Surrey retain Second XI crown

Stewart Walters celebrates his second hundred of an evenly-contested match at Wormsley that Surrey won by 70 runs

Surrey retained the Second XI Championship after twin centuries from Stewart Walters paved the way for victory over Warwickshire in the final at Wormsley.

The opener hit 103 in the first innings and an even more impressive 116 in the second, helping set Warwickshire 273 to win. They managed 202.

Walters’ contribution was central to Surrey posting 369 after they won the toss, although he received valuable support from Zafar Ansari, with whom he added 184 for the third wicket.

While Zafari made 78 and Tim Linley from number 10, Warwickshire’s tally of 62 extras, including 32 no-balls, cost them dear.

They responded well with the bat, James Ord leading the way with 76 at the top of the order before Keith Barker (90), Calum McLeod (59) and captain Paul Best (38) helped them recover from 164 for seven to reach 360. Tim Linley nonetheless returned fine figures of 6-62.

Walters proved equally hard to dislodge in Surrey’s second innings, last out after recording another splendid hundred.

His stand of 66 for the sixth wicket with Simon King, who made 43, was the highest of the innings, while left-arm spinner Best impressed with the ball in taking 4-93.

Despite Ord and Nathan Newport putting on 88 for the first wicket in Warwickshire’s chase, the loss of three wickets for seven runs, including Ord for a run-a-ball 79, left them tottering on 129 for five.

Stefan Piolet and Richard Johnson rallied briefly but another cluster of wickets spelt the end for Warwickshire, and Shaun Cousens sealed victory - and completed figures of 3-47 - when he had Andrew Miller stumped.

Scorecard - Surrey v Warwickshire, 2nd XI Championship final, Sept 7 10 2010 (199 KB)

Surrey follow up victory over Lancashire in last year's four-day final by beating Warwickshire