County Championship: Adam Rossington hits century for Essex against Hampshire

Adam Rossington ended his horror season with a century as Essex commanded day one of their County Championship clash with Hampshire and boosted their title bid.

Wicketkeeper Rossington came into the match having only scored 188 runs in a season wrecked by injury and poor form but pushed through the gears to reach 104 - his best for Essex.

Matt Critchley added a ninth Championship fifty to his impressive season after Tom Westley reached 1,000 runs for the campaign on his way to his own half-century.

Essex ended the day on 310-6, Critchley still going strong on 83 following a 177-run stand with Rossington.

Essex began this penultimate round of fixtures 18 points behind leaders Surrey as the final challenger to the London side's hunt of back-to-back titles while third-placed Hampshire have a strong role in determining the destination of the trophy as they face Surrey in the final round.

This could be Alastair Cook's final match at Chelmsford, with his two-year contract ending at the end of this season and his future uncertain as he approaches his 39th birthday.

If this does turn out to be his finale, it did not start well as he was bowled around the wicket by a textbook Mohammad Abbas beauty without scoring.

Opening partner Nick Browne nicked behind as Essex slumped to 18-2, but Westley and Dan Lawrence combined to improve the hosts' position.

Westley needed 15 runs to reach his 1,000, something he had only achieved once before in 2016.

In fact, only three Essex players - Stuart Law and Paul Grayson in 2001 and Andy Flower in 2003 - have ever scored 1,000 runs in Division One since the Championship splitting into two in 2000.

Westley joined the trio with a flick into the leg side from his 25th delivery and ticked along nicely, unleashing the odd straight drive or trademark flick off the pads on his way to his seventh half-century of the season before immediately driving Kyle Abbott to third slip.

It ended a 64-run stand with Lawrence - who is definitely making his last home Chelmsford appearance ahead of his move to Surrey. He fell three overs later to Liam Dawson, edging to first slip having struck back-to-back boundaries, with the left-arm spinner also picking up the skittish Paul Walter lbw to leave Essex 132-5

Critchley found his flow quickly, reaching his half-century in 70 balls - albeit with only two fours and a sliced six down the ground off Dawson, milking 28 singles along the way.

Critchley, Rossington and Walter had all been awarded their Essex county caps at lunchtime and Rossington's 50 came in 83 balls and was brought up with a six over long on - which also moved his alliance with Critchley past 100.

He raced past Critchley's score, with his second fifty coming in 56 balls to bring up his second ton for Essex since moving from Northamptonshire at the beginning of last summer.

Rossington's assault ended on 104 as he attempted to launch one over mid-wicket and was caught behind, but Essex cruised to the close - which came early due to bad light, having earlier been on and off for rain.

Report supplied by ECB Reporters' Network.