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Alex Stirred By Cheltenham Memories

9 July 2012

Alex Gidman will lead Gloucestershire into this year’s Brewin Dolphin Cheltenham Cricket Festival on Wednesday boosted by happy memories of the College Ground last season.

The hosts beat Kent to finally end the jinx which had seen them fail to register a County Championship win at the venue for ten years, a sequence covering 19 matches.

There was also a thrilling Championship scrap with Surrey, which went down to the wire and saw Mark Ramprakash dismissed for obstructing the field on the final day.

This year’s Festival features four-day games agains Essex and Leicestershire plus Clydesdale Bank 40 fixtures against Essex, Worcestershire and Middlesex.

Alex is already excited by the prospect. “Last year was probably the most enjoyable Cheltenham I have been involved in as a player,” he said.

“The competitiveness of all the games meant that there wasn’t a dull day’s cricket, which was fantastic.

“We went into it with a poor record in red ball matches so to have one game we really bossed and another in which we were very narrowly beaten was a real boost.

“The Surrey match was memorable even though we lost. I don’t expect to see a player given out for obstructing the field again.

“Ramprakash had a rush of blood and the umpires held their ground. It understandably made the headlines with such a high profile player involved, but it was part of a wonderful final day of an awesome match.

“The whole Festival was good fun and I think the spectators enjoyed it as much as the players. A repeat this year with a few more results going our way would put us in great shape for the remainder of the season.

“We can finally go into Cheltenham without everyone reminding us how long it is since we won a Championship game there and our younger players don’t even have the memories of what went on before last season.

“Even for Hamish Marshall and myself there is no real baggage. We are with a new team now and the run without a four-day win is a distant memory.”

Alex admits that the compact College Ground can pose problems for a captain, especially when it comes to defending a total in one-day cricket.

“It’s a ground where you would happily chase almost any total,” he said. “The biggest difficulty defending is that it is so hard to stop boundaries.

“The scoreboard can move incredibly quickly. We ;played against a couple of very good sides at Cheltenham last year and Lancashire, in particular, chased exceptionally well.

“But Essex chose to bat first after winning the toss and we bowled them out relatively cheaply. It’s all about getting momentum as a team and I think it’s a great ground for one-day cricket.

“If we have a good Festival in both competitions things could start getting very exciting for us. We have played some good cricket this season and we have been a lot more competitive with the white ball, which was a target.

“We are in good shape in the CB40. Everyone needs to pull Holland back in after their amazing start to the group phase, but if we can take out Essex and Worcestershire we will be well placed going into the Middlesex match.

“They are all crunch games, but that is what we want and that is what our young team will learn most from.”

Cheltenham is the world’s longest running cricket festival, which has been showcasing a variety of matches against many different opponents since 1830. This year’s event is sponsored by Brewin Dolphin

Cheltenham Festival Fixtures

Tickets cost from £5.00 in advance for Under-16’s or £15.00 per day for adults. A mini season ticket, which covers all 11 days of cricket, is available for £95.00 (Under-16’s £26.00). All tickets can either be purchased through the ticket line on 0117 910 8010 (during office hours), on the website www.glosccc.co.uk or by visiting the Ticket Office at the County Ground, Nevil Road, Bristol during office hours.

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