Balcombe continues Glamorgan's woes

Hampshire 29 for 1 v Glamorgan 103 for 9 dec (Balcombe 5-33)
Scorecard

David Balcombe has made an eye-catching start to the season and that continued when he took five Glamorgan wickets to put Hampshire in control on the first day of their rain-interrupted Division Two clash.

Balcombe recorded figures of 5 for 33 to go with his match figures of 11 for 119 against Gloucestershire last week.

He was denied a sixth wicket as Glamorgan imaginatively declared their first innings on 103 for 9 during the last of three breaks for rain in an attempt to recover lost ground by making inroads into the Hampshire batting in the final hour. The tactic paid limited dividends as Huw Waters had Jimmy Adams caught behind. Hampshire closed on 29 for 1, 74 behind.

Glamorgan's batting woes continued after their consecutive defeats to Leicestershire and Derbyshire. Despite winning the toss and electing to bat, they were 68 for 5 at lunch. Stewart Walters attempted an expansive drive and was caught at second slip by Liam Dawson off Balcombe; Gareth Rees fell leg before to Chris Wood; and then Nick James, brought into the side to bolster the middle order inhis first game of the season, was neatly caught by wicketkeeper Michael Bates.

Before lunch, Glamorgan lost two more wickets. Danny Briggs, their left-arm spinner, struck in his fourth over to have Ben Wright caught at short leg by James Vince and just two overs before the interval, Jim Allenby went lbw to Balcombe playing across the line.

Rain during the lunch interval forced a delay of an hour. Will Bragg seemed to enjoy the break, taking two fours off Balcombe's first over of the afternoon session to move to 42. Another break for rain, however, proved calamitous for Glamorgan as four wickets fell in the space of only three overs.

They still have not made a Championship fifty. Bragg threatened to become the first, but on 45 he was brilliantly caught one-handed, low down at second slip, by Liam Dawson off Wood. Balcombe then had Moises Henriques lbw, removed Graham Wagg at mid-off, attempting to pull, and completed his haul with another lbw decision to dismiss Dean Cosker.