DAY 4 REPORT
Glamorgan narrowly missed out on making history on the final day of a thrilling Vitality County Championship Second Division match against Gloucestershire which ended in a remarkable tie at Cheltenham.
Charged with the task of pursuing what would have been a World record run chase of 593, the Welsh county dramatically levelled the scores, leaving last man Jamie McIlroy requiring just a single off the final ball of the match to achieve a historic win.
But he edged Ajeet Singh Dale's last delivery and was brilliantly caught by wicketkeeper James Bracey, who claimed his tenth victim of a memorable contest, to spark scenes of mayhem among delighted home supporters at the famous old College Ground.
Skipper Sam Northeast top-scored with a brilliant 187 and overseas star Marnus Labuschagne made 119 to put Glamorgan in with a chance of eclipsing the highest run chase of all time, the 536 successfully pursued by West Zone in a Duleep Trophy match against South Zone in India in February 2010.
But Gloucestershire's bowlers held their nerve under extreme pressure and Matt Taylor took 3-120, including the crucial wicket of Northeast, leaving the visitors to score 32 off 10 overs. Mason Crane played supremely well to raise 43 not out, but Singh Dale demonstrated nerves of steel to frustrate the visitors at the death.
The first tied game in English county cricket in six years earned the two sides 11 points apiece, with Glamorgan registering the highest fourth innings score in any first class game played in England and the third highest of all time anywhere in the world.
When they resumed their second innings with seven wickets standing, Glamorgan's hopes of chasing down a World record target rested, in large part, upon the broad shoulders of Labuschagne and Northeast. Certainly, the home side had to exercise patience, the first hour passing without a sniff of a chance as the fourth wicket pair knuckled down to the task of batting time. They also took advantage of a quick-scoring ground to keep the scoreboard ticking over, Northeast going to his 50 from 70 balls and then bringing up the 100 partnership in 24 overs.
Having reined himself in and played responsibly, Labuschagne fairly rushed to three figures, the Australian plundering three boundaries in a rare wayward over from Marchant de Lange. The last of these was a pull shot to the mid-wicket boundary, which brought up his hundred via 148 balls.
As Labuschagne became more adventurous, so Gloucestershire's chances of removing him increased and his dismissal, when it came 35 minutes before lunch, was greeted by raucous cheers from Festival-goers. Attempting to work a Beau Webster delivery from off to leg, Labuschagne succeeded only in finding Cameron Bancroft, strategically placed at leg gully. Undone by smart cricket, Glamorgan's best batsman trudged disconsolately back to the pavilion, having made 119 from 165-balls, struck 17 fours and helped stage an alliance of 153 with Northeast.
Gloucestershire took the new ball soon afterwards, but new batsman Chris Cooke and Northeast stood firm, reaching lunch on 341-4, at the culmination of a session that yielded 119 runs. Cooke was unable to hold on for much longer, though, Taylor locating his outside edge and James Bracey taking a brilliant diving catch behind the stumps to reduce the visitors to 348-5.
Undeterred, the relentless Northeast went to his hundred from 162 balls, raising his 15th four with a leg glance off Ajeet Singh Dale to draw enthusiastic applause from his teammates. He found a reliable partner in the form of Dan Douthwaite, who not only defended stoutly, but also put away the bad ball with sufficient regularity to keep the required rate below four an over.
Gloucestershire spirits were beginning to sag when skipper Graeme van Buuren introduced Ollie Price from the College Lawn end and the off spinner made a much-needed breakthrough, persuading Douthwaite, who had scored 39 in a sixth wicket stand of 105, to drive to cover with the score on 453.
Required to score a further 140 with 38.4 overs available in the final session, Glamorgan were entitled to feel they were in with a chance of pulling off a remarkable coup while Northeast remained in the middle.
He raised his 150 from 225 balls and, when the total passed 507, Glamorgan had established the highest fourth innings score in first class cricket in this country, beating a 128-year-old record set by Cambridge University in a match against MCC at Lord's in June 1896.
Tim van der Gugten offered his captain valuable support, adding 31 in a partnership of 56 for the seventh wicket before edging Singh Dale behind with a further 84 runs still needed from 22.4 overs. Gloucestershire then claimed the wicket they really wanted, Taylor finding the outside edge and Bracey taking a tumbling catch, his ninth of the match, to end Northeast's marathon sojourn. Northeast had accrued 22 fours in an innings spanning 277 balls and the ninth wicket pair of Crane and Gorvin were still 49 runs short of their target when they came together.
