Vince & Dawson hit tons as Hampshire set Bears big target

Liam Dawson and James Vince also shared a match-winning stand of 184 to help beat Essex at Chelmsford last September

Vitality County Championship Division One, Edgbaston (day three)

Hampshire 298 & 453-6 dec: Vince 166*, Dawson 120, Middleton 58; Hannon-Dalby 3-65

Warwickshire 254: Bethell 69, Mousley 57; Barker 6-74, Abbott 3-64 & 40-1

Warwickshire (4pts) need a further 458 runs to beat Hampshire (4 pts)

Match scorecard

Hampshire skipper James Vince hit a typically stylish first century of the season and England all-rounder Liam Dawson also reached three figures as the visitors declared to set Warwickshire 498 to win.

Vince made an unbeaten 166 - his 29th first-class century - and Dawson hit 120 as the pair shared a sixth-wicket stand of 255.

That enabled Vince to declare on 453-6, allowing the Hampshire attack - including six-wicket first-innings hero Keith Barker - 12 overs to have a second crack at the Bears openers.

But although Barker and Muhammad Abbas had no luck, when Vince turned to Kyle Abbott to bowl the ninth over, Hampshire made an immediate breakthrough.

Abbott steamed in to bowl one full-length, Bears captain Alex Davies had a swing and a miss on 16, looking to add to his early haul of three fours, and was adjudged leg before wicket.

That left his predecessor as captain Will Rhodes, deputising as opener in the absence through sickness of Rob Yates, and nightwatchman Danny Briggs to see their side to stumps.

The Bears closed on 40-1, Warwickshire still needing a further 458 to win with nine wickets standing. But, on a flat, apparently rather lifeless pitch, the clever money is already on the drawer.

After resuming on 88-2 in their second innings, with a lead of 132, Hampshire added a further 108 runs to reach lunch on 196-5.

It looked like the only wicket to fall in the morning session would be Nick Gubbins, who fell to spinner Briggs for 47, but Olly Hannon-Dalby then struck in successive overs just before the break to remove Felix Organ for 31 and wicketkeeper Ben Brown.

That brought Dawson together with Vince - and they took full advantage of the easing conditions, batting through the afternoon session to add 139 runs in 34 overs.

Against a tiring attack on another hot day in Birmingham, they then passed Hampshire’s previous highest sixth-wicket stand against Warwickshire - 251 by Phil Mead and Jack Newman at Bournemouth in 1928.

But it all ended when, having posted his own 15th first-class century, Dawson swung Dan Mousley's spin to deep mid-wicket where Rhodes took a good catch.

Warwickshire captain Alex Davies told BBC CWR:

"The partnership between Vince and Dawson was massive. It just broke the back of our attack.

"The ball got soft and in that heat the fast bowlers can only bowl so many overs. We are managing Woakes on his workloads and Hannon-Dalby's run in all year for us and been fantastic.

"The priority must be to bat the first two sessions and keep ourselves in the game and then, if we have a sniff of winning later on with some wickets in hand, you can be sure we'll be going for it."

Hampshire captain James Vince told BBC Radio Solent:

"I have got a lot of fifties this season and not made a big hundred so it was nice to go on this time.

"After lunch they had a small window with us five down and if they had got a couple of wickets then they could have been chasing something below 300, so it was important for me and Daws to stick in there.

"The wicket has lost a bit of zip but there are signs of a few maybe going up and hopefully a few staying down tomorrow so we are going to have to run in and hit the pitch hard to create the nine chances we need."