Result: Gloucestershire (362 & 252; Noema-Barnett 69*; Stokes 3/66) beat Durham (275 & 298; Steel 62, Wood 61*; Taylor 4/31) by 41 runs
Mark Wood’s defiant half century could not prevent defeat as Gloucestershire prevailed with a 41-run victory against Durham at Cheltenham.
Left-arm seamer Matt Taylor finished with four for 31 from 16 overs to help bowl out the visitors for 298, chasing a victory target of 340.
Cameron Steel (62) and Tom Latham (45) gave Durham a promising start, but they wilted against Taylor, Craig Miles (