Adams fifty edges Hampshire ahead

Hampshire 287 for 6 v Lancashire 283
Scorecard

Jimmy Adams and Sean Ervine made half-centuries as Hampshire gained the upper hand at the Rose Bowl where Lancashire are seeking to remain the only unbeaten team in the County Championship.

Lancashire began the second day at 262 for 8 and added another 21 runs but when bad light brought a premature end, Hampshire were four runs ahead at 287 for 6. Simon Kerrigan was out at 267 when Lancashire resumed their first innings and 16 runs later Gary Keedy was bowled by former Lancashire all-rounder Dominic Cork.

Cork finished with figures for 4 for 57 and there were two wickets each for David Balcombe and spinner Danny Briggs. Hampshire made a dismal start to their reply with England candidate Michael Carberry bowled by Glen Chapple without scoring from the third ball of the innings.

Adams was dropped at the wicket by Luke Sutton off the bowling of Tom Smith when on 18, and Lancashire paid the penalty as he and Michael Lumb put on 117 for the second wicket. Lumb, out of form after England's Twenty20 success in the Caribbean, began to show signs of returning to his best by hitting eight fours in his 48 before he lofted Sajid Mahmood to fine leg where Kerrigan held the catch.

Adams went on to make 72 before he was third out at 160 when he edged Keedy to wicketkeeper Sutton after hitting 11 fours in his 158-ball innings. Neil McKenzie was fourth out at 179 and James Vince was in prime form until he was lbw to Steven Croft for 33 at 255.

But big-hitting Ervine was not to be denied and he smashed his way to a rapid 56 in an innings which included five fours and a six before he gave Chapple his second success of the innings. Cork and Michael Bates, making his debut, took the score past the Lancashire total before bad light intruded.

Chapple finished the day with two for 48 and Keedy's 19 overs brought figures of 2 for 45. Ervine's 56 came from 77 balls but there was little in the wicket to encourage the Lancashire bowlers in the way that it had helped Hampshire on the first day. Adams' half-century was his seventh of the season and put Hampshire in a powerful position at the end of the second day.