CHELMSFORD

(day three of four: Gloucestershire won toss)

Gloucestershire 275 all out, 68 overs (North 98, Napier 4-50), 184, 93.3 overs (Snell 53, Kaneria 5-53)

Essex 279 all out, 89.5 overs (Foster 57, Kirby 5-60) and 150-2 (Bopara 83*, Dexter 60*)

Lunch

Having got everything right the previous evening in reducing Gloucestershire to 70 for six, Essex contrived to get everything wrong this morning. A mixture of bizarre captaincy and poor catching saw Gloucestershire coaxed back into a game they will feel now that they can win.

Danish Kaneria and James Middlebrook had run through Gloucestershire the previous evening from the River End and Hayes Close End respectively. But Mark Pettini, the Essex captain, opened with Graham Napier from the Hayes Close End. Moreover he gave him just one slip and ring field as if saving runs was the key.

Then, as Gloucestershire survived he replaced Napier with Ravi Bopara and then Ryan ten Doeschate. Why not Middlebrook or at least David Masters, the other opening bowler?

Instead, Kaneria, who was not at his best, but was not backed up by his close catchers round the bat, was replaced by Middlebrook. Kaneria was brought back for one over and then, strangely, switched to the Hayes Close End for the last over before lunch.

Kadeer Ali, 23 off 143 balls and Steve Snell 34 off 97 balls played sensibly but they gave three good chances. Ali edged almost his first attacking shot in the sixth over of the morning, driving at Napier. Jason Gallian dropped a regulation chance at first slip. Seven over later Steve Snell, on 18, edged through Bopara’s hands low at second slip off Kaneria.

In Kaneria’s next over Ali, on 14, inside edged past short leg, where Varun Chopra has underlined the woeful standard of much short leg fielding in county cricket. Chopra was almost bolt upright before the ball gets to the batsman and so has to lurch down to anything low. Thus he did not even get a hand on it as it went past low to his right. Under closer inspection from television cameras it would probably be clear that other chances off Kaneria have been missed.

Batting seemed easier after that, the fifty stand was crossed in the 34th over and Essex got more and more muddled.