If this fixture can seldom have qualified as a top-of-the-table clash, the two frontrunners in the second division showed why they have been so competitive this season with some hard-fought cricket in what is thought to be the earliest start to the Cheltenham Festival.

An excellent career-best 126 from Greg Smith rescued Derbyshire after they had slumped from 112 for one to 119 for five. But well though both Smith and Chris Rogers batted, Gloucestershire will rue the fact they dropped both in single figures in the slips. The Australian drove particularly strongly en route to 81 off 118 balls before Jon Lewis, the pick of the bowlers, brought one back to castle him. Lewis produced two good leg-cutters to remove both Wayne Madsen, a South African with an Italian passport making his debut, and Gary Park.

All four of Gloucestershire's pace attack probed away well on a pitch offering good carry and a little movement. Steve Kirby had both Dan Redfern and Wavell Hinds caught at second slip before Smith counter-attacked in positive style, racing to his fifty from 58 balls and what was his second first-class hundred from 125. In all, he struck 16 fours as well as a straight six off Vikram Banerjee.

The 26-year old Johannesburg-born batsman received good support from both Graham Wagg, until the latter edged a beauty from Anthony Ireland, and Tim Groenewald. Ireland shared in an eighth-wicket stand of 90 in just 22 overs with Smith before being brilliantly held by Hamish Marshall, who finished with four catches at second slip.

Tom Richardson, the Gloucestershire chief executive, explained the unusually early start to the oldest cricket festival in the world. “There were a combination of reasons,” he said. “Cheltenham College wanted the festival to begin either now or on August 7. We felt that was a bit late. We also didn't want to clash with the Friends Provident Trophy Final on July 25, and by starting our two championship matches on a Sunday and a Monday, we're able to have two one-day matches on successive Fridays. That's well worthwhile from our point of view as Fridays at Cheltenham are always attract a big crowd, especially if it's a one-day match.”

Derbyshire: First Innings
*C J L Rogers b Lewis 81
W L Madsen c Snell b Lewis 7
G T Park c Snell b Lewis 25
D J Redfern c Marshall b Kirby 4
W W Hinds c Marshall b Kirby 0
G M Smith c Snell b Franklin 126
D J Pipe b Banerjee 22
G G Wagg c Snell b Ireland 31
T D Groenewald c Marshall b Franklin 26
J Needham not out 1
P S Jones c Marshall b Franklin 0
Extras (lb 3) 3
Total (88.4 overs) 326
Fall of wickets: 1-34, 2-112, 3-117, 4-117, 5-119, 6-183, 7-231, 8-321, 9-326.
Bowling: Franklin 18.4-3-59-3; Kirby 14-3-50-2; Lewis 17-4-40-3; Ireland 14-2-79-1; Banerjee 19-0-84-1; Taylor 6-1-11-0.

Gloucestershire: First Innings
Kadeer Ali not out 5
C M Spearman not out 2
Extras (lb 1, nb 2) 3
Total (no wkt, 5 overs) 10
H J H Marshall, *A P R Gidman, C G Taylor, J E C Franklin, S D Snell, A J Ireland, J Lewis, V Banerjee and S P Kirby to bat.
Bowling: P S Jones 3-2-4-0; Wagg 2-0-5-0.
Umpires: B Dudleston and P Willey.