Schofield has Hants in a spin

ECB Match Report

Chris Schofield’s first championship five-wicket haul since 1999 put Hampshire in danger of an innings defeat against Surrey at the Rose Bowl.

Schofield’s 5-52 - his best at this level - prevented Jimmy Adams (110) from helping the hosts avoid the follow-on.

By stumps on day three, the LV Division One title-chasers were 121 for three second time round - still 214 adrift, having been bowled out for 221 in reply to 556, despite Adams’ first hundred of the summer.

It is eight years to the day since leg-spinner Schofield, then an England Test match aspirant at Lancashire, took 5-66 against Durham at Old Trafford.

On a largely blameless pitch, he wheeled away under cloudy skies - winning three lbw decisions on a day when, Adams apart, Hampshire had no answer to his and Harbhajan Singh’s spin.

Schofield’s figures mark another significant milestone in a well-documented career, which included a sour end to his time with his native county and two years out of the professional ranks before Surrey gave him a second chance. With an ICC World Twenty20 campaign to look forward to for England later this month, Schofield provided fresh evidence that, as he approaches his 29th birthday, he is perhaps a better bowler than he has ever been.

One man he could not shift, however, was Adams - who received precious little support during his painstaking 228-ball hundred. The left-handed number three struck 16 fours on his way to three figures, picking off the bad ball adroitly - especially through the off-side - between long spells of defence.

In the absence of injured captain Shane Warne, Hampshire mustered just a single batting point and left themselves on course for a costly setback which would puncture their championship ambitions.

For Surrey, the prize almost in their grasp was a maximum-points victory to start to move clear of trouble at the bottom. After Hampshire resumed on 47 for two, Adams lost his overnight partner John Crawley for a 20-ball duck.

A watchful Crawley succeeded only in guiding an edge off the back foot into the hands of first slip, from seamer Matt Nicholson.

Michael Lumb was notably cautious too. But playing against type did not work, the ex-Yorkshire batsman becoming Schofield’s second lbw victim.

Adams was breaking no speed limits either - yet as long as he remained, it ought not to have been beyond Hampshire’s wit to make many more than they did on an even and easy-paced pitch.

Instead, stand-in captain Nic Pothas uncharacteristically gave his wicket away with a mis-pull at Schofield - well-held by Nicholson, running round from mid-on.

Harbhajan bowled Sean Ervine with an off-break as the Hampshire slide gathered momentum - Schofield having Shaun Udal lbw sweeping and bowling Daren Powell with a variation delivery.

Then after David Griffiths had been run out for a duck without scoring, by a direct hit from Chris Jordan, Adams was last to go - caught in the deep off Harbhajan.

Adams was back on duty by the 12th over when Hampshire tried again.

After a hectic first-wicket stand of 63, fours coming regularly through Surrey’s attacking field, Michael Brown continued the trend of batsmen’s mistakes - hooking Chris Jordan compliantly to long-leg.

Harbhajan then got his off-breaks to bite from the pavilion end, Carberry edging to slip and Crawley bowled through the gate to bag his second duck of the day - his first ‘pair’ since the Ashes Test at Perth in 1994/95.

Adams, meanwhile, was left to contemplate another lone battle against an increasingly inevitable tide of events outside his control.

Scorecard

Read Match Reports from Days 1 and 2

Mark Church is reporting live ball-to ball commentary from The Rose Bowl for BBC London during the LVCC match.  Listen live with BBC LONDON

 Adams batting his way to 110

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