Date-stamped : 28 Aug95 - 22:29 CC: Hampshire v Lancashire, Portsmouth, 24-28 August 1995 ====> Day 1, 24 Aug 95 Wasim turns on the class - Geoffrey Dean First day of four: Lancs (172-4) lead Hants (154) by 18 runs WHEN Wasim Akram bowls as well as he did yesterday, there is not a great deal the opposition can do, particularly a side like Hampshire whose confidence is low after failing to win in the championship for the last two months.His return of seven for 52 prompted the watching Malcolm Marshall to say that he could not remember a better exhibition of genuinely fast swing bowling. It was the swing that Wasim obtained that caused most of Hampshire`s problems. He bowled Paul Terry in the first over with one that moved a long way and then, having pushed two across John Stephenson, swung one sharply back in, to the horror of the bats- man, who was lbw playing no shot. Wasim`s first spell of seven overs did not bring him further wickets, although he was denied when Paul Whitaker was dropped at second slip, on nought. He batted for another 36 overs before edging a lifting outswinger to first slip, and without his gritty 41 Hampshire would not have passed 100. By the time Wasim came back for a second spell, just before lunch, Hampshire were already listing badly. Out were Jason La- ney, who had nicked a beauty from Glenn Chapple that lifted and left him, and Mark Nicholas, given no chance of survival by an Ian Austin delivery of startling bounce from a length. Where Wasim was intelligent was in not banging the ball in short on a pitch that had some bounce. He made that mistake, at some cost, in both Pakistan`s winter Test defeats - against South Africa in Johannesburg and Zimbabwe in Harare - but here he main- tained a fullish length, making the ball move both ways. Giles White was bowled by another inswinger and Kevan James went first ball to a snorter. Wasim then finished off the innings by removing Shaun Udal, well taken in the gulley, and a strokeless Heath Streak in successive deliveries. Wasim`s haul took his tally in first-class matches this season to 78. Lancashire`s makeshift batting line-up was made to work hard for runs. Terry held a blinder at second slip to end Neil Fairbrother`s dashing 41, as well as catching debutant Andrew Flintoff in the same position. Streak bowled manfully, deserving more than his two wickets. His first had been Graham Lloyd, who gloved a bouncer. Lancashire`s rock was Steve Titchard, whose unbeaten 59 spanned the same number of overs. Source :: The Electronic Telegraph (http://www.telegraph.co.uk) Contributed by The Management (help@cricinfo.com) ====> Day 2, 25 Aug 95 Hampshire show their tenacity - Geoffrey Dean Second day of four: Hants (154 & 159-4) lead Lancs (293) by 15 runs LANCASHIRE should win this game today, but that victory is not a certainty can be attributed to the tenacity of Hampshire`s crick- et yes- terday. Kevan James and Shaun Udal both bowled particularly well, and later John Stephenson was at his obdurate best in making an un- beaten 61 in three hours. The Hampshire batsmen were greatly helped by the fact that Wasim Akram could not match the brilliance of his bowling in the first innings. He did not obtain anything like the same degree of swing, and for some reason hardly bowled himself when the ball was new - just four overs in the first 35. Lancashire, resuming at 172 for four, soon lost Warren Hegg, lbw to a James in- swinger, as well as Wasim, who drilled the same bowler to mid-off. This left the visitors at 196 for six and that they reached 293 was largely due to the exuberant strokeplay of the underrated Ian Austin, and Steve Titchard`s continued immova- bility on a bouncy pitch. Titchard`s 77 in just under six hours held the innings together and he could have batted for longer if he was not a sportsman. Having been given not out by the umpire when Hampshire appealed for a bat-pad catch off Udal, he walked and was applauded for do- ing so by the opposition. Source :: The Electronic Telegraph (http://www.telegraph.co.uk) Contributed by The Management (help@cricinfo.com) ====> Day 3, 26 Aug 95 Nicholas given more food for thought - Geoffrey Dean Third day of four: Lancs (293 & 77-2) trail Hants (154 & 352) by 136 runs JOHN Stephenson`s maiden first-class hundred for Hampshire has given his adopted county a lifeline that might conceivably lead to the unlikeliest of victories. Lancashire, who were 139 ahead on the first innings, need 214 to win and were 77 for two when bad light curtailed proceedings by 13 overs. For Stephenson, the relief of his