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Not many expect much from the unheralded Central Districts, which puts them in perfect position to hurt a bigger team, especially one like Chennai, which tends to start slowly

The Preview by Sriram Veera in Durban10-Sep-2010

Match facts

Saturday, September 11
Start time 17.30 (15.30 GMT)Matthew Hayden had a poor IPL and will need to lift his game in the Champions League•Indian Premier League

Big Picture

This is just the second Champions League Twenty20 but it’s already built a strong perception: that the IPL teams are at a disadvantage because they are just mercenaries, ronins who assemble for two months a year. The real “teams” like Warriors or South Australia know each other better and gel with each other so well that they hold the edge. This second edition could make or break that cliché.Stephen Fleming, Chennai Super Kings’ coach, is slightly nervous, since he too believes in that perception. Or so he says. “It’s a big challenge for the IPL teams. They [teams like Central Districts] hold the advantage. They play a lot of cricket together. We just come together for two months in a year. We have used this week [of preparation] to get up to the speed. The best catalyst for that will be a win tomorrow. If things don’t go well we have to work very hard to get back into the competition. Tomorrow is a very important day.”It certainly is as Chennai have been slow starters in the last two editions of the IPL. Fleming says he is desperate to change that bad habit. In a short competition like this, and especially against a relatively weaker team like Central Districts, you can’t get off to a bad start.There are a few other concerns. Some haven’t played much competitive cricket. “Some players like Matthew Hayden are coming out of the cold,” Fleming said. “So you work harder with them but they are experienced. If you push too hard you are making too much of an issue of it. On one hand we are trying to be relaxed about what we need to do but as a coaching group you are bit nervous as you want to do a bit more.”Not that their opponent Central Districts are riding a wave of confidence. Inclement weather hampered their preparations back home. They just have managed a week of proper practice, according to their new coach Alan Hunt. The injuries to Jacob Oram and Graham Napier, and the loss of Ross Taylor to Bangalore Royal Challengers have been huge setbacks.Their strength is their mystery, their unknown quality. Even Fleming, a New Zealander, hasn’t seen many of their youngsters. Not that Hunt is expecting any miracles from his young team. He sees this tournament as an opportunity for his boys get used to playing at this level, learn from the exposure, and go back home as a better team and better professionals. “If we can do that, I would be happy.” Not many expect much from them. It puts them in perfect position to hurt a bigger team by an upset win.

Pitch and conditions

The pitches in the practice games have done quite a bit. The ball has swung and seamed around. Fleming called it “tricky”. The locals reckon 150 should be a good score. It has been drizzling in the late evenings for the past few days though the sun came out strongly today to revive batsmen’s hopes. Only time will tell how the pitch will behave.

Watch out for…

Michael Hussey is not the first name that springs to mind when you think of Twenty20. The Durban pitch could well put his talents at a premium. The ball is expected to seam and swing around. Hussey’s compact batsmanship could help hold Chennai together. If he stays in for a few overs he can prove to be a terrific finisher.Adam Milne, the 18-year-old lanky medium-fast bowler, grabbed four wickets in his debut first-class game last season after received a surprise call-up the night before. He has just played three first-class games. He doesn’t have any Twenty20 or any List A experience at the domestic level. His coach Hunt, though, reckons he could be the most potent young talent in this team.

Key contests

Matthew Hayden v Milne Hayden is known for his ruthlessness. He is known for taking apart colts and Milne is definitely the new kid in the block. Hayden sees such inexperience as an invitation to impose himself, to showcase his imperious nature. The contest could reveal Milne’s character.

Stats and trivia

• Matthew Hayden didn’t shine in the last IPL. Despite a score of 93 in one game, he only averaged 21. Six other Chennai players had better averages than him. That innings of 93, though, came in just 43 balls with seven sixes and nine fours.

