Duck Soup No Longer On The Menu For Hungry Glamorgan

Glamorgan are up and running. Not much more than a gentle jog, but they do have their first draw of the season and, with a change of format, Dai Sport columnist Richard Thomas reckons the county could soon be hitting their stride.

 

Better news this week for Glamorgan, then, and confirmation, also, that they may not be, despite mounting pessimism among some Welsh cricket fans, the worst side to ever pick up bat and ball.

That current tag must surely go to the China national team, who were bowled out for just 28 by Saudi Arabia, going down to a 390-run defeat in a 50-over contest in Thailand. It is surely the Chinese year of the duck, not the rooster.

But while China were smashed, Glamorgan were showing quiet signs of improvement in Leicester following their disastrous opening to the County Championship season with two hammerings at the hands of Northamptonshire and Worcestershire.

No, the rot has been stopped and although the Welsh county were never in a realistic position to beat Leicestershire, they prevented a third successive defeat and just as importantly took the match into a fourth day.

It was almost time to dust off that infamous jibe from Martin Johnson – the former national newspaper cricket writer – that: there were only three things wrong with the England team of the 1990s – they couldn’t bat, they couldn’t bowl, and they couldn’t field. That would be just too harsh to direct at Glamorgan, even in jest.

Even so, Robert Croft’s side did not make an opening draw of the season a certainty when they were reduced to 57 for four within 19 overs in their second innings. It meant a rather nervous couple of hours especially as there were a further 31 overs to negotiate, but Aneurin Donald’s half-century ensured they did not lose again and made the trip back up the M50 a little more palatable.

In truth, Glamorgan did not deserve to descend to defeat again especially after their response to Leicestershire’s first innings total of 420, which produced centuries – the county’s first of the season – for Nick Selman and Craig Ingram.

It will not be lost on some, of course, that those tons came courtesy of two players not from these parts (Selman was brought up in Australia while Ingram has played for South Africa).

But that may be considered a moot point with the county clutching a relatively massive haul of 13 points from the draw.

Now comes what will probably be a welcome respite from the four-day stuff as Glamorgan get set for a series of eight Royal London One-Day Cup games in 18 days against Gloucestershire (away), Surrey (home), Sussex (away), Somerset (home), Essex (home), Middlesex (away), Hampshire (away) and Kent (home). 

The Welsh county are much better suited and set up to perform better in the 50-over arena, even though they just missed out on last season’s knockout stages by finishing fifth in the South Group.

It will still be an enduring two weeks or so – for both Glamorgan and the Chinese.