Hampshire comfortably beat Yorkshire to maintain pressure on Surrey

Chasing 214 at Scarborough, half-centuries from Felix Organ and Ian Holland helped Hampshire to a seven-wicket win with over a session to spare

Scarborough (fourth day of four): Yorkshire 159 & 272, Hampshire 218 & 214-3- Hampshire won by seven wickets

Scorecard

Hampshire made light work of a potentially tricky final day chase of 214 at Scarborough to beat Yorkshire by seven wickets and maintain heavy pressure on LV= Insurance County Championship leaders Surrey.

Openers Felix Organ and Ian Holland superbly underpinned an eighth win in 11 games by sharing a tension easing 135 partnership inside 39 overs to thwart a Yorkshire side who have now lost three of their last four games, including two at North Marine Road.

Organ top-scored with a 72 off 127 balls and Holland added 71 off 119. Both fell in the early afternoon as Hampshire slipped to 147 for 3, paving the way for captain James Vince to complete the job with an unbeaten 43, hitting the winning runs to boot. 

When the four-day campaign resumes after the Royal London Cup in September, the two sides will be fighting battles at either end of the Division One table.

The finer details are still to be determined by results elsewhere today. But Hampshire, who claimed 20 points, could be level on points with Surrey at the summit and Yorkshire third bottom having only accrued three.

^{Felix Organ scored a half-century for Hamsphire [Ryan Pierse/Getty Images]}

Yorkshire, 33 for 6 early on day one, had high hopes of only a second win in 10 games this morning having battled back admirably.

But Hampshire have showed immense skill which highlights their position in the title race, completing victory 35 minutes before tea.

They were nine without loss in three overs and the conditions were suited to bowling, both via the pitch and overhead.

The hosts erred in both line and length as their confidence was shattered, the South Coast county reaching lunch with a stranglehold on proceedings at 121 without loss after 35.

Holland worked boundaries off his pads, while Organ more handsomely pushed a couple of his own down the ground. And it quickly became a straightforward route to victory for Hampshire rather than a nip and tuck contest which had seemed likely.

Yorkshire's unproductive morning was indicated by their introduction of off-spinner Dom Bess to bowl the 15th over of the day, with Hampshire 51 without loss. The England fringe spinner had not been used at all during the first three days.

As Liam Dawson had done for Hampshire on day three, Bess got some purchase. But his threat was repelled.

^{Kyle Abbott impressed with the ball earlier in the match, taking 10 wickets [Mike Hewitt/Getty Images]}

Holland, meanwhile, put his foot down during the latter stages of the morning. He reached his fifty off 92 balls, reverse swept Bess for four and uppercut a six over third off Jordan Thompson, by which time Hampshire had sailed to 99 in the 31st over.

Organ, meanwhile, was the beneficiary of a sharp missed stumping on 37 by Jonny Tattersall off Bess. He brought up his fifty off 104 balls in the afternoon's opening over, by which stage the score was 125 for 0.

And when Holland guided a back-of-a-length ball from Ben Coad to Tom Kohler-Cadmore at first slip, in truth it felt nothing more than a consolatory strike for Yorkshire at 135 for 1.

That soon became 147 for 3 in the 45th over thanks to a further strike from Coad and one for Bess.

Organ pulled a long hop from Bess to deep square-leg the ball after lofting the spinner over long-on for six before Coad trapped Joe Weatherley lbw for a duck.

Vince then clipped his first ball for four, later dragged Bess over wide long-on for six and shared an unbroken 67 for the fourth wicket with Nick Gubbins (20).

After the Royal London Cup, which starts next week, Hampshire's next Championship fixture is against Northamptonshire at the Ageas Bowl on September 5.

Yorkshire face Roses rivals Lancashire at Emirates Old Trafford that same week.