County Championship: Devon Conway hits 88 but Leicestershire hit back against Somerset

Devon Conway averaged 63 in the three-match Test series with England

Leicestershire fought back after tea as Somerset closed on 242-7 after a rain-interrupted first day at Taunton.

New Zealand Test opener Devon Conway hit 88 on his red-ball debut as he and Steven Davies (65) put on 143 for the first wicket.

Will Davis (2-40) struck twice as Leicestershire, without seven players self-isolating because of Covid-19 protocols, reduced the hosts to 182-4.

Gavin Griffiths took three quick scalps as Somerset lost seven wickets for 81.

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After making 200 at Lords in his first Test match knock for New Zealand, and averaging 78 in the T20 Blast, Conway continued his stunning summer, hitting 15 fours before spinner Callum Parkinson bowled him through the gate.

He had looked untroubled through the rain-reduced opening two sessions alongside Davies who reached his half-century off 79 balls in the 13 overs possible after lunch to guide the Group Two leaders to 134-0 as showers forced an early tea.

Among the seven players self-isolating, Leicestershire were missing three from their last four-day match - openers Hassan Azad and Sam Evans, and paceman Chris Wright - but having asked the hosts to bat, they fought back superbly after the two-hour delay.

Will Davis clipped Davies' off-stump 12 balls after the resumption, and then had Lewis Goldsworthy caught by Colin Ackermann at second slip in his next over.

And when George Bartlett badly misjudged a Ben Mike delivery to be trapped lbw, and Tom Lammonby and James Hildreth both fell to loose shots off Griffiths, Somerset had lost six wickets for 70 runs.

Griffiths had endured a torrid start, shipping 38 from his first five overs but, typifying his team's day, the seamer recovered in style to have stand-in skipper Craig Overton caught behind and cap a spell of three wickets for six runs.