first hundred may soon be fol- lowed by news that he will be Hampshire`s captain next year. Mark Nicholas has said that he will decide within 10 days whether to carry on with the captaincy for one final season. Nicholas has been playing some of the best cricket of his career over the past two seasons and cares greatly about Hampshire, whose batting, fragile enough this summer, would be that much weaker without him. He says, however, that he does not want to stand in Stephenson`s way. The solution might yet be the most unexpected one - play as senior pro, for his contract has another year to run. Stephenson`s 127 was chanceless. When Adrian Aymes (60) joined him yesterday morning, Hampshire were only 41 ahead with four wickets in hand. But the pair played with splendid defiance to add 124 in 2.5 hours against bowling that was variable. Each saw off Wasim Akram, who could not obtain as much swing as in the first innings, and who was further frustrated by a pitch that had eased. Wasim still took three wickets to give him 10 in the match and 81 for the season. No-one has claimed 100 victims in a season since 17 four-day championship games were introduced, but if Wasim plays in Lancashire`s last three matches he has every chance of achieving what would be a remarkable milestone for a pace bowler. Pakistan have selected him for the first Test against Sri Lanka in mid-September, but Lancashire chairman Bob Bennett has been in touch with the Pakistan Board this week, requesting that Wasim be allowed to see out the season here. No reply has yet been re- ceived, but if the Pakistanis exercise their right - as surely they will do - Wasim`s last championship match of the summer will be against Surrey this week. Lancashire are adamant that Wasim will continue to be their choice as overseas player after the Pakistan tour of England next year. Source :: The Electronic Telegraph (http://www.telegraph.co.uk) Contributed by The Management (help@*ogi.edu) ====> Day 4, 28 Aug 95 Lloyd takes up the challenge - Geoffrey Dean Lancs (293 & 214-5) bt Hants (154 & 352) by 5 wkts IT WAS not without some early alarms that Lancashire maintained their 100 per cent record in the three championship games in which Wasim Akram has captained them this season. Indeed, when Warren Hegg retired hurt at 111 for four with 103 still needed, Hampshire tails were up and the game was wide open, for the pitch was certainly a sporting one. But so well did Graham Lloyd and Ian Austin bat together in ad- ding 87 in 13 overs that the game was over an hour later. Admit- tedly, Hampshire did not bowl too well, but the certain- ty, au- thority and sheer ebullience of the pair`s stroke- play spoke volumes for Lancashire`s self-belief. Lloyd`s unbeaten 97 off only 89 balls was his highest champion- ship score of the season. Surprisingly, it was only his third fifty, for his method is delightfully uncomplicated and few bats- men strike the ball cleaner. Lloyd, 14 overnight out of 77 for two, hit six fours in the first half-hour, all on his favourite off side, with three apiece off Heath Streak and Cardigan Connor. In this time he had ridden his luck, being beaten by Streak and then top-edging him just short of long leg. Off Streak`s next ball, Hegg was hit on the top hand by a lifter and departed to hospital with a suspected fracture. If, as seems likely, Hegg is unfit to play against Surrey today, John Crawley will take over as wicketkeeper, having done the job competently in a Sunday League game at Lord`s earlier this sea- son. With the game in the balance, the stage was set for Austin, as dangerous a number seven as there is in county cricket. Quite untroubled by Lancashire`s position, he proceeded to clobber eight of the 46 balls which he received for four before holing out at deep backward square. Lloyd, meanwhile, was matching his partner stroke for stroke. Neither allowed Shaun Udal, a potential threat on a pitch assist- ing him, to settle. Lloyd came down the pitch to drive him over the sightscreen, before reverse-sweeping him for four and then sweeping him into a marquee. The hapless Udal went for 51 off seven overs. Lancashire coach David Lloyd claimed in May that his side`s cham- pionship challenge could be badly affected by Test calls. Curi- ously, however, their three defeats this season - against Wor- cestershire, Gloucestershire and Yorkshire - have all come in between Test matches, when they have had all their England players available. Source :: The Electronic Telegraph (http://www.telegraph.co.uk) Contributed by The Management (help@*ogi.edu)