Yorkshire look to make most of chances they have been handed

NOT often do you see three catches go down in the first three overs of an innings, but that was the remarkable start to the Yorkshire reply in Scarborough last evening after they had bowled out Gloucestershire for 215 after losing the toss.

After Adam Lyth fell to the second ball of the innings, caught behind off Will Gidman, a 4,000 crowd watched in disbelief as Gloucestershire gave a master class in butter-fingered fielding.

From the very next delivery, Phil Jaques was turned around by Gidman and got a leading edge into the cover region.

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The ball ballooned up so invitingly that it might have had the words “catch me” emblazoned across the seam.

Instead, Jack Taylor, who had earlier top-scored with a fluent 49 from the No 9 position, spilled the simplest of opportunities.

Cue much gasps in the crowd and hands on heads from the fielding players.

In the second over, bowled by Liam Nowell from the Peasholm Park end, Joe Root was shelled on nought by wicketkeeper Jonathan Batty.

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It was an easier chance than Taylor’s and could only be attributed to a momentary lapse of concentration.

Just when you thought you had seen it all, and with the scoreboard showing a sorry 1-1 in the third over, Root was grassed on nought for a second time.

Benny Howell was the culprit on this occasion, failing to hold on as he dived to his left at first slip.

It was not an easy opportunity but one which should be snaffled at this level more often than not.

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Yorkshire, who might have been in disarray in a game they probably need to win to preserve their hopes of promotion, were understandably shaken but recovered their composure to reach 61-2 at stumps, Jaques the other casualty when Batty wrapped his gloves around an edge off Gidman.

That the start to Yorkshire’s innings could have been more sensational than that of Gloucestershire’s had seemed improbable in the extreme.

For after Hamish Marshall had called correctly, the New Zealander standing in as captain for Alex Gidman, who is on paternity leave, Gloucestershire made a terrible start as they crashed to 9-4 inside 10 overs.

Despite the absence of Ryan Sidebottom, who was forced to withdraw with back spasms, and Rich Pyrah, who requires surgery after damaging his left hand while fielding on Monday, Yorkshire began strongly as Steve Patterson and Moin Ashraf served up some splendid material with the new ball.

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Patterson landed the first blow when he bowled Howell with the total on one.

It was a curious dismissal, the batsman playing-on as he tried to lift his bat high out of harm’s way.

Patterson, back in the sort of groove that made him the first name on the Yorkshire team sheet a couple of years ago, struck again when he got one to lift on Dan Housego, who edged to Lyth at second slip.

There was no greater testimony to how well Patterson and Ashraf bowled than the fact there were only two scoring shots in the opening half hour, Patterson’s third wicket following when he trapped Marshall lbw with the total on nine.

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Ashraf got in on the act by having Rob Nicol splendidly caught by wickekeeper Andrew Hodd, diving to his right, at which point you thought the visitors might struggle to reach 50 all out.

But Gidman and Ian Cockbain launched a revival of sorts, guiding their side to 70-4 at lunch with a combination of obdurate defending and sensible accumulation. The stand was broken in the third over after lunch, Azeem Rafiq having Cockbain caught at bat-pad by Jaques, the pair having added 65 in 25 overs.

Gloucestershire fell to 102-6 when Gidman was brilliantly caught by a diving Lyth at second slip off Ashraf, having scored 47 from 99 balls with six fours.

The seventh wicket followed five runs later when James Fuller aimed an ambitious leg-side swish at Rafiq and was lbw.

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Yorkshire were held up by an eighth-wicket partnership of 56 between Batty and Taylor, the latter contributing 49 from 43 balls with seven fours and a six over mid-wicket off Rafiq.

A 20-year-old off-spinner playing only his seventh first-class match, Taylor showed plenty of pluck and it required a smart reflex catch by Rafiq to dismiss him off his own bowling.

Taylor’s departure was quickly followed by that of Batty, yorked by Ashraf, who has deployed that ball to telling effect in Twenty20 cricket this summer.

The last wicket pair of Anthony Ireland and Norwell added 36 before Norwell was caught behind off Adil Rashid, leaving Yorkshire 17 overs to negotiate before stumps.

After the action-packed start to the innings, Root – capped before play along with Gary Ballance – settled down to reach 24 not out, Andrew Gale finishing unbeaten on 23.