Somerset defeated Glamorgan by 33 runs under the DLS Method in their rain-affected match in the Royal London One-Day Cup at Taunton.
Today saw Glamorgan back in action in the 50 overs competition against Somerset, with the Welsh county currently in second place in the table looking to complete their second win in the space of three days over the West Country side who occupy third spot in the table.
Glamorgan won the toss and with rain forecast, not surprisingly, opted to bowl and after a morning shower, play began fifteen minutes late Johann Myburgh who opened with Jim Allenby twice scythed Graham Wagg for offside fours in the day’s opening over, but the second flew just over the outstretched hands of Andrew Salter at point. Allenby added to the boundary count with a leg-glance in Wagg’s second over before Myburgh pulled Timm van der Gugten to the ropes at mid-wicket. He edged the next ball over the head of slip for another boundary before square-driving Michael Hogan who replaced Wagg for the fifth over.
Allenby then clipped Hogan for four to backward square-leg followed by a cover-driven four. Myburgh then clubbed van der Gugten over long-on for six to bring up the 50 in the eighth over before doing the same in the next over from Hogan. But Wagg returned and ended his run spree as he lobbed a ball into David Lloyd’s hands at cover.
Colin Ingram’s leg-spin was then introduced in the 11th over before being joined by Andrew Salter’s off-spin in the 14th over. The latter was twice late cut for four by Peter Trego before Allenby swept Ingram for four as a band of rain started to appear over the Quantock Hills. Craig Meschede then entered the attack as the rain skirted the ground, with Trego pulling a ball for six into the committee room in the Ondaatje Pavilion.
Jacques Rudolph then entered the attack and delivered a brace of frugal overs with Trego also swatting Meschede for a pair of fours to mid-wicket. Allenby duly completed his 50 from 56 balls before Trego pulled Rudolph for four. The Glamorgan captain then produced an outstanding piece of fielding at mid-off as he ran out Allenby as the opposing captain, like on Friday evening, was run out trying to sneak a single.
With Mahela Jayawardene as his new partner, Trego secured the single he needed to complete a 50-ball half-century before Hogan and van der Gugten had their second spells with more rain building over the Quantocks. Trego added another boundary to his tally but not where he intended as he top-edged a pull over the wicket-keeper’s head. But the precipitation did not miss the ground this time as drizzle started to fall with Ingram and Meschede in tandem.
Jayawardene scooped and cut successive balls from Meschede for four, before Trego drilled Ingram for a straight six. But Salter returned and snared the all-rounder who drove the spinner to mid-off and three overs later Hogan bowled Jayawardene as Somerset lost momentum as the final powerplay approached.
In a bid to up the tempo, James Hildreth off-drove Salter for six whilst Lewis Gregory pulled van der Gugten for four before threading Wagg through the covers. A flurry of singles then followed as together with Lewis Gregory, he attempted to up the tempo, but Hogan returned and trapped both batsmen l.b.w. with full length deliveries during his eighth over.
Craig Overton then edged van der Gugten for four but Wagg had Roelof van der Merwe leg before as Somerset stuttered again on 280/7 in the 46th over. Overton then struck a rare full toss from Hogan for six over mid-wicket before biffing van der Gugten for six over long-off and into the pavilion bar as Somerset ended on 322/7 with further light rain falling over the ground.
David Lloyd joined his captain when the Glamorgan innings began with Overton and Allenby sharing the bowling duties. Rudolph pierced the field as he unfurled an exquisite pair of cover drives off the front foot against each bowler, before firmly punching Allenby off the back foot through extra cover. Lloyd also clipped Overton to the ropes at fine-leg for four before greeting Tim Groenewald into the attack by cover-driving him for four. He did the same to Allenby as Glamorgan ended the powerplay on 46/0.
Rudolph produced another booming off-drive in Groenewald’s third over before Lloyd placed a firmly-struck drive to the ropes at long-on, Rudolph equalled this by straight-driving Gregory but his inning s ended as Somerset switched to spin with the captain reverse-sweeping van der Merwe into Hildreth’s hands at short third man.
68/1 saw Will Bragg join Lloyd who cut van der Merwe for four, as well as swatting a free hit no-ball for four by Waller when Somerset did not have sufficient men in the ring. But on 96, Bragg attempted a reverse-sweep against van der Merwe and was bowled, whilst two runs later Lloyd swatted Gregory to deep mid-wicket where Overton took a good catch running in from the boundary edge.
With precipitation falling again on the outskirts of Taunton, the fall of these two wickets in quick succession pushed up the D/L par score, as Ingram and Donald joined forces. They began with a series of singles before Donald nudge a short ball from Gregory to third man followed by a tickle to fine-leg against van der Merwe but steady rain then fell with Glamorgan on 124/3 from 22 overs, 28 runs behind the par score.
It was only a brief stoppage with three overs lost and Glamorgan’s target was reduced to 313, so the equation when the batsmen resumed was 189 further runs in the 25 remaining overs. Donald and Ingram began with singles before Donald mowed Max Waller over mid-wicket for six before Ingram cover drove and swept him for a pair of fours.
Groenewald and Overton returned to the attack as the boundaries dried up for a while as the visiting batsmen garnered just a string of singles. Donald ended the sequence by swatting Overton to mid-wicket for four, followed next ball by a scythed cut through the gully for four.
But later in the over Ingram swatted a short ball from Overton to Myburgh on the point boundary, and then in Overton’s next over, Donald pulled a ball to mid-wicket where Gregory took a good running catch. With Glamorgan on 176/5 and 137 still required, Wallace and Wagg came together and with a series of one’s and two’s quietly chiselled away at the target but on 197, Wallace skewed a drive against Gregory and was caught at backward point.
With the boundaries few and far between, Meschede attempted to launch van der Merwe straight back over his head for six, but he missed the ball and was stumped by Ryan Davies with Glamorgan on 202/7. Salter had more luck as he deposited the spinner for six as the equation became 92 from 48 balls, but Glamorgan’s quest became more severe as next over Wagg edged Overton into Davoes’ gloves.
Van der Gugten joined Salter with the pair furiously scampering some singles and twos before the former top-edged a four over the keeper’s head against Overton as the equation became 68 from 30 balls. Salter then hoisted a full toss from Groenewald over mid-wicket for six before lofting him straight for four, whilst van der Gugten also savagely pulled a four as 19 runs came from the over.
49 were needed from 24 balls as Salter launched Gregory over extra-cover for six before to the last ball of the over he was adjudged to have feathered a catch to the keeper as Hogan made his way to the middle with 39 still needed. The pair thrashed a few singles until van der Gugten was caught at mid-wicket as Somerset won by 33 runs under the DLS Method.