Ben Brown’s battling 95 held Hampshire’s batting together after champions Surrey had threatened to overwhelm them with an impressive five-man pace attack on day one of their much-anticipated LV= Insurance County Championship match at the Kia Oval.
Hampshire, for a long time last season Surrey’s closest rivals for the title, were struggling at 114 for six just after lunch, after opting to bat, but Brown was joined by Keith Barker in a determined seventh wicket stand of 96 in 35 overs as they made it to 254 to frustrate Rory Burns’ side.
By the close Surrey were 37 without loss in reply, from 14 overs, with Burns and Dom Sibley looking solid on 23 and 12 not out respectively.
Yet it might have been a day totally dominated by Surrey if Brown, on 3, had not survived a difficult chance to Tom Lawes on the deep backward square leg boundary when he aimed a pull at Sean Abbott. In addition, Hampshire opener Fletcha Middleton, who made 32, was dropped on 0 by keeper Jamie Smith off Kemar Roach.
Lawes, brought in to Surrey’s side due to Ben Foakes’ absence with a minor back complaint – Smith taking the gloves – finished with 4 for 58, with the rest of Hampshire’s wickets shared out between the the other four seamers and last man Mohammad Abbas run out for a duck after being sent back by James Fuller, who made a useful unbeaten 23.
Keeper-batsman Brown, the former Sussex captain who moved to Hampshire last year, fought for almost four hours while Barker’s 58 occupied 130 balls. It was a particularly spirited effort from the pair given that Hampshire have been beaten by an innings in their last two visits to the Oval, in 2021 and 2022, failing to total more than 227 in those four innings.
Surrey struck two early blows through West Indies Test fast bowler Roach, who had Felix Organ leg-before for 8 in the fourth over and then, from around the wicket, bowled Nick Gubbins for 2 when the left-hander tried to withdraw his bat at the last moment but only succeeded in deflecting the ball down into his stumps.
A mini-revival ended when James Vince, after three fours in his 18, pushed hard at Abbott and edged to first slip where Sibley held on at the second attempt, falling to his right.
And, in the next over, the 14th of the innings, Hampshire slumped further to 39 for 4 when Lawes struck with his second ball, a magnificent leg-cutter that hit Liam Dawson’s off stump to send him back for 1.
But Middleton and Brown, after his early escape, did well to add 49 with Brown driving Abbott through extra cover and past mid off for fours before taking ten runs from Jordan Clark’s opening over.
At 88, however, Clark produced a beauty to feather the edge of Middleton’s defensive bat 15 minutes before lunch and when Ian Holland fell soon afterwards, held in the gully off Dan Worrall for 5, it seemed as if Surrey were on course to bowl out Hampshire for a below-par score.
But Brown, completing his half-century from 79 balls, withstood all that Surrey’s pace quintet could throw at him while Barker hung on grimly despite looking uncomfortable against the short ball.
That batting was never straightforward, even on a decent surface, was perhaps best illustrated in the 51st over when Brown, on 59, was beaten by a brute of a delivery from 20-year-old tyro Lawes, which pitched on leg stump and lifted and left him so sharply that Smith did well to claw it down as he twisted back to his right behind the stumps.
Hampshire reached tea at 179 for 6, but Brown had added only another 13 runs after the interval before Lawes pinned him leg-before with a full-length inswinger. He had faced 167 balls, hitting 11 fours.
Barker was eventually caught down the legside by Smith, pulling at Lawes, who then yorked Kyle Abbott for 2 before Fuller turned down a second run to long off to leave Abbas stranded.
