Gloucestershire: Wright's recovery points to better opening times (8 April 1998)

8 April 1998

Gloucestershire: Wright's recovery points to better opening times

By David Green

REINFORCED by the return of their West Indian fast bowler, Courtney Walsh, Gloucestershire are looking forward to this campaign, having last year competed strongly for the championship before falling away badly in the final straight.

On two occasions late on - against Somerset at Taunton and against Lancashire at Bristol in their final match - they could not part their opponents' last-wicket pair. Walsh's presence, one feels, would almost certainly have brought about victories in those games and possibly in a couple of other tight contests.

Gloucestershire are also strengthened by the acquisition as first-team coach of the former New Zealand off-spinner, John Bracewell, a successful coach of Auckland. Gloucestershire hope he can be as effective as Duncan Fletcher was with Glamorgan in a similar appointment last season.

There is something to build on, for last year's championship placing of seventh was considerably better than had been expected. The team spirit under new captain Mark Alleyne was strong, though some fundamental weaknesses remain.

Looking first at Gloucestershire's strengths, there is no doubt that in Walsh, who takes a deserved second benefit, Mike Smith, Jon Lewis and Alleyne, they will have as powerful a seam attack as any in the country.

Smith, not kindly handled by England in his one Test last season, continues to improve. His 78 championship wickets were 10 more than his nearest challenger, Waqar Younis, while his average of 16.42 and strike-rate of a wicket every 34.6 balls were not approached by any regular bowler.

Lewis, stronger and nippier these days, also had a good season, with more than 50 first-class wickets at moderate cost. Alleyne took 40 in the championship and all three bowled effectively in one-day matches.

Though the left-handed batting of Shaun Young, Walsh's deputy as overseas player in 1997, will be missed, there should still be plenty of strength in the middle order, where last season Alleyne, winner of the Whyte & Mackay all-rounders' award, exceeded 1,000 first-class runs for the fifth time and Jack Russell did so for the first.

The close fielding, despite the departure of splendid slip catcher Monte Lynch, will still be of high quality with Russell supported by Martyn Ball, Tony Wright and Alleyne. So far, so good.

It is with the early batting that we reach the area which has hamstrung Gloucestershire for 15 years. Arguably the last reliable opening pair they had was Andy Stovold and Chris Broad, and that broke up with Broad's departure to Nottinghamshire in 1984.

Without reliable batting, no side can win titles, as witness Gloucestershire's failure to reach a knockout final for 21 years or to sustain to the end a challenge for championship or Sunday League for over a decade.

Gloucestershire should, though, be stronger this season with the return to fitness of Wright, their most experienced batsman, who was diagnosed as suffering from glandular fever last August having performed modestly up to then.

Rob Cunliffe, who suffered last season from illness as well as injury, remains a quality player who has yet to deliver all he is capable of and the same is true of Matt Windows.

These players, together with the improving Tim Hancock, Bobby Dawson, Nick Trainor and the less-experienced Dominic Hewson and Matt Church, have the talent to do the job. Four of them, at least, need to come good this year.

All reservations having been made, Gloucestershire have a good deal of quality in their ranks. One can see them improving on last year's championship placing, while their seam bowling strength could, given stable early batting, make them a force in the longer one-day competitions.

Source :: Electronic Telegraph (https://www.telegraph.co.uk)