James Vince survives 152 deliveries as Hampshire hold on for final day draw against Yorkshire in their LV = County Championship Division One clash; Worcestershire chase 315 to stun Sussex and Middlesex beat Derbyshire in Division Three
Thursday 2 September 2021 20:06, UK
A superb James Vince batting rearguard helped save his Hampshire side from defeat on a day of huge frustration for Yorkshire in their LV = County Championship Division One clash.at the Ageas Bowl.
Captain Vince faced 151 deliveries before being dismissed late in the day for 42, but injured tail-enders Kyle Abbott (9no off 51) and Brad Wheal (0no off 22) then held out for the final six overs to deny Yorkshire victory.
Nightwatchman Mason Crane had earlier played his part too, hanging around for 28 off 197 deliveries. Hampshire, who started the day 26-2, finished up 177-9 from 115 overs after being set an unlikely victory target of 392.
Yorkshire's Jordan Thompson finished with fine figures of 4-18 and Matthew Fisher 3-42.
Elsewhere in Division One...
Warwickshire batted out day four of their Division One clash with Lancashire as the two teams secured a share of the points at Emirates Old Trafford.
A draw always looked inevitable as the visitors resumed their second innings on 52-1, with a lead of 82 runs, but there were still enough subplots to make for an entertaining day, with England hopefuls Dom Sibley and Matt Parkinson both taking centre stage.
Lancashire hopes of forcing an unlikely win were raised early on when man-of-the-moment Chris Benjamin was given out lbw to Parkinson for 42, ending a partnership of 63 for the second wicket with Sibley, whose defiant defence was tailor-made for the match situation.
Sibley brought up a half century and would ultimately face 167 deliveries before the 168th from Parkinson bowled him around his legs for 57.
Parkinson, who bowled unchanged for 40 overs, ultimately finished with impressive figures of 4-94, with Warwickshire 239-6 when the game was called a draw.
In Division Two, Miles Hammond, Tom Lace and Graeme van Buuren led Gloucestershire home in a chase of 266 to complete a remarkable turnaround as they beat Northamptonshire by six wickets in Bristol.
Northants resumed the day on 92-7 in their second innings and were dismissed for just 129, leaving the hosts with two-and-a-half sessions to complete their comeback.
Hammond gave them an excellent platform with 94 before Lace's unbeaten 67 and van Buuren's 53 not out - his second half-century of the match - saw Gloucestershire home.
It was an extraordinary result considering the home side had been 153-9 in reply to Northants' first innings 327 on day two, but they dominated the final two days of the game.
In Division Three, Jake Libby overtook David Bedingham to become the leading run-scorer in the County Championship this summer as Worcestershire chased down 315 to stun Sussex on the final day at New Road.
Libby scored his fourth Championship century of the campaign, finishing unbeaten on 125 as Worcestershire triumphed by six wickets with 24 balls to spare.
They were pushed all the way by a young Sussex side containing no capped players and with an average age of 19 and a half. The visitors resumed on 199-6 and added 64 for their last four wickets though Dan Ibrahim (94), who did not turn 17 until August 9, fell six short of becoming the youngest scorer of a century in the history of County Championship.
When Worcestershire launched their reply, Daryl Mitchell (19) and Libby put on 39 until the former was bowled by Henry Crocombe, who also picked up Tom Fell for four.
But Jack Haynes (62) then joined Libby at the crease and the pair shared in a century stand for the third wicket to spark the home side's chase.
Even so, going into tea on 129-2, Worcestershire required a further 186 to win off 34 overs in the final session, but Libby then went into overdrive, while Haynes hit an 83-ball half century and Brett D'Oliveira (56no) was even quicker in firing a 26-ball fifty as Worcestershire romped to their target.
At Lord's, Toby Roland-Jones marked his return from injury with a decisive five-wicket haul as Middlesex finally broke Derbyshire's resistance to triumph by 112 runs.
Roland-Jones, making his first appearance after a four-month absence due to knee surgery, delivered a spell of three wickets in 10 balls that included the scalp of Derbyshire captain Billy Godleman (70), ultimately finishing up with figures of 5-36.
Godleman had managed to just about keep the visitors in the hunt for a 334 victory target with his innings, his best of the season, after two early wickets fell to opposite number Tim Murtagh (3-48).
Matt Critchley's knock of 58 also proved to be in vain as Derbyshire were ultimately dismissed for 221, leaving them as the only side still without a win in the County Championship this season.
