Glamorgan win by seven wickets at Guildford

I doubt if even in his most imaginative moments, Roald Dahl, the Cardiff-born author of Tales of the Unexpected, could have penned a script for the dramatic and almost hedonistic events yesterday (and this morning) at Guildford. First as Graham Wagg ripped up the record books with an astonishing career-best 200, plus a century stand for the last wicket with Michael Hogan, adding 105 runs from 67 deliveries which saw balls sail at frequent intervals into the busy road adjoining this pretty ground in the South London suburbs.


Wagg duly became the first Championship double-centurion for fifteen year batting at number eight, but it wasn't just his batting heroics that proved to be a thorn in Surrey's side, as in the closing session, Hogan completed a 'five-for' as a trio of wickets tumbled for just a single run in the space of nineteen balls to leave Surrey on 276/8 and a lead of 245 runs with just two wickets remaining and the new ball immediately available this morning.


Wagg duly resumed with the new cherry at the Pavilion End and with his fourth ball he clean bowled Vikram Solanki before doing the same next delivery to Stuart Meaker as Surrey's innings ended for the addition of just a single to their overnight total, with the last five Surrey wickets having tumbled for just four runs in the space of five overs.


This left Glamorgan with a target of 247 runs in a minimum of 93 overs and Jacques Rudolph clipped the first ball of the innings from Chris Tremlett to the boundary boards at fine-leg before driving the third to the mid-wicket ropes. The visiting captain then almost edged Tom Curran to first slip with the ball just dropping short of Solanki before Rudolph punched Tremlett off the back foot through extra cover for another boundary.


Bragg did the same in Tremlett's next over as well as inside-edging a drive which saw the ball speed to long-leg. There was nothing fortuitous though about his next boundary as he majestically clipped Curran through mid-wicket for four. A second set of four byes from Meaker saw the 50 come up in the 13^th over, shortly before Gareth Batty entered the attack. Rudolph greeted his opposite number by advancing down the track and drilling him to the boundary at the Railway End.


Bragg straight-drove Meaker for four before Rudolph swept and pulled Zafar Ansari's first two deliveries, before cheekily reverse-sweeping the next for a third four in the over. But his innings ended next over, with the total on 77, as Batty switched to the Pavilion End and with his second delivery caused the Glamorgan captain to miscue a drive into Harinath's hands at mid-on. Ben Wright duly joined Bragg and cover drove Batty for four before clipping Ansari to the ropes at backward square-leg, before another delivery from the left-arm spinner leapt from a length and evaded Gary Wilson's gloves as the ball sped away for four byes.


The hundred came up in the 27^th over as Wright flicked Batty for one through mid-wicket as the target was steadily reduced in the overs before lunch, whilst Surrey's spinners improved their over rate which had been rather tardy in the first innings.

Resuming after lunch on 118/1, Will Bragg and Ben Wright continued their serene progress from before the interval with Surrey handicapped by the absence of Chris Tremlett with a hamstring strain. Tom Curran and Gareth Batty resumed the bowling duties, with Wright clipping the former to mid-wicket for four. Bragg then nonchalantly pulled Curran for four behind square before Wright deftly swept Batty to fine-leg.


Bragg then completed his fifty, from 111 balls, by clipping Batty into the leg-side for a single, before Wright cut Batty for four as the target dropped below the 100-mark. Wright also assuredly swept Zafar Ansari for four when the left-arm spinner briefly returned at the Pavilion End. Bragg also cut Batty for four, much to the bowler's displeasure, before Wright completed his fifty from 99 balls - besides bringing up the century stand - as he sweetly drove Stuart Meaker through the covers


He celebrated next over by reverse-sweeping Batty for four before unfurling a series of deft glides against Ansari when the spinner returned at the Railway End. Bragg also carefully shunted the ball around before Wright square-cut Meaker through point and to the ropes at mid-wicket from successive deliveries as the 200 came up in the 54^th over to the delight of the small band of visiting supporters.


But five runs later confusion over a swift single against Ansari saw Wright run out by Ben Foakes at the bowler's end, ending the second wicket stand of 128 in 37.4 overs. With Colin Ingram as his new partner, Bragg clipped Meaker to long-leg for four before Ingram himself drove the seamer to the ropes at mid-wicket.


Ingram then lofted Ansari for six over long-on for six and onto one of the tents lining the boundary before a flurry of singles took Glamorgan to within 17 of their target, whereupon Aneesh Kapil entered the attack and had Bragg caught behind for 83. Chris Cooke then joined Ingram and quietly knocked off the required runs, with Ingram pulling and cover driving Kapil for successive fours before two leg byes saw the Welsh county complete their victory with a session to spare shortly after 3.30pm.


Remarkably, Surrey have still not won a Championship game at Guildford since 2002 - the year before the advent of Twenty20 cricket - whilst the victory further extends Glamorgan's unbeaten run this summer in four-day cricket, besides inflicting the first defeat of the summer on Surrey in the competition. It was also Glamorgan's third successive victory, equalling their achievements of May 2010 when they defeated both Northamptonshire and Gloucestershire at Cardiff by the margin of an innings and 4 runs, before beating Leicestershire at Grace Road by ten wickets.


In addition, today's victory at the Woodbridge Road ground meant that Glamorgan, for the first-ever time in their history had recorded successive away victories against Surrey, having won at The Oval last year by ten wickets when Graham Wagg was in destructive form with the ball, as he recorded career-best bowling figures.