Glamorgan all white on the night

AFTER a truly disastrous start to the County Championship season, the advent of whiteball cricket has sparked a revival for Glamorgan.

Going into the T20 Blast and the One-Day Cup the Welsh county were rooted at the very bottom of Division Two of the County Championship.

But after three T20s and two 50-over games, they are top of the South Group in both competitions.

This win under the lights was crafted through a brilliant fifth-wicket stand between Chris Cooke and Graham Wagg. They put on 112 runs in 11 overs to post 302-6 on a slow pitch were 250 would have been hard work – running out winners by 84 runs after Sussex were bowled out for 218.

Cooke, who made a 67-ball 80, pointed out that to write off Glamorgan based on their lacklustre start with the red ball is a fool’s game.

“We have had a good month or so in all formats, and we are a good white ball side,” said Cooke.

“We are not the underdogs that people think that we are, we are a good one-day cricket side and we have continued that form this year and from here on we need to get into a few finals.

“It is always the aim to get into the knockout stages of tournaments and we have played a good few games and we need to push on now.”

Much of Glamorgan’s success in white ball cricket has been built around the form of 19-year-old Aneurin Donald and he made his fourth fifty in six innings against Sussex.

But even he admits that he must start to convert his excellent starts – his highest score in that run of half-centuries is 55.

“I keep getting to 50 and can’t get out of the 50s because I keep missing sweep shots,” Donald said.

“It has been frustrating getting out the same way a few times but hopefully I can improve on that.”

Sussex were let down by their fielding and captain Luke Wright conceded that just taking three of the five dropped catches could have saved the game. However, the bigger worry going forward is the balance of their side.

With Wright not bowling following his back injury it means the team have a long tail, with Chris Jordan batting at seven. While Jordan is a capable batsman, he has never made a List A half-century.

Sussex left out spinner Will Beer for seamer Steve Magoffin and Wright said that balance was the reason why both did not take the field.

“With not having a bowler who can bat in the top six it makes it tough for us,” he said. “Because we lack that all-rounder you are either a bowler lacking or a batter.

“That is where we are at the moment, it is tough from a captain’s point of view and for the team but you just have to make the most of it.”