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Clarke and Cox rally Worcs with 6th wicket stand

25 April 2016

Worcestershire's first visit to the Brightside Ground in the Championship for a decade is back on an even keel after the visitors had the better of the second day.

Jack Shantry and Matt Henry accounted for the last five Gloucestershire first innings wickets at a cost of only 44 runs during the morning session, and although David Payne removed Daryl Mitchell with his first delivery, Moeen Ali (74), Joe Clarke and Ben Cox took Worcestershire to 293-5 at stumps.

Clarke (103*) and Cox (59*) added 135 together in an unbroken stand for the 6th wicket which was reminiscent of the partnership put together by Marshall and Noema-Barnett for Gloucestershire 24 hours earlier.

Listen to captain Gareth Roderick's thoughts on the day here :

Gloucestershire began the morning looking to pick up where they had finished in Sunday's post tea session, but a wicket in the first over set the tone as Shantry and Henry bowled unchanged in more helpful overhead conditions.

Kieran Noema-Barnett's hopes of a first Gloucestershire century perished within four balls, as left lofted Shantry straight to Whiteley at deep square leg without adding to his overnight 84.

Taylor struck three quick boundaries before giving Whiteley his fourth catch of the innings off Henry in only the fourth over of the day, and Shantry's movement was too much for Liam Norwell, who who was lbw for nine. By this point Hamish Marshall had taken his own score to 135, only to feather a top edge to wicketkeeper Cox, also off Henry.

When Shantry clean bowled David Payne, he had taken 3-16 on the day and Gloucestershire's first innings total of 380 was probably short of what they would have wanted an hour or so earlier.

It left Worcestershire 40 minutes to negotitate until lunch, and Gloucestershire struck immediately as David Payne trapped Daryl Mitchell in his crease with the first delivery of the innings. As it turned out, it would be Gloucestershire's only success for a while, Worcestershire reaching lunch at 40-1, still 340 runs behind but with Moeen Ali having already picked up four boundaries and demonstrated a sense of time and timing that looked a real threat.

Moeen had survived one big appeal for a catch at the wicket by Roderick off Norwell before the interval, and after it the England Test player proceeded to dominate both the strike and the scoring.

He cut Shaw for four in his first over, and then reached the rope again when playing a square drive with mimimal fuss. Two more straight boundaries off Norwell appeared little more than forward defensive pushes.

When Chris Dent spilled a chance at slip to remove partner D'Oliveira off Shaw, Moeen had passed his half century in only 80 balls and Gloucestershire skipper Gareth Roderick was on the defensive against him.

A straight six when Noema-Barnett was introduced into the attack accentuated the left hander's dominance, only for it to be ended in surprising fashion when, on 74, he wafted at a high bouncer from Shaw after he changed ends and Roderick gleefully held onto the catch.

Within three overs the scoreboard had a very different look. Noema-Barnett - who had a big appeal for lbw against Joe Clarke turned down - got another answered in the affirmative by umpire Saggers to remove the patient D'Oliveira for 40 and then Shaw, bouyed by Moeen's wicket, forced his way through Kohler-Cadmore's defences to bowl him for a duck.

At 131-4, Worcestershire were still 249 behind and Noema-Barnett made it four wickets in the session for Gloucestershire by having Whiteley (8) also caught behind by Roderick to the first ball after the Gloucestershire captain decided to stand up to the stumps.

By tea Worcestershire were 171-5 with the purposeful Clarke on 37 and Ben Cox on two, and the pair were not to be parted for the remainder of the day as the pitch once again appeared to flatten out and offer little if anything to the bowlers.

Gloucestershire skipper Gareth Roderick certainly didn't let things drift, making seven bowling changes in the final session, but both men batted in a style more akin to a game in the Royal London Cup, a competition in which Clarke made a century against Gloucestershire at Worcester last season.

On this occasion he drove fluently, particularly on the off side, striking 13 boundaries in a century that took only 124 balls. Cox was hardly a slouch on the scoreboard either, with nine fours in an 84 ball fifty.

At stumps, after two days which have followed a very similar pattern, Gloucestershire's lead is down to 83, and they have five first innings wickets to take. The game is certainly moving forwards at a rate where both sides will still feel they have a chance of victory.

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