Worcestershire all-rounder Matthew Waite admitted his side must put Day One behind them after a disciplined Surrey display dominated Day One of the Rothesay County Championship Division One clash.
Returning to the four-day format for the first time in nearly a month, Worcestershire’s top-order dug-in to build a platform as they ended the first hour having lost just one-wicket, but a double blow on the stroke of lunch, before two more quick wickets after the interval left the hosts reeling at 87-5.
Waite, stood up when called upon, as he made a defiant 68 in the middle-order, making the biggest contribution as his side scraped past 200.
As Surrey closed the day 47-0, Waite, accepted that his side underperformed in both departments against a very strong opposition.
“We would have liked to have got a few more. I think it’s probably a bit better pitch than 209 all out, and we could have bowled a lot better as well this evening as a group.
“I just said, we got off to a very good start, and then the running out of Kash, which we could probably control ourselves, and losing two just before lunch meant we never really got back that momentum.”
Henry Nicholls (31) and Jake Libby (28) both got themselves in, but the relentless nature of the Surrey bowling attack gave no let-up throughout the first innings.
With star bowler Dan Worrall rested, Matt Fisher, Jordan Clark and spinner Mitchell Santner did the bulk of the work for the visitors, sharing seven-wickets between them and never giving up their unrelenting pressure on the opening day.
Waite, said the side currently challenging for their fourth Championship title in as many years, having a plethora of quality bowlers to call upon makes it hard for any opposition to build a score.
“I just said to Dolly upstairs, they bowled so well, and they just control the scoreboard so well, build pressure, and even if nothing’s happening, they’re still controlling the game.
“And then they go bang, bang and that’s what they do really well as a unit. They’ve got a lot of options and a lot of very good options at that. I guess, as a captain, it’s probably makes his life very easy that he’s got international quality across spinners seamers all the time.”
After one stage looking like struggling to reach a score near 150, Waite’s rescuing act, bought his side some invaluable time and runs in the match, as he helped them up to their first-innings total of 209.
Recording his third half-century of the season, with a top-score of 87* away at Somerset in the opening stages of the campaign, Waite was central to mounting some form of comeback, leaving the crease after holding out to Dan Lawrence at long-on, with Worcestershire then 198-9.
After batting for just under two hours and facing 113 balls, he said the feeling he had in the middle was one of the best so far this season, even on a wicket that tested all the batters.
“I don’t know exactly what it was to be honest, I just I felt quite good today myself, and it’s probably the best that I felt this season. So I just think maybe just a good day for me with the bat.
“Definitely the Kookaburra felt a lot softer off the bat and the pitch, it like stuck in the pitch and bounced a bit. It didn’t nip as much as it has done, but like you say, that could be down to the balls or the pitch. We don’t really know, but it definitely went softer.”