Quotes

“They [Central Districts] have some youngsters even I don’t know about. They ware bit of unknown quantity but they have a great attitude and fight for everything. It will be a tricky start for us to the competition.”
Stephen Fleming is wary of his countrymen
“We are used to not having Jacob Oram around. We might not have the big stars but we have couple of young guys people don’t know much. Some might call us underdogs; I expect the crowds to get behind us”

Players will wear black armbands in all three upcoming Sheffield Shield games while Hughes will also be remembered during the second Test

AAP22-Nov-2024Cricket Australia will fly flags at half-mast and black armbands will return to players’ uniforms as the sport prepares to mark the 10-year anniversary of Phillip Hughes’ death.Saturday’s Sheffield Shield round will begin two weeks of commemorations for Hughes, whose life was tragically cut short days before his 26th birthday in 2014.Officials have adopted a uniform approach across the board, with Hughes’ former team South Australia to face Western Australia in Adelaide from Saturday.Hughes’ childhood team New South Wales will also host Tasmania at the SCG from Sunday, while Queensland and Victoria play at the Gabba.Players will wear black armbands in all three games, while a moment’s silence will also be observed before play on day four of all matches.For the Sydney and Brisbane matches, Wednesday’s final day of play will coincide with the 10-year anniversary of Hughes’ death on November 27, 2014.Officials have opted to use the Adelaide Test between Australia and India as the best time to celebrate Hughes with the national team, while sharing their plans with his family.His passing will be marked when that match begins on December 6, almost 10 years to the day since Test cricket resumed in Australia after Hughes’ death. CA has filmed a documentary in conjunction with Hughes’ family to mark the occasion, which will be broadcast before play in that Test.Many column inches have also already been dedicated to the opener, who played 26 Tests for Australia and was earmarked as a long-term fixture in the side.”We understand this will be a time of reflection for the many people who knew and admired Phillip Hughes,” Cricket Australia CEO Nick Hockley said. “We wanted to ensure that the Hughes family, particularly, were comfortable with any commemorations and that we celebrate Phillip’s life and incredible achievements appropriately.”Hughes’ death two days after he was struck in the neck by a ball at the SCG in 2014 remains one of the most difficult periods in cricket history. The Macksville junior was one of the most popular members of the national team, and remains close to the heart of several Australian players.Off the field, his legacy remains strong, with Hughes’ family still involved in his angus cattle farm Four 0 Eight on the NSW north coast.Cricket initially found itself at a loss of how to play on, with Hughes having been set to bat his way back into the Australian team when not out on 63 at the SCG.He was posthumously named as Australia’s 13th man for the rejigged first Test in Adelaide, where 63 seconds of applause were observed before play.

The PCB, hosts for the tournament, agreed to the decision reluctantly after the ACC sent out a message to stakeholders without consulting the PCB

Andrew Fidel Fernando05-Sep-2023The PCB has reluctantly agreed to have the last five matches of the ongoing Asia Cup played in Colombo, as scheduled. This is despite the Pakistan board having strongly objected to the games staying in Colombo and not moving to Hambantota, as well as the manner in which the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) made that decision.The PCB had been on board with plans to move the Colombo matches to Hambantota, on account of rains being forecast in Colombo during the next ten days – this information is understood to have been provided by Sri Lanka’s department of meteorology. On Monday evening, and on Tuesday morning, the ACC appeared to be working on the understanding that the games would shift to Hambantota.But suddenly, around midday on Tuesday, the ACC sent a mail to the stakeholders stating that the matches would be played in Colombo as originally scheduled. This incensed the PCB officials, who not only would have preferred the matches to have been played in Hambantota but were also alarmed that the ACC had made this decision unilaterally, without adequately consulting them, the hosts of the tournament.In response, the PCB called for an immediate ACC executive board meeting, and has also sent a letter to ACC president Jay Shah, protesting the decision-making process at the ACC. But beyond pulling out of the tournament, there is little the PCB can do now. While deeply troubled by the events of Tuesday, the PCB appears unlikely to take a drastic step.On Tuesday afternoon, Shah himself made a statement as ACC president, which addressed the matter of the tournament’s scheduling.”All the full members, media rights holder, and in-stadia rights holders were initially hesitant to commit to hosting the entire tournament in Pakistan,” Shah said in this statement. “This reluctance stemmed from concerns related to the security and economic situation prevailing in the country.”However, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka have visited Pakistan for bilateral tours since 2019, and have also played matches there in the group stage of the ongoing Asia Cup. Neither team has publicly expressed a reluctance to play there, nor have their boards expressed a reluctance to send teams to Pakistan. In fact, two BCCI officials – board president Roger Binny and vice-president Rajeev Shukla – have visited Lahore over the past two days, and were hosted by the governor of (Pakistani) Punjab.The background to all of this is that the PCB had originally wanted the whole tournament to be played in Pakistan, but the BCCI refused on the basis that their government would not allow the team to travel to Pakistan. Much of the tournament was then shifted to Sri Lanka.This seemed a workable compromise, until the Pakistan vs India match in Pallekele was rained out on Saturday, prompting fears that the whole tournament would be severely affected by the weather.BCCI president Roger Binny and vice-president Rajeev Shukla flank PCB chairman Zaka Ashraf during their visit to Lahore•PCB