Gorvin made seven, playing and missing frequently, before he left a straight ball and was bowled by De Lange with 32 runs still needed. Crane now assumed responsibility for masterminding the chase, dominating the strike as Gloucestershire pushed their fielders back onto the boundary during the final few overs.
Last man McIlroy nicked Webster for four through fine leg in the penultimate over to leave Crane needing to score two runs more in the final over, bowled by Singh Dale. Tied down, he scampered a single off the penultimate ball to set up a dramatic finale. McIlroy perished, leaving Crane 43 not out from 85 balls.
DAY 3 REPORT
James Bracey etched his name into the record books as Gloucestershire batted themselves into a position of strength on the third day of the Vitality County Championhip Second Division match against Glamorgan at Cheltenham.
The former England left-hander registered a career-best 204 not out and became only the tenth player to score a double century at the famous College Ground, joining a select club that includes the likes of Gloucestershire greats WG Grace, Charlie Townsend and Wally Hammond.
Overseas batsman Cameron Bancroft posted 184 and fellow Australian Beau Webster contributed an unbeaten 65 as the home side ran up 610-5 before declaring their second innings shortly after lunch. Among the Glamorgan bowlers, only Timm van der Gugten emerged with any credit, the Dutch international seamer finishing with 2-98 from 22 overs on a day some of his teammates will want to forget in a hurry.
Marnus Labuschagne and Sam Northeast summoned stiff resistance in an unbroken fourth wicket stand of 66 in the final session, but Gloucestershire nevertheless made inroads into the top order to reduce Glamorgan to 222-3 at the close, still 370 behind. All three results remain possible, but Welsh focus will, first and foremost, be upon trying to save the game when they resume in the morning. A weather forecast that suggests the chance of showers, might yet serve to frustrate Gloucestershire's pursuit of what would be only their second win of the season.
Weary following a long stint in the field and faced with the not inconsiderable prospect of batting out nearly five sessions to save the game, Glamorgan still made a decent start to their second innings, Billy Root and Eddie Byrom staging an opening stand of 67. It soon became apparent that Gloucestershire's bowlers would have to graft hard for a breakthrough, and there was a sense of relief when Root, having scored 46, top-edged Marchant de Lange to deep fine leg where Ajeet Singh Dale took a very fine catch on the run.
Labuschagne then survived a testing examination at the hands of De Lange as the home side pushed hard, Gloucestershire skipper Graeme van Buuren deploying six bowlers in an attempt to make further headway. Having proved obdurate in chiseling 37 from 100 balls and playing second fiddle to Labuschagne in a stand of 68, Byrom was eventually undone by a misjudgment, shouldering arms to a delivery from Singh Dale that knocked back off stump.
Kiran Carlson then came and went quickly, pushing at a length ball from Matt Taylor that stuck in the pitch and edging a catch behind via a thin edge as the visitors slipped to 156-3. But Labuschagne and Northeast have made 67 and 47 not out respectively and will again seek to block Gloucestershire's route to victory in the morning.
Confronted with a new ball soon after resuming their second innings on 388-3, Gloucestershire continued to score at a brisk rate in the morning session, Bracey raising his third first-class hundred of the year and the twelfth of his career from 131 balls with a push to square leg and a scampered single off van der Gugten to warm those Gloucestershire supporters who braved a cold north wind.
As on the previous day, Bancroft provided the adhesive upon which Gloucestershire's second innings was constructed, the experienced opener staging mammoth stands of 201 and 253 with Miles Hammond and Bracey for the third and fourth wickets respectively. His style of patient accumulation may not have caught the eye in the same way that Hammond's elegant stroke-play did on day two, but his remorseless stamina and mental toughness served Gloucestershire's cause well and earned him a standing ovation from appreciative Festival-goers when his marathon sojourn finally came to an end after six and a half hours.
The Australian's highest score of the summer occupied 266 balls, was adorned by 20 fours and a six and did much to undermine Glamorgan spirit, reducing the visitors to slope-shouldered dejection as their prospects dwindled. No wonder Andy Gorvin manifested unbridled relief when locating Bancroft's outside edge and presenting Cooke with a straightforward opportunity behind the stumps.
In stark contrast, van Buuren bagged a pair, nicking Dan Douthwaite behind without scoring as Gloucestershire progress was temporarily stalled. Unfazed by events at the other end, Bracey pulled Douthwaite over square leg for six to bring up his 150 as the lead approached 500.
