Essex’s chase had reached 20 in seven overs, the vast majority of them to Paul Walter, on 17, when the left-handed opener walked down the wicket and wafted hazily at a ball from Abbott and saved strolling.
Even on a third-day, fourth-innings pitch, Abbott nonetheless extracted appreciable life. However not even he can have believed his luck when Dean Elgar (eight) select to inexplicably go away alone a ball that angled in and hit center and off-stumps.
The South African had already hit Charlie Allison within the chest, inflicting the batsman to break down momentarily in a heap, earlier than Tom Westley grew to become a 3rd wicket, whipping the ball off his legs into the palms of quick midwicket to go for 9.
Allison recovered rapidly and performed the anchor function within the fourth-wicket stand, permitting Critchley to mount a one-man assault on the Hampshire bowling. Abbott had figures of 10-6-16-3 from his first spell both facet of tea, however when he returned Critchley thrashed three boundaries by the offside in his first over.
Nonetheless, in his subsequent over Abbott struck once more, having Allison trapped lbw for 34 from 68 balls. However that was nearly as good because it acquired for bottom-of-the-table Hampshire.
In the beginning of the day, their two left-handers, Gubbins and Jake Lehmann, took their in a single day third-wicket stand to 74 with Gubbins the extra aggressive, whipping Cook dinner by mid-wicket to achieve 50 for the second time this season. However Lehmann’s run of 5 successive half-centuries led to spectacular style on 27 when he performed round a supply from Jamie Porter which left simply leg-stump standing.
Ben Mayes hung round unconvincingly for eight off 31 balls earlier than he was too fast on to a shorter supply from Harmer and lobbed the ball again to the bowler. Gubbins adopted when he nudged one which turned from Harmer to slide.
The 2 not-out batters, Ben Brown and Liam Dawson, will need to have chatted over lunch a couple of extra forthright method as they hammered Harmer for 14 within the first over after the interval with Dawson depositing one ball over long-on for six. Dawson’s contribution was short-lived, although, as he then tried to cost Cook dinner, flung bat at ball and ended up getting an uncontrolled, one-handed, inside edge to the wicketkeeper.
The accelerated scoring fee continued with Brown and James Fuller including 46 in 10 overs earlier than Fuller was lbw, misjudging a supply from Mulder.
That signalled the start of the top with the final three wickets falling in 9 balls, two of them to Harmer in three deliveries. Scott Currie swept wildly to be caught at sq. leg over his shoulder by Elgar, Abbott retreated in his crease to be pinned lbw earlier than Harmer was readily available at second slip to take the catch as Mulder dismissed Codi Yusuf.
