Dowman takes advantage of sloppy fielding

Matthew Dowman secured his first century for his newly adopted county to assist Derbyshire's recovery from the tenuous position of 70-4 at lunch, a brave performance, but one that will not go down in his memory as one of his best innings.

Hampshire wicket-keeper Adi Aymes woke with back spasms in the morning and was unable to take his place behind the stumps with Derek Kenway recruited into the post. Robin Smith passed a fitness test on his hamstring problem. Rob Bailey played his first match since tearing a calf muscle in June to bolster the Derbyshire batting strength.

Alan Mullally omitted from tomorrows Test Match used the conditions well, taking all of the Derbyshire wickets to fall in a day truncated by morning showers, but he was frustrated as he witnessed four catches offered up by the young centurion spilled by the Hampshire fielders.

The Hampshire fielders had their worst day of the season, as Shane Warne saw Dowman dropped twice, a simple return catch last ball before lunch. Kenway struggling to read Warne's guile missed a comparative straightforward catch, and with Stephenson usually a capable slip fielder missing two off Mullally, and Udal spilling a ball that bounced off his mid-drift, it was not their day, exacerbated by a ball from Mascarenhas that actually spliced the stumps without disturbing the bails, the batsman Matthew Dowman.

Dowman despite his good fortune (It was recommended to him that he played the lottery that evening), also played some good shots hitting 16 fours in his long vigil that saw him score 8 runs off 99 balls after tea. He was well supported after lunch by Luke Sutton and after tea by Simon Lacey.

Earlier Mullally had dismissed four batsmen before lunch with a good selection of swing and guile, and took his fifth shortly after lunch, but from then on it was the Matthew Dowman show with his stools the Hampshire fielders.