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GLAMORGAN V MIDDLESEX | MATCH REPORT

Match report provided by the ECB Reporters Network.

Middlesex claimed a six-wicket victory over Glamorgan in their Vitality Blast match in a rain shortened contest in Cardiff.

Luke Hollman’s four wickets and runs from Leus du Plooy and Martin Andersson in a game that was reduced to 10 overs a side were enough for Middlesex to secure the win

Glamorgan lost regular wickets as they managed 88 for nine from their 10 overs and Middlesex chased that down with three balls to spare to finish on 89 for four.

Glamorgan will likely need to win all of their remaining fixtures and also hope for favourable results elsewhere if they are to progress in this competition. For Middlesex it may already be too late despite this win given that they can finish on a maximum of 13 points.

Glamorgan made 27 runs inside the opening three overs of PowerPlay with the openers Will Smale and Kiran Carlson scoring 17 of those. Smale sliced a catch to third off the bowling of Tom Cullen and Carlson became the first of Hollman’s four wickets when he was caught at long off by Tom Helm. The Glamorgan batters kept going after Hollman but they all found it very hard to time the ball. When Hollman claimed the wickets of the experienced Chris Cooke and Marnus Labuschagne within the space of four balls Glamorgan had stumbled to 51 for six.

That became 52 for seven when Ben Kellaway skied a ball off Helm and Noah Cornwall took a juggling catch at mid off. Timm van der Gugten struck some lusty blows to take Glamorgan slightly further towards a target they could defend.

As has often been the case for Glamorgan this season, Mason Crane made late order runs as he made the highest score of the home side’s innings batting at 10. His 18 not out meant that his stand with Jamie McIlroy for the 10^th wicket was the highest of the Glamorgan innings.

The opening stand of 55 for Middlesex was far higher than any that Glamorgan had managed in their 10 overs and inside the PowerPlay du Plooy and Andersson went a long way to breaking the back of the chase.

Du Plooy gave a stiff chance off the bowling of Crane when he was on 23 but Smale could not hold on to the catch at point. Crane did eventually claim du Plooy’s wicket when he trappen him LBW for 28.

Jack Davies and Andersson fell to consecutive balls to leave Middlesex with two batters who had yet to face a ball in the middle. Andersson was brilliantly caught by Carlson in the covers off Labuschagne for 30.

Those wickets gave Glamorgan some hope of squeezing out a win but a big six by Hollman of Labuschagne all but secured the win for Middlesex who needed just four runs from the last over. Things were still tense thanks to McIlroy getting Higgins but a four from Cracknell off the first ball he faced gave Middlesex the win.