County Championship: Gloucestershire v Leicestershire hit by bad weather in Bristol

Gloucestershire opener Chris Dent hit six boundaries before losing his wicket on day one in Bristol

Only 36 overs were possible on the opening day of the County Championship game between Gloucestershire and Leicestershire at Bristol.

Heavily overcast skies greeted the players and there was always the threat of a downpour until a curtailed final session.

Rain caused two long stoppages after Gloucestershire had won the toss and elected to bat.

By the close, they had posted 108-3, Ollie Price unbeaten on 26.

Openers Chris Dent (29) and Ben Charlesworth (21) failed to cash in on positive starts as Chris Wright, Tom Scriven and Callum Parkinson picked up wickets late on.

What little play was possible before lunch meant 11.2 overs were bowled and the home side progressed with few alarms to 38-0.

Dent took a heavy toll on Leicestershire's teenage left-arm seamer Josh Hull, who was withdrawn from the attack having bowled the opening two overs from the Pavilion End at a cost of 22 runs.

Five times Dent rocked on to the back foot to dispatch short-of-a-length deliveries from Hull through the off side for boundaries.

Wright bowled a much tighter line and length from the Ashley Down Road End, but lacked penetration on a typically docile Bristol pitch.

Scriven was introduced for the fifth over of the game. He also made the batsmen work for their runs but Charlesworth, who has been in good form in the Championship and Vitality Blast, confidently helped Dent launch the Gloucestershire innings.

At 36-0, Leicestershire introduced spin in the shape of left-armer Parkinson, but he had sent down only two deliveries for two runs when rain forced the first stoppage at 12:45 BST.

Lunch was taken at the normal time and after two inspections umpires Paul Baldwin and Graham Lloyd decided play could restart at 14:45 BST.

With his score on 25, Dent edged Wright just short of Colin Ackermann at second slip. It was the nearest Leicestershire had come to a wicket and seven had been added to the total when the rain returned with Gloucestershire 45-0 off 14.4 overs.

Tea was taken at 15:10 BST. Light rain persisted and by the time the covers were removed for a further inspection, the umpires ordered a 17:15 BST resumption with 21.2 overs to be bowled.

They were delivered in the brightest conditions of the day. Charlesworth brought up the fifty with a four through the leg side off Hull before Wright made a much-needed breakthrough.

A ball that nipped back off the seam trapped Dent, on 29, in front of his stumps without getting forward and earned a merited lbw verdict with the total on 55.

Parkinson turned one past the outside edge of Ollie Price's bat before Leicestershire struck again, Charlesworth carelessly offering a catch to Hull at square leg, playing a ball from Scriven off his hip, and departing for 21.

Leicestershire could reflect that, Hull's early profligacy with the new ball apart, they had given little away. It was 83-3 when left-hander Miles Hammond fell for a duck, driving loosely at a wide ball from Parkinson that turned and hit his off stump.

With the light closing in, Leicestershire opted for spin at both ends, Rehan Ahmed sending down some leg-breaks from the Ashley Down Road End, in tandem with Parkinson.

Report supplied by ECB Reporters' Network.