Fuller Takes Hat-Trick At Cheltenham
17 July 2013
James Fuller has spoken of his pride at claiming a hat-trick as Gloucestershire made an electric start to the LV=County Championship match against Worcestershire at Cheltenham.
The pace bowler had Matthew Pardoe caught behind off the last ball of the eighth over and then struck twice with the first two deliveries of the tenth over, sending back Moeen Ali and Alexei Kervezee.
Fuller's efforts helped reduced the visitors to 22-6 after they had won the toss, They recovered somewhat to be bowled out for 182 in the final session of the day, Fuller finishing with 5-43 from 19 overs and Craig Miles taking 2-25.
Only three Gloucestershire players had previously taken hat-tricks at Cheltenham - Charles Townsend in 1893, Mike Procter in 1979 and James Franklin in 2009 - and Fuller felt privileged to join them.
"It's definitely one of the best days in my career," he said. "That was my first ever hat-trick and you could see by my celebration what it meant to me. I feel very proud to be part of the history of Cheltenham,
"I had been swinging the ball in to Pardoe and decided to bowl one across him, which he nicked through to the keeper.
"At the start of my next over I was bowling to Ali and we had discussed how he kind of hangs back first ball. I thought if I could swing one back into him from a full length he could be in trouble and he played it onto his stumps.
"As I was walking back to my mark Hamish Marshall told me not to go chasing the hat-trick, but to just let it happen.
"That cooled me down a little bit. I bowled a good length ball, which rose and swung away a bit and he got an edge.
"Off I went in celebration. Halfway through I realised what I was doing and thought 'what the Hell, it's a hat-trick'.
"Last week against Kent I bowled 35 overs without getting a wicket, even though I didn't bowl badly. I guess it was the effort put into that game that stood me in good stead today.
"The pitch was a bit greener than Worcestershire thought it would be and the new ball gripped and seamed around. It also swung for the first time since we got here.
"After an hour conditions settled down and they were able to build a partnership. The pitch is now flat and we should be looking to only bat once."
