LVCC Yorkshire v Hampshire Day 4

Lumb passes 1,000 First Class runs for the season as Hampshire and Yorkshire draw.

For almost the first hour of play Yorkshire used three bowlers with uncertain futures at the club; Ajmal Shazhad and Matthew Hoggard whose names who have been linked with moves elsewhere, and Deon Kruis making his last appearance for Yorkshire.

None of them were able to break through Jimmy Adams’ and Liam Dawson’s defences, except perhaps Shahzad’s yorker which hit Dawson on the foot and stopped play for several minutes while he received treatment from physio Andrew Nealon. When play resumed both he and Adams progressed steadily, and in the 14th over of the day Adams reached 45 with a four cut to deep point, and passed injured teammate Michael Carberry to become Hampshire’s highest Championship run scorer of the season.

Hampshire’s hundred came up when Dawson straight drove back past bowler Kruis for two. In the next over Adams made his fifty, off 107 balls with 12 fours, but the very next delivery Dawson holed out to Shahzad backward of deep square leg for 35.

Coming to the crease on 105 for 1, Michael Lumb wasted no time in responding to Yorkshire captain Anthony McGrath’s banter by hitting two fours off an over, one to deep square leg and the other to long off, intent on providing entertainment for the crowd with his stylish strokeplay. He and Adams put on 37 in relatively short order before Adams was bowled when he left a turning delivery from David Wainwright which spun back past his bat. He had made 72 runs in the innings, bringing his First Class total for the season to 1,351 at an average of 53.

Hampshire went in for lunch on 145 for 2, a purely academic 148 runs ahead.

With little for either side to play for the afternoon session held little of excitement for the Headingley faithful. Yorkshire bowled the part-time off breaks of Adam Lyth for 12 straight overs, which yielded only 9 runs, including a Chris Benham four to the point boundary. After the drinks break the Hampshire batsmen were noticeably keener to restart than the fielders, who seemed to be enjoying a chat in the sun.

Hampshire’s 200 was brought up when Benham hit another rare boundary off Lyth, now bowling from the Kirkstall Lane end. It had taken more than 40 overs to score the second hundred runs. More time was used up by Yorkshire bringing on a helmet and posting a short leg for Benham on 48, facing opening batsman Jacques Rudolph’s leg breaks. Benham escaped with a single to the other end so made his tenth First Class fifty off Wainwright in the next over.

There was no question of taking the new ball as the priority seemed to be getting through the overs as quickly as possible. When Lumb reached his fifty, off 158 balls, it was a far removed as possible from the 124 not out he scored off 69 against Essex in this year’s Twenty20 and emphasised his versatility as a batsman.

Hampshire went in for tea on 248 for 2, with Benham on 57 and Lumb on 56, just two short of his 1,000th First Class run of the season.

After tea Yorkshire did take the new ball, if only to give Kruis a last run out with it – although unusually he shared it with Lyth rather than Matthew Hoggard. It was off Lyth that Lumb passed the milestone of 1,000 First Class runs with a four to the cover boundary. However his innings came to an end shortly after he was hit on the hand by a Kruis delivery, when he was caught by Gerard Brophy at first slip off Lyth for 64.

Sean Ervine’s arrival at the crease brought a little sparkle to the afternoon as he smashed three consecutive Kruis deliveries to the square leg boundary and then hit a massive six back over Lyth’s head. But the season was in its dying moments and once the Yorkshire crowd had said goodbye to Kruis, at 4.17 the ball was given to outgoing wicketkeeper Brophy for the final over and hands were shaken all round.

Hampshire finished on 284 for 3, to draw with Yorkshire, leaving Benham not out on 67 and Ervine on 18.
 

Match report by Jane Cable
 

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