Gidman 99 revives Gloucestershire

Gloucestershire 314 for 6 v Leicestershire
Scorecard

Alex Gidman fell one short of a century as Gloucestershire's batsmen finally found some form in their County Championship Second Division match with Leicestershire at the County Ground in Bristol.

The captain Gidman led from the front as he found the boundary on 10 occasions on his way to 99 before Leicestershire skipper Matthew Hoggard had him caught by Andrew Harris. Gloucestershire finished the day on 314 for 6, which had looked beyond them after Gidman lost the toss and quickly saw his slide slump to 8 for 2.

But Gidman shared a fourth-wicket stand of 138 with Hamish Marshall (86) after Chris Dent's 34 had helped overcome the early setbacks. Hoggard must have hoped for better, having put Gloucestershire in on a green looking pitch, although he would have been happy with his own return of 3 for 49.

A combined total of 43 wickets had fallen on the first days of Gloucestershire's previous two Championship games at Bristol, both of which ended in defeat, and neither yielding a single batting point to either team. But they went into this game heartened by successive away victories over Middlesex and Surrey and despite the early loss of openers Will Porterfield and Jonathan Batty hey showed resolve to fight back.

Both openers fell in Hoggard's opening six-over spell of 2 for 10. Will Jefferson took a juggling catch at second slip to send back Porterfield for a duck and Batty was lbw pushing forward, having made 6.

England Under-19 player Dent has been used to walking out with his team in a state of adversity this season and not for the first time he showed a good temperament to add 66 for the third wicket with Marshall. His 64-ball innings featured five fours and meant the new ball had been seen off by the time he fell lbw on the back foot to Claude Henderson in the slow left-armer's second over.

It was 82 for 3 at lunch and the afternoon session saw Marshall reach his half-century off 101 balls, with eight fours, and Gidman follow suit from 91 deliveries, with seven boundaries. Marshall made only one century in a disappointing campaign last summer so he had every right to feel frustrated when playing down the wrong line to Harris and departing lbw when looking set for three figures.

Gidman was on 74 when tea was taken at 212 for 4. But, having played with great fluency and punishing anything dropped short, he began to look more sketchy as he approached his hundred. Hoggard may have sensed that as he took the second new ball. He pitched the second delivery with it short and Gidman top-edged a pull shot to Harris, who took a good tumbling catch running in from fine leg.

The crestfallen Gidman had faced 183 balls and hit 10 fours. But his good work didn't go to waste as Taylor accelerated towards a half-century off 90 balls, with nine fours before gloving a leg-side catch to wicketkeeper Tom New off Nathan Buck.