On This Day: Smith & Udal To The Fore After Nightmare Start

Hampshire Cricket's historian Dave Allen takes a look back on timely memorable moments in his ‘On This Day’ series.

Robin Smith (144*) & Shaun Udal (4-20) - Dorset v Hampshire, NatWest Trophy, 24th June 1998

Everything about the preliminaries and opening overs in this match was extraordinary, almost dream-like.

It began with Hampshire fans arriving at the ground on which their team had first played a home county game 100 years before – but now they were the away side.

37 years before this match Hampshire clinched their first Championship on this ground thanks to a superb bowling performance by the great Derek Shackleton, then 37 years old, while in 1998, Giles White and John Stephenson opened the batting, facing Steve Forshaw and Julian Shackleton – Shack’s son, now 46.

On a somewhat misty morning, Julian bowled with an action reminiscent of his father and in no time trapped White leg before. Almost immediately his partner had Stephenson caught by Tim Lamb, then caught Whitaker off his own bowling; Hampshire incredibly were 0-3 and facing embarrassment.

Shackleton bowled his whole spell like his father might have, ending with figures of 12-6-18-1 but there the dream became reality, and a harsh one for Dorset.

Captain Robin Smith hit 144, Aymes 73, and McClean & Mascarenhas finished things with a combined 63 runs from 38 balls.

Hampshire closed on 315-5 from their 60 overs and when the weather intervened Dorset were already 51-3 from 13 overs.

They returned the next day and were dismissed for 154 with former Hampshire batsman Jon Hardy top-scoring with 45 (Richard Scott 10) – Udal took 4-20.

There was no romance in the end, but that start was unforgettable.