Roderick leads by example before late collapse
17 May 2016
Gloucestershire wicket keeper Gareth Roderick spoke on the second evening of this match against Glamorgan of wanting to get into a position where, as captain, he could tactically drive the game.
After a sequence of low scores in his last five innings, Roderick took matters into his own hands with an innings of 67 which occupied nearly four and a half hours.
Well supported by Cameron Bancroft (70) and Hamish Marshall (54), the Gloucestershire top order appeared to have worn down a Glamorgan attack deprived of Graham Wagg because of injury until the second new ball was taken straight after tea, when four wickets fell for the addition of only 39 runs.
At stumps, on a day where rain and bad light saw seven overs lost, Gloucestershire had reached 302-8 in their second innings, a lead of 234.
Listen to the thoughts of Cameron Bancroft at the close here :
Glamorgan might have hoped that initially overcast conditions might produce a clutch of wickets, and they had early encouragement when Graeme Van Buuren pushed half forward in Timm van der Gugten's second over of the morning and was lbw for 22. The overnight score hadn't changed, and Roderick walked out with Gloucestershire 60-2 and still eight runs in arrears.
With one day captain Michael Klinger having flown in overnight, fellow countryman Cameron Bancroft was still looking for a score higher than his shirt number (43) and after striking the first boundary of the day , he completed his first half century in the Championship with a pull to mid wicket off van der Gugten. His fifty contained eight fours and came off 92 balls.
Bancroft and skipper Roderick were both playing a lot off the back foot, showing a watchful approach rather than any desire to force the pace of the innings. Podmore had conceded only one boundary when Bancroft despatched a rare half volley in the bowler's 12th over of the innings, and bad light and drizzle brought an early lunch with Gloucestershire 41 runs ahead at 109-2.
Without the injured Wagg and with skipper Rudolph seeing only a cameo role for the spinners, van der Gugten and Hogan were given another burst when play resumed, and it was the Western Australian that finally enticed his state team mate back home into a false stroke, Bancroft playing Hogan straight to Lloyd at short mid wicket for 70.
Roderick continued to show commendable patience, unflustered by his own runs coming at a trickle and using any pace off the quicker bowlers to work singles behind square on the leg side. Marshall, by contrast, played with a verve that has brought him two hundreds already this summer, punching Podmore through the covers and finding the mid wicket boundary off Hogan.
When he marked spinner Salter's belated introduction in the attack with a straight six, Marshall passed Roderick on the scoreboard, and his fifty - which also contained seven fours - was completed in only 69 balls. He'd made 54 out of a stand of 83 with his captain before steering the persistent Hogan to Salter in the gully.
Roderick's day of endurance finally saw him complete a patient fifty from 144 balls and with no fewer than 22 singles shortly before tea, which Gloucestershire took at 232-4, 168 ahead. It looked a decent position, only for the second new ball to change it considerably within 45 minutes.
The key wicket was that of Roderick, who having grafted hard for 67 fell lbw to Hogan. His frustration was visible as he walked off. Van der Gugten had already bowled Hankins for 15, and Noema-Barnett (4) played Hogan straight to substitute fielder Selman at short cover. Taylor clubbed two boundaries off successive deliveries from Hogan but then lofted an easy catch to Rudolph at mid on for 17, giving Glamorgan a fourth wicket in 11 overs for the addition of only 39 runs.
It was important Miles and Payne extended the innings overnight, which they managed while adding 31 together for the ninth wicket. With a lead of 234 and two wickets in hand, Glamorgan could be left with a teasing target to chase on the final day.