He and Webster then required just 56 balls to post a stand of 50, these two raising the tempo in the run-up to lunch, which was taken with Gloucestershire on 534-5. A few eyebrows were raised when the anticipated declaration was still not forthcoming, but Bracey took full advantage of the delay to pass his previous highest score of 177, made in a losing cause against Yorkshire at Bristol in April 2022. He attained that landmark by pulling Mason Crane's leg spin over mid-wicket for a towering six.
Bracey went to his maiden double hundred with a swept four behind square off Carlson and he had faced 231 balls and harvested 20 fours and 4 sixes when the declaration arrived soon afterwards. Making the most of some tired bowling, Webster contributed an unbeaten 68-ball 65 in an unbroken alliance of 136 for the sixth wicket in 20.2 overs.
DAY 2 REPORT
Miles Hammond and Cameron Bancroft both scored brilliant hundreds to illuminate the Cheltenham Festival as Gloucestershire assumed control on the second day of the Vitality County Championship Second Division match against Glamorgan.
Having been shot out for 179 on the opening day and conceded a first-innings deficit of 18 after dismissing Glamorgan for 197, the home side found themselves under pressure when Timm van der Gugten reduced them to 17-2 second time around.
But Hammond and Bancroft turned the tables by staging a mammoth third-wicket stand of 201 in 36.1 overs as the pitch flattened out and overhead conditions improved, in the process slamming the door shut on Welsh ambition.
Hammond raised an enterprising 121, while Bancroft finished unbeaten on 159 from 221 balls and helped add 170 for the fourth wicket with James Bracey, who posted 90 not out from 117 balls as Gloucestershire reached the close on 388-3, a commanding lead of 370 with two days still to play.
Cheltenham-born Hammond has a special affinity with the Festival, having registered his maiden hundred at the College Ground in only his fourth first class match in 2018. His fifth Championship hundred was a classy affair indeed, the elegant left hander adopting a positive approach to provide delighted Festival devotees with rich pickings the like of which they dared not even entertain the prospect of when 17 wickets fell on the first day.
Driving fluently almost from the get-go, Hammond saw off the threat posed by van der Gugten and flourished, going to a 53-ball 50 with his ninth four, a flowing drive through long-on at the expense of Marnus Labuschagne. As he grew in confidence and conditions improved, so he expanded his repertoire, a trio of audacious log sweeps netting him three sixes at the expense of Mason Crane and Dan Douthwaite, who suffered horribly and were withdrawn from the attack.
Hammond's second 50 occupied just 41 balls and, as the crowd rose to acclaim his second hundred of the season, he sank to one knee and delivered a fist pump before raising his bat in acknowledgment and receiving a heartfelt hug of congratulation from Bancroft.
Cast in the role of chief support, the Australian also played with assurance, timing the ball beautifully and going to a 70-ball half century in the grand manner, pulling Douthwaite over the square leg boundary for six, a shot that also brought up the 100 partnership.
Adept at finding the gaps and rotating the strike, Bancroft proved the perfect foil to Hammond, who was in his pomp as the 200 partnership came up off 216 balls. All good things come to an end though, and Kiran Carlson, the seventh bowler deployed by Glamorgan skipper Sam Northeast, broke the partnership in his first over from the Chapel end, Hammond skying a catch to mid-on, having accrued 17 fours and a quartet of sixes in a sparkling innings spanning 110 deliveries.
Although Bancroft's advance to three figures was a rather more sedate affair, his contribution was every bit as important, confirming as it did the dominance of bat over bat for the first time in the contest. His hundred occupied 143 balls, included a six and 10 fours, and was greeted with much glee by Gloucestershire supporters.
Aware of the need to bat on and put the game beyond Glamorgan's reach, Bracey played responsibly, reaching 50 from 68 balls, while Bancroft went to 150 via 211 balls as Gloucestershire stamped their authority in a final session that yielded 165 runs without loss.
Resuming on 133-7 in the morning, Glamorgan were 46 behind and with plenty of work still to be done if they were to achieve the minimum requirement of first-innings parity. In the event, they were indebted to Crane who, when it was needed most, staged a forthright innings of 44 from 56 balls and dominated a progressive stand of 52 in 10.1 overs with Andy Gorvin for the ninth wicket to put his team in credit.
Marchant de Lange struck an early blow for the home side, wicketkeeper James Bracey claiming his fifth catch to remove van der Gugten, before Beau Webster hastened a swift termination, having Gorvin held at point via a leading edge and then enticing Crane to hole out to Ajeet Singh Dale at long-on. The Australian finished with impressive figures of 5-17 from 10.1 overs with four maidens, while de Lange backed him up with 3-44.
