Taylor and van Buuren spin Gloucestershire to improbable victory

Gloucestershire 262 and 336 (Bancroft 70, Roderick 67, Marshall 58, Hogan 4-68) beat Glamorgan 330 (Lloyd 99, Bragg 70, Wagg 55 ret hurt) and 143 (Taylor 4-16, van Buuren 3-15) by 125 runs
Scorecard

Graeme van Buuren turned the game as Gloucestershire claimed an unlikely 125-run victory over Glamorgan on a bizarre final day of the Specsavers County Championship match at the Brightside Ground, Bristol.

Chasing 269 to win in 76 overs, the visitors progressed serenely to 87 without loss, only then to lose all ten wickets for 56 runs from a seemingly winning position.

Three of them fell to the left-arm spin of South African van Buuren on debut. He removed the top three Glamorgan batsmen Mark Wallace (50), Jacques Rudolph (36) and Will Bragg in a nine-over spell from the Pavilion End that ended with figures of 3 for 15.

Craig Miles (3 for 55) and Jack Taylor (4 for 16) then continued the carnage, Miles removing the middle order and off-spinner Taylor taking two wickets in his first over and two more after tea to end the game.

Gloucestershire took 21 points, while Glamorgan claimed six after a meek batting collapse that rendered their competitive efforts of the first three days immaterial.

After a delay of 15 minutes at the start of the day because of overnight rain, the home side resumed their second innings on 302 for 8 and soon lost David Payne for 12 to a loose drive off Timm van der Gugten, which saw him caught at point.

But Miles and Josh Shaw then frustrated Glamorgan with a last-wicket stand of 29. It ended when Shaw was caught at first slip by Bragg off Harry Podmore, leaving Miles unbeaten on a hugely valuable 39.

By lunch Glamorgan had made 18 without loss and required a further 251 in the final two sessions. When Rudolph and Wallace continued where they had left off with the sun shining at the start of the afternoon session the outcome began to look inevitable.

But everything changed when Wallace, who had faced 72 balls and hit seven fours, was bowled by van Buuren. Rudolph edged to slip and it was 97 for 3 when Bragg lofted a comfortable catch to Taylor at mid-off. At that point van Buuren had taken three wickets in the space of 22 balls.

Miles got in on the act when Andrew Salter, promoted in the order, top-edged to George Hankins at fine-leg. The batsmen crossed and in the same over Chris Cooke chipped a catch to Cameron Bancroft at midwicket.

Suddenly Gloucestershire were in total control. Aneurin Donald miscued an easy catch to mid-on off Miles before the introduction of Taylor in place of van Buuren paid instant dividends.

With his first ball of the innings, Taylor bowled Podmore and in the same over van der Gugten was caught at slip as he pushed forward.

Tea was taken at 120 for 8, with Graham Wagg not having batted due to an injury to his forearm sustained in the first innings.

He bravely appeared after the interval, batting with an arm guard and hit a defiant straight six off Taylor followed by a square-cut four.

Rain then brought a short interruption and six overs were lost, leaving 24 to be bowled. With the fourth ball after the resumption, Taylor bowled Wagg with one that kept low and it was all over when the same bowler had David Lloyd caught behind down the leg side, sweeping.