The Essex Eagles defeated Glamorgan by five wickets in their opening game of the NatWest T20Blast at the SWALEC Stadium.
Injuries to David Lloyd and Ben Wright meant that there were two changes to the Glamorgan side from last Friday night at The Kia Oval with Ruaidhri Smith and Will Bragg included in the line-up. Jacques Rudolph and Mark Wallace opened the batting after the Eagles elected to bowl first, with the former striking leg-side boundaries in Reece Topley and David Masters' opening over, whilst Wallace also found the ropes as he smeared Graham Napier to third man but he was bowled by the last ball of the over.
18/1 saw Colin Ingram join his fellow countryman with home supporters hoping they could reproduce their pyrotechnics from the game with Surrey, and after some further singles Rudolph then swatted Masters to the mid-wicket ropes, whilst Ingram glanced the veteran to fine-leg. Rudolph then pulled the pace of Shaun Tait to the ropes before Ingram pulled Topley to fine-leg followed by a lofted straight six as Glamorgan reached 50 in the 8
th over. Next ball, Ingram late-cut Topley for four before
being dropped by Napier at deep mid-wicket. But next over Ingram was not so lucky as Topley in the same position pouched the ball in Ravi Bopara's first over with Glamorgan on 64/2.
Will Bragg opened his account with an upper cut for four against Bopara but Tait switched ends and with the total on 71, he bowled Rudolph for 30. This was the first of a series of wickets to tumble in successive overs Will Bragg lofted Bopara into Ryan ten Doeschate's hands before two balls later Craig Meschede was run out by Greg Smith. It then became 83/6 as Andrew Salter was yorked by Bopara.
Graham Wagg on-drove Bopara for four before furiously swatting Napier for four, but with the total on 105 he drove Tait to ten Doeschate's at mid-on, with the Eagles captain taking a juggling catch. Cooke responded by glancing Bopara to fine-leg for four before Smith pulled successive balls from Topley to mid-wicket for four but there was little on offer in the closing overs. Cooke pulled the last ball of the final over from Topley for six before holing out at long-on as Glamorgan ended on 144/8.
Michael Hogan then gave Glamorgan the perfect start as he bowled Mark Pettini with just a couple of runs on the board. Jesse Ryder responding by lofting successive balls from Wagg to mid-wicket and long-on for a pair of lusty fours. He then swatted Meschede's first ball to square-leg for another boundary before biffing the second over extra cover for another four, but he then hoisted the third into Salter's hands at deep backward square-leg
Kishan Velani drilled his second ball through the covers before Bopara pulled Smith for four. The England all-rounder then drilled Dean Cosker through mid-on for four, whilst Velani also drove Wagg in the air to the ropes at mid-wicket before sweeping Cosker for another boundary. Bopara also lofted Cosker high over long-off for six before Velani was stumped in the spinner's next over. This brought ten Doeschate to the wicket and there was nearly a run out with a mix-up in calling before Bopara lofted Cosker's penultimate delivery for four to mid-wicket. He then hoisted Rudolph for six over mid-wicket and just over Salter's out-stretched hands.
Ten Doeschate greeted the return of Hogan by pulling him for four before under-edging another lusty swipe into Wallace's gloves. James Foster then faced one ball before the floodlights went out with Essex on 106/4 after 14 overs, leading to a thirty minute delay. On the resumption, Bopara swatted Meschede for four to complete a 38-ball fifty. He celebrated by pulling Hogan for six before drilling Wagg through extra cover for four.
With 14 runs needed, Foster miscued a drive against Wagg and was caught at mid-on, but Bopara then pulled Smith for six, two and six to settle the game with 14 balls to spare and to walk off unbeaten on 81 from 53 balls