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Defeat on day four at Chelmsford
Charlie Allison kept his head during an otherwise nervy hour and a quarter as Essex claimed a seven-wicket victory over Somerset to round off the Rothesay County Championship season.
Allison finished the game with a second six off Jake Ball over long leg. He was 32 not out from 34 balls as Essex reached their target of 95 from 18.4 overs.
Lewis Gregory had given Somerset some hope by removing Dean Elgar and Tom Westley inside the first six overs before taking the catch in the deep to end Paul Walter’s innings. Walter, a first-innings centurion, had amassed 30 from 31 balls when he departed with 39 runs still required.
The Somerset captain was fired up in the face of desperate odds against and caused jitters in the Essex ranks as he repeatedly beat the outside edge of the bat. He bowled through unchanged and was rewarded with figures of two for 43 from his nine overs.
However, with all day to knock off the runs, a modicum of tension was introduced in only the second over. Having put on 277 for the first wicket in the first innings, the opening partnership lasted just seven balls. Elgar departed for a golden duck, rapped conclusively on his front pad by Gregory without getting anywhere near the ball.
Westley withstood the rest of a torrid over from Gregory but got off the mark with a characteristic drive through midwicket for four off Craig Overton. He followed that with an emphatic pull through midwicket off Gregory for a second boundary before he, too, fell to the same bowler.
After putting on a run-a-ball 28 with Walter, Westley nibbled at one outside off-stump and wicketkeeper James Rew dived in front of first slip to claim the catch.
Ball struck with his first ball when Walter went for a big heave and paid the price.
Allison made sure the target came down quickly and deposited Ball over long leg for six to take Essex within two runs of the target and then repeated the act to complete the victory.
