 overs left when Northeast was last out, edging seamer Matt Dunn to see Ben Foakes, the Surrey wicketkeeper, dive to take a brilliant right-handed catch an inch from the turf. Hampshire take three points from the contest.
Virdi made the initial breakthrough on the final morning, having Rilee Rossouw leg-before for 29 as he aimed a sweep following a 66-run stand for the fifth wicket with Northeast.
Thirteen runs later, at 163, Hampshire lost their sixth wicket when Liam Dawson chopped on against fast bowler Jade Dernbach to go for 3 and, as lunch neared, Kyle Abbott’s brisk innings of 29 ended when he clipped Virdi to Rory Burns at short mid-on.
Abbott, who had got off the mark with a fortunate inside-edged four against Dernbach, then clubbed Virdi for six and had helped to add 43 with Northeast when he became Virdi’s fourth victim of the innings.
Chris Wood battled to 26 before Sam Curran, with the second new ball, pinned him leg-before forty minutes after lunch but the unlikely Northeast-Wheal alliance then made sure the match went into its final session.
Virdi, who is not 20 until mid-July, was making just his fourth first-class appearance and only played in the game as a late replacement for 40-year-old former captain Gareth Batty, who suffered a back spasm in the warm-ups on Friday.
With Ollie Pope, 20, scoring 145 on the third day to take Surrey into an impregnable position and Curran, like Virdi still 19, snapping up a first innings 4 for 39 in Hampshire’s slide to 147 all out, this was an excellent match for the club’s youthful talent. All three are graduates of the Surrey Academy and, indeed, there were seven players who have come through that system in the Surrey XI for this game.
Surrey’s winning start to their championship season was all the more eye-catching given that former South Africa fast bowler Morne Morkel, Surrey’s new Kolpak signing, plus Tom Curran, Jason Roy, Stuart Meaker and Batty were all unavailable for the match either because of injury or IPL commitments. Conor McKerr, a highly-promising 20-year-old seamer, is another on the injury list at the moment.
For Hampshire, who won their opening match against Worcestershire at the The Ageas Bowl, this was a chastening four days – although Northeast’s performance is a significant consolation. The former Kent captain faced 171 balls to complete his 20th first-class century, hitting 14 fours, and there were 19 boundaries overall in an heroic 254-ball effort across 346 defiant minutes .
Day Three
Ollie Pope and Amar Virdi, two of Surrey’s exciting crop of young talent, grabbed centre stage on a difficult day for Hampshire at the Kia Oval.
Twenty-year-old Pope’s brilliant 145, his second century in just his 12th first-class innings, allowed Surrey to declare their second innings at 407 for 9, setting Hampshire an improbable 472 to win this Division One contest. By stumps, with bad light ending play 4.1 overs early, they were 116 for 4 with Sam Northeast on 14 and Rilee Rossouw on 19.
That was largely the result of 19-year old off spinner Virdi producing the third day’s most dramatic moments when, in the space of five balls in his fourth over, the 31st of the innings, he dismissed both Hashim Amla and James Vince.
Virdi’s double-wicket burst cut short a promising partnership of 54 between Amla and Vince and, reduced any hope Hampshire had of reaching their steep target or batting out for a draw.
Amla, having moved serenely to 21, was beaten by a ball which crept through low while Vince, who had played some characteristically regal offside strokes in his 33, was unfortunate to receive a ball which turned sharply and was caught in front of his stumps.
Resuming on 30, in Surrey’s overnight 217 for 4, Pope batted both with controlled aggression and real flair. Some of his offside strokes in particular were high class, and he brought up his hundred with a cover drive for four. In all, there were 18 fours and a six in his impressive four-hour, 191-ball effort and the declaration came when he was ninth out, skying Liam Dawson’s left-arm spin to short fine leg.
Ben Foakes was also in eye-catching form, taking his overnight 50 to an assured 81 from 161 balls in a fifth wicket stand of 131 with Pope before edging behind a good one from Fidel Edwards, who was armed with the second new ball. Thereafter, Pope was joined in small but useful partnerships by Curran, Rikki Clarke, Dernbach and Matt Dunn as he pushed Surrey’s overall lead well beyond 400.
Curran made 13 before playing around a Dawson delivery to be leg-before at 332, Clarke offered one sumptuous straight drive before top-edging a hook to long leg on 7 and Dernbach was also bounced out by Edwards for 8. Dunn remained 9 not out.
Hampshire’s openers Jimmy Adams and Lewis McManus batted conservatively to reach tea unscathed, but after the interval both almost immediately fell within the space of six balls to leave the visitors 29 for 2.
Clarke’s fourth ball was slapped low to cover by Adams, who departed for 21 clearly furious with himself for his error, and then Dunn – also with his fourth ball – produced a superb delivery which clipped the top of McManus’s off stump to bowl him for 4.
Vince, who had been beaten by his first ball, from Clarke, soon settled down in partnership with Amla and, for an hour, it seemed as if the international pair might take full advantage of batting conditions that were significantly more comfortable than on the first two days of the match, before Virdi’s further shifted the momentum in Surrey’s favour.
Day Two
A first Club half-century from Hashim Amla and three wickets for Kyle Abbott were highlights for Hampshire, but a composed innings of 74 by Scott Borthwick and Ben Foakes’ unbeaten half-century helped put Surrey in a strong position to end day two of the Specsavers Championship contest at the Kia Oval.
