A sun-drenched crowd at Swansea were treated to a superb game of cricket – and a domestic record of 35 sixes - as firstly Colin Ingram (114) and Will Bragg (94) shared a stand of 212 in 31.4 overs for the third wicket as Glamorgan amassed a record 356/7, but Darren Stevens, the 41 year-old veteran then blasted an astonishing 147 from just 67 balls with a record 14 sixes before falling to a superb boundary catch as the Welsh county clinched a fifteen-run victory over the Kent Spitfires in their final group game in the Royal London One-Day Cup at St.Helen’s
After mounting one of their finest-ever run chases in their history against Hampshire on Friday at The Ageas Bowl, Glamorgan have headed to Swansea – a ground which features prominently in the Club’s record books - still with their hopes of progressing to the knockout stages hanging like a gossamer-thin thread with Glamorgan needing another stirring victory to further reduce their net run rate and then for the remaining results in the competition to go in their favour or for the weather to intervene.
Glamorgan duly made one change to their line-up with Timm van der Gugten replacing Michael Hogan, with the regular opening pairing of Jacques Rudolph and David Lloyd facing Matt Coles and Calum Haggett. Lloyd began with a series of boundaries as he off-drove Coles and pulled Haggett, before nurdling the latter to the vacant third man boundary followed by an upper cut to point and a finre cover drive next ball.
Ivan Thomas duly replaced Haggett and was also cover-driven by Lloyd, but in his second over, Lloyd’s innings came to an end as he edged a drive into Sam Billing’s gloves. 39/1 then became 39/2 as Rudolph inside edges a drive against Coles as Billings claimed his second catch. Will Bragg began by twice driving Thomas for four through extra-cover.whilst Ingram square-cut Thomas for four before drilling him through mid-off for another rasping four.
Bragg also laconically clipped Thomas to the ropes at mid-wicket, before Ingram greeted the introduction of James Tredwell into the attack by sweeping him for four before bringing up the hundred by pulling Darren Stevens for six over square-leg. Bragg also pulled Charlie Hartley for four before completing a series of well-placed singles with Ingram who then pulled Hartley for successive sixes to complete his fifty from 54 balls.
Bragg followed suit from 62 balls by driving Hartley over cover for four before chipping him over short mid-wicket for another boundary. Ingram then punched Tredwell off the back foot through cover before greeting the return of Haggett by lofting him to long-off for six as well as pulling him for six over fine-leg for another maximum. Successive fours by Bragg against Tredwell to fine-leg and over extra-cover brought up the 150-stand before a cover-driven four by Ingram against Haggett
saw Glamorgan past 200.
Ingram then moved into the nineties by sweeping Tredwell for a massive six high over mid-wicket before Bragg pulled Haggett for four to fine-leg, followed by a firm on-drive for another boundary as he equalled his career-best in List A cricket – 88 against Surrey at Guildford in 2014 – before next over Ingram pulled Haggett for four to complete his century from 93 balls. He celebrated by pulling Stevens for successive fours but next ball he was caught at point by Tredwell and departed for 114 from 98 balls with 6 fours and 8 sixes to his name.
Kiran Carlson joined Bragg and opened his account by straight-driving Hartley for six, but when six runs short of his maiden List A hundred Bragg drove Haggett into the hands of cover. 266/4 saw Cooke join Carlson who continued to hit sixes by lofting Haggett over long-on. Next over however, the teenager tried to repeat the stroke and was caught by Stevens. Meschede joined Cooke who drilled successive balls from Hartley to the boards at long-off and cover point before Meschede lofted the bowler over long-on for six.
A slashed four over point by Cooke brought up the 300 as Coles returned at the Mumbles Road End before Meschded straight drove Thomas for another six. He then holed out at mid-off before Andrew Salter struck his first ball to the ropes at point. In the penultimate over, Cooke pulled Coles for six and four before holing out at long-on. Marchant de Lange joined Salter who straight drove Thomas for sixes over long-off, deep mid-wicket and long-on as well as slapping the last ball to third man for four as Glamorgan ended on 356/7 – their highest at the St.Helen’s ground in List A cricket beating the 344/5 against Lincolnshire in the NatWest Trophy in 1994.
