Rothesay County Championship, Division One, Uptonsteel Grace Highway, Leicester (day one)
Hampshire 214: Brown 80*; Holland 6-38, Gilchrist 4-54
Leicestershire 148-7: Shaikh 50*; Abbott 4-41
Leicestershire (3 pts) path Hampshire (2 pts) by 66 runs
Captains Ian Holland and Ben Brown delivered the standout performances with ball largely dominating bat on a 17-wicket opening day because the penultimate spherical of the County Championship noticed Leicestershire end 66 behind Hampshire with simply three wickets nonetheless in hand in a battle of the relegation favourites.
Leicestershire captain Holland took a career-best 6-38, supported by on-loan Nathan Gilchrist’s 4-54 as Hampshire have been dismissed for 214, his reverse quantity Brown making an unbeaten 80 on a seam-friendly pitch.
Brown’s efforts, supported by youngsters Ben Mayes (39) and Manny Lumsden (31), helped Hampshire get well from a deadly 22-4 and 42-5.
Hamza Shaikh was unbeaten on 50 as Leicestershire closed on 148-7 in reply, with veteran seamer Kyle Abbott taking 4-41 to whole 61 for the season as main wicket-taker within the Championship.
Backside of Division One with 32 factors between them and security, Hampshire are virtually resigned to relegation. As issues stand, Leicestershire nonetheless have an opportunity of escaping, trailing third-bottom Essex by eight factors and seventh-placed Glamorgan by 11.
That might change, although, if the ECB decides to penalise Leicestershire with a factors deduction over the pitch ready for final month’s win over Glamorgan at Grace Highway. Leicestershire are nonetheless ready for a verdict.
Hampshire’s calamitous begin to this match was primarily all the way down to Holland’s excellence with the brand new ball, backing up his determination to bowl first by taking 4-19 in his opening eight-over spell.
The primary three of these got here within the house of six deliveries for no runs as late seam motion induced edges to second slip by Nick Gubbins and the prolific Jake Lehmann – his first duck of the season – in between which Toby Albert stepped throughout his stumps to be leg earlier than.
Joe Weatherley grew to become the third Hampshire batter to depart with out scoring as Gilchrist beat his tentative prod, after which one other edge to second slip off Holland put paid to Felix Organ.
Ben Inexperienced – taking part in his first cricket after a month out with harm – took some time to seek out his rhythm as Brown and Mayes each profited from taking part in exterior the crease, significantly towards the unlucky Josh Davey, whose participation ended earlier than tea with what seemed like a broken hamstring. Tom Scriven has changed him within the Leicestershire crew as an harm substitute.
The sixth-wicket pair added 84 earlier than 19-year-old Mayes, who had an escape on 26 simply earlier than lunch, fell right into a lure clinically executed as keeper Ben Cox, standing up as Holland despatched down a leg-side supply, pulled off a effective stumping to offer the skipper his second five-wicket haul of the season.
Now it was the flip of Gilchrist, sustaining a persistent off-stump line, to strike thrice briefly order, eradicating Scott Currie and James Fuller caught behind and Abbott, taken at second slip.
Lumsden, a 17-year-old seamer of some potential who additionally appears considerably higher than a quantity 11 batter, aided Brown in including 55 for the final wicket earlier than chipping Holland to midwicket.
In reply, Leicestershire confronted an identical wrestle towards Hampshire’s bowlers, led by the evergreen Abbott. Neck and neck with Warwickshire’s Ethan Bamber within the race to be Division One’s main wicket-taker, Abbott used the brand new ball successfully to bowl Sheridon Gumbs and have Rishi Patel caught at second slip in his opening six overs.
With seam motion once more an element, Currie had Rehan Ahmed edging to 3rd slip. When a effective ball from Fuller had New Zealand worldwide Nick Kelly caught behind, Leicestershire have been 50-4 and matching Hampshire’s whole was trying a tricky problem.
Currie had Cox caught at third slip and Abbott struck for a 3rd time as Holland was trapped in entrance.
Shaikh, 20 and on mortgage from Warwickshire earlier than a everlasting transfer, accomplished his maiden Championship half-century simply earlier than play closed with Inexperienced out to an unpleasant leg-side heave to offer Abbott his fourth.
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