REPORT & INTERVIEW | Derbyshire face testing Day Four

Derbyshire face a testing Day Four, after being asked to follow-on in the Rothesay County Championship fixture against Gloucestershire. 

After losing the opening three Division Two games, the visitors have a good chance of forcing victory at Derby after dismissing the hosts for 281 and then reducing them to 117 for 3, still 100 behind.

Spinner Graeme van Buuren took 3 for 31 and seamer Gabe Bell 3 for 84 with Wayne Madsen, 65, the only Derbyshire player to pass 50.

When they followed on trailing by 217, Harry Came and Caleb Jewell both went cheaply before Madsen fell for a second time to increase the pressure on Derbyshire.

Before play began there was news of another injury replacement, this time for Gloucestershire, who brought in Craig Miles for Henry Brookes.

The on-loan pace bowler, who made a career-best 89 on day two, had left the field towards the end of the evening session with what appeared to be a hamstring problem and, following an assessment in the morning, was unable to continue.

Madsen resumed on 62 and his wicket was the one Gloucestershire wanted as he has scored seven first-class centuries against the west country club, two of them last season.

This time he added only three runs before he clipped Will Williams to short mid-wicket  to give the visitors an excellent start to the day as Martin Andersson had already been dismissed.

Bell brought one back to knock out Andersson’s middle stump and with both overnight batsmen back in the pavilion, Derbyshire faced an uphill struggle to save the follow on.

Brooke Guest and Luis Reece, who replaced the injured Anuj Dal on day one, showed the application the situation demanded to bat through the rest of the session, scoring 54 from 154 balls.

But the stand was broken in the second over after lunch with van Buuren finding enough turn to beat Guest’s forward defensive push.

The second new ball accounted for Reece who was squared up by Bell and after Zak Chappell and Ben Aitchison secured a batting point, Aitchison steered Miles into the hands of wide second slip.

When Shoaib Bashir was lbw swinging across the line at van Buuren, Gloucestershire would have expected to quickly wrap up the innings but Chappell and Muhammad Abbas held them up for 10 overs.

Chappell holed out to long on trying for a third six and Gloucestershire struck swiftly when Derbyshire batted again.

Bell swung one in to have Harry Came lbw and Miles should have removed Matt Montgomery but James Bracey spilled a straightforward chance.

Miles was able to celebrate in his next over when late movement defeated Jewell and Middleton spun one past Madsen to give Gloucestershire the perfect end to a very good day.