Vince Battles But Game Still in the Balance

Report from day three of Hampshire's LV= County Championship match against Northamptonshire at Wantage Road

NOrthamptonshire v Hampshire
LV= County Championship
Day Three: Friday 4 May 2012
Wantage Road

Summary: Northamptonshire lead Hampshire by 240 runs
with five wickets remaining in their second innings
Northamptonshire: 218 & 176-5
Hampshire: 154
Scorecard

Northamptonshire Team
Peters, Newton, Coetzer, Sales, Wakely, Hall*, O'Brien, Middlebrook, Willey, Daggett, Brooks
Hampshire Team
Terry, Dawson, Carberry, Katich*, Vince, Ervine, Bates⁺, Wood, Riazuddin, Balcombe, Griffiths

A topsy-turvy day three in which seam was the star of the show set up what could (weather permitting) be a fascinating final day in Hampshire’s LV= County Championship match against Northamptonshire at Wantage Road, Northampton.

James Vince (46*) was the only Hampshire batsman to make the art look easy as the hosts’ returning captain Andrew Hall (4-24) lead a very good bowling performance which saw Hampshire finish on a total of 154 – 64 behind on the first innings.

But Hampshire kept themselves in the game with early wickets from Chris Wood (1-34*), David Balcombe (2-63*) and Sean Ervine (1-21*).

By stumps a half-century from David Sales (58) had perhaps given Northants the slight upper hand. His team will resume on day four with Hall (29*) and Niall O’Brien (3*) at the crease; the hosts on 176-5 – 240 ahead.

The day started promisingly as opening pair Liam Dawson and Simon Katich negotiated the swinging conditions for the first 45 minutes with little to trouble them too much.

In fact, Dawson – who had started the day on 14 - took himself reasonably swiftly to 35 before dragging a wide ball from David Willey onto his stumps. It was a big blow for Hampshire in the gusty, cold arena of Wantage Road and shortly after Katich (13) and Ervine (0) would both go within three balls; Hampshire 77-6.

And though Vince was now at the crease and getting into his stride, his team-mates were struggling to keep up; Michael Bates also going without scoring. But that was until Wood came to the crease and, along with his fellow Academy graduate, steered the side to the safety of lunch, making something of a recovery on 124-7.

Wood, who really hit his straps on day one with four wickets, has already shown good ability with the bat this season, putting on important battling partnerships of 39 with Ervine and 118 with Bates in matches against Glamorgan and Gloucestershire respectively. His stand of 58 with Vince, here, settled the ship long enough to get Hampshire to the brink of the 150 mark.  Alas, when he was trapped lbw by an in-swinging Willey delivery for 26 that would be about as good as it got for the visitors.

Vince added another 12 runs to the total, but was cut short of his half-century when Willey (3-53) bowled David Griffiths for a duck; final bonus points for each team stand at four for Northants, three for Hampshire.

So what Hampshire needed were regular, quick wickets and they certainly got the former, if the latter might not have been quite as quick as they would have wished. Balcombe was edged to Dawson at second slip by Rob Newton (14) to make the score 26-1. And nearly the same amount of runs had been scored when Stephen Peters (22) was lbw to Ervine; Northants 50-2. Again, another 24 runs had been scored when, in the third over after tea, the same pair that had seen Newton off did for Kyle Coetzer (25).

At this point it’s worth mentioning how impressive Dawson’s been in the slips this season. He’s taken nine catches from there – that’s the best return from any non-wicketkeeper in the division. It was no surprise, then, that it was he who was once again on hand to see off Alex Wakely (15) as he edged Wood low to Dawson’s side for a third innings take.

However, it was something of a surprise to see him trap Sales lbw, not just because the conditions didn’t appear to favour his left-arm slow balls, but because Sales had just started to look settled, making a 53 partnership with Hall by the time he departed with the score on 166-5.

Nevertheless, that could have been the breakthrough that just gives Hampshire a chance on day four. The current deficit stands at 240 which, provided the tail doesn’t wag in the morning might set up a decent run chase for Hampshire’s batsmen.

Catch Up

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Preview:	White Contemplates Spin Options for Northants Clash
Day One:	Seamers' Late Surge Leaves Hosts Struggling
Day Two:	Day Two Rained Off at Wantage Road

Words: Simon Vincent
Images: LMI Photography

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