A career-best 101* by Jacques Rudolph guided Glamorgan to a 19-run victory as they beat Gloucestershire and the weather in their NatWest T20 Blast contest at a damp and drizzly Bristol, with their captain's magnificent strokeplay and clever captaincy lighting up a dank evening on Severnside.
The Welsh county fielded the same side that were victorious last Friday evening with Craig Meschede once again opening the batting with Jacques Rudolph after Glamorgan had been put in to bat by the side currently lying second in the group table. The pair only secured a single in a frugal opening over from James Fuller, but this was the calm before a flurry of boundaries as Meschede lofted David Payne over long-on for a pair of sixes. Rudolph then despatched Fuller through extra cover for four followed by an audacious reverse-lap, plus on on-driven four, each against Benny Howell
Rudolph then edged a drive through the vacant slips for four against Fuller before glancing Payne twice to the ropes at fine-leg as well as a deft cut through backward point as Glamorgan reached 57/0 at the end of the powerplays. The Glamorgan captain then greeted Tom Smith's spin by reverse-sweeping him for four. Meschede then lofted him to wide mid-wicket, but in Howell's third over and with the total on 78, he drove the seamer into long-on's hands.
Next over, Rudolph completed a 37-ball fifty as he was joined by Colin Ingram who began with a brace of singles before Rudolph drilled Jack Taylor through extra cover for successive fours as the Welsh county reached 100 in the 12
th over. Ingram celebrated by mowing Kieran Noema-Barnett through square-leg for four, followed by a ramp stroke to fine-leg for three. He then straight drove Smith for a couple of fours in an over which maintained the hurky-burly tempo.
Rudolph brought up the fifty stand by straight-driving Noema-Barnett for four, followed by a deft pull to long-leg against the Kiwi. Ingram then survived a difficult chance to long-on in Howell's final over but Iain Cockbain's dropped catch was not expensive as Ingram departed l.b.w. next ball. 138/2 saw Chris Cooke join Rudolph with 27 balls remaining in the innings. A flurry of one's and two's, plus five penalty runs as the ball hit the fielding helmet saw Glamorgan race past 150.
Cooke kept up the tempo with two huge sixes in Noema-Barnett's final over as the ball sailed over long-on and wide mid-wicket but he departed in the penultimate over as he was caught and bowled one-handed by Payne in his follow through as more in hope than anything else he stuck out a hand to catch another fierce drive from the batsman. Wagg joined Rudolph for the last eight balls.
After two to long-on against Fuller, he clipped the seamer to square-leg for four followed by a flat-batted cover drive for two and a drilled drive to the ropes at mid-wicket for four. He then reached his maiden hundred in this format by playing another drive to mid-wicket for two to complete a thrilling 70-ball hundred. He then straight-drove the last ball for one as his side ended on 191/3, with the Glamorgan captain unbeaten on 101* - the third highest T20 score for the Welsh county after Jim Allenby's 105 at Richmond last year and Ian Thomas' 116* in 2004 at Taunton.
After just one run from Wayne Parnell's opening over, Michael Hogan struck with his second ball as Chris Dent pulled a ball to Andrew Salter at deep backward square-leg. Klinger responded by drilling Parnell over long-on as heavy drizzle started to fall, knowing his side needed to get above the D/L par score. In a bid to hurry through to five overs (the minimum number to constitute a game) Dean Cosker then delivered the fifth over and was driven for a brace of fours by the visiting captain, as well as lofting him over extra cover.
Klinger then glanced Parnell to fine-leg for four before Howell pulled the South African for another four as the rain eased. Klinger - who has already two hundreds in this year's competition - then cut Wagg's first delivery for four before Cockbain flicked the left-armer to fine-leg. But with the total on 56 Cockbain drilled Wagg to Ingram at long-on. It was nearly 56/3 but Hogan could not quite grasp a scooped drive from Taylor as he ran in from fine-leg.
But Hogan made amends in Cosker's next over as Taylor again opted for the aerial route and holed out at long-on.. But Klinger still continued to find the ropes, playing a cheeky ramp stroke against Meschede to complete a 33-ball fifty. Peter Handscomb began with a trio of singles as he gave the strike back to his fellow Australian in a bid for Gloucestershire to keep up with the ever-rising asking rate.
The equation became 106 from the last 8 overs as Handscomb heaved Salter to mid-wicket but he perished next ball repeating the stroke as Wagg completed the catch. Geraint Jones joined Klinger as the rate soared to 14 an over, but Parnell returned and kept up the pressure by not conceding a boundary in a waspish final over. Klinger then lofted Salter just over the head of long-off before driving him to long-on. He then launched the spinner over extra-cover for four as the target became 74 from 30 balls.
Jones responded by clipping Meschede for four through point before flat-batting him over point as the equation was reduced to 61 from 24 balls, delivered by Wagg and Hogan. Klinger duly pummelled Wagg over long-off for six in an over which yielded a further eight runs, as the target became 47 from 18 balls. Jones pulled Hogan for six over mid-wicket but was then bowled next ball as the home side slipped to 154/5.
For the second successive week, Wagg held his nerve for his closing over bowled in stygian gloom conceding just one boundary and claiming Noema-Barnett's wicket courtesy of another catch at long-on by Ingram as Gloucestershire entered the final over needing 27 to win. Hogan's final over only yielded seven runs as for the second night in a row Klinger completed his century, from 61 balls, but once again it was in a losing cause as Glamorgan won by 19 runs.