CHELMSFORD

(day two of four: Gloucestershire won toss)

Gloucestershire 275 all out, 68 overs (North 98, Napier 4-50); 70-6, 32 overs (Kaneria 3-13, Middlebrook 2-2)

Essex 279 all out, 89.5 overs (Foster 57, Kirby 5-60)

Lunch

Gloucestershire rifled through six wickets as Essex collapsed from their overnight 66 for no wicket off 26 overs. John Lewis was convinced, rightly, that the Hayes Close End, where Graham Napier had taken his wickets, was the end with the unsettling bounce. But it was Mark Hardinges from the River End that broke an excellent, patient opening partnership. Varun Chopra, who played straight, suddenly forgot himself, hit round his front pad and lost his middle stump.

It was the introduction of Steve Kirby, who had taken just ten Championship wickets at over 40 before today, that undid Essex. Kirby found zip and rearing bounce outside off-stump and took three wickets for two runs in 15 balls.

Jason Gallian edged a back foot fence high to the keeper. The openers had perhaps made it look easier than it was, leaving the ball well.

Neil Dexter, enduring a miserably lean loan spell from Kent, made 11 off 52 balls, before edging behind a loose drive at Vikram Banerjee’s leftarm orthodox.

In the next over Kirby got the key wicket of Ravi Bopara, for a ten-ball duck, as he edged low to second slip pushing away from his body outside off-stump.

In his next over Kirby had Mark Pettini leg-before playing down the wrong line and beaten for pace. Ryan ten Doeschate followed in the next over, shouldering arms to Banerjee, and being trapped leg before. As he got more confident, Banerjee, playing his first Championship game of the season, began varying his flight and pace.

Lewis’s only mistake as captain was to take Kirby off after he had bowled just six overs and bringing himself back as the Hayes Close End. The pressure lessened.

Tea