In any case, the SLC is pleased the tournament will stay in Colombo, and has always preferred the tournament to be played there, as it is logistically the easiest city in which to host a multi-team tournament. SLC chief executive Ashley de Silva told ESPNcricinfo on Tuesday that one of the reasons the ACC decided to keep the games in Colombo was because “a lot of fans had already made arrangements to watch the matches in Colombo” and because “the last few days it hasn’t been raining as much” in the city.He also cited Sri Lanka’s largely successful history with hosting ODIs. In the last ten years, 79 of the 84 men’s ODIs played in the country have been completed. Of the five abandoned matches, Saturday’s game was the only match to be abandoned in the month of September, which historically is not an especially wet month.

Jay Shah points to ‘several changes’ in PCB for confusion

In his statement, Shah also said, “In my capacity as ACC President, I was committed to finding a viable and mutually agreeable solution. To this end, I had accepted the hybrid model that was proposed by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) in collaboration with the ACC management. However, it’s important to note that the leadership of the PCB underwent several changes, and this resulted in some back-and-forth negotiations, particularly regarding crucial aspects such as tax exemption and insurance for matches.”In response to initial PCB suggestions that the tournament be played in Pakistan and the UAE – aired again in recent days given the weather in Sri Lanka – Shah said there was a difference between playing 20-over games and 50-over games in the UAE in September.”The Asia Cup 2022 edition was played in the UAE in the T20 format. It’s important to emphasize that the dynamics of a T20 tournament cannot be directly compared to those of a 100-over One-day format. In this context, ACC members received feedback from their respective high-performance teams, expressing concerns about playing One-day matches in the UAE in the month of September. Such a schedule could have potentially led to player fatigue and an increased risk of injuries, particularly right before the all-important ICC Cricket World Cup.”The decision-making process regarding the Asia Cup 2023 format and venue was guided by a sincere desire to prioritise the well-being of the players, as well as the overarching interests of the sport. Ultimately, the goal was to strike a balance that would allow for a competitive and successful tournament while ensuring the health and readiness of the participating teams for ICC Cricket World Cup 2023.”

