September 13, 2024

Gloucestershire Secure Tense Victory at Lord’s

Miles Hammond and James Bracey each scored half-centuries. However, Gloucestershire faced a late scare before securing a four-wicket victory over Middlesex at Lord’s. Gloucestershire declared at 309 for 9 and scored 236 for 6, with Hammond making 78 and Bracey 56. Middlesex had earlier scored 377, thanks to Davies (91), Holden (77), and De Caires (64), but were dismissed for 165 in their second innings, with Robson scoring 50 and Bailey taking 4 for 30.

Tom Price and Zafar Gohar kept their composure under pressure to guide Gloucestershire to a crucial win. Hammond and Bracey’s fourth-wicket partnership of 113 seemed to put Gloucestershire on course for victory. However, Joshua De Caires’s three-wicket spell briefly revived Middlesex’s hopes. Ultimately, the unbeaten seventh-wicket partnership of 54 secured the win for Gloucestershire.

This result was a setback for Middlesex’s promotion hopes in the Vitality County Championship. They dropped to third place, now 15 points behind Yorkshire, who hold the second promotion spot. Gloucestershire’s second consecutive win at Lord’s boosts them to fifth in Division Two.

Middlesex started strong as Toby Roland-Jones bowled a maiden over. Ryan Higgins struck early, dismissing Ben Charlesworth for a duck with a delivery that moved back sharply. Higgins soon had Cameron Bancroft lbw with a ball that drove the other way. However, Miles Hammond quickly found his rhythm against the change bowlers, hitting Tom Helm for a six over the short boundary.

Gloucestershire’s Key Partnership and Near Misses Before Hammond’s Dismissal

Hammond scored 41 alongside Ollie Price before Helm made the breakthrough, getting Price caught at first slip. James Bracey then joined Hammond and immediately made an impact, hitting Henry Brookes for boundaries and adding more runs off Helm’s next over. Gloucestershire went to lunch at 101 for 3.

After the break, Bracey had a close call when he edged a shot off Helm to slip. Despite a reasonable effort, Robson couldn’t hold onto the catch. Hammond reached his half-century first, hitting Higgins to the cover boundary and reaching the milestone off 100 balls. Bracey followed soon after, needing 20 fewer deliveries for his fifty.

Hammond, who had reached 78, was on track for a century before he attempted a similar sweep shot off Luke Hollman and was caught at mid-on by De Caires.

Graeme van Buuren was out caught behind just two balls later, and James Bracey was dismissed for 56 after sweeping to deep midwicket, leaving Gloucestershire at six wickets down and under pressure.

With figures of 3 for 45, Joshua De Caires continued to challenge the batters with his spin. However, Ollie Price relieved some pressure by hitting a boundary off Toby Roland-Jones, taking Gloucestershire past 200. Price and Zafar Gohar then steadily moved towards the target.

Zafar, who scored 86 in the first innings, was crucial in finishing the match. He hit a full toss from De Caires to the boundary, remaining unbeaten on 19, while Price supported him with 34.

Vaughan and Leach Spark Somerset’s Title Hopes with Key Spin Bowling

Somerset pulled off a dramatic 111-run victory over Surrey at Taunton, closing the gap to eight points in the Vitality County Championship title race.

Surrey, chasing 221 on a difficult pitch, collapsed to 109 with only minutes left in the game. Spinners Archie Vaughan and Jack Leach caused the collapse, with Vaughan taking 5 for 38 and finishing with 11 for 140 for the match, while Leach took 5 for 37. Dom Sibley (56) and Ben Foakes (20) were the primary resistance, but their stand of 49 in 29 overs seemed set to secure a draw before Surrey lost seven wickets for just 14 runs.

Somerset had extended their second innings score to 224, thanks to a resilient 46 from Tom Banton and an unbeaten 49 from Craig Overton in a crucial 71-run stand. Somerset’s victory earned them 21 points, significantly closing the gap to Surrey, who only managed to secure five points from the match. With two games remaining, Somerset is now just eight points behind Surrey.

On the final day, Tom Banton hobbled out to bat with a runner, just as he had the previous evening. After just two balls, he had to leave the field again due to rain.

Play resumed at 11:05 am, with eight overs lost, and Banton, despite his injury, and Craig Overton quickly formed a 50-run partnership off 61 balls. Despite his limited mobility, Banton’s innings were highlighted by a remarkable reverse sweep against Shakib Al Hasan. His innings of 65 balls ended when Shakib bowled him out. Overton, who had batted for two hours and 16 minutes, was just one run short of his fifty.

Vaughan and Leach Strike as Surrey Struggle Before Rain Interruption

Surrey then faced a challenging 13 overs before lunch, which Rory Burns and Dom Sibley handled well. After a rain delay, which pushed the restart to 1:20 pm and caused the loss of three more overs, Somerset’s spinners started to take control. Archie Vaughan took two quick wickets in the 22nd over, dismissing Burns and Ryan Patel. Jack Leach then had Ben Geddes out for a duck in the next over.

With Surrey at 46 for 3, Sibley and Ben Foakes focused on defense, resisting the spin attack and bringing up their fifty in the 38th.

Rain halted play again at 2:45 pm with Surrey at 63 for 3, and tea was taken with Dom Sibley unbeaten on 38.

The final session started at 3:20 pm after losing three overs. Jack Leach continued to challenge the batters, while 18-year-old Archie Vaughan took a break and was replaced by Craig Overton. Brett Randell also came in for Leach, who had bowled 14 maidens in 24 overs. The spinners then switched ends in a final attempt to break the partnership, with Leach moving to the River End.

Sibley reached a patient half-century off 165 balls with a single off Vaughan. However, Ben Foakes edged a delivery from Leach to Lewis Gregory at first slip. Sibley followed shortly after in Leach’s next over. This led to a flurry of wickets.

Gregory caught Shakib for Leach’s ninth wicket, and Vaughan took his tenth when Tom Curran’s cut shot glanced off his stumps. Vaughan then dismissed Cameron Steel lbw, leaving Surrey eight down with at least nine overs still to play.

Jordan Clark and Kemar Roach managed to see off a few overs, but Clark was eventually bowled by Vaughan for a duck after 47 balls. The final wicket fell quickly when Dan Worrall, surrounded by close fielders, was dismissed lbw by Leach after just two balls. Somerset’s win sparked wild celebrations among their players and supporters.