HAMPSHIRE showed the sort of fight Brian Close was known for on the first day of their crucial LV County Championship match against Yorkshire at The Ageas Bowl.

Jimmy Adams and Michael Carberry set the tone for another stoic batting display as Hampshire made 219-4 after losing the toss against the champions.

Yorkshire wore black armbands in memory of the county’s legendary former England captain Close, who passed away, aged 84, on Sunday night.

Adams (52) and Carberry (28) showed Close-like resilience in following their Taunton heroics by batting throughout the 90-minute morning session against Yorkshire’s impressive attack.

Yorkshire rested Ryan Sidebottom but 17 year-old Matthew Fisher (16-8-24-0) highlighted the visitors’ strength in depth by reeling off four successive maidens at the beginning of his third Championship appearance.

Nigel Gray’s last pitch after 25 years as Hampshire’s groundsman had more than a tinge of green but, as is often the case at The Ageas Bowl, conditions got easier after the first hour.

Adams began to play with confidence, driving some sumptuous boundaries as he and Carberry put on 74.

But Hampshire lost two wickets in nine balls at the beginning of the second session.

Carberry got a faint edge to a ball angled across him from Jack Brooks (2-48) in the third over after lunch.

Then captain James Vince (3) played all around a Tim Bresnan delivery that came back and hit middle and off stump.

Adams hit Bresnan for successive boundaries before reaching a 106-ball fifty by glancing the former England all-rounder for his eighth four.

But after 27 successive dot balls, Hampshire lost their third wicket. Adams nicked a Steve Patterson delivery angled across his bows to first slip, where Alex Lees held on to a low catch.

Will Smith and Liam Dawson ensured there was no further loss before tea (153-3), showing excellent application during their third-wicket stand of 72 in 25 overs.

Dawson was fortunate not to be given out on 28 after Snicko showed he got the faintest of edges against Brooks – who had the unfortunate Smith caught down the leg side for 46 in his next over.

But Hampshire added 38 from the last nine overs, with Sean Ervine timing the ball beautifully on his way to an unbeaten 26 from just 25 balls in tandem with the gutsy Dawson, who will begin day two on 47.

Meanwhile, director of cricket Giles White insists his side is not paying attention to events at Hove as the battle to avoid relegation reaches its climax.

Somerset and Sussex, who began the penultimate round of games 11 points clear of Hampshire in the nearest safety positions, are playing each other at Hove.

Sussex (303-6) closed the first day with three bonus points to Somerset’s two, while Hampshire fell further adrift after being restricted to one by champions Yorkshire.

But White said: “Whatever happens at Hove happens, hopefully there’s a lot of cricket going into the last game.

“I can’t make head not tail of the permutations so we’ll just focus on what’s immediately in front of us.

“We’ve played good cricket over the last two months to give ourselves a chance. The challenge is to continue that.”

Eighteen overs were lost to rain on day one, with White adding: “I was surprised how much play we got.”

Yorkshire coaching consultant Anthony McGrath said: “The pitch probably didn’t do as much as I thought it would. When the covers came off the grass was longer and still quite damp.

“I thought we bowled well, we were a little unlucky but in the end you have to give them credit because they battled quite well.

“We just couldn’t manage to get wickets in clusters which we’ve done all year, but I thought Matthew [Fisher] was excellent.”