Virdi takes key Red Rose wickets as Surrey push for win
AMAR Virdi took 3 for 61 in a 21-over spell, with each wicket greeted by his now-trademark arms-aloft celebratory run into the outfield, as Surrey strived for a seventh Specsavers County Championship victory in nine games by beating Division One strugglers Lancashire in the pink-ball contest at the Kia Oval.
At stumps, however, Lancashire had fought hard to reach 177 for 5 in their second innings, just 94 runs away from reaching their 271-run victory target, with Steven Croft on 28 not out and Josh Bohannon unbeaten on 22. The sixth wicket pair have so far added 52 in 19 overs, and they gritted it out impressively under the floodlights in the final session.
Croft has faced 74 balls, hitting two fours, while Bohannon has yet to find the ropes in a gutsy 66-ball effort that continues an eyecatching championship debut.
The 21-year-old from Bolton hit an excellent 52 in Lancashire’s first innings and has also bowled his mediumpacers usefully in this match.
Virdi followed up his initial scalp of Alex Davies by removing both Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Rob Jones in the final session as Lancashire lost three wickets inside 12 overs immediately after the third day’s second interval.
Rikki Clarke struck in the second over of the last session, pinning Dane Vilas leg-before for three and, when Chanderpaul edged Virdi to slip to go for two and Jones’s excellent 48 was ended by a second brilliant reaction catch by Will Jacks at short leg, Lancashire had stumbled to 125 for 5. Jones, the 22-year-old batsman, had fought hard through 89 balls in a stay of almost two hours. He had driven Virdi high over long on for six to go into double figures and also hit six fours before he advanced to the off spinner, nicked hard on to his front pad as he tried to whip to leg and saw Jacks move smartly to his left to take the catch.