HAMILTON-BROWN
AND ROY MAKE UP FOR PIETERSEN'S FAILURE by Marcus Hook
Surrey 324-6 v Glamorgan.
Despite Kevin Pietersen falling lbw for a second
ball duck, Surrey ended the opening day against Glamorgan with their
noses in front thanks to an enthralling 96 from Rory Hamilton-Brown
and a superb half-century from Jason Roy. After winning the toss and
electing to bat the hosts closed on 324-6. They might have
established a vice-like grip on proceedings had it not been for Dean
Cosker, who picked up 4-40, including the wicket of Pietersen.
Those who were looking forward to seeing the
England batsman spend time in the middle were kept waiting until the
27th over. In the meantime Roy batted with an ease that belied his
twenty years. Playing only his second first-class innings, Roy
followed up the 76 he made against Leicestershire two weeks ago with
an eye-catching 69. It then fell to Hamilton-Brown, who took sixes
of all five of Glamorgan's front-line bowlers, to re-establish
Surrey's dominance. Hamilton-Brown, who was positive throughout,
made 96 off just 84 balls before he became the fourth of Cosker's
victims.
Only 31 deliveries were possible before a heavy
downpour resulted in the loss of 24 overs. When play resumed at
1.30pm, Roy picked up where he left off by off driving Huw Waters
for four in the sixth over and taking two successive boundaries off
the 23-year-old two overs later.
James Harris made the initial breakthrough when
Tom Lancefield departed to a routine catch at second slip in the
ninth over. But that was followed by a stand of 79 between Roy and
Ramprakash.
Roy brought up his fifty, which came off 47 balls,
with a cover driven four off Jim Allenby. Mark Ramprakash took
Surrey to one hundred with the second of four boundaries in the
space of two overs.
Roy perished giving the charge to Cosker, who then
accounted for Pietersen a couple of balls later. When the
32-year-old slow left-armer beat Ramprakash in the flight in the
31st over Surrey, who had been 119-1, suddenly found themselves
136-4.
But instead of digging in, Hamilton-Brown and Gary
Wilson treated the crowd to some impressive strokeplay as they added
127 in just 21 overs for the fifth wicket.
Wilson took Surrey to 200 in the 41st over with a
cut four off Robert Croft. Eight overs later, the home side had 250
on the board thanks to some clean hitting both down the ground and
over extra cover from Hamilton-Brown, whose fifty came off 45
deliveries and included four maximums.
But Wilson and Hamilton-Brown fell in successive
overs. Mark Cosgrove, who was pressed into action when Waters pulled
up with a hamstring strain, broke through Wilson's defences in the
52nd over. The Surrey skipper perished in the next when he danced
down the wicket to the first ball of Cosker's second spell.
Chris Schofield and Gareth Batty played a great
deal more watchfully as they put on 61 to see their side through to
stumps.
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