Somerset Close On Top Spot With Dramatic Success
Somerset sit just eight points off top spot in the County Championship with only two games left to play after a dramatic victory against leaders Surrey at Taunton on an astonishing final day of play.
The Vertu Motors-backed side went into the game knowing victory was crucial in the quest to secure the County Championship title for the first time, with Somerset still in contention for an astonishing treble having progressed in the Metro Bank One Day and with T20 Finals Day to look forward to this weekend – ironically with a game against Surrey.
With the pitch expected to turn as the match went on, Somerset won a crucial toss and elected to bat first on the opening day but made an awful start to the game when Lewis Goldsworthy was bowled by Kemar Roach with the second ball of the innings.
At the other end, teenager Archie Vaughan had been selected to open and he put on 33 with Tom Lammonby before Lammonby fell for 21, with Vaughan’s dismissal for 44 leaving Somerset sitting on 93-3.
That brought Tom Banton to the crease alongside Tom Abell, with the latter bidding to maintain his recent impressive run of form with the bat.
The pair added 62 before Abell was bowled one short of his half century but Banton and James Rew then started to take control – with Banton moving quickly to a century off 132 balls as the pair took the score to 262 before Rew’s supporting role was ended as he fell for 38.
Banton was eventually out for 132, one short of his personal best, with the score on 305-6 and it triggered a late collapse as the home side were bowled out for 317.
Surrey kicked off their innings on the second morning with Rory Burns and Dom Sibley putting on 41 for the first wicket, with Somerset having already introduced the spin of Jack Leach and Vaughan into the attack.
Vaughan removed both openers in quick succession but Ryan Patel and Ben Geddes put on 80 before Vaughan grabbed his third wicket to leave the visitors on 128-3.
Rain would bring play to a close early with the score having progressed to 169 before an all-action third day set up the drama-filled finale.
Tom Curran smashed 86 from 75 balls to help steer Surrey from 228-8 after a mid-morning collapse to 321 all out and a slender first innings lead, with Vaughan ending up with impressive bowling figures of 6-102 and Leach taking the other four to show the impact of spin on the game.
Somerset’s second innings kicked off after lunch, but the visitors quickly took the advantage as Shakib Al Hasan removed Vaughan for just three and fellow opener Goldsworthy fell to Roach for nine.
Abell, Aldridge and Lammonby followed suit before the innings had reached three figures, with Somerset in trouble at 75-5 and facing the prospect of having to bat without Banton after he picked up an injury playing football in the warm-up.
Although Craig Overton tried his hardest to keep the runs ticking over, wickets continued to fall as Somerset slipped to 153-9, with Banton hobbling out to the crease to bat with a runner and adding 41 with Overton before the end of the day.
From 194-9 overnight, Somerset went on to 224 before Banton was last man out for a battling 46, with Overton unbeaten on 49 to set a victory target of 221 that would give Surrey one hand on the title.
With a handful of overs having been lost during the morning to rain, Surrey were able to make it through to lunch without losing a wicket and after a delayed start to the afternoon, had progressed to 31 before Vaughan struck twice in an over to remove Burns and Patel.
Leach then trapped Geddes LBW for one to leave the score on 46-3, with Surrey switching approach to focus on avoiding defeat rather than trying to overcome the spinners to fight for victory.
Surrey had moved to 63-3 before a brief stoppage for rain, with Leach and Vaughan continuing to send down the overs, and Sibley and Ben Foakes largely going on the defensive – with Sibley at the crease for 165 balls before moving to 50.
Shortly afterwards however, Somerset got the breakthrough they needed when Foakes was caught at slip off the bowling of Leach to end the partnership – and it got better in Leach’s next over when Sibley was dismissed in the same way to leave the score on 96-5.
Shakib was next without a run being added when he was caught by Gregory off Vaughan’s bowling and Curran had added just five when Vaughan bowled him to take his tenth wicket of the game.
Cameron Steel was out LBW without scoring as Leach’s eleventh wicket of the game as it became a battle to see whether Surrey could make it to the end of the day or whether Somerset could grab the final two wickets required.
Jordan Clark and Kemar Roach did all they could to block out the deliveries before Leach had Clark caught for a 47 ball duck and two balls later, last man Dan Worrall was trapped LBW with less than five minutes of play left to give Somerset victory by 111 runs.
Taking 21 points compared to five for the opposition, Somerset are now firmly in contention for what would be a first ever County Championship title.