Bancroft masterclass eases Gloucestershire to win over Glamorgan

Cameron Bancroft hit his sixth List A century to steer Gloucestershire home

Gloucestershire v Glamorgan, MetroBank One Day Cup

Glamorgan 288-9 (50 overs): Byrom 94, Northeast 52; Van Buuren 3-33, M Taylor 3-54, Shaw 3-67

Gloucestershire 289-5 (46.4 overs): Bancroft 143*; Harris 2-45, Leonard 2-49

Gloucestershire (4 pts) won by 5 wickets

Match scorecard

A masterful 143 not out from Australian Cameron Bancroft eased Gloucestershire to a five-wicket victory over defending One Day Cup champions Glamorgan as they chased down a target of 289 with 20 balls to spare.

Gloucestershire have four wins from four to lead Group A, two points ahead of Worcestershire Rapids, while winless Glamorgan are at the foot.

Eddie Byrom made 94 off 108 balls, his best knock of the season, sharing a stand of 127 with Sam Northeast (52) to provide a platform for their 288-9 on a scorching afternoon.

Graeme van Buuren's fine spell of 3-33 kept Glamorgan in check until Dan Douthwaite blasted a quickfire 43.

Gloucestershire lost two wickets in Ned Leonard's first over but Bancroft's controlling influence, with supporting cameos from James Bracey, Ben Charlesworth and van Buuren, kept the required run-rate under control.

After Gloucestershire chose to field, Matt Taylor (3-55) bowled his first three overs for a single and the wicket of Asa Tribe, before Northeast suddenly hoisted him for six over mid-wicket and Byrom pulled a pair of sixes on his way to his first senior 50 of the campaign off 46 balls.

Their partnership rattled up 127 in 22.1 overs before van Buuren slammed the brakes on, having Northeast stumped and Kiran Carlson caught behind in his next over.

Will Smale gave Byrom useful support before the opener was well caught at deep square leg by Tom Boorman as he tried for a third six to reach three figures, having also pummelled 10 fours to put a worthwhile case for a new contract after a spell out of the first team.

With Smale falling for 26 on Matt Taylor's return, Glamorgan were stalling but Zain Ul Hassan made 22 in a stand of 54 with Douthwaite, whose typical attacking blast saw him smash four sixes.

Josh Shaw (3-67) claimed late wickets to keep the visitors under 300 with the target looking competitive but not insurmountable.

James Bracey (34) started with an assault on Zain Ul Hassan but was dropped at fine leg off the first ball from first change Leonard, only to give himself out caught by Alex Horton down the leg-side two balls later.

Leonard's over of drama on his 23rd birthday continued as Ollie Price edged his second ball to slip, Northeast parried it high in the air and Tribe took a spectacular catch diving backwards.

Ben Charlesworth's run a ball 37 continued home momentum alongside Bancroft, before he holed out off Carlson.

But Jack Taylor (8) looked unimpressed to be given out caught behind by Will Smale, who had taken over the gloves from the injured Horton, off James Harris.

Bancroft always looked liable to win the match for Gloucestershire as he glided along, making sure the boundaries flowed despite Glamorgan's frequent changes of bowling.

As the evening fell and the floodlights kicked in, the visitors were left chasing shadows as van Buuren settled in with Bancroft, who lofted Andy Gorvin for a straight six to bring up his century off exactly 100 balls.

Their stand was worth 84 by the time Harris had van Buuren lbw for 36 off 35, and 20 year old Tommy Boorman (27 not out) partnered Bancroft as the Aussie hit the winning run in the 47th over, his runs coming off just 144 balls.

Gloucestershire coach Mark Thorburn said:

"Maybe being brought up in Western Australia lends itself to Cameron being able to cope with those hot conditions!

"To manage 50 overs in the field in the hot zones, then to bat through, it's testament to his fitness, his powers of concentration, his skill, it was an awesome effort.

"It's a dream start to the competition (four from four) so I'm delighted, two batting first, two chasing so hopefully we have the confidence to win whichever way round.

"The tempo they've batted at, absorbing pressure from opposition bowling units then putting the pressure back on them has been great."

Glamorgan batter Eddie Byrom told BBC Sport Wales:

"The way Bancroft played was probably the difference between the two teams, he's a high-quality performer and he didn't give us a sniff.

"I thought 288 was probably par, we had some good partnerships especially Sam and me at the top. It was nice to get some runs and to be back playing first-team cricket which I haven't done too much of this year.

"I know I can perform at this level. I've been working hard with the coaches and trying to score my second-team runs, but it's good to have that competition at the club.

"It's been a tough start to the group but we've got to give of our best for the last four games and look to win all four, I still believe we can do that with the group we've got and there've been great learnings for the young guys."