Riazuddin Leads Fight-Back As Hants Maintain Hope

Hamza Riazuddin celebrates the wicket of Will Bragg. He finished with figures of 18-3-61-5

Report from day three of Hampshire's LV= County Championship match against Glamorgan at the SWALEC Stadium, Cardiff.

Glamorgan v Hampshire
LV= County Championship
DAY Three: Saturday 21 April 2012
SWALEC Stadium, Cardiff

Summary: Hampshire trail Glamorgan by 92 runs
with six wickets remaining in the second innings
Glamorgan: 103-9d & 256
Hampshire: 156 & 112-4 (28 ovs)
Scorecard

Glamorgan:
Rees, Walters, Bragg, James, Wright, Henriques, Allenby, Wallace⁺*, Wagg, Cosker, Waters
Hampshire:
Adams*, Dawson, Carberry, Katich, Vince, Ervine, Bates⁺, Wood, Riazuddin, Briggs, Balcombe

A 100 partnership from Glamorgan duo Stewart Walters (54) and Ben Wright (104) threatened to take this game away from Hampshire before brave fight-backs with the ball and bat left the visitors with plenty to play for going into day four of this LV= County Championship match at the SWALEC Stadium, Cardiff.

Wright and Walters – the two overnight batsmen – kept their assailants at bay until well after lunch on day three before a Hamza Riazuddin (5-61)-lead assault saw Jimmy Adams’ side take the final six wickets for just 46 runs.

The five-fer marked an impressive statement of intent from Riazuddin in only his third Championship match for the county, and may well just have given his side the confidence they will need if they are to pick up their first win of the season.

However, a target of 204 looked no easy thing on this wicket, which has assisted the seamers throughout and claimed two Hampshire scalps just three runs into the chase.

It will, therefore, require a patient and well-measured batting performance tomorrow as Hampshire rest precariously on 112-4 overnight, requiring 92 runs.

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Click on the image above to see highlights of this day's play

Add to that the possibility of having no Michael Carberry, who is yet to bat in this innings due to a suspected groin injury, and much of the away side’s hopes will lie with the experienced Sean Ervine (37*) and in-form Michael Bates (13*), whose overnight partnership stands at 44* - Hampshire’s highest of the innings and only three short of their highest in the match.

Bates already has knocks of 92 (against Loughborough MCCU) and 87 (against Gloucestershire) under his belt this season and Hampshire will take confidence from his 118 partnership with the next-in Chris Wood in their last match at The Ageas Bowl.

Words: Simon Vincent
Images: LMI Photography

Catch Up

Preview:	Hampshire Squad Unchanged for Glamorgan Match
Day One:	Bowlers Blow Glamorgan Away on Day One
Day Two:	Things Finely Balanced on Green Cardiff Wicket