Gloucestershire pair score double centuries

James Bracey and Ben Charlesworth shared a partnership of 290

Vitality County Championship, Division Two, Seat Unique Stadium, Bristol (day three)

Leicestershire 402: Holland 104, Ahmed 60, Scriven 60; Akhter 3-110 & 41-0

Gloucestershire 544-4 dec: Charlesworth 210, Bracey 207*; Green 2-99

Leicestershire (5pts) trail Gloucestershire (8pts) by 101 with 10 wickets standing

Match scorecard

Ben Charlesworth and James Bracey each scored career-best double hundreds as Gloucestershire claimed the upper hand in their County Championship match against Leicestershire.

Replying to Leicestershire's 402, Gloucestershire declared on 544-4 to establish a first-innings lead of 142.

Charlesworth top-scored with a magnificent 210, with Bracey contributing a flawless unbeaten 207 and the pair put on an imposing fourth-wicket partnership of 290.

Leicestershire reached the close on 41 without loss but still have work to do on the final day to stave off the prospect of an unlikely defeat.

Gloucestershire resumed on 227-3, with Charlesworth 105 not out and Bracey unbeaten on 34, but their prospects were frustrated by the rain that caused 21 overs to be lost and delayed the start of play until 13:30 BST.

Charlesworth surpassed his previous highest first-class score when straight-driving Rehan Ahmed for his fifth six to eclipse the 126 he made at Grace Road earlier this season.

Bracey and Charlesworth remaining untroubled as they extended their alliance to 200 in 45.4 overs.

Enjoying his best season since breaking into the England Test set-up in 2021, Bracey recorded his fourth hundred of the summer, going to that landmark from 158 balls with his 14th four, a straight drive at the expense of Tom Scriven.

The home side were already in credit when Charlesworth, whose concentration had not once wavered, drove Ahmed handsomely down the ground to register his 21st four and bring up his maiden 200.

Charlesworth's marathon sojourn came to an abrupt end soon afterwards, the left-hander driving at a length ball from Ben Green and offering a catch behind with the score on 447.

But the landmarks kept coming, Bracey going to 150 from 218 deliveries as Gloucestershire banked a fifth batting bonus point with an over to spare.

And with quick runs needed, Graeme van Buuren came in ahead of Chris Dent and fulfilled his brief by scoring a breezy 37 not out in an unbroken stand of 97 for the fifth wicket, while Bracey opened his shoulders to hasten the advent of his second double hundred of the season and bring the declaration into sharp focus.

The left-hander faced 257 balls in making 200, clipping a delivery from Josh Hull to the mid-wicket boundary for his 26th four.

By the time the declaration arrived, Bracey had surpassed his previous highest score of 204 not out made against Glamorgan at Cheltenham last month.

Report supplied by ECB Reporters' Network