Tavare ends long wait for first class hundred
28 March 2017
A patient century by Will Tavare - his first in first class cricket since 2014 - was the spine of the Gloucestershire innings on the opening day of the 2017 season at the Brightside Ground.
Despite a long rain break in mid afternoon, Gloucestershire scored briskly for most of the day against Durham MCCU after they were asked to bat, closing on 292-3 with Tavare completing his hundred 15 minutes before the close with a square drive off McCollum. It was his 15th boundary in an innings that occupied more than four and a half hours.
Earlier in the day, he shared an opening stand of 128 with Chris Dent, who made 84. Graeme van Buuren (35) and George Hankins (48*) also had valuable time at the crease.
Gloucestershire included Ollie Currill and Chris Liddle in a first class team for the first time, but both spent the day in the pavilion after Gloucestershire were put in under initially bright skies.
Tavare and Dent soon had the scoreboard ticking along at a good rate, despite the outfield being initially slow. Dent in particular was quick to pounce on anything off line or length from opening bowlers McGrath and Owen, especially off the back foot through point.
The first ten overs contained ten boundaries and the left hander completed his fifty within the first hour's play. At that stage neither Dent or Tavare had driven the bowling to any great extent, and a pull by Dent through a straight mid wicket off Cooke typified the morning's action.
Tavare, with one of the few shots down the ground, brought up the century opening stand in the 18th over, by which point Durham MCCU captain Joe Cooke - one of three bowlers used - had bowled the only maiden. It was after McGrath switched ends that the first breakthrough finally came, Dent edging to 'keeper Jahanfar for 84 out of a stand of 128, made at better than a run a ball with 16 boundaries.
Having seen his opening pair in relatively little trouble, Gareth Roderick will have been disappointed to not stay longer than three balls, the Gloucestershire skipper being bowled by left armer McGrath before he had settled. Graeme van Buuren then kept Tavare company until lunch, with the patient right hander following up a half century in the friendly against Somerset with another one here, completed in the penultimate over of the session from 107 deliveries with seven fours.
Left arm spinner Abhi Singh had bowled only one over in the morning session but his introduction after the interval, with Gloucestershire 156-2, checked the Gloucestershire scoring as Durham MCCU captain Cooke rotated his seam bowlers at the Ashley Down Road End.
Tavare and van Buuren were watchful, and in the hour's play possible before a heavy shower forced the players off they added 31 with van Buuren bringing up the fifty partnership with a drive punched through the covers off Singh.
The rain delayed matters until 5 o'clock, leaving a further 90 minutes play when Gloucestershire resumed at 198-2, and only two runs had been added when van Buuren edged McGrath to Cooke at second slip for 35 to give the left arm seamer his third wicket.
The remainder of the day surrounded Tavare's pursuit of his century. He collected two boundaries off Xavier Owen and also attacked spinner Singh, twice finding the rope at wide long on and also having the confidence in the nineties to play a reserve sweep. With George Hankins gradually getting into his stride at the other end, the pair were able to add 92 runs before stumps were drawn with Gloucestershire 292-3.
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