Gavin Hamilton bowled Yorkshire into a winning position against Hampshire at Headingley yesterday with a blistering spell which brought him career-best AXA League figures of five for 16.

But Yorkshire's hopes of going back to the top of the table were finally dashed by rain which prevented them from chasing a 72 target off 30 overs and the game was abandoned with each side taking two points.

Hamilton's blast reduced Hampshire to 41 for seven at one stage and after a stoppage for rain at 54 for eight in 26.3 overs they recovered to 78 for eight in what had become a reduced overs match, Yorkshire's eventual target being determined by the Duckworth-Lewis system for calculating rain affected games.

It was a great effort by Hamilton, who last week agreed to play for Scotland in next year's World Cup, and when he came on as first change, Hampshire were already reeling from a devastating opening burst from Chris Silverwood in celebration of his call-up as England's 12th man in the Lord's Test this week.

With the last ball of his first over, Silverwood found the edge of John Stephenson's bat with an outswinger and he later nipped one back sharply to Robin Smith, the ball smacking him on the right hand before going into his stumps.

In between, pinch-hitter Nixon McLean was coolly caught on the square leg boundary by Richard Stemp off Paul Hutchison, and when Silverwood was rested he had the remarkable figures of two for five off six overs, three of which were maidens.

Hamilton proved to be a worthy successor to Silverwood at the Kirkstall Lane end and such was his accuracy that four of his five victims were bowled.

First to go was Derek Kenway, lbw the ball after hitting Hamilton for four, and the Scot's immediate response to Dimitri Mascarenhas's fierce cut to the boundary was to flatten his off stump.

Keighley-born Paul Whitaker played on to Hamilton and Shaun Udal and Giles White were both spectacularly bowled, White regally shouldering arms after spending 68 balls over his 22.

Hamilton's finally figures exceeded his previous best return in the competition of four for 27 against Warwickshire at Birmingham in 1995.

Hampshire had 3.3 overs left when they resumed after rain and their meagre total was boosted by Peter Hartley whose unbeaten 18 off his former team-mates included a lofted on-drive for four off Ryan Sidebottom and a six over mid-wicket at Richard Stemp's expense.

Yorkshire were raring to get their innings started but light rain during the interval never let them get on with the job.

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