Gripping two-wicket victory at Ageas Bowl keeps Hampshire firmly in the hunt

David Hopps15-Jun-2022Hampshire 410 (Brown 83, Dawson 61, Gubbins 58) and 198 for 8 (Dawson 67, Gubbins 42) beat Yorkshire 428 (Hill 131, Brook 76, Bess 51*, Wheal 4-59) and 178 (Wheal 3-32, Barker 3-48, Abbott 3-50) by two wicketsFor Yorkshire’s Championship challenge to have lasted so long in this troubled season is something of an achievement, but realistically it ended at the Ageas Bowl, shortly before six o’clock on the final day, when Hampshire took a two-wicket win from a gripping final day.Hampshire are a resilient bunch, and deserve better than the dismal Championship crowds often seen at the ground. Their pursuit of 198 in 59 overs was wracked with uncertainty, but Nick Gubbins and Liam Dawson summoned the enterprising innings required to secure their fifth win in seven with more than 18 overs still to bowl.Yorkshire can be forgiven for feeling disorientated this season. A new management team, defined by its necessary commitment to diversity as well as the need to promote cricketing success, must now defend the county against ECB charges of breaching anti-racism rules. They must do so even though they are uncomfortable with defending the indefensible and, in any case, those involved at the time under scrutiny probably won’t want to talk to them anyway. Yorkshire are likely to just point to their plans for a better future and otherwise take the hit.Add to that, David Willey has had a pop about the politics on the day it was confirmed he will return to Northants next season on a four-year contract, quite a gesture of faith at 32. For him to suggest that Yorkshire are putting cricket second to repairing their reputation sounded unfair to the coaching staff who have done much to rebuild morale in difficult times and who entrusted him with the T20 captaincy, even though he didn’t get back to England from the IPL until May 30. Nevertheless, it will find favour in much of the dressing room among many young pros whose priority is simply to play cricket and who prefer others to consider the bigger picture and resolve differences as fast as possible.Somehow, amid all the noises off, Yorkshire have been mounting a Championship challenge that few expected. At least they think they have been, because if they are docked points after the end of the season, once the ECB disciplinary commission determines its verdict, they might actually be fighting against relegation.The Championship contenders are now realistically reduced to three – all of them winners in this round. Hampshire remain within three points of the leaders, Surrey, with Lancashire a further 16 points back in third. Yorkshire drop to fourth.After victory in their opening match of the season, and five successive draws that have revealed the limitations of their bowling attack, Yorkshire finally experienced defeat. Their faith that they could force victory appeared to waver once the off-spinner, Dom Bess, who briefly appeared to be a potential matchwinner, was driven from the attack by Dawson, whose 67 from 68 balls rescued Hampshire from 103 for 6.Dawson might have played on against Steve Patterson on 14, but he took the target below 50 when he drove Bess for six over long-on and, one bounce, into the hotel, then swept him for four next ball. In Bess’ defence, nobody knew better than Dawson that this final-day pitch, as scruffy as it looked, would not easily bestow its favours upon slow bowlers: Dawson himself had been wicketless in Yorkshire’s second innings. This surface produced an excellent match but, just for once, it would be nice to see a surface, somehow, somewhere, break up for the spinners.”I feel like I’ve been in decent form all year without big scores and I’m really happy with that innings,” Dawson said. “I was in a bit of a daze, just watching the ball and reacting to it and luckily it paid off. It’s a brilliant comeback and it shows the character in the group. It is probably one of the best wins I’ve been involved in with Hampshire in four-day cricket.”Yorkshire’s spirit was equally evident as, five-down overnight with a vulnerable lead of 128, they survived the loss of three wickets in the first 20 minutes to stretch their second innings into the afternoon thanks to the defiance of Matthew Revis and Dominic Drakes which burned overs and added runs. A target of 198 left the match perfectly balanced.Considering that Hampshire are pushing so strongly for the Championship, their opening partnership of Felix Organ and Ian Holland fails to convince. Whether you consider their Championship averages this season, or over their career, the mid-20s is as high as it gets. In some ways, they might be representative of the shortage of quality opening batters across the entire professional circuit.In the first innings, they were two-down for 12; on this occasion, two down for 23. Jordan Thompson, who did not set the tone with his first two balls, stiff-limbed efforts which Organ cut to the boundary, perked up to remove them both. Organ edged to third slip and Holland played around his front pad to be lbw.Gubbins, though, has been at a more elevated level since his move from Middlesex. His run-a-ball 42 promised to ease Hampshire’s chase. Revis’ introduction as first change backfired as two overs leaked 18, Gubbins pulling him for six and four in successive balls.Patterson restored order. That’s what Patterson does. You could imagine him calling Give Order like an MC at an old-style working men’s club, his common-sense cutting through the stale cigarette smoke. This season of all seasons, with players understandably unsettled over what the future holds, his attributes have been invaluable.He had Gubbins lbw, striking him low on the thigh as he tried to sweep. James Vince then feathered Bess behind six balls later. Hampshire still 117 runs away from the target. When Lyth plucked out a slip catch above his head as Ben Brown lay back to cut Bess, and Patterson bowled Aneurin Donald through the gate, Yorkshire were favourites.Dawson then cut loose, supported by Keith Barker who looked solid enough apart from on the pull. Two lobbed tauntingly over slips, Patterson and Thompson despairing, before a third pull, against Drakes, gave Harry Duke a catch down the leg side as Barker tried to move his hefty frame inside the line of the ball.With seven down and 27 needed, Dawson was grateful for a couple of Thompson half-volleys. Revis had him caught, hooking, at long leg with the runs required down to eight, but a driven boundary by Kyle Abbott and, lo and behold, a ramp over the slips by James Fuller took Hampshire home.”The difference in the end is the experience in their team,” said Ottis Gibson, Yorkshire’s coach, who is squeezing everything he can out of this Yorkshire attack.Yorkshire were left with a long journey north. A quick update on the politics and then headphones in, trying to block out the noise, the only sensible way to survive the season.

