County Championship: Miles puts Gloucestershire in hunt for victory
Last updated on .From the section Counties
| LV= County Championship Division Two, Bristol (day three) |
| Lancashire 275 & 253: Brown 56, Clark 48, Prince 43, Miles 5-60 |
| Gloucestershire 277 & 26-1 |
| Gloucestershire need a further 226 to win with nine second-innings wickets standing |
| Gloucestershire 5 pts, Lancashire 5 pts |
| Match scorecard |
Gloucestershire pace bowler Craig Miles claimed his second five-wicket haul of the match at Nevil Road to put his side in with a chance of beating Lancashire for the second time this season.
Resuming on 14-0, opener Karl Brown went on to make 56 as Lancashire were bowled out for 253, Miles taking 5-60 for a first-ever 10-wicket match haul.
It left Gloucestershire, needing 252 to win, to face 17 overs before the close.
The hosts finished on 26-1 for the loss of only opener Will Tavare.
| Miles proves thorn in Red Rose side |
|---|
| Craig Miles has now taken 17 Lancashire wickets in Gloucestershire's two meetings with them this season - more than half his entire County Championship haul of 33. |
| He produced match figures of 7-129 (3-71 and 4-58) in last month's 91-run win at Old Trafford, following that with 5-61 and 5-60 in this game for a career-best match analysis of 10-121. The last of his five second-innings wickets was also his 100th in first-class cricket. |
Resuming their second innings with a 12-run lead, the visitors progressed to 93-2 at lunch, a lead of 91, with Miles having sent back Paul Horton and Alviro Petersen in a six-over spell of 2-7 from the Ashley Down Road End.
The 20-year-old then added the scalp of visiting skipper Steven Croft, while also accounting for Ashwell Prince (43) with a sharp piece of fielding from mid-on.
After taking tea at 197-6, Jordan Clark went on to make 48 before Lancashire were bowled out.
But, despite his new-ball partner Kyle Jarvis clean bowling Tavare second ball in the first over, Michael Klinger (15) and Chris Dent (10) saw the hosts through to the close.
Gloucestershire are now in a position to beat Division Two leaders Lancashire for the second time in a month, following their 91-run win at Old Trafford in May.
Wicketkeeper Gareth Roderick was off the field following an injury to his left thumb, but head coach Richard Dawson expects him to bat if needed.
Gloucestershire paceman Craig Miles:
"I knew I had 90 going into the fixture, but never expected my first 10 in a match to take me to 100.
"Running out Ashwell Prince was a great bonus because he has been one of the leading run scorers in our division.
"Liam Norwell deserved credit for bowling a really good spell at him and he was trying to get off strike."
Lancashire batsman Ashwell Prince:
"We would have liked 50 more runs but we have enough to make it interesting.
"The most difficult thing about batting is that the bounce is becoming inconsistent, which you expect on day three going into day four.
"I took a few blows, but I'm fine. It's all part of the game."
