A cricket match heading towards a draw often lacks excitement, especially when the last ball is being bowled. As players prepare to shake hands and head back to the shed, there may be some laughs shared when part-time bowlers take over, but what occurred during the Leicestershire and Glamorgan clash was a rare sight in red-ball cricket.
During the match, Glamorgan opener Eddie Byrom took the ball and was hit for nine runs in his first over. In the next over, Rishi Patel, who had already scored a century, was simply trying to block the ball. Byrom had positioned a first slip and a leg slip for Patel, and for the last ball, he bowled a half tracker that bounced several times before reaching Patel. Patel defended the ball on the front foot and was content that the day’s play had ended.
However, the leg slip fielder found the delivery amusing and buried his head in the field, laughing. The wicketkeeper tried to control his laughter, and even the umpire seemed unsure of what had just happened.
Leicestershire’s opener Clarke remained unbeaten on 134 runs from 213 deliveries, which included 18 fours and three sixes. He received support from skipper Lewis Hill, who scored 82 runs after Sol Budinger fell victim to Australian pacer Michael Neser. Following Colin Ackerman’s dismissal for 12, Australian wicketkeeper-batter Peter Handscomb remained unbeaten on 12 as the match ended in a draw.
On Day 1, Galmorgan’s skipper David Lloyd won the toss and elected to field first. Hill scored a half-century, while Handscomb and Rehan Ahmed’s 90s helped Leicestershire post a total of 407 runs. Timm van der Gugten was the top bowler for Glamorgan, claiming six wickets in the first innings.
In response, Byron and Marnus Labuschagne scored half-centuries, but it was Chris Cooke and Neser’s 211-run partnership for the eighth wicket that helped Glamorgan reach a total of 465. Cooke scored 132 runs, while Neser scored 90 runs. For Leicestershire, Chris Wright took five wickets.
Leicestershire’s draw places them second on the points table, and they will face Derbyshire in their next match. Meanwhile, Glamorgan is yet to win a game and is placed fifth on the points table. They will play Yorkshire in their upcoming match.