Mohammed has captained West Indies in similar circumstances before, when a number of players pulled out of touring Pakistan

Mohammad Isam14-Jan-2021Jason Mohammed has said that his comeback into the West Indies team after more than two years, with the added bonus of being named the ODI captain, is his opportunity to get his place back when the main players are back. Mohammed last played when Bangladesh toured West Indies in August 2018 but his return was made possible after several of their top players pulled out of this tour.”I have been out for two years now,” Mohammed said. “I have a role in leading the team but personally I look forward to the challenge. It is a good opportunity for me to have a good series, and put my hands up for when the full strength team is back, so I can really get my place back in that team.”It won’t be difficult to motivate myself. I want to be playing international cricket. It is a huge role being the leader of the Caribbean team. There’s no added pressure because playing as a captain is something I have been accustomed to doing. I just want to enjoy the series and turn around the stats (against Bangladesh).”Mohammed has captained West Indies in four matches: an ODI against England in 2017 and in three T20Is during their 2018 Pakistan tour. This is a slightly similar circumstance where top players pulled out and the CWI went for Mohammed to lead the side. Still, he said it’s a proud moment.”This is the second time that I am captaining (a full series). I am quite happy to do it. It is a great opportunity for me personally to lead the West Indies team. It is a great honour and achievement for myself.”Growing up you always want to play for the West Indies but leading the Caribbean team, it is a great feeling. Sometimes things come in different ways. I just have to grab this opportunity and make the best use of it, and lead the team to the best of my ability,” he said.What is of real concern though, particularly for Mohammed, is the lack of match practice in recent months. His last competitive match was back in March in the domestic four-day competition, having not played in the CPL too. So most of his focus remains on the next week or so, when he will have to get back into rhythm through practice sessions and a warm-up game on January 18.”I haven’t played a game for couple of months. We have been doing some practice with the T&T senior team. The couple of days here will be very important for preparation. I want to hit as many balls as I can, find the middle of the bat as soon as possible, and look forward to enjoy three good games of the series,” he said.Mohammed would also have to pick a playing XI from a squad of several uncapped cricketers. West Indies are also taking on a Bangladesh side that includes four of their most experienced cricketers, including the returning Shakib Al Hasan.”Inexperience or not, it is always difficult to pick your final XI. Obviously the coach and myself and the other staff have to take the decision to put the best team in the park, which is ideal for the condition. It is going to be difficult selecting the XI for the first time. There are a lot of good exciting talent within the group. There aren’t a lot of senior guys in the team. There’s a lot of youngsters in the team. My job will be to try to make them as calm and relaxed as possible. I want to try to guide the young bowlers as best possible in the field. I think everyone understands their game well at this level. I have to make sure they execute the plans,” he said.Mohammed said that a bit of help from the inspirational Clive Lloyd also geed hem up. “It is coming from one of our greats. Obviously those are the sort of thing you want to hear. There’s a lot of negative talk going around. When you hear someone like Clive Lloyd, he puts a great belief within you. With a World Cup coming up, it is an opportunity for all of us to try to put our hands up, firstly to get in the original team, when the full squad is back. We have a chance to go into the World Cup. It has inspired the team, and hopefully we can back his wisdom.”

