18-year-old Haseeb Hameed (91) led Lancashire’s final-day
rearguard action against title-contenders Surrey at Old Trafford, taking the
matter of the Division Two title to the final game of the season.
Lancashire closed on 195/7 after bad light had caused play
to be abandoned for the day, although Surrey’s eight-point lead at the top of
the second division means there is no room for error when the Red Rose travel
to Chelmsford.
Hameed and Lancashire captain Steven Croft (40) added 91
runs for the fourth-wicket partnership after the home side had stumbled to 71/3
in the morning session. A maiden first-class fifty for Hameed on home soil gave
the Old Trafford crowd something to be optimistic about after Ashwell Prince
fell cheaply in his final game for Lancashire on home soil, although the South
African batsman will be playing against Essex on Tuesday.
Lancashire started the fourth day with all ten
second-innings wickets remaining, but Surrey made a rampant start to the day,
knowing that victory would clinch the second division title. The wicket of Karl
Brown (16) at 32/1 came with only the tenth ball of the day, as Tom Curran
trapped the Lancashire opener lbw in overcast conditions.
Matt Dunn (3-46) made an immediate impact for Surrey, who were
fighting for victory with limited resources in the bowling department, striking
with his fifth delivery of the morning session to remove Alviro Petersen for
13. Countryman Prince came to the crease for his farewell innings in front of a
home crowd, with the script suggesting another superb innings from the veteran
batsman.
But, to the disappointment of the crowd, Prince could only
add 11 runs to the total before edging to Kumar Sanagakkara in the slips, as
Dunn collected his second scalp of the innings. Prince left the field to a
standing ovation, disheartened by the fact that his final innings at Old
Trafford was not as memorable as he and the home crowd would have hoped for.
Nevertheless, the impressive display given by Hameed, who
was playing in only his third first-class game for Lancashire, suggests that
the future is very bright indeed. The England Under-19 joint-captain faced 234
deliveries, surviving for more than five hours at the crease while many more
experienced batsmen came and went.
Despite his tender age, the teenage batsman demonstrated
tremendous application, adding 91 runs in his vital stand with Croft either
side of lunch. Hameed edged his way to a maiden first-class fifty in 149 balls
with four boundaries in the afternoon session, while Croft relieved some of the
pressure with yet another superb innings.
The Lancashire skipper has scored 448 runs in his last seven
Championship innings for his side at an average of 89.60 and his latest effort
was invaluable in helping the home side to salvage a draw. It looked as though
these two would manage to bat for the entire afternoon session, but Surrey
struck a crucial blow at an important time.
Tom Curran (3-46) managed to encourage a thin edge through
to Ben Foakes with the score at 162/4 just before tea, a wicket which left a
great deal of pressure on Hameed’s shoulders. Phil Mustard survived the handful
of deliveries before tea arrived, accompanying Hameed as he continued to
soldier on.
The players returned to the field with the conditions
overhead becoming progressively worse. The umpires took several readings before
they decided that it was too dangerous to continue, as the players left the
field for a slight delay. After half an hour and crucially for Lancashire the
loss of ten overs from the game, the players returned to the field, as the
match took a sour twist for the home side.
Surrey claimed three quick wickets after play restarted and
including the loss of Croft before tea, Lancashire lost four wickets for 32
runs. Mustard was the first to go when his edge to Sangakkara gave Dunn his
third wicket of the innings and figures of 3-35, as he more than played his
part in Surrey’s bid for victory.
Tom Curran also added a third wicket to his tally when he
forced Jordan Clark (3) to edge behind to Foakes with the score at 182/6, yet
another vital breakthrough for Surrey, as the gloomy conditions began to
return.
Lancashire’s unfavourable position in the game was worsened
by the introduction of Sam Curran, who returned with the new ball and struck
with his second delivery, claiming the prized wicket of Hameed when his brother
Tom took the catch at leg-slip to deny the 18-year-old batsman a deserved
century.
Surrey were threatening to rattle through the Lancashire
lower order, but bad light halted the visitor’s late bid for victory, as Arron
Lilley (5*) and Tom Bailey (1*) left the field for the final time at Old Trafford
this season.
An eight-point lead at the top of the table means that
Surrey are still firm favourites to claim the Division Two title, but victory
at Essex would give Lancashire a good chance of snatching it from the side who
denied them success in the first division in 2007 at The Oval.
Surrey will host Northamptonshire in the final round of
matches on home soil, while Lancashire’s trip to Chelmsford sees a farewell
appearance for Prince before he retires from all forms of the game.
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