Middlesex left in a spin

By Jeremy Horne
July 12 2002

Spin twins Ian Fisher and Martyn Ball ripped through the Middlesex card on day 3, but chances of a result were shattered by further rain. After Sven Koenig and Andrew Strauss extended their overnight partnership of 98 to 142, 8 wickets fell for only 90 runs with Fisher taking 5-87 and Ball 3-74.

When Ian Jones joined Simon Cook at the crease, 6 were still needed to avoid the follow-on, but a partnership of 65 dismissed any hopes Gloucestershire had of enforcing it. Jones’s dismissal in the penultimate over brought Phil Tufnell to the crease with three runs still needed to secure a third batting point.

Gloucestershire 1st innings: 388 (Barnett 182*)

Middlesex 1st innings:

Strauss b Fisher 82
Koenig lbw b Ball 59
Hutton c and b Ball 29
Shah c Alleyne b Ball 16
Joyce lbw b Fisher 21
Weekes b Fisher 10
Nash lbw b Fisher 2
Cook Not out 38
Laraman lbw b Fisher 0
Jones c Russell b Smith 29
Tufnell Not out 0

Extras 14

Total (for 9 wickets, 123 overs) 297