T20 Blast: Glos suffer agonising six run defeat to Sussex Sharks
17 May 2015
Gloucestershire fell agonisingly short in their second NatWest T20 Blast match of the season losing to Sussex by six runs in a hard-fought contest at Hove.
Late heroics from Jack Taylor (36 off 26 balls) and Tom Smith (16 from 14), left the visitors needing 18 from the last two overs but excellent death bowling by Ollie Robinson and Tymal Mills - who took career-best 3-30 on his Sussex T20 debut – sealed the win.
Earlier a good bowling and fielding display by Gloucestershire restricted the hosts to 167-5. Tom Smith (3-24) and James Fuller (1-27) were the pick of the Glos bowlers in a good all-round performance.
To watch a post-match video interview with Tom Smith click below.
Following their success against Middlesex at Bristol on Friday night Glos skipper Ian Cockbain won the toss and again chose to bowl first.
And the decision paid immediate dividends when the dangerous Luke Wright went in the second over of the day.
He had already been reprieved off the sixth ball of the day when Jack Taylor dropped a tough chance at mid off from Payne. But two balls later an outside edge off James Fuller flew to Tom Smith on the third man boundary for 3 to make it 6-1.
The wicket brought Sri Lanka legend Mahela Jayawardena to the crease.
And in his first game for Sussex at Hove the right hander immediately looked at home hitting the first four of the match off his first ball in the third over.
He followed it up with two more in his first six balls and with a towering six from Chris Nash in between Sussex were back on track at 30-1 after four overs.
Three boundaries from Nash in the next over from Matt Taylor – including another six over the leg side – gave the innings real momentum at 47-1.
This saw a change of tact for the visitors who introduced former Sussex spinner Tom Smith. He nearly had Jayawardena in his first over – a tough diving chance to Cockbain at short extra cover but he was to get his man a few overs later.
Having added 81 with a mixture of excellent timing and controlled aggression, Jayawardena and Nash’s partnership was broken on the first ball of 11th over when the former was bowled for 43 trying to sweep Smith who had just changed to the Sea End.
Smith did the damage again in his next over. First he had Nash caught on the deep square leg by a diving Hamish Marshall for 43. Then two balls later Craig Cachopa - who had hit his last three balls for six - was also on his way back to the pavilion for 19. He became the third Sussex man to perish trying to slog sweep Smith when he missed the ball and was given out LBW to make it 110-4.
Smith finished with figures of 4 overs 1 maiden 3-24 and he was well supported in the middle overs by Jack Taylor and Benny Howell.
The returning Payne removed Ben Brown for 8 with a slower ball in the seventeenth over but an unbeaten partnership of 37 between Matt Machan (24) and Will Beer (22 from 16) ensured the Sharks posted a competitive total.
In reply Glos were on the back foot from the first ball of their innings when Chris Dent was trapped LBW by Steve Magoffin.
Skipper Ian Cockbain, who led the way against Middlesex with a career best 91 not out couldn’t repeat the feat in this game as he became Magoffin’s second victim in the third over for six to make it 8-2.
At the other end Hamish Marshall was playing a sparkling innings, flicking the ball over fine leg and running it through third man for a flurry of boundaries to give his side some much needed momentum.
He was dropped off the first ball of the fifth when Ollie Robinson missed a simple chance at third man off Magoffin but made the most of his let off to score a masterful 45 from 29 balls.
But Glos kept losing wickets at regular intervals. Mills removed Fuller’s (2) off stump with a slower ball to make it 39-3. And when Marshall was stumped off Beer in the ninth over, Glos were in trouble at 64-4.
Handscomb and Howell both fell cheaply trying to sweep Yardy and Beer respectively but Geraint Jones and Jack Taylor gave their side hope.
Jones made 25 before falling to Mills to make it 112-7 and set up the late onslaught from Taylor and Smith. Taylor was particularly impressive, striking the ball cleanly for three four and two sixes but both fell before the end to leave Payne and Matt Taylor needing 15 with five balls left.
Glos are in T20 Blast action again this Sunday when they take on Essex at the Bristol County Ground.
