County Championship: Simon Harmer takes 4-23 as Essex gain upper hand against Hampshire on day one

Simon Harmer took 4-23 off eight overs as Hampshire slumped from 33-1 to 68-6 at close of play

Simon Harmer took four evening wickets to entangle Hampshire after Shane Snater's 71 had dug Essex out of a hole on day one of their County Championship Division One clash.

All-rounder Snater became Essex's third-highest Championship run scorer and recorded his third half-century this season to help them recover from 56-5 and 105-7 to 238 all out at Chelmsford.

Harmer entered, after Sam Cook had claimed the wickets of the openers, to bamboozle Hampshire's batters on a spinning wicket with 4-23 to see the title hopefuls slump to 68-6 at the close.

The Cloud County Ground pitches had proven to be slow and incredibly flat thus far this season - resulting in three bore draws. As such, Harmer had only taken 12 wickets in the Championship this season.

This was a renaissance to the wickets prepared in the last half a decade or so as Hampshire pair Kyle Abbott and Keith Barker found good bounce off a length, while Liam Dawson and Harmer would get good turn. It was no surprise that 16 wickets fell in the day.

Hampshire's opening duo of Felix Organ and Ian Holland have been fallible throughout the season, so the former falling in the first over - edging to a juggling Sir Alastair Cook at first slip - and the latter in the ninth was hardly unusual.

Harmer was unsurprisingly introduced from the River End in the eighth over, and he had a scalp within seven balls. The only surprising aspect was the manner of the wicket as James Vince advanced down the pitch, missed the ball and was stumped.

Ten balls later, Dawson dabbed towards short leg but it sat up for wicketkeeper Adam Rossington to grab. Soon after, Nick Gubbins' otherwise spritely 34 ended when he edged to second slip, Hampshire slipping to 55-5, almost mirroring Essex's 56-5 earlier in the day.

Aneurin Donald edged his next delivery to short leg and Barker just about survived the hat-trick ball, before he and Ben Brown got through the final 29 balls of the day.

Earlier, after Essex had chosen to bat, Nick Browne was bowled on the angle by Abbott for a 14-ball duck, former England captain Cook pushed Barker to third slip and Dan Lawrence was lbw to Brad Wheal to leave the hosts 17-3.

Tom Westley held things together with a leg-side dominant 46 and partnerships of 40 with Paul Walter and 47 with Rossington - as Walter and Michael Pepper fell within three Holland balls in between.

Rossington and Westley also departed in quick succession - bowled by an Abbott ripper and lbw to Dawson, respectively - to leave the hosts 105-7.

Enter Snater, who, nine days ago, was a part of the Netherlands' bowling attack which was flailed for a world record 498 by England in Amstelveen. He went for 99 runs, although he picked up the wicket of his cousin Jason Roy, before going for 26 in 19 balls two days later.

His fortunes changed in Essex as he counter-attacked with some style. Much of his scoring could be described as agricultural but bordered into inventiveness with a sublime duck-come-uppercut before hooking and straight-smashing a pair of sixes.

Snater's half-century came in 47 balls and he put on 59 with Harmer and 58 with Aaron Beard. After he had departed for 71, the final two put on 16 - meaning the final three wickets were worth an invaluable 133 runs.

Report supplied by the ECB Reporters' Network.