Lumb misses out on maiden Hampshire hundred (From Daily Echo)

Lumb misses out on maiden Hampshire hundred

11:43am Friday 18th April 2008 in Sport

Hampshire are batting in reply to Sussex's first-innings 332

CLOSE: 319-7 More rain forced the players off at 12.10pm and play was finally abandoned for the day at 5pm. Dimitri Mascarenhas is still there on 3* but was welcomed to the crease with a short ball from Martin Jenkins into his midriff. Play was delayed for a few minutes while the skipper got his breath back. There was also a slight break in play after the umpires, Nigel Cowley and Jeff Steele, consulted when an attempted sweep from Mascarenhas against Mushtaq Ahmed was top-edged to Michael Yardy at silly point. Presumably, the officials agreed the ball did not carry but there was also a suspicion that Ahmed's appeal was over exuberant as Chris Adams, the Sussex captain, was spoken to.

WICKET (311-7) After a 25-minute delay for rain, MICHAEL LUMB (82) was denied his maiden Championship ton for Hampshire when Robin Martin-Jenkins pinned him lbw. Lumb has an unhappy knack of stepping in front of his stumps. Nine of his last 13 Championship dismissals have been lbw. After Hampshire resumed on 304-6 Lumb only added five to his overnight 77, which featured 11 fours and a hooked six before he was dismissed in the fifth over of the day. He faced 149 balls but after passing 50 for the ninth time for Hampshire in the Championship he will be disappointed not to have at least registered his highest first-class score for the county, which remains the 89 he hit as Hampshire followed on against Kent in the last home match of last season.