Daniel Bell-Drummond and Joe Denly launched the Spitfires chase as Lukas Carey and De Lange shared the new ball. Denly stroke the first boundary as he lofted De Lange over mid-off for four followed by a cover drive against Carey. Bell-Drummond pulled De Lange to mid-wicket before nearly chipping him into the hands of mid-on. But in the pace bowler’s next over – and with the total on 41 – he edged into Cooke’s gloves.
Having been joined by Northeast, Denly off-drove De Lange for four before his new partner on-drove van der Gugten to the ropes. But the introduction of Lloyd at the Pavilion End ended his brief stay at the crease as he also edged into Cooke’s gloves, and 75/3 then became 76/3 as the same combination accounted for Denly.
Stevens, in his 300th one-day game, began with a brace of booming off-drives for four and six against Lloyd, whilst Billings pulled Meschede for four. Stevens then harpooned Meschede for six over square-leg followed next ball by another maximum into the Mumbles Road. He then greeted the introduction of Ingram’s leg-spin by straight-driving him for six followed by another massive blow over mid-wicket for six.
The 41-year old then swept Ingram for four to complete a 28-ball fifty before lofting the spinner for another six over long-on followed by a swat over mid-wicket for six against Carey. He then savagely square-cut Carey for four before flat-batting Meschede for another six over mid-off . With Billings happy to play second fiddle, another six followed from Stevens into the Mumbles Road against van der Gugten before a single saw him reach 100 from 48 balls, with his efforts being the second fastest-ever List A hundred against Glamorgan after Graham Rose who had posted a 46-ball hundred for Somerset at Neath in 1990
Next ball he was almost run out by Bragg before thick-edging van der Gugten for four. He then nearly holed out at long-on but with the total on 207 Billings departed as he swatted van der Gugten to De Lange on the boundary’s edge at deep backward square-leg. But Stevens’ blitzkrieg of blows continued as he swatted the Dutchman for his eleventh six as the target became 141 from 20 overs.
His twelfth six then came as he drilled van der Gugten back over his head equalling the dozen sixes struck by Alistair Brown in his record-breaking 268 against Glamorgan in 2002 at The Oval. His thirteenth and fourteenth followed next over as he hoisted Meschede over wide long-off before cutting Lloyd for four, followed by successive fours to fine-leg and mid-off. Another four then looked likely as he pulled Lloyd to deep backward square-leg where De Lange took a fine diving catch as Stevens departed for 147 from just 67 balls having struck 10 fours and 14 mighty sixes.
254/5 then became 258/6 as Blake edged Lloyd into Cooke’s gloves before Coles struck another sixth as he swept Salter into Bryn Road with the Spitfires needing 89 from 14 overs. The visitors maintained the chase as Haggett inside-edged both van der Gugten and Carey for four whilst Coles pulled the teenager for another boundary and lofted the Dutchman for a pair of sixes over square-leg and long-off.
But with the total on 299 Haggett edged Carey to give Cooke his fifth catch behind the stumps equalling the Club’s List A record held by Eifion Jones and Adrian Shaw against Hampshire and Northants respectively in 1979 and 1999. Four runs later a superb pick up and throw to the bowler’s end by Salter ran out Coles. Tredwell and Hartley scampered singles to reduce the task to 48 from 42 balls but Lloyd then bowled Hartley to claim his fifth wicket – the first time he had claimed a five-for in List A games.
Tredwell biffed a pair of fours as the task became 29 from 30 balls and after Lloyd conceded just a single in his final over, Tredwell lofted Carey for a pair of sixes as the equation became 16 from 18 balls with De Lange returning at the Pavilion End. But in trying to scamper a bye, Tredwell was run out by Cooke as Glamorgan won a superb game by 15 runs.