HAMPSHIRE captain Ben Brown admitted his extended period at the crease "was not enjoyable" but he was relieved to secure a shock draw on Wednesday.

Brown underlined his credentials as Hampshire captain by batting through the entire final day to help his side avoid a heavy County Championship defeat to Worcestershire.

Brown, who assumed the captaincy from James Vince during the winter, finished unbeaten on 109. However, it was the 331 minutes he spent at the crease that proved most vital in securing a hard-earned draw.

Hampshire had been thoroughly outplayed over the first three days, but contributions from Brown, Tilak Varma, and a half-century from Liam Dawson helped restore some pride and ensured the hosts claimed nine points from the contest.

After the match, Brown said: “It has not been a good week but we needed one good day to get something from the game.

"Luckily we were able to get something from the game and that is a relief. I thought we had a good chance, we were upbeat about that.

"We had belief we could do it today and had big desire to turn around a bad week. Tilak was so good to bat with, he played so well for us in the first innings as well.

"Daws played well as well. It wasn’t easy. It isn’t enjoyable batting like that but the situation demanded it. I made a conscious decision to drop my bat lift, have no intent to score and trust my defence.

“In those situations, clarity is better than having no plan. I put run scoring out my mind. It was boring and tiring but we got a draw.

“I’m confident in our batting line up but there was pressure because we haven’t played good cricket.

“Worcestershire played really well all week and today they ran in and smacked the pitch really hard. They tried everything and we got out of jail.”

Worcestershire, rooted to the bottom of the table, worked tirelessly throughout the day but managed just one wicket. Nonetheless, the 16 points they collected could serve as a crucial stepping stone in their fight against relegation.