Warwickshire 412 (Barnard 95, Burgess 88, Hain 85, Davies 51, Abbas 4-55) defeated

Hampshire 229 (Vince 75*, Rushworth 3-38, Woakes 3-45) and 97 (Vince 52*, Rushworth 7-38) by an innings and 84 runs. Chris Rushworth picked up seven wickets in the match.

Warwickshire defeated Hampshire by an innings and 84 runs, sending them to the top of the LV=Insurance County Championship Division One standings. Rushworth, a fast bowler from Durham who came over in the winter, claimed a devastating 7 for 38 and finished with a match total of 10 for 76.

Rushworth used excellent movement to dismiss Hampshire’s batting lineup for 97 runs after they had reached 35 for 9. This victory, Warwickshire’s first at the Ageas Bowl since 2010, was achieved with time to spare despite the third day being completely canceled due to rain. James Vince’s lone rearguard, who scored 52 not out and contributed the lion’s share of a 62-run last wicket partnership with Mohammad Abbas, was the only thing keeping the victory in tact.

Only Middlesex seamer Tim Murtagh has more Championship wickets than Rushworth since 2010; however, only three other occasions had he collected seven or more in one innings.

Felix Organ, who has a season average of 8.42, was unfortunate as he was lbw second ball, leaving Hampshire 0 for 1.

With 21 off 29 balls, Nick Gubbins definitely intended to help Hampshire erase their 181-run deficit and secure the victory. To catch Fletcha Middleton exactly in front, Chris Woakes joined the fray after the former Middlesex batter had nicked Rushworth behind.

A pitch that had been covered for a long time, along with dim lighting that enhanced bowling swing, served as a mitigating factor for the first half of Hampshire’s collapse. That justification was no longer valid as the innings went on because the pitch tended to return to being easier to bat on before the third day’s inclement weather washed out and the clouds swept away, revealing blue skies.

Ben Brown pushed a ball that bounced off him to first slip as Tom Prest dangled a bat to give Michael Burgess a wide-open catch. Ian Holland was caught leg before as the ball lingered low after Liam Dawson had struck an all-run four and lost his middle stump to a hooping inswinger.

James Fuller edged off the shoulder of his bat to first slip on Woakes’ second delivery after the break, dropping Hampshire to 34 for 8.

As Hampshire lost eight wickets for just nine runs, Rushworth, who has a history at the Ageas Bowl where he grabbed a hat-trick over three overs in 2015, came from the break to get his tenth wicket of the game. Kyle Abbott edged behind.

Captain Vince, who led his team to victory in the first innings with an undefeated score of 75, had been horrified to see their defeat. He demonstrated it was feasible to both endure and score runs.

He blocked with vigor, occasionally swiping a pull to the boundary or slapping fiercely through the covers. His team’s second-inning runs in the second innings accounted for 53.6% of his half-century, which he reached in 83 balls. Abbas won his first runs of 2023 at the other end and surpassed his previous Hampshire record of 8 in a narrow margin.

The Pakistani was eventually removed after he took a wild swing at Danny Briggs to be stumped, despite having faced 48 balls overall, more than anybody else save for Vince.

Warwickshire earlier declared with 410 for 8 after scoring 46 runs in just under 40 minutes; Abbas claimed all three wickets. Due to Saturday’s rain, Ed Barnard only added four runs after being stranded on 91 for more than 40 hours. After being caught behind while attempting to turn the ball towards the leg side, he went back to the locker room.
Warwickshire scored immediately and had plenty time to bowl out Hampshire when Woakes drove to midoff and Michael Burgess edged behind to fall off 88. It was sufficient, having defeated the hosts by 3:05 PM.

Hampshire’s coach, Adi Birrell, noticed a troubling trend. We have fallen apart in a similar way before, he remarked. “Last year, it occurred a couple times. In order to find a solution, we are addressing it, speaking forcefully, and examining ourselves in the mirror. We need to find a solution in a calm manner; there is no point in yelling and shouting about it, yet we will still discuss it.

“We have played four games so far this season and have won two and lost two. Although it is hoped that the extremely good teams will defeat one another, in a typical season, if you lose two games, you do not take home the championship.