Test captain says promoting Mushfiqur Rahim in the batting order is an option

Mohammad Isam in Indore16-Nov-2019Bangladesh captain Mominul Haque is pleased that his side is getting to play more Test matches courtesy the World Test Championship (WTC).Bangladesh are slated to play Pakistan, Australia, Sri Lanka and New Zealand next year as part of the 2019-2021 cycle, and a Test each against Zimbabwe and Ireland outside of it.It is a jump from the number of Test matches that they were previously playing, which had prompted many complaints from administrators, players and coaches about the long gaps between fixtures. Mominul, who is treated as a Test specialist and therefore has to deal with long breaks between international games, said that the gulf between Bangladesh and India in the longest format was mainly a result of the difference in the number of matches the two teams play.”We are happy,” Mominul said after Bangladesh’s innings defeat in Indore. “The WTC is a huge opportunity for those who play Tests. It is a huge competition. If the ICC didn’t arrange this competition, we wouldn’t get many Tests. It will be better for everyone.”We have to play a lot of Test matches. If you see in the last seven months, we have played only two Tests. We don’t play Tests like other teams. I think it is the main difference [between the two sides].”Pressed for answers about Bangladesh’s defeat in Indore, where their batsmen wilted under the pressure exerted by the “No. 1 bowling attack in the world”, Mominul said that the opening batsmen could have made life a little easier for the rest of the line-up had they played out the first hour.”The bowling attack was challenging. It would be easier for the rest of the batting line-up if the openers played out the first 15 to 20 overs,” he said. “India have a threatening attack, but we also failed as a batting unit. They are the No. 1 bowling attack in the world. We couldn’t latch on to our chances also.”Mominul also said that they were considering promoting Mushfiqur Rahim in the batting order, after his scores of 43 and 64 in this game. “Promoting Mushfiqur would be a positive sign, if the team management decides to. I think we can have that line of thinking.”

The India vice-captain feels his side has not done much wrong in this Test series, but the hosts have just been better

Nagraj Gollapudi at The Oval06-Sep-20181:19

England played better cricket in crucial sessions – Rahane

Patience, focus, consistency, winning minor duels in a session and then winning multiple sessions – these are the things India have not been able to master and England have. And that is reason England have won the Pataudi Trophy 3-1 against the No. 1 Test team. This is how India vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane sums up events in the series thus far. India have done “nothing wrong”, he feels, but England have just been “better”.Rahane, whose resolute second-innings half-century was one of the few highlights of the Indian batting in the Southampton defeat, said India just have to persevere in the final match of the series, which also happens to be his 50th Test. “In Test cricket you have to win each and every session,” Rahane said. “You look to win each and every session. I don’t think we did anything wrong, but England played better cricket. They were consistent in their bowling, they bowled with patience.”Rahane admitted that the Indian batsmen, despite being an experienced unit, “fell short”, failing to back up the hard work of the fast bowlers who dominated England virtually all through the first four Tests. In the high-pressure passages, he said, England consistently came out on top. “When you travel abroad, every session you have to give 100%. Many times there are tough moments. In those tough moments, how you capitalise and how you capture them is very important. In my opinion England did that very nicely. When they were in a tough situation, the way their Nos. 7, 8, 9 batted, their contributions were very important. Even their bowling, even though we were batting well, they showed patience in their bowling. That is the only reason they are 3-1.”Rahane has been one of India’s best overseas batsmen, but on this tour he has failed to convert starts despite watchful beginnings. He has only two half-centuries in eight innings and is the third-best Indian batsman in terms of runs scored (220) behind Kohli (544) and Cheteshwar Pujara (241). Kohli has scored more than twice the runs of any other batsman across both teams.Rahane said Kohli entered the series with everyone talking about his nightmarish tour of England in 2014, when he struggled to put bat on ball and was exposed by James Anderson. Rahane said the reason Kohli has succeeded was because he kept his focus on the ball and nothing else, something he and the other India batsmen can only learn from. “As far as Virat’s batting is concerned, the way he conducted himself, the way he showed the consistency… There were a lot of people talking about him, whether he would perform in England or not, but in my opinion his focus was solely on playing cricket and he did not pay attention to anything else.”We all should learn from him, about how your focus should be on what you need to pay attention to. As a team-mate and as our captain, we have a lot to learn from him and we have learned a lot from him.”

Jack Taylor’s hundred was the latest stitch in a Cheltenham tapestry of Hammond, Zaheer and many more

Paul Edwards at Cheltenham09-Jul-2017Gloucestershire 343 for 8 (Taylor 118*, Dent 65, Mustard 50; Barnard 4-67) vs Worcestershire
ScorecardJack Taylor’s hundred added to Cheltenham’s history•Getty Images

