Gloucestershire v Worcestershire
Vikram Solanki's competition best score of 92 was not enough to save Worcestershire from defeat by a single run in a thrilling Twenty20 clash at Bristol .
Gloucestershire skipper Jon Lewis held his nerve with the visitors requiring just three off the last three deliveries and conceded only a leg bye off the last.
That meant Worcestershire finished on 180 for five in reply to Gloucestershire's
181 for seven in which Chris Taylor top scored with 61 off 37 balls.
Solanki, released from the England one-day squad to play in the match, hit two sixes and eight fours in his 61-ball innings and looked to be turning the game his side's way.
But the required run-rate remained high and when man-of-the-match Solanki was out in the 18th over it set up a nerve-tingling finish.
Former Gloucestershire player Roger Sillence had the game in his hands as he faced Lewis' final three deliveries.
But he failed to make contact with the bat and a scampered leg bye off the last was not good
enough.
It was Worcestershire's second defeat in two games. For Gloucestershire, mauled by Somerset in their first fixture, the result was marred by injuries to Taylor, Craig Spearman and Alex Gidman as they finished with three substitute fielders.
The home side had been given a blistering start by Ian Harvey after winning the toss and the 50 came up in only the fifth over.
But Harvey was caught at leg-slip off a well-timed glance to give Sillence the first of two wickets.
Discarded by Gloucestershire at the end of last season, the tall seamer took revenge by removing another danger man in Spearman, lbw for 12 with the total 56 for two in the sixth over.
The next sequence of big hits came from the diminutive Taylor, who blasted three successive sixes over mid-wicket off Daryl Mitchell, who still managed to bowl his four overs for 34.
Twenty20 Cup, 2006, Midlands/West/Wales Division
Gloucestershire v Worcestershire
County Ground, Bristol
29 June 2006 (20-over match)
Result: Gloucestershire won by 1 runs
Points: Gloucestershire 2, Worcestershire 0
Toss: Gloucestershire
Umpires: NL Bainton and JH Evans
Gloucestershire innings R M B 4 6
IJ Harvey c Moore b Sillence 40 15 17 5 2
CM Spearman lbw b Sillence 12 20 13 2 0
APR Gidman c Davies b Batty 16 21 18 0 1
CG Taylor c Vincent b Price 61 42 37 5 3
MA Hardinges c & b Batty 2 3 8 0 0
DO Brown c Moore b Batty 15 5 8 1 1
*J Lewis c Mitchell b Price 7 2 4 0 1
+SJ Adshead not out 11 15 11 0 0
ID Fisher not out 9 3 5 1 0
Extras (b 2, lb 3, w 1, nb 2) 8
Total (7 wickets, 20 overs) 181
DNB: MCJ Ball, CG Greenidge.
FoW: 1-45 (Harvey), 2-56 (Spearman), 3-91 (Gidman),
4-93 (Hardinges), 5-129 (Brown), 6-137 (Lewis),
7-164 (Taylor).
Bowling O M R W
Khan 4 0 41 0 (1nb)
Sillence 4 0 37 2
Mitchell 4 0 34 0
Price 4 0 26 2 (1w)
Batty 4 0 38 3
Worcestershire innings (target: 182 runs) R M B 4 6
L Vincent c sub b Greenidge 18 20 11 2 1
GA Hick c Harvey b Greenidge 0 1 2 0 0
*VS Solanki c sub b Fisher 92 63 61 8 2
BF Smith c Taylor b Fisher 1 6 3 0 0
SC Moore st Adshead b Ball 27 27 24 2 0
RJ Sillence not out 22 20 13 1 1
GJ Batty not out 13 10 6 2 0
Extras (b 1, lb 5, w 1) 7
Total (5 wickets, 20 overs) 180
DNB: DKH Mitchell, +SM Davies, RW Price, Z Khan.
FoW: 1-1 (Hick), 2-53 (Vincent), 3-60 (Smith), 4-126 (Moore),
5-157 (Solanki).
Bowling O M R W
Greenidge 3 0 27 2
Lewis 3 0 33 0 (1w)
Harvey 4 0 36 0
Fisher 4 0 37 2
Ball 4 0 25 1
Hardinges 2 0 16 0
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