Ethan Brookes scored a patient 66 and masterminded an influential 116-run partnership alongside Matthew Waite that kept Worcestershire’s hopes of victory alive against Gloucestershire, with an intriguing final day at New Road in store.
A first half-century of the season couldn’t have come at a better time for the Pears, as the all-rounder showed composure to dovetail with Waite (63) and help Worcestershire establish a first-innings lead of 99 runs on an attritional day.
Beyers Swanepoel struck early in Gloucestershire’s reply after a superb catch by Brookes at slip, but on another day where bat neutralised ball, the visitors closed 59-1.
The home side will return on the final morning eager for some early wickets if they are to drive the game forward and secure a vital third Rothesay County Championship win of the season.
Ben Allison and Ethan Brookes strode to the middle on the third morning at New Road, keen to build their partnership that saw Worcestershire trailing Gloucestershire by 79 runs, with five first innings wickets in hand.
The tranquil start to the day’s play on Sunday came to an unceremonious end after just five overs, however, when Allison edged a drive behind to Cameron Bancroft at first slip on three, with spinner Graeme van Buuren giving the home side an early headache.
Brookes batted in mature fashion, rotating the strike with new man Matthew Waite as the Pears slowly chipped away at the lead.
As scoring proved challenging on a pitch that assisted spin, Brookes assumed a holding role for his side, whilst new man Waite latched onto any scoring opportunities in a more offensive start to his innings, helping Worcestershire beyond 250 shortly after midday.
Brookes’s patience earned the all-rounder some luck, as he inside-edged a ball down to fine leg for four from a Daz Ahmed ball that went on with the arm, registering Worcestershire’s third boundary of the morning.
A more dismissive pull shot through midwicket from the 24-year-old saw the pair register their fifty partnership for the seventh wicket, as Brookes showed his attacking capabilities with a flurry of boundaries through the legside.
There was time for the Pears to take the lead in the match before lunch, with Brookes (46*) easing one off his pads to steer his side through to the interval 290-6 after a profitable morning session saw him and partner Waite (37*) edge Worcestershire in-front.
The milestones kept coming after the resumption, with Brookes registering his first fifty of the summer courtesy of a classy back-foot punch through cover, with his 175-ball stay at the crease proving increasingly important in Worcestershire’s efforts to build a first innings lead.
His fifth half-century in Worcestershire colours steered the Pears beyond 300, and was swiftly followed by partner Waite, who himself raised his bat to acknowledge a fifth fifty of the Rothesay County Championship season, cementing the home side’s stronghold on the match.
Brookes dropped his bat on a full ball and took a single into the leg side as he and Waite touched gloves, greeted by warm applause from the Worcestershire faithful at New Road in celebration of their century partnership.
The pair added 16 more runs but lost their second wicket of the day when Waite was wrapped on the pad by a ball that turned sharply from the New Road End, with the all-rounder departing for a pivotal 63.
This brought Beyers Swanepoel to the middle, who wasted no time in making his intentions clear, scoring two boundaries early on in his innings that comprised 14 balls.
After hitting spinner Miles Hammond for a huge six over midwicket, Swanepoel reverse-swept van Buuren for four as he looked to put his foot on the accelerator for the hosts, but his entertaining albeit brief knock was curtailed when he was stumped looking to heave the ball into the midwicket region.
Three balls later, and it was Brookes who became Worcestershire’s ninth casualty, with his mature knock of 66 brought to an end as the right-hander was caught behind.
A sterling show of patience and composure had seen Brookes face 233 deliveries and occupy the crease for over four hours, helping his team into the driving seat in the match.
Leaving to a standing ovation, Brookes was replaced in the middle by Fateh Sigh, who was joined by Tom Taylor, with the pair adding a handy 34 for the 10th wicket.
Some flourishing stroke play from Singh saw him canter to 24, before he was bowled with partner Taylor unbeaten on 10 at the other end, as Worcestershire were bowled out for 388, a lead of 99 runs.
With Tom Taylor off the field, it was Ben Allison and Beyers Swanepoel who took the new ball for the hosts at the start of the evening session, hitting their lines and lengths early on as Worcestershire posed plenty of early questions.
Cameron Bancroft showed no haste to take any risk, soaking up pressure from an enthusiastic Worcestershire side in the field, who weren’t made to wait long for their opening breakthrough.
Five-wicket hero from the first innings, Beyers Swanepoel (1-9) came up with the goods, catching the edge of Joe Phillips’ bat and seeing Ethan Brookes take a superb reaction catch at second slip to reduce Gloucestershire to 10-1.
That could have been two just moments later when an Allison delivery jumped off a length and flew off the shoulder of Bancroft’s bat, narrowly evading the diving clutches of Adam Hose at first slip.
Allison bowled an elongated nine-over spell at the top for the Pears, beating the edge on more than one occasion as the sun continued to beat down and Matthew Waite entered the fray from the New Road End.
Finding a typically good rhythm from the outset, Waite (6-4-2-0) kept the pressure on and restricted any scoring chances for Bancroft, who had to see off three maidens in four overs from the seamer.
Wasting no time in getting his spinner into the game, Worcestershire’s Captain threw Fateh Singh the ball as the quest for a prize second scalp went on.
D’Oliveira tried his luck from the Diglis End, before Ethan Brookes created half a chance in the penultimate over of the day when a nick down the legside narrowly beat a diving Gareth Roderick, as Gloucestershire reached stumps 59-1.
With a crucial morning session lying in wait, Worcestershire will be hunting some early wickets in hopes of moving the game forward and capitalising on their encouraging display so far in this match.
