Tense finish Derbyshire left hanging on after Glos fightback

Harry Came fell nine runs short of a second century in the match as Derbyshire were forced to settle for a draw in an exciting finish to their County Championship Division Two match with Gloucestershire at Bristol.

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The hosts declared their second innings at lunch, having progressed from 364-3 to 526-6 as Graeme van Buuren added 70 to his score before being dismissed for 175, while James Bracey hit a brisk 43.

That set Derbyshire a victory target of 316 in a minimum of 67 overs, and Came and Caleb Jewell put together an opening stand of 177 in 31.3 overs before Jewell fell for 83, from 80 deliver-ies, with 12 fours, and Came for 91, off 118 balls, with seven fours and three sixes.

But Gloucestershire refused to buckle and left-arm spinner van Buuren claimed 4-64 to give his side a chance before Anuj Dal (36 not out) and Ben Aitchison batted out for a draw at 296-8. Derbyshire took 14 points and Gloucestershire 11.

Gloucestershire head coach Mark Alleyne said: “It was a great game. I loved it. Originally our intention was to set Derbyshire 280 to win, but the guys out in the middle felt the pitch wasn’t breaking up as much as we expected.