Ending on a high Payne and Zafar bowl county to season-ending win
RELEGATED Gloucestershire completed a thrilling three-day victory at Headingley as they ended their LV= Insurance County Championship season with a second successive win.
David Payne and Zafar Gohar claimed four wickets each, bowling Yorkshire out for 222, completing an 18-run success, with Yorkshire also going down after Warwickshire’s stunning five-run win over Hampshire left the Tykes in the bottom two.
Payne said: “Naturally, we’re very positive (after back-to-back wins). That was the goal for September, to finish on a high.
“We knew the writing was on the wall for relegation, so we wanted to put some pride in our performances and show we’re better than we were for the first three quarters of the season.
“The boys stood up really well throughout the whole of September and through this game. It was really good to finish with a tight one, and it was nice to get over the line.
“I wasn’t sure (whether or not we had enough runs). All game, it felt like there were runs in the pitch if a batter got in.
“Then the fourth innings it started to go up and down and misbehave. When it did that, it felt like we were favourites.
“Dom Bess showed you could get runs if you applied yourself and it was a fantastic pitch and a
fantastic game of cricket.”
Gloucestershire were bowled out for 233 in their second innings, setting a victory target of 241, adding only 29 runs to their overnight 204-6.
George Hill’s second ball, in the day’s 13th over, uprooted the off and middle stumps of Ollie Price for a career-best 68, and he then trapped Tom Price lbw in his next over.
Steven Patterson made the initial breakthrough by trapping Gohar lbw, and the innings was wrapped up when Ajeet Singh Dale was run out by a Matthew Fisher direct hit from mid-off.
Yorkshire were going well at 69-1 before succumbing to the pressure of needing to win, despite a defiant unbeaten 79 off 103 balls from Dom Bess.
They lost James Wharton to the fourth ball of their chase as he dragged on against Tom Price five for one - but Adam Lyth and Hill united to share 65 for the second wicket either side of lunch.
They shared 64 for the second wicket, but the tide was about to turn, along with the atmosphere around the ground, as Yorkshire fell to 95-4 seven overs later.
Hill was trapped lbw by Singh Dale for 36 before Tom Kohlercadmore lofted Gohar to Tom Price at long-off, falling for seven on his final Yorkshire appearance before moving to Somerset.
Captain Jonny Tattersall lost his off-stump to Payne, and then Harry Duke under-edged Payne onto his middle stump, before Lyth gloved a vicious turner from Gohar to slip for 49, leaving Yorkshire at 119-6.
Bess led his side through to tea with no further damage, but Jordan Thompson flicked Gohar to Jack Taylor at leg slip for 11.
When Matthew Fisher edged Payne to Taylor at first slip with the score on 172, Bess opted to counter-attack as he hoisted Gohar for six over long-on.
Ben Coad was trapped lbw by Gohar, leaving Bess and last man Patterson needing 50, so Bess ramped, carved, cut and turned down singles to keep the strike.
Patterson blocked determinedly for nought off 27 balls, but he cut Payne to Chris Dent at backward point to leave Gloucestershire with a second win of 2022.