Led by Conor McKerr (5/29), Surrey produced a clinical display of bowling and fielding on day four as they defeated Warwickshire by 103 runs in a Second XI Championship encounter that entertained on all days.
The hosts were most under pressure when the impressive partnership between Amir Khan and Ethan Brookes for the second wicket was blossoming, but once that was broken through, the Three Feathers didn’t look back, with McKerr, Yousef Majid (2/9), Nathan Barnwell (2/14), and Amar Virdi (1/83) amongst the wickets.
Day Three’s evening session was lost to rain. However, the start of day four was swift and action-packed.
In a span of 53 balls, Henry Brookes bagged the wickets of Nick Kimber (24), Barnwell (9), and James Taylor (32) to end the Surrey innings. The hosts added 43 vital runs to their overnight score of 280/7.
22 of these quick runs came off the bat of James Taylor, who was the final wicket to fall as he was caught at long off by Danny Briggs. Prior to that, Warwickshire’s Brookes got Kimber and Barnwell caught behind by keeper George Maddy.
Brookes (3/59) and Briggs (3/83) posted the best bowling figures for Warwickshire, while skipper Ben Geddes (121) top scored for the Three Feathers in their second innings.
Chasing 315, Amir Khan and Hamza Shaikh walked out to begin Warwickshire’s innings. Following a threatening opening spell from McKerr and Taylor, the former got his prize when Sheridon Gumbs took a sublime catch in the slips after an edge of Shaikh’s bat was found.
Number three Brookes and opener Khan dug in well against some testing new-ball bowling, before their partnership started to flourish and put pressure back on Surrey.
In their 97-run stand, Brookes contributed 55 but his elegant innings was curtailed by McKerr’s snappy delivery that rattled the batter’s stumps. With this wicket, McKerr injected energy and uplifted the hosts’ spirits.
The Bears on 109/2 and Khan just two short of his fifty, Amar Virdi forced the set left-hander to play a false shot that was caught by Barnwell; the off spinner dismissed Khan for the second time in the match.
All of a sudden, starting again and requiring 206 at over 4 runs per over, Warwickshire found themselves in a difficult position, which became more troublesome when McKerr picked up his third wicket, getting Callum Nicholls caught at point by Nico Reifer for 6.
With the score at 120/4, DA Khan joined wicketkeeper Chris Benjamin at the crease. With Surrey bowlers mounting pressure, the pair offered some resistance and dragged the visitors to 157/4, before Barnwell’s short-ball tactic saw success. Benjamin and his replacement Briggs were bounced out by the pacer with Josh Blake and Taylor grabbing a catch each, to leave Warwickshire 161/6.
With 23 runs added to the total, McKerr struck twice and deservedly completed his five-for, bringing the hosts ever closer to a hard-earned victory.
First, McKerr rapped the pads of DA Khan and got him lbw for a defiant 21 off 76 and then followed it up by uprooting the off stump of Henry Brookes for 0 with a vicious yorker.
Yousef Majid took the final two wickets. First the left-arm-spinner bowled Maddy with a drifting delivery Within minutes, the left-armer got Craig Miles caught by Kimber and ended Warwickshire’s chase on 211 as Surrey won by 103 runs.
While the heads of each Surrey bowler would be held high after such a tidy performance, it was McKerr, with bowling figures of 16-6-29-5, who was the chief architect of Surrey’s second innings as they completed a satisfying victory.
A match report of day one can be found here, day two here and day three here.
