Jack Davies’ 91 helps Middlesex build strong platform

Middlesex 377 (Davies 91, Holden 77, De Caires 64, T Price 5-81) vs Gloucestershre

Jack Davies posted his best first-class score of 91 as Middlesex built a strong platform after being put in by Gloucestershire in their Vitality County Championship clash at Lord’s.

The Middlesex left-hander missed out on the chance of a maiden hundred after sharing a sixth-wicket partnership of 120 with Josh De Caires, who struck 64 as the home side were bowled out for 377.

Max Holden‘s battling knock of 77 had provided an initial foundation for the promotion contenders before he became one of seven dismissals for Gloucestershire gloveman James Bracey.

The bowling honours were dominated by Tom Price, who finished with a season’s best of 5 for 81, and Ajeet Singh Dale, with figures of 4 for 70.

Gloucestershire – who included 19-year-old debutant Archie Bailey among their seam quartet – were immediately rewarded for opting to bowl as Singh Dale’s opening effort seared back down the slope and crashed into Sam Robson’s middle stump.

The lively Bailey, who entered the attack as early as the sixth over, might also have struck with his first delivery which found the edge of Holden’s bat, but dropped fractionally short of slip.

However, Middlesex gradually settled down and Mark Stoneman raised the tempo with a flurry of cover boundaries, advancing to 42 before he attempted to hook Tom Price and top-edged it to provide Bracey with a routine catch.

That ended Stoneman’s partnership of 71 with Holden, who reached lunch one short of a half-century as he and Leus du Plooy kept the scoreboard ticking along at more than four an over.

Holden added that single off Tom Price to reach 50 soon after the interval, but the very next delivery accounted for Du Plooy, slanting across the left-hander to take the edge.

Price and Bracey combined again to remove their former team-mate Ryan Higgins, caught swishing outside leg stump and the Gloucestershire keeper claimed his fourth dismissal of the innings when Singh Dale returned at the Nursery End to prise out Holden.

But Davies looked in good touch, pulling and cutting against the seamers as well as driving spinner Zafar Gohar for the first six of the contest as he and De Caires shared Middlesex’s fourth partnership in excess of 50.

The shot that took Davies to his own 50 was a streaky one, though, slashing across the line at Tom Price and edging over Bracey’s head for a boundary that also earned the home side their first batting bonus point.

De Caires was given a life just after tea, with Cameron Bancroft spilling an edge to slip off Bailey, but he played the spinners with confidence and pulled Zafar off the back foot for a boundary to post his second half-century of the season.

Singh Dale returned to take the new ball and, although Davies got away with a leading edge that flew through the slips, he was undone in the seamer’s next over as he nudged one that moved away into Bracey’s gloves.

De Caires soon followed, trapped in front by a ball that followed a similar trajectory to Singh Dale’s first of the day before Tom Price wrapped up the innings by capturing the wickets of Luke Hollman and Henry Brookes.