CHELTENHAM

Day one of four (Gloucestershire won toss)

Gloucestershire 283 (M.J. North 98, D. Brown 83, Kabir Ali 6-94) v Worcestershire 24-1

Lunch

Tom Graveney, the former England batsman who has played for both counties, fittingly said a few words at the start of Cheltenham week, which many cricket lovers regard as the finest of all festivals. It scarcely seemed to matter to the customary sizeable attendance that Gloucestershire had not won a championship match since last September. At lunch, they had made indeterminate progress in the face of hostile bowling from Kabir Ali and Simon Jones, who was back to something like his best pace of yesteryear.

Kabir, bowling from the College Lawn End, had both his cousin, Kadeer Ali, and Hamish Marshall caught behind the wicket by Steven Davies, the former off the perfect outswinger. Steve Snell was then bowled by Jones, looking to play through midwicket, but Marcus North, who struck four fours in confident style on a typically quick pitch with some bounce in it, was unbeaten at the interval with 27 to his name.

Tea

Both Marcus North and David Brown reached half-centuries before tea, building on the indifferent total of 110 for five after Alex Gidman had been caught at first slip off the impressive Kabir Ali and Chris Taylor had fallen to the spin of Gareth Batty, who was given a lengthy spell at the Chapel End. North struck eight fours in his first 50 runs and added a ninth immediately afterwards through a superb cover drive off Batty.

Brown, who was playing in his first championship match of the season, made his highest score for Gloucestershire, reaching his half century off 71 balls with nine fours and surviving chances to first slip when he had made 34 and to gully when he was on 55. John Light, the county’s appreciative chairman, emphasised during the day that if the ECB had decided to implement a three conference system in the championship, the Cheltenham festival would have disappeared from the fixture list. No spectator present on a sunlit afternoon would have wished to see that.

Close

Marcus North was out for the third time in the ‘nineties this season – he has yet to make a century – when he was bowled by Kabir Ali after the new ball had been taken. His innings of 98 came off 176 balls, included 14 fours, and ended when he attempted to whip the fast bowler through the on side to take him to three figures. The other major contributor in Gloucestershire’s first innings, David Brown, was yorked by Imran Arif for 83, which included 12 fours and a six lashed over long on off Gareth Batty.

Kabir, who took six for 58 against Glamorgan earlier this season, finished with figures of six for 94 by bowling Steve Kirby. The England hierarchy has been to watch Simon Jones at Worcester this season but would appear to have a lesser regard for Kabir. Gloucestershire were all out for 283, which left Worcestershire with seven overs batting. They lost Daryl Mitchell in the penultimate over, caught behind off Kirby as he made to drive through the cover ring.