Masterful Marshall sends Glos to 8 wicket derby win over Somerset
3 July 2015
Gloucestershire kept their hopes of reaching the NatWest T20 Blast quarter finals alive with an eight wicket win over local rivals Somerset at Taunton.
Hamish Marshall (93) and Michael Klinger (58) put on a magnificent opening stand of 156 as the visitors chased down the 175 needed to win, regaining West country bragging rights in the process.
Their recent poor run against their neighbours - which included a five wicket defeat at Bristol last month - was put to bed with two consecutive fours by Peter Handscomb in the final over from Jamie Overton.
To watch a post match interview with Geraint Jones click below
Gloucestershire’s evening got off to a bad start, losing the toss and being asked to field.
Somerset dominated the opening exchanges with openers Johann Myburgh and Jim Allenby taking advantage of anything slight off line or length.
After four overs they had raced to 40-0.
But momentum changed with the introduction of Benny Howell. Varying his pace the allrounder slowed the scoring and then flattened Allenby’s (22) leg stump with a quicker yorker to make it 44-1.
Mybugh required treatment in the sixth over after being hit in the head by a Craig Miles bouncer. He was dropped by the bowler two balls later before an eventful power play finished with the score on 47-1.
No bowler has taken more wickets in the Blast than Tom Smith and he added to his tally when Peter Trego (2) picked out Hamish Marshall on the cover boundary to make it 51-2.
Glos captain Michael Klinger unleashed second spinner Jack Taylor in the ninth over and he repaid him with his very first ball, James Hildreth LBW for 5 and the score 60-3 after missing a reverse sweep.
The same shot nearly proved Tom Cooper’s undoing but he was dropped by Kieron Noema-Barnett at backward point in Taylor’s next over.
With the score on 85, Howell picked up the crucial wicket of Myburgh for 38, caught Ian Cockbain at long off. The same fielder failed to hang on to a tough chance off Cooper in the following over which was bowled by Smith.
The drops proved costly as the Australian combined with New Zealand wicketkeeper Luke Ronchi to put on 81 for the fifth wicket.
Taylor came in for particular punishment in the 17th over as he was flayed for three slog swept sixes – two from Ronchi, one from Cooper as the score progressed to 141-4.
Ronchi smashed two more maximums in the next over from Howell and another from Fuller before skying to Smith at point for 49 off just 22 balls. Fuller then made it two in two balls as Cooper (38) bottom edged a slower to Geraint Jones who took a brilliant one-handed catch.
Jamie Overton top edged a four off Miles in the final over to help the hosts finish on 174-6.
In reply Glos openers Marshall and Klinger started patiently, reaching 11-0 after two overs.
But they hit the accelerator pedal in the third over, Klinger hitting three fours off Overton to make it 26-0.
From here the pair continued to find the boundary with regularity – scoring at least two fours in each of the next three overs to reach 62-0 by the end of the power play – 15 ahead of the home side at the same stage.
The first six of the innings came in the eighth over as Klinger sent Max Waller straight back over his head.
At the halfway stage the visitors had moved on to 93-0.
The two batsmen had been going shot for shot but Marshall reached his 50 first with a cover drive off Overton in the 11th.
He hit a six and four off Allenby in the next over and seemed intent on winning the game with overs to spare.
Klinger reached his 50 in fortuitous fashion in the 13th over as Alfonso Thomas dropped a dolly on the third man boundary and he scampered a two.
At the other end Marshall was going like a train and smote a towering six over square leg from Thomas in the 14th to get Glos 40 short of the Somerset score with six overs remaining.
The pair brought up their 150 partnership off the third ball of the 16th over and seemed content to do it in singles with less than a run a ball required.
The biggest surprise of the night was that both fell before the end. Marshall was caught at deep midwicket by Waller off Overton for a sparkling 93 from 53 balls with 10 fours and three sixes. Klinger joined him back in the dugout the next over LBW Thomas for 58 from 51 balls.
After losing the last two games in the final two deliveries Glos didn’t want this one going to the wire as well. It reached the final over but Handscomb and Cockbain kept their cool to secure a famous win over their noisy neighbours.
Hamish Marshall is sponsored by KCC Cleaning
