T20 Blast: Birmingham beat Glamorgan by six wickets
- Published
Chris Cooke's 72 runs off 56 balls enabled Glamorgan to reach 140-9
T20 Blast, Glamorgan v Birmingham Bears |
|---|
Glamorgan 140-9 (20 overs): Cooke 72; Bresnan 3-33 |
Birmingham Bears 141-4 (18.5 overs): Hose 38, Hain 35* |
Birmingham (2pts) won by 6 wickets |
Birmingham Bears got their campaign off to a winning start as they beat Glamorgan by six wickets in a low-scoring affair in Cardiff.
Adam Hose began their pursuit of 141 with 38 off 22 balls, before Sam Hain (35 not out) and Michael Burgess (17 not out) took them home.
They had enough wickets in hand to manage an assured chase.
Glamorgan relied almost entirely on captain Chris Cooke (72 off 56) for their 140-9.
Former England all-rounder Tim Bresnan claimed 3-33 on his limited-overs debut for the Bears, while rookie Jake Lintott, 27, bowled tightly for 1-13 in four overs on his club debut.
Cooke received no consistent support, with Dan Douthwaite's 15 the only other score in double figures.
The Bears, who benefitted from several dropped chances, were only kept in check by Prem Sisodiya with 1-22 in his four overs, while Graham Wagg was unable to bowl after falling awkwardly and suffering a hip injury in trying to take a catch.
Glamorgan captain Chris Cooke told BBC Sport Wales:
"Disappointed with that, we were 20 runs short and didn't bat well at all, though we showed a lot of character with the ball and in the field to run them so close.
"Having a bowler down (Wagg) we showed a lot of fight but we still didn't play very well, even though we almost came away with the win.
"Part of our plan is to try to get 10 to 15 runs in a partnership then try to go up a gear, but every time we went up a gear we lost a wicket. So it's about assessing the risks.
"I'm feeling good with the bat myself and it's nice when the games come round so quickly."
Birmingham debutant spinner Jake Lintott, also a cricket teacher, told BBC CWR:
"It was good fun, it's been a long old time coming after I got involved with the Bears last year playing in the second XI. So after the difficulties we've had, nice to get out there and enjoy my cricket again.
"It's an exceptionally talented squad, so to get the nod was really pleasing as it's almost surreal looking around the names in the dressing room.
"The ball came out nicely, I tried to bowl hard into the wicket with a bit of spin both ways and be unpredictable.
"The school (Queens, Taunton) have been brilliant to me and given me their full backing. I'm looking forward to seeing my pupils on Thursday for some training and they're looking forward to playing some cricket."