Tail wags to give Glam the advantage
GLAMORGAN edged into a first-innings lead of 52 over Nottinghamshire on day two of their LV= Insurance County Championship match at Trent Bridge after a ninth-wicket partnership of 106 between Timm van der Gugten and James Weighell helped the visitors finish the day on 354 for nine.
Despite half-centuries from skipper David Lloyd and former Kent captain Sam Northeast, who made an impressively dogged 85, Glamorgan had slipped to 248 for eight just after tea, still 54 behind.
Lloyd, who was caught off a no-ball before he had scored on the first evening, shared a thirdwicket stand of 117 with Northeast but Glamorgan lost their next six wickets for 85 and seemed to have squandered a good platform.
However, with Netherlands international Van der Gugten unbeaten on 56 they finished the day not only with four batting bonus points but a clear advantage at the halfway stage of the match.
Brett Hutton, who removed Australian Test star Marnus Labuschagne for just three, dismissed Lloyd for 76. Northeast, one of the most accomplished county players without an England cap, looked set for a 26th career first-class century before falling to the ball of the day from South African seamer Dane Paterson.
Glamorgan, 33 without loss overnight, suffered two setbacks in the first five overs of the morning, in which James Pattinson registered the first wicket of his third spell with Nottinghamshire when he had Andrew Salter caught at first slip.
His dismissal ushered in Labuschagne for his first bat of the season but the anticipated duel between the world No 1 Test batsman and his former Australia teammate Pattinson did not materialise. Instead, Pattinson’s new-ball partner Hutton dismissed Labuschagne at the first attempt with a ball he felt safe to leave but which nipped back enough to strike him on the knee roll, plumb in front.
Lloyd and Northeast weathered the storm not only to guide the visitors to lunch at 130 for two but to extend their partnership into the afternoon before Hutton drew Lloyd into a stroke that he edged to second slip. Northeast lost more partners as young seamer Joey Evison struck in consecutive overs, removing Kiran Carlson and Chris Cooke.
As Callum Taylor flashed at a ball from Dane Paterson to be caught at first slip, the balance was tipping, more so immediately after tea as Michael Naser was bowled by Evison before, in the next over, Paterson threaded a beauty through a narrow gap to bowl a bemused Northeast, who had barely erred in four and a half hours at the crease.
Joe Root has described his decision to step down as England’s Test captain as his “most challenging”, but conceded it recently hit home how much of a toll the role had taken on him.
The 31-year-old resigns with a number of favourable records, but a disastrous 12 months of red-ball cricket made his position untenable.
A recent 1-0 series defeat in the West Indies extended England’s winless run to five series, which included heavy losses away to India and Australia, and has seen the country taste victory only once in their last 17 Test matches.
Root, who will continue as a batter, said: “It has been the most challenging decision I have had to make in my career but having discussed this with my family and those closest to me; I know the timing is right.”