Centurion Vince Sets Hampshire on the Way

Report from day one of Hampshire's LV= County Championship match against Derbyshire at Derby

Derbyshire v Hampshire
LV= County Championship
Day One: Tuesday 11 September
County Ground, Derby

Summary: Derbyshire trail Hampshire by 222 runs
with seven wickets remaining in the first innings
Hampshire: 272
Derbyshire: 50-3
Scorecard

Derbyshire Team
Madsen*, Khawaja, Durston, Borrington, Redfern, Whiteley, Wainwright, Poynton+, Palladino, Groenewald, Turner
Hampshire Team
Carberry, Adams*, Shafayat, Dawson, Vince, Ervine, Griffiths, Bates†, Wood, Balcombe, Tomlinson

James Vince (114) struck a century and put on as many runs in partnership with Sean Ervine (61) to turn a shaky start into a quite decent one for Hampshire on day one of this LV= County Championship match against Derbyshire at Derby.

On a day when both teams struggled with the new ball, Vince came in with his side 26-3 but guided them well past 200 by the time he left to help his side reach 272 all out in 75.4 overs.

In response, the hosts had reached 50-3 by stumps, trailing Hampshire by 222 runs overnight with Usman Khawaja (27*) and nightwatchman Tony Palladino (0*) at the crease.

 

Having won the toss and elected to bowl, Derbyshire – and, in particular, Palladino (3-44) – made the most of the early swing, the medium-pacer ending his first spell with figures of 3-18; Hampshire not yet through 30.

But Vince came to the crease and was in no mood to be bullied, sending Tim Goenewald (1-71) to the ropes in each of his first two overs and, when both attackers went for eight each off consecutive overs, clearly Wayne Madsen needed to make a change.

That’s exactly what he did, swapping out Palladino for Ross Whiteley (2-37) and almost immediately the tactic worked. Vince’s partner, Jimmy Adams (20) worked the left-armer to second slip; the captain walking off agonisingly close (just 20 short) to 1,000 First Class runs this season (the best return of any Hampshire player).

But that would be as good as it got for the hosts for the time being as, in tandem with Ervine, Vince guided his side through the 100 mark and to the brink of his own 50 by lunch, Hampshire 106-4 (Vince 48*).

And, with confidence now high, Ervine got Hampshire back up and running immediately after the re-start, crashing the first maximum of the game over long-off to bring up the 50 partnership. Next ball, a double from Vince took him to his own half-century off an especially brisk 46 balls (including nine fours).

The 50 stand had doubled by the time Ervine reached his own landmark but just as the pair were beginning to look settled, the Zimbabwean attempted a reverse sweep against the spinner, David Wainwright (3-69) and had his middle stump pushed back; Hampshire 195-5.

Vince, however, was still playing fluently and an 18th four of his innings took him to a 128-ball hundred. It was a shock to everyone, therefore, when he crashed a cover drive hard to Khawaja, whose reactions served him well to see off the centurion; Hampshire going in to tea on 232-6.

After that, there was very little resistance as the visitors lost their remaining four wickets for 40 runs but at least what the tail-enders couldn’t contribute with the bat they could with the ball as, first, James Tomlinson (1-16 off six overs) had Madsen caught down the leg-side by a leaping Michael Bates.

That was followed by David Balcombe (1-24 off seven) having Paul Borrington snaffled by Michael Carberry in the gully. But the real coup was Chris Wood’s (1-4 off two) removal of Wes Durston – caught at second slip – with fewer than two overs remaining in the day.

That wicket ensured honours were probably just about even on day one with neither side really taking a stranglehold on the match. As is so often the case in cricket, the first hour in the morning will be a crucial indicator of which way this match is likely to go.

Catch Up:

Preview:	Derbyshire Hold Final Test for Hants

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Words: Simon Vincent
Images: LMI Photography

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