Rain stops play at Cardiff with Worcestershire leading by 105 runs

Worcestershire were indebted to Daryl Mitchell for his adhesive and unruffled qualities yesterday as the visiting captain doggedly occupied the crease for over six and quarter hours to compose an invaluable and chanceless century. None of his colleagues made over 28 and without his painstaking efforts, Glamorgan's decision to bowl first would have seen the visitors bundled out for a modest return. Yesterday also saw Dean Cosker at his frugal best during an unbroken spell between lunch and tea at the River End, with the guile of the evergreen spinner being rewarded with four cheap wickets, whilst Graham Wagg continued his early season form to add a further four to his already impressive tally, besides taking his aggregate for the Club past the 100-mark.


Resuming this morning on 232/9, Mitchell garnered singles in the opening overs from Cosker and Wagg, leaving Charlie Morris to display his forward defensive stroke. Having been struck on the knee last night, Mitchell also limped through two runs to deep point in Wagg's second over before hobbling for two more to short third man. But two balls later Cosker claimed his fifth wicket and ended Mitchell's defiance as Mark Wallace pouched an edge from the visiting captain's bat as Worcestershire ended on 240.


Gareth Rees and Jacques Rudolph began Glamorgan's reply against Gareth Andrew and Charlie Morris, with the latter - released from his academic commitments at Oxford - generating a decent head of steam at the River End, and the student made the initial incision as, in his third over, he induced an edge from Rudolph's bat into Ben Cox's gloves as Glamorgan lost their first wicket on 12.


In the next over it became 12/2 as Rees -who had begun by swatting a short ball from Andrew behind square on the leg-side - departed l.b.w. to the all-rounder. Will Bragg then cover drove Morris for four but in Andrew's next over Murray Goodwin became the next man to depart leg before as Worcestershire swiftly gained their first bowling point.


Bragg then struck two fours in the space of three balls as he flicked Andrew to deep backward square-leg followed by a deft glide to third man. Jack Shantry duly replaced Andrew at the Cathedral Road End as Stewart Walters continued in the defiant mode which had helped to salvage a draw at Grace Road, and after a period of watchful reconnaissance he drove Morris through extra cover for four, before scything the next ball just over the head of Andrew in the gully.

Walters also clipped Saeed Ajmal to mid-wicket for three when the spinner entered the attack shortly before lunch whilst successive fours by Bragg against shantry saw Glamorgan reach the 50-mark in the penultimate over of the session..

Glamorgan lost a wicket in the first over after lunch as Stewart Walters, after surviving a couple of l.b.w. appeals, was bowled by Gareth Andrew who then in his next over claimed another victim as Will Bragg edged to second slip. 55/5 saw Jim Allenby and Mark Wallace join forces, with the latter off-driving Andrew for three, whilst the former harpooned Ajmal over the mid-wicket boundary. However, next over Allenby nearly skewed a drive to gully with the ball just evading the fielder's outstretched fingers.


Wallace then cover drove Andrew for four before Allenby again lofted Ajmal to mid-wicket, this time for four with his show of aggression prompting the off-spinner to switch to around the wicket. Charlie Morris also returned to the attack and beat the outside edge of Wallace's bat, but the doughty Glamorgan captain responded by driving Ajmal to backward point.


A punched drive off the back foot by Wallace against Morris brought up the fifty stand, but with the total on 107 Ajmal ended their partnership as Allenby edged to slip where Mitchell after some juggling held the catch at the third attempt. Graham Wagg then got off the mark with a skewed drive over gully against Ajmal before Wallace twice drilled the spinner through the covers for four.


Wagg also played consecutive deliveries from Morris with force through the leg-side before Wallace survived a very sharp chance at bat-pad as he lunged forward to Ajmal. Wagg added another four to his tally as he deftly glanced Shantry to fine-leg before two balls later drilling the left-armer to the boards at long-on. But the bowler had the last laugh as next delivery, Wagg shouldered arms and had his stumps re-arranged.


142/7 then became 145/8 as Dean Cosker departed leg before to Ajmal, before the Pakistani added another victim as Will Owen miscued to square-leg. Wallace then completed his fifty from 78 balls before Tom Helm crisply cover drove Andrew, but next ball the youngster edged the seamer into Cox's gloves to give Andrew his fifth wicket as Glamorgan ended on 155, and a deficit of 85.

There were 38 overs remaining in the day's allocation when Daryl Mitchell and Matt Pardoe began Worcestershire's second innings with Graham Wagg and Tom Helm again sharing the new ball. With 19 runs on the board, Dean Cosker entered the attack at the River End but after bowling two maiden overs, rain started to fall and the players left the field.

It ceased around 5pm and the umpires decided to resume, but just as they were getting ready to commence proceedings, light drizzle started to fall again out of the gloomy skies and everyone retreated back to the pavilion. The rain intensified just before 6pm with the umpires calling off play for the day.