County Championship Division One, Taunton, Day Three – Somerset 526-8 dec (Abell 119, Overton 111, Rew 86, Abell 74*, Lammonby 73) lead Sussex 236 – 8 (Hughes 107, Lammonby 2-14)
Another truncated day with only 64 of the scheduled 104 overs possible. One which until the last 40 minutes was frustratingly unrewarded. But the clatter of wickets in the latter part of the last session left the door to victory still ajar.
This time last week I really believed Somerset would complete the job in Cardiff. I was proved wrong. I’m hoping the same happens tomorrow. Please please tell me Sussex’s lower order don’t prove as obdurate as Glamorgan’s I did last week.
Despite that flurry of wickets late on which yielded 5-32 Somerset still face a monumental challenge to pick up 12 wickets on the last day. I’m pleased that a much wiser cricketing mind than mine, BBC Somerset’s Anthony Gibson who believes Somerset have, ‘every chance of forcing a win tomorrow’.
Somerset had toiled through two and a bit sessions as Daniel Hughes, an Aussie without a State team at present, accumulated the first Championship century Somerset have conceded this season. Ably supported Tom Clark and Jack Leaning in stands of 56 and 99 Hughes purred along quietly until Tom Lammonby produced a peach of a ball with just enough movement outside off stump to produce a catch to the skipper at first slip.
If that was a beaut, Lammonby’s next trick was better, cleaning up Jack Leaning with apparent ease.
With Archie Vaughan getting the key wicket of John Simpson and both Miggy P and Lewis picking up a wicket a piece in the last quarter of an hour Sussex’s seemingly successful pursuit of the follow-on target was in tatters.
So why you ask am I less optimistic than Gibbo? I can’t rationalise it there is just something nagging away in the back of my mind that that final hour was the aberration from the norm and not a trend that will be followed tomorrow. Twelve wickets on the final day is a huge ask. Let’s remember Somerset only chiselled out seven wickets today and we will be asking the attack to go again. And better. I need Alfie Ogborne to get his lines more consistent, at Alfie’s pace Lammonby like lines would be unplayable to even the best in the Sussex line up. And to believe that Jack Leach’s current funk is over – he and Archie Vaughan will both need to make significant contributions tomorrow.
Strap yourselves in for another Monday nail biter everyone.
