Specsavers County Championship Div Two

Leicestershire 334

Gloucestershire 403-2 dec

CENTURIES from Chris Dent and Graeme van Buuren helped Gloucestershire secure maximum batting points before their rain-affected county championship match against Leicestershire ended in a draw, writes Richard Rae.

The extra points means Gloucestershire are now clear in third in the second division, four points ahead of Leicestershire in fourth.

Although the morning was dry, the outfield was still so wet after the loss of all Wednesday's play to rain that umpires Steve Garrett and Nigel Cowley decided the game could not restart until 1.10pm.

Even then Leicestershire’s fielders had to tread carefully, but Gloucestershire openers Dent and Gareth Roderick found the going rather easier. Resuming on 69-0, they quickly took the score past 100, and were approaching 150 when Roderick, on 46, slashed a wide delivery from Richard Jones and got an edge that was well held low down in front of him by Angus Robson at first slip.

Dent continued to play beautifully, however, taking full advantage of a pitch that gave minimal assistance to the seamers. He went to his hundred, his third of the season, with a typically correct on-drive off the bowling of Clint McKay, the century coming up off 162 balls, and including 16 fours and a six.

He had been fortunate once, when Leicestershire wicket-keeper Ned Eckersley was unable to hold a chance down the leg-side off the bowling of Jones when on 80, and was lucky again when on 147, Eckersley failing to make a relatively straightforward leg-side stumping off Neil Dexter.

Otherwise, however, Dent continued to play with the confidence he has shown all season, and had gone on to 165 when he tried to paddle Dexter to the short leg-side boundary, missed, and was leg before wicket.

Van Buuren continued where Dent had left off though. The South African came into the match averaging more than 70 in the county championship, and on Dent’s departure, took complete control against an increasingly ragged Leicestershire attack.

Short of stature, but strong of wrist, he clipped two sixes over the short leg-side boundary and also hit 13 fours in going to his century off 123 balls.

Michael Klinger scored at a run a ball, closing on 45 not out, as Gloucestershire galloped to their target.

Gloucestershire captain Gareth Roderick said: “I suppose you could say it’s a winning draw, and it’s good to finish a few points ahead of a team close to us in the table, but there just wasn’t enough cricket left in the game.

“That said, it was a very pleasing effort with the bat today. Chris Dent is in a rich vein of form, and Graeme van Buuren is showing just what a good acquisition he is – and then to have Michael Klinger and Hamish Marshall to come, well, it shows what a good batting line-up we have now.”