The duo ensured the good work done by Sam Curran and Rikki Clarke, who shared eight wickets, was not wasted as Surrey reached 217 for 4, a lead of 281.
Curran and Clarke got the ball to swing lavishly at times, each taking 4 for 39 as Hampshire were bowled out for 147 in reply to Surrey’s first innings 211.
Kyle Abbott gave Hampshire renewed hope with two new-ball wickets but oddly the ball stopped swinging when clouds replaced the warm sunshine. Borthwick took full advantage, adding 46 with Dean Elgar before forging an 87-run stand in 28 overs with Foakes.
Borthwick struck eight fours and a six only to fall to Brad Wheal shortly afterwards, having faced 133 balls. Foakes ensured no further alarms for Surrey and will continue on Sunday 50 not out.
Hampshire had resumed on 52 for 3 but were soon in trouble when Clarke’s late inswing pinned James Vince (6) with the second ball of the day.
Thereafter only Hashim Amla produced any prolonged resistance before he was last out for 55.
More late swing accounted for Amla as Clarke picked up his fourth wicket while Curran was as impressive in two high-class spells from the Vauxhall End. He took his second wicket when Sam Northeast (6) was superbly held by the diving Foakes before taking two more in five balls in his second over after lunch.
Going in again with a lead of 64, Surrey lost Rory Burns to an athletic catch by wicketkeeper Lewis McManus while Stoneman (24) was bowled through the gate driving expansively when he looked set.
But Borthwick and Dean Elgar (20) steadied Surrey with a stand of 45 when the persevering Chris Wood shaped one into Elgar’s pads as he played to leg. After tea, Borthwick battled well to reach his half-century off 94 balls with six fours. He accumulated impressively on both sides of the wicket until Wheal struck but Foakes batted with increasing fluency, reaching his half-century just before stumps.. So far, he has added 44 with Ollie Pope (30 not out) for the fifth wicket.
Day One
Four-wicket hauls from Fidel Edwards and Liam Dawson put Hampshire in early command of their Specsavers County Championship Division One match against Surrey at the Kia Oval as the home side collapsed to 211 all out in the final session.
Edwards finished with 4 for 38 and Dawson 4 for 30 but, by stumps, Hampshire were 52 for 3 in reply with Rikki Clarke having Lewis McManus lbw for 22 and Jimmy Adams caught behind for 17 before Sam Curran won an lbw appeal against nightwatchman Chris Wood with the last ball of the day.
Former West Indies fast bowler Edwards gave Hampshire the perfect start to the game by snapping up two wickets in his new ball burst. He dismissed both Mark Stoneman and Scott Borthwick in a fiery spell of 5-1-9-2 from the Vauxhall End after Surrey had won a toss but slipped to 23 for 2.
A third wicket stand of 87 in 33 overs between Rory Burns and Dean Elgar, however, then provided a solid base for a Surrey recovery, which also featured Ben Foakes and Ollie Pope, but from 187 for 4 at tea it was a sorry tale as Dawson’s left-arm spin combined with Edwards’ pace to skittle the lower order. In all, Surrey lost their last six wickets for 24 runs in nine overs.
The trouble for Surrey began with the very first ball after tea, a nip-backer from South African seamer Kyle Abbott which beat Pope on the back foot and pinned him leg-before for 34. Pope and Foakes had added 73 in 23 overs for the fifth wicket but, suddenly, all the hard graft that they, Burns and Elgar had put in was largely wasted.
Curran, instead of getting his head down in support of Foakes, jumped out at Dawson and tried to hit him over long off. Miscuing, he succeeded only in lofting a simple catch to Wood and departed for 5. The younger Curran’s only defence can be the impetuousness of youth; he doesn’t turn 20 until June.
Foakes, who had played impressively for his two-hour 46, hitting six fours from 73 balls, was then beaten by Dawson’s arm ball and leg-before as he pushed out from the crease. Once he had gone, there was little further resistance.
Clarke, left with the tail, offered one boundary with a fine paddle-sweep for four off Dawson but, from the next ball, he aimed another ambitious big hit and skied to Wood at long on to go for 5.
Edwards, recalled to the attack, yorked Jade Dernbach for a duck and Matt Dunn had also failed to score when he propped forward to Dawson and edged to slip to be last man out.
Earlier, in front of a crowd of almost 3,000, Surrey’s new captain Burns had made a determined 46 at the top of the order as he and Elgar, the South African Test batsman who has joined the county for a seven-week stint as overseas player, rallied their side after the initial slide.
Elgar scored 44, an equally resolute effort against some excellent seam bowling in the first session and a half, and both Foakes and Pope played some classy strokes as batting conditions eased in the capital’s hot sunshine.
Foakes clipped Abbott twice off his pads for four with power and poise, while Pope, 20, cover drove both Abbott and Brad Wheal with a real flourish for two of his six fours.
The match started with England Test opener Stoneman fencing a short ball from Edwards high past third slip to the boundary for his only scoring stroke before, to the final ball of the 36-year old paceman’s opening over, being beaten by a rapid full-pitched inswinger and adjudged leg-before pad first as he squeezed the ball towards mid off.
Borthwick was also leg-before, for 5, to another full ball, despite pushing a long way forward, while Burns’ stout effort was ended 40 minutes after lunch by a smart catch at leg slip by Sam Northeast in Edwards’ third spell. Elgar, attempting to square drive left-arm seamer Wood, edged low to keeper McManus three overs later.
