Cameron Bancroft’s Century Propels Gloucestershire to 37 Runs Victory over Surrey
With a stunning century from Cameron Bancroft and a potent bowling attack, Gloucestershire defeated Surrey by 37 runs in the Metro Bank One-Day Cup.
Gloucestershire defeated Surrey by a comfortable 37 runs at the Kia Oval to open their Metro Bank One-Day Cup account. Cameron Bancroft scored a century off just 109 balls, and his bowling display was brilliant as well. Matt Taylor takes four wickets as Steel, McKerr, and Patel stand out in Surrey’s losing effort.
Despite Ryan Patel’s valiant 87 from 96 balls and Josh Blake’s 50 from 45, Surrey was only able to muster 264 in response to Gloucestershire’s 301 all out, in which Miles Hammond had also scored 51 and captain Jack Taylor had hit an explosive 44 with five sixes.
While Cameron Steel finished with four for 61 and fast bowler Conor McKerr impressed for Surrey with List A best figures of four for 32, Gloucestershire’s attack was more consistent overall with two great pacemen in Matt Taylor and Ajeet Singh Dale.
After the first two games, neither team had won, but Surrey was left stranded at the bottom of the Group B standings. Left-armer Taylor took four for 44 for Gloucestershire, while Singh Dale took two for 49.
After Patel and Ben Foakes had helped Surrey rally from 51 for three with an 89-run partnership, Blake and McKerr, who made 37 off 35 balls, struck out heroically in a seventh-wicket stand of 85 in 12 overs.
Following a brilliant five-over new ball burst of two for 10, Taylor removed both Ben Geddes (14) and Dom Sibley (leg-before for nought). Later, Taylor unleashed a crisp lifter that McKerr could only deflect off to keeper James Bracey.
After returning for a second spell, Singh Dale had earlier dismissed Foakes for 34 after he was caught at deep square leg. Patel, the opener, had hit seven fours and three sixes, but Bracey had held him thick-edging when he attempted to push a short rising delivery, leaving Surrey 153 for six.
After Ollie Price and left-arm spinner Tom Smith had combined to effectively restrict Surrey’s scoring rate in the middle innings, Steel was caught behind for a duck by another slow left-armer, Graeme van Buuren, in between the dismissals of Foakes and Patel. Earlier, Rory Burns had fallen for just six, leg-before to Price’s off-spin.
After that, Gloucestershire had to wait for a well-earned win thanks to sixes from Blake and McKerr off Matt Taylor. However, it was almost over when Dom Goodman dashed 20 yards towards mid off to claim a Blake skier off his own bowling.
The Fifth List of Bancroft A century anchored Gloucestershire’s innings brilliantly, while Jack Taylor’s 26-ball cameo offered the visitors late propulsion, and fellow opener Hammond’s 57-ball half-century supplied initial forward momentum.
Though Gloucestershire had reached 40 overs on 248 for four and Taylor was beginning to hit strongly in a 56-run stand with Bancroft, Surrey would still have been pleased enough to restrict them to 301.
Bancroft was leg-before and swept for Steel’s fourth wicket, and almost immediately after, McKerr trapped Van Buuren at the wicket for a duck with a brilliant leg-cutter to restrict the visitors to 260 for six.
By that point, Taylor had already square-cut Nathan Barnwell, the returning paceman, over the third man ropes for his first six. He had also successfully slog-swept Yousef Majid’s left arm spin into the stands with his fast-medium, but Taylor soon struck two more legside sixes off the fast-medium of James Taylor before the bowler ended his attack with the final ball of the 45th over.
Suddenly, Gloucestershire were 289 for nine thanks to a hat-trick from McKerr, who had removed Smith (3) and Goodman with an edge behind to a diving Blake and then a misplayed smash to mid wicket.
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Then, when McKerr’s hat-trick ball fluttered through to keeper Blake, it nearly struck the edge of last man Singh Dale’s bat. However, Sibley dropped Matt Taylor off Steel at far on, allowing him to finish undefeated on 19 when McKerr hit Singh Dale for six.
After Gloucestershire was put in, Hammond had earlier dominated a first wicket stand of 79, hitting five fours and two legside sixes.
Majid witnessed Hammond smash the final delivery of the 15th over straight to mid-wicket, but the Australian international was joined by Price in a second wicket stand worth 74 when Bancroft swept him for six.
Blake neatly stumped Price at 32 after he failed to cut when moving to Steel. Bracey then skidded to long on after slog-sweeping Price over the mid wicket ropes to reach 16.
Ben Charlesworth was duped by Steel’s clever play on 12 as the left-hander edged closer to Blake. However, Taylor came on to assist Bancroft in pushing Gloucestershire’s total to an intimidating amount that ultimately proved to be too much for Surrey.
