Klinger delivers big prize

CRICKET MICHAEL Klinger toasted Gloucestershire’s first major success in 11 years after a nail-biting victory over Surrey at Lord’s.

The Royal London One-Day Cup final came down to the over with Surrey needing six runs to win, but Gloucester held their nerve to lift the trophy thanks to the heroics of David Payne.

Gloucester skipper Klinger had earlier suffered a rare failure as he was caught behind off the third ball of the match after flashing at a short wide delivery from Jade Dernbach. But he claimed an important catch in the Surrey reply to lead his team home by the narrowest of margins.

Klinger said: “I was nervous but I’m lucky I have played in some big finals back home – Big Bash and one-day finals – which held me in good stead.

“Eleven years without a trophy is a long time so this is a really big achievement for the club and I’m certainly proud to be a part of it and happy for everyone involved.”

Klinger was a key player in the competition for Gloucester, scoring 531 runs at an average of 132.75.

He said: “You don’t want to look too far ahead, but we have the makings of something special here.

“There is a lot of hard work still to be done because, every year, the other teams get better as well. We need to keep improving and, if we do that, then they can win again.

“The key thing for me is that this group has learned to perform and win games under pressure in one-day competitions.

“I think we are potentially a very good T20 side as well and, hopefully, there is a big future for us.”