Coles and Tomlinson Help Secure Unlikely Victory
Sep 20 2013
Tomlinson now has 47 wickets in the LV= County Championship
Leicestershire v Hampshire
LV= County Championship
Tues 17 – Fri 20 September
Grace Road
Summary: Hampshire beat Leicestershire by 180 runs
Hampshire: 364-2 dec & forfeit
Leicestershire: forfeit & 184 all out
Scorecard
Table
Leicestershire:
Robson, Smith, Eckersley, Thornely, O'Brien*†, Thakor, Raine, Wells, Sykes, Hoggard, Wyatt
Hampshire:
Adams*, Terry, Dawson, Vince, Ervine, Wheater, Bates†, Coles, Briggs, Brathwaite, Tomlinson
On-loan Matt Coles (5-75) took his first five-wicket haul for Hampshire as they secured an unlikely 180 run victory in their LV= County Championship match against Leicestershire at Grace Road.
Quite incredibly, Hampshire were still in their first innings overnight with two full days of the match lost to rain. But after declaring on 364-2, Leicestershire forfeited their first innings and Hampshire then forfeited their second innings leaving the home side 365 runs to win on the final day.
So the scene looked to have been set for an exciting run-chase, but that quickly faded thanks to a wonderful spell of bowling with the new ball from openers Coles and James Tomlinson (4-60). The pair both picked up two quick wickets to leave the home side 24-4 in less than six overs.
And things quickly went from bad to worse for Leicestershire as Ben Raine (4) became Coles’ third victim before Shiv Thakor (8) had to leave the field after receiving a nasty blow to the head. However, a stubborn partnership of 69 from Niall O’Brien (25) and Tom Wells (82) saw the home side into lunch on 111-6.
Despite Thakor quickly returning to the pavilion after recovering from his injury, a fearless knock from 20 year-old Wells gave the hosts some respite. But once he fell to give Coles his second First-Class five-fer of the season, Hampshire were on the verge of their third LV=CC win of the season.
However, the biggest applause of the day came as last Leicestershire man Matthew Hoggard (3*) came to the crease through a guard of honour from the Hampshire fielders. But the former England fast-bowler was left stranded on his last ever match as Tomlinson moved his wicket tally for the season to 47 by dismissing Alex Wyatt for 10 to leave the hosts 184 all out.
Hampshire take 20 points from the victory to move just a point off Worcestershire in fifth-place.
Words: Jamie Hopkins
day three
Summary: Hampshire lead Leicestershire by 364 runs with
eight wickets remaining in their first innings
Hampshire: 364-2
Scorecard
Day three has been abandoned due to rain with only nine balls bowled.
Hampshire will resume on 364-2 on day four with James Vince (147*) and Liam Dawson (136*) at the crease. However, declarations are a must if either side are able to force a match result on the final day.
day two
Summary: Hampshire lead Leicestershire by 362 runs
with eight wickets remaining in their first innings
Hampshire: 362-2
Scorecard
Leicestershire:
Robson, Smith, Eckersley, Thornely, O'Brien*†, Thakor, Raine, Wells, Sykes, Hoggard, Wyatt
Hampshire:
Adams*, Terry, Dawson, Vince, Ervine, Wheater, Bates†, Coles, Briggs, Brathwaite, Tomlinson
Unbeaten Centuries from Liam Dawson (136*) and James Vince (145*) helped Hampshire move into a commanding position on day two of their LV= County Championship match against Leicestershire at Grace Road.
Opening bat Sean Terry (57) hit his second successive fifty before Dawson and Vince put on 248 runs together - Hampshire’s third highest partnership against Leicestershire ever.
Dawson reached his first century of the season in 164 balls (8 fours) before Vince moved to his third successive ton in 199 balls (16 fours, 1 six) as the visitors finished on 362-2 at stumps.
With the whole of the first day lost to rain, a declaration is likely sooner rather than later in an attempt to force a victory.
With Leicestershire winning the toss and electing to field in what looked to be bowler-friendly conditions, the scene looked to be set for former England fast-bowler Matthew Hoggard (0-72) to have a final match to remember. However, the Hampshire batsmen didn’t seem to have read the script as they, after a tough early period, made a solid start to the match to end the morning session 83-1.
And it didn’t take long for 22 year-old Terry, who earned a promotion up the order after impressing against Worcestershire last week, to reach his second half-century in as many matches shortly after lunch. Shiv Thakor (1-32) picking up his first wicket of the match brought Vince to the crease – Hampshire’s in-form batsman.
A faultless partnership of 248 between Dawson and Vince saw boundaries hit to all parts of the ground to put Hampshire in control. And the pair batted brilliantly as Vince moved to 1,000 LV=CC runs late in the day to lead Hampshire to 362-2 at stumps.
Words: Jamie Hopkins
dAY ONE
Summary: There was no play on day one because of rain
Scorecard
There was no play on day one due to rain.
Recent Form
Hampshire’s draw against Worcestershire last week helped them move above Kent into sixth-place. James Vince’s third century of the season in the LV=CC moved his runs tally to 872 at an average of 51. Seamer James Tomlinson is seven off fifty wickets in the competition and the left-armer will be key to Hampshire’s chances of winning the match.
1271 runs at an average of 55 has made Eckersley one of the clear stand-out performers in the competition. Despite Leicestershire’s failure to win a game in the competition this season, they will be buoyed by the fact they won the last match between the two sides at Grace Road by 126 runs.
Weather Forecast:
Day one looks set for heavy rain, but the weather should improve for the further three days.
Tickets:
For information of tickets for all four days, please visit the Leicestershire County Cricket Website.