Fifteen wickets fell on the first day of Essex's LV= County Championship game with Hampshire as the home side slumped to 72-5 by the close.
Alastair Cook, playing his first Essex game since July's T20 quarter-final loss to Somerset, remains unbeaten on 25, but the hosts are 125 runs behind with five first-innings wickets remaining.
Cook and David Masters returned to the Essex side, while there was also a place for Tim Phillips, with Tymal Mills, Maurice Chambers and Greg Smith dropping out from the side which was well beaten at Northamptonshire last time out.
There was, again, no place for winter signing Saj Mahmood.
Hampshire won the toss and elected to bat, but Masters took three wickets as they slipped to 47-4.
Sean Ervine (60) and James Vince (43) regrouped, but wickets fell at regular intervals as the visitors were dismissed for 197.
Masters ended with 4-29 from 16 overs, while there were three wickets for Reece Topley, two for Ravi Bopara on the day he was named in the England Lions squad to face New Zealand next month, and the other for Graham Napier.
Cook and Tom Westley began solidly in the reply, but Westley was run out in unfortunate circumstances for 16, backing up and caught out of his ground with the score on 26.
Rob Quiney made four before he fell to James Tomlinson, and Bopara joined Cook at the crease.
The pair took the score on to 51, before Bopara was trapped in front by Danny Briggs for seven.
Two more wickets then fell in quick succession as first nightwatchman Masters and then the out-of-touch Mark Pettini both fell to Ervine for ducks.
That brought Ben Foakes – tipped by many to be the next Alastair Cook off the Essex production line – to the crease to join the England captain, and he ended the day on 19 – more runs that he has managed in three previous innings this season – as Essex closed on 72-5.
Cook's 25 have come from 71 balls with two fours, and much will rest on him when the game resumes at 11am.