DAY 1 REPORT
Marchant de Lange played a key role with bat and ball as Gloucestershire staged a spirited fightback on the opening day of the Vitality County Championship Second Division match against Glamorgan at Cheltenham.
The larger-than-life South African scored 46 not out and shared in a record-breaking stand of 75 with Ajeet Singh Dale as the home side recovered from 88-8 at lunch to post 179 in their first innings. He then took 2-21 in six overs with the ball as Glamorgan subsided to 133-7 by the time bad light brought a premature close with 3.5 overs unused.
Timm van der Gugten was the pick of the Glamorgan bowlers, returning season-best figures of 5-59 to justify skipper Sam Northeast's decision to field first. But his efforts were matched by Gloucestershire overseas all-rounder Beau Webster, who produced a startling three-wicket burst in 12 balls on a day when 17 wickets fell.
Kiran Carlson top-scored for Glamorgan with 37, but the Welsh county still trail by 46 runs with three first innings wicket remaining.
Twice dismissed cheaply when suffering a chastening innings defeat at the hands of Yorkshire in Scarborough earlier in the week, Gloucestershire's batsmen faced a test of nerve after being inserted on a green-tinged surface beneath cloud-laden skies. Although the pitch was initially low and slow and the new ball moved off the seam, there could be no mitigating circumstances to explain away an abject surrender that saw the home side go into lunch on 88-8, a parlous situation characterised by poor shot selection and execution.
Cameron Bancroft set the tone in the very first over, edging van der Gugten's second delivery behind to provide the first of five catches for wicketkeeper Chris Cooke. Ollie Price fell to the same bowler in identical fashion, pushing at a delivery that kept low and being caught at the wicket.
Ben Charlesworth and skipper Graeme van Buuren succumbed cheaply to ill-advised leg-side shots as Dan Douthwaite produced an incisive five-over spell of 2-7 from the College Lawn end, while James Bracey missed an attempted leg-side glance and was bowled by a ball from Andy Gorvin that deflected off his pad and onto the stumps as Gloucestershire subsided to 49-5.
Marnus Labuschagne came on to bowl seam up and afford the batsmen a period of respite, Miles Hammond and Webster adding 36 for the sixth wicket and hinting at a recovery. But the return of van der Gugten served to reinforce Welsh superiority, the overseas recruit removing Hammond lbw for 21 and then making a mess of Webster's stumps when the Australian played down the wrong line to a ball that moved back into him. Labuschagne then had Zaman Akhter caught behind without scoring to give the home side food for thought during the interval.
When Matt Taylor was comprehensively bowled by van der Gugten with the score on 104 shortly following the resumption, the end of the innings appeared to be in sight. But de Lange and Singh Dale had other ideas, the last wicket pair opening their shoulders to post a quickfire 50 in 47 balls and force Glamorgan's seamers onto the back foot for the first time.
By the time Singh Dale hoisted Mason Crane's leg spin to long-on and departed for a 45-ball 32, he and de Lange had surpassed the 73 made by John Mortimore and Jack Davey in 1972, the previous highest last wicket partnership for Gloucestershire in matches against Glamorgan.
Gloucestershire were grateful to the spirited de Lange, whose agricultural approach yielded an unbeaten 46 from 37 balls, with a quartet of fours and 2 sixes, and enlivened a hitherto subdued festival audience. It said a good deal about what had gone before, that these two were able to score more runs than the combined efforts of Gloucestershire's top seven.
Buoyed by the antics of their lower order, Gloucestershire kept plugging away with the ball end enjoyed no little success. Taylor had Eddie Byrom held at mid-on in the act of pulling, Akhter claimed the prized wicket of Labuschagne, who pulled to deep mid-wicket for 19, and de Lange induced Billy Root to edge a catch behind and depart for 21 as the visitors slipped to 59-3 in the 23rd over.
Gloucestershire then passed up an opportunity to dismiss Carlson on 11, de Lange putting down a chance on the deep fine leg boundary off the bowling of Singh Dale. No matter. Webster more than made amends when removing Northeast and Cooke in the space of three deliveries in the 35th over to reduce the Welsh county to 104-5.
Northeast contributed 19 in a stand of 45 for the fourth wicket with Carlson, only to then push at a length ball and offer a catch behind. Cooke fell in identical fashion and Douthwaite then succumbed to a leg-side strangle, caught at the wicket as Webster made further inroads to finish with 3-16 from eight overs.
De Lange then struck a potentially crucial blow shortly before the close, persuading Carlson to send a top-edged hook down the throat of Hammond at deep fine leg and depart for a 62-ball 37 with Glamorgan still 54 behind.