Somerset 283 for 6 (Abell 121*, Hildreth 54) vs Surrey
Somerset’s totals this season have made for grim reading: 180, 135, 109 and 154. Since the start of the divisional phase of last year’s Championship, they had passed 200 only twice in 12 completed innings and lost six games in a row for the first time since the 1960s. They have played on some challenging pitches, but the statistics are grizzly enough to make even England’s top order wince.
Abell has worn the look of a wartime leader throughout that run, fronting up with his brow furrowed as the local media demanded answers after each collapse. His own form had disintegrated: across his previous 14 first-class innings, including two for the England Lions against Australia A, he had managed only 109 runs at 7.79.
After the drought came a deluge: Abell surpassed that tally in a day in the south London sun, whipping Surrey’s seamers through midwicket when they attacked his stumps and driving elegantly through extra cover if they strayed too wide. When he walked off at the close, he had 121 of Somerset’s 283 for 6, a scoreline which vindicated his decision to bat first on a green, but slowish pitch.
Abell had looked in complete control until he reached the 90s, when his poise briefly deserted him. On 95, he edged Jordan Clark just short of gully; on 97, he watched Ollie Pope fling himself to his right at second slip but fail to cling onto a thick outside edge; on 99, he heard Ben Foakes and Reece Topley plead for a leg-side strangle, then saw Martin Saggers shake his head.
When he tucked Topley off his pads to reach 100, Abell acknowledged the applause from his team-mates, embraced Josh Davey, and took a deep breath that exuded reassurance rather than rapture. This was only his second first-class hundred since August 2020, and served as a reminder of his quality, to himself more than anyone.
“I’ve obviously been in a pretty tough place for the last couple of weeks, really,” he said at the close. “I was desperate, particularly as captain, to lead from the front with my batting and I’ve not been satisfied with my performances.
“I’ve been batting, really searching for something. I felt like I’ve not been in a great place with my batting so the main emotion was just relief, to be honest. I appreciate the love from the boys as well up there. It meant a lot to me.”
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Abell has been discussed in some quarters as a left-field candidate for England’s Test captaincy, a suggestion which has mainly served to highlight the paucity of options. His recent run of form underlines the obvious problem with handing the role to someone who is not sure of their place – how could anyone survive the scrutiny that would fall on their batting as well as their leadership? – but his leadership credentials are obvious and he has served Somerset with distinction.
That was the first of three wickets in 22 balls, a sequence which brought Surrey back into the game after a day of hard graft: Clark had Steven Davies caught behind, looking to drive his second ball to the cover boundary, while Topley, the pick of the attack, was rewarded with a cheap wicket of his own as Craig Overton cut a short ball to point.
Matt Roller is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo. @mroller98
Source: ESPN Crickinfo