Ramprakash falls cheaply

Mark Ramprakash must wait for his 100th first-class hundred © Getty Images

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Mark Ramprakash’s bid for his 100th first-class hundred is on hold after he managed just 17 runs on a day when his Surrey team-mates also fell short of milestones.

With Ramprakash out of the equation in the first hour of the LV Division One match at the Rose Bowl, no one was able to fill the void as three top-order batsmen lost their way within sight of half-centuries.

Several others got starts. But the most notable performance on a pitch offering the pace bowlers some help with occasionally unpredictable bounce came from Hampshire’s England seamer Chris Tremlett (5-67) in a total of 278 all out.

Surrey’s 40s came from the left-handed trio of Scott Newman, Mark Butcher and Usman Afzaal - the captain coming closest to a half-century when he went just one run short.

His fourth-wicket stand of 77 in 28 overs with Afzaal provided the ballast for an otherwise desultory Surrey innings, after Ramprakash’s hopes of becoming the 25th batsman in cricket history to make 100 hundreds foundered for the time being on the bowling of James Tomlinson (3-62).

Number three Ramprakash appeared to have overcome a nervy start - he needed 18 balls to get off the mark - having come to the wicket to face the fourth delivery of the match after Jonathan Batty had gone for a golden duck.

Surrey won the toss on a sunny morning but might soon have been having second thoughts about a greenish pitch, particularly with Batty immediately undone by Tremlett’s bounce as he edged to second slip.

Ramprakash took no chances early on, playing the line of his stumps and expertly leaving several deliveries from Tremlett and Tomlinson which could well have troubled lesser players.

James Tomlinson took three wickets, including the one of Ramprakash © Getty Images

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His hopes were soon dashed, however, when left-armer Tomlinson - who had switched to the northern end - found just enough movement across his victim to take the outside edge of a forward push. Tom Burrows did the rest with a regulation catch behind.

Opener Newman continued to look in impressive touch until he tried to abort a back-foot shot only to edge on to his stumps in the first over of Tremlett’s second spell.

An uneventful first hour of the afternoon was characterised by unconvincing accumulation from Butcher and Afzaal, each requiring help from the field as three plausible chances went down.

Neither was able to take too telling an advantage, though, Afzaal pinned lbw by Tremlett and Butcher’s charmed life culminating only in an attempted chip over midwicket off Greg Lamb’s off-spin which was well caught one-handed above his head by Sean Ervine.

Ali Brown was another unable to convert reconnaissance into substance, going after a ball from Ervine which was perhaps not quite short enough for the shot and edging to Burrows.

An encouraging innings from Chris Jordan also faltered, the young all-rounder lbw walking across his stumps to Tremlett’s first delivery with the second new ball.

It was therefore left to Matt Nicholson to join the fortysomethings and ensure there would at least be a second batting point, before Tomlinson and Tremlett saw off the tail in time to allow two overs of Hampshire batting by stumps.

Hampshire’s cause was not helped when Michael Carberry put Nicholson down on 34 at point off Tomlinson - the easiest of five missed chances which might have put the hosts in control had they stuck.

There was more reason to rue those when Carberry nicked the last ball of the day from James Ormond to Batty, to keep the match finely balanced.