Report: Birmingham Bears vs Gloucestershire

Birmingham Bears fell short in their pursuit of a first Finals Day appearance since 2017 as Gloucestershire stunned the North Group winners with a 14-run victory in a tense, low-scoring contest at Edgbaston.

The west country side scraped into the last eight only on net run rate, finishing fourth in the South Group, but will now face Sussex in the semi-final back on this ground on Saturday week.

Gloucestershire had looked well under par, racing to 51 without loss from five overs after being put in only to be bowled out for just 138.

But as left-arm quick David Payne took four for 23, including two as he defended 18 but conceded just three in the final over, and spinner Ollie Price three for 32, the Bears could muster only 124 for nine in reply, Chris Benjamin’s 33 the top score.

Cameron Bancroft had top-scored for Gloucestershire with 43 in 35 balls and opening partner Miles Hammond 30 from 24 but no one else bettering Jack Taylor’s 19.

The Bears’ New Zealand seamer Zak Foulkes took three for 22, spinners Danny Briggs and Dan Mousley picked up two wickets each and George Garton executed two magnificent run-outs with direct hits.

Needing to score at just under seven-an-over, the Bears were 37 for two in the powerplay, 17 behind their opponents at the corresponding point and with one fewer wickets in hand. 

Payne, who opened with a maiden, had Alex Davies caught on the square leg boundary and struck a major blow to the home side when Moeen Ali was out for 27. Payne had conceded 16 of those himself as the England man hit him for six, four and six but the next ball found the outside edge and James Bracey took the catch.

Like their counterparts in the first innings, the Bears struggled to regain their momentum, losing Mousley leg before in an attempted pull and Jacob Bethell caught at extra cover, both wickets falling to Ollie Price, leaving them 59 for four in the ninth. That became 74 for five in the 13th as Price’s off-spin claimed its third victim, Sam Hain unleashing a towering hit on the leg side but failing to clear Hammond on the mid-wicket boundary.

Chris Benjamin hammered six off Tom Smith and Garton took two fours off Price to ease the pressure but then Josh Shaw ramped it up again with two wickets in two balls as Garton holed out to long off and Foulkes perished leg before.

It all came down to 18 required off the last six balls, with Gloucestershire paceman and leading wicket-taker Payne coming out on top, conceding just three and adding the wickets of Benjamin and Jake Lintott for good measure as Price and Bancroft held catches in the deep.

Gloucestershire fans must have been anticipating a big score when Hammond and Bancroft helped them put 54 on the board from six.

Bancroft’s scoop brought him two of three fours in Foulkes’s opening over and Hammond pulled Mousley for six but the off-spinner had revenge when Hammond was caught by a tumbling Jake Lintott at mid-off.

The Bears spinners then wrestled back control, Briggs beating James Bracey’s swing across the line for a leg before, Ollie Price top-edging the same bowler to short fine leg. A chance was missed when Bancroft was dropped on 30, but the return of pace saw Jack Taylor’s attempted pull go vertical, dropping into the gloves of keeper Davies.

Ben Charlesworth clobbered Moeen Ali over the midwicket boundary but perished looking for a repeat next ball and then Bancroft, for whom something substantial now looked vital, was brilliantly run out by Garton’s direct hit from long-on.

Panic now set in. Matt Taylor and Josh Shaw were caught off consecutive balls from Foulkes, another precision throw by Garton ran out Matt Taylor from mid-on and Payne sliced Mousley in the air to backward point, leaving Gloucestershire all out for what looked like a seriously under-par 138, but turned out to be enough.

Bears captain Alex Davies said: “It is tough to take. I stood here last year with the same result but you have to take what positives you can. We’ve just had two guys selected for England on the back of their Blast form and we’ve finished top of the group three years running, so we must be doing something right. We’ve just got to keep building.

“We didn’t have the start we would have hoped for with the ball but Danny Briggs did what Danny Briggs has been doing for what feels like 20-odd years and it was a real good performance in the field. At halfway, we were happy with that score.

“It wasn’t quite the pitch we thought it was. It was quite slow, turgid and attritional at times but we said if one guy bats through and gets 50 off 40 balls we’ll be fine but that didn’t happen.

“It was the job of Moeen and myself to break the back of it and put Gloucestershire on the back foot. If we had batted for 10 overs the rate would have dropped significantly, but that didn’t quite pan out, they just kept taking wickets, and that’s credit to them.

“I thought Jack Taylor captained brilliantly, gambled by bowling David Payne for a third over and got Mo out, so he deserved credit for that. We wish Gloucestershire all the best and hope they get it done next week.”