There are grounds of which hardly a stick remains from three decades ago; then there is Cheltenham which, from most angles, looks much as it did when Wally Hammond cover-drove his path to glory and that wily Bolshevik Charlie Parker spun teams to perdition in summers from silent films.Perhaps that is one reason people return to the festival and the fortnight remains profitable. While Jack Taylor was making a fine unbeaten hundred, people enjoyed a glass under the limes, much as they did when Zaheer Abbas was wristing the ball to the marquees. At few grounds does immediacy give way so gracefully to timelessness; at fewer still is cricket as much the context as the centrepiece.Yet if you forget the immediacy, you are prey to nostalgia and the preservation of the past in aspic. So let us record that on an afternoon of woolsack clouds Taylor did his best to blunt Worcestershire’s hope of promotion with a century which contained some thunderous cracks towards the many tents as well as rather quieter periods when he was respecting and reassessing the bowling.The pivotal ball of the day was bowled by Josh Tongue in the 49th over when Taylor looked to play to leg but only edged a two-handed chance straight to third slip where Joe Clarke dropped the catch. The reprieved batsman had made 16 and he celebrated his fortune by taking two fours and a straight six off George Rhodes’ next over. Most of the crowd relaxed into their enjoyment and the hills towards Winchcombe were tinged with blue and rich in memories.Taylor’s measured assault on Joe Leach’s attack seemed only distantly connected to a first session in which Gloucestershire had lost four wickets for 87 runs in 30 overs. So keen had been the spectators’ anticipation of collapse that they were hustling like poolside Germans for the best seats at the College Ground this morning and one could see their point. After all, 25 wickets had fallen on the first day of the match against Glamorgan, and when Cameron Bancroft was leg before, barely playing a shot to Joe Leach’s first ball of the match, we readied ourselves for something similar.And readied ourselves to no good purpose as things turned out. The pitch had little to do with last week’s processions and this wicket was true enough to allow Will Tavaré to drive John Hastings to cover point in the second over before picking his next ball up for six over square leg, the ball thudding into the aptly-named Optimum hoarding.Worcestershire’s next three wickets could all be explained by bowlers’ merit or the batsmen’s errors. Tavaré pushed forward at Leach but only nicked a low catch to Ben Cox behind the wicket; Gareth Roderick skied an ill-judged pull off Ed Barnard to John Hastings in the gully; and Graeme van Buuren effected a quite horrid poke outside the off stump which merely gave the off-spinner Rhodes a wicket and Cox another victim.That left Gloucestershire on 85 for 4 a few minutes before lunch with the majority of those runs having come from Chris Dent, whose frequent cover-driving rattled the advertising boards in front of the marquees sponsored by Old Patesians and Charlton Kings Club. The inhabitants of both refuges toasted Dent’s strokes with their morning sharpeners.The middle session of the day was dominated by Gloucestershire’s batsmen. Dent reached his fifty with a single off Brett D’Oliveira and Phil Mustard celebrated the achievement later in the over by pulling an outrageous long hop to the Members’ Marquee. But the pair’s brief restorative partnership ended when Dent was leg before to Barnard for 65, the ball cutting in off the pitch and the batsman walking before Russell Evans gave his decision.Three further wickets were to fall but none of them affected the fresh momentum of the innings. Mustard was content to support Taylor and took 125 balls over his half-century before being bowled through the gate when driving loosely at Barnard, whose four wickets accurately reflected his value to Leach’s attack. Tongue, on the other hand, had two chances dropped and was ill-served by figures of 1 for 61. There was, though, never a time when all bowlers came alike to Gloucestershire’s batsmen.Tongue’s labours finally received some sort of reward when Kieran Noema-Barnett could only glove a well-pitched short ball to Cox but the evening session was further enlivened by an 89-run stand for the eighth between Taylor and Craig Miles. The latter looked a candidate to be caught at short leg at any moment but he included a pulled six off Hastings in his 39 runs.The new ball was taken by Leach and frequently dispatched by Taylor, who reached his 122-ball century with a straight drive off the Worcestershire skipper which was as fine as anything we saw all day. The excellent Cox took his fourth catch to remove Miles and give Barnard another wicket yet David Payne kept Taylor company until close of play by which time the mood of the crowd had changed utterly from their morning apprehension.The day ended, as have hundreds at this precious festival, with the players being welcomed back into the broad shadow of the pavilion. Taylor led them, of course, on an evening when his first century of the season had set up a match Worcestershire must seek to win. Yet there were better reasons than even achievement and anticipation to make one feel at peace with the world this Sunday evening. If the sight of a swallow curving towards Cleeve Hill and the soaring glories of Prothero’s chapel do not lift our spirits, there is something wrong with us.