Surrey succumbed to a record innings-and-278-run thrashing by Hampshire on day three in Southampton to hand a boost to their Vitality County Championship title rivals.
Surrey’s loss was their heaviest in the Championship, with their only bigger reverses in first-class cricket coming against England in 1866 – when WG Grace scored two centuries – and Don Bradman’s Australia in 1948, when they were trounced by an innings and 296 runs on each occasion.
Rory Burns’ side, champions in the last two seasons, were bundled out for 203 in their second innings as home spinners Felix Organ (5-104) and Liam Dawson (4-45) secured Hampshire’s largest County Championship victory and inflicted just a fourth defeat for Surrey since the start of 2022, two of which came after the Londoners had already won the title.
Division One table toppers Surrey lead Somerset by 16 points with both sides having played seven games, with Essex – currently 197 runs ahead of Kent after day three of their match at Canterbury – a further seven points adrift.
Burns (17) was first to fall, out to seamer Keith Barker, before Organ and Dawson took over, with Surrey slipping to 68-4 and then 149-9 before last man Dan Worrall biffed 48 from 57 balls, the highest score for his side in the match.
Surrey had been skittled for 127 on day one before Hampshire replied with a monster 608-6 declared – home skipper James Vince calling his side in on Sunday with a 481-run lead.
Hampshire’s Ben Brown, on 99 overnight, carted the first ball of the day to the boundary to reach his 24th first-class century, and second since arriving from Sussex, before passing his highest first-class score to end 165 not out.
Surrey were then blown away by Hampshire’s attack once again, with Organ producing a wicked off-spinner to bowl England vice-captain Ollie Pope middle stump.
Organ’s other wickets included Jamie Smith (9) and Dan Lawrence (42), with Ben Foakes left stranded on 19 not out from 107 balls for Surrey after spending the best part of two days laying on the physio’s table with back spasms.
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