Warwickshire 82 for 0 (Davies 46*) trail Hampshire 229 (Vince 75*, Rushworth 3-38, Woakes 3-45) by 147 runs

James Vince continued his fine form with an unbeaten 75 but Hampshire collapsed to give Warwickshire the best of day one at the Ageas Bowl.

Hampshire captain Vince scored a stunning 186 in the victory over Northamptonshire last month and looked untroubled in the face of a challenging visiting attack. Chris Woakes and Chris Rushworth both claimed three wickets each, with Oliver Hannon-Dalby and Ed Barnard supplementing their efforts in the absence of Pakistan overseas Hasan Ali, who was rested.

Their successes provided Hampshire's downfall as they slipped from 83 for 1 to 109 for 6 before being bowled out for 229. In response, Warwickshire reached 82 without loss at close, Alex Davies leading the charge with 46 not out.

Hampshire's brittle batting was the Achilles heal in their failed LV=Insurance County Championship title challenge last season and it could further extend their 50-year wait for another crown.

Opening batter Felix Organ is beginning to run out of chances after he was bowled shouldering his arms at Rushworth for 1, following Hampshire's decision to bat first. It took his average for the season below 10, with pressure coming from the 2nd XI: Toby Albert notched 231 and 63, and Joe Weatherley also struck a ton in the clash against Kent 2nd XI this week.

In contrast, Fletcha Middleton has taken to first-class cricket strongly. He scored twin half-centuries in the previous match at the Ageas Bowl and again comfortably dealt with the new ball. He partnered with Nick Gubbins in a 74-run stand.

Woakes is attempting to talk Ben Stokes into an England recall ahead of the Ashes, and his miserly first spell of five overs for just two runs would be a good conversation starter. The meat of the chat would include his second spell and how he angled a delivery across Gubbins that was caught at first slip, via a chested parry from second.

And then his punchline might include the stunning away seamer that clipped Middleton's outside edge, for an unlucky 49. He also picked up a hooking Ian Holland in his third spell to return 3 for 45, which included his 550th first-class wicket.

Hannon-Dalby chimed in to pin Tom Prest lbw before Rushworth ploughed into Ben Brown and Liam Dawson's pads in one prolific over. Hampshire had lost five wickets in 69 deliveries for just 26 runs.

Amongst this Vince survived, and after a short 28-run stand with Holland, navigated a way forward with the tail. He added 49 runs with James Fuller, 31 with Kyle Abbott, and 12 with Mohammad Abbas.

His innings saw his usual array of drives as he reached his half-century in 72 balls, before targeting midwicket and long-on for three lusty sixes with his partners dwindling - Barnard picking up the final two scalps.

Hampshire often lean on Abbas and Abbott to pull them back into matches after below-par scores. On this occasion Rob Yates and Davies prevented them. The Warwickshire openers already have centuries this season and serenely navigated the evening session. Davies was by far the more aggressive, with Yates ending the day on 26 off 104 balls.

James Vince stands firm amid the wreckage as Warwickshire take charge

2023-05-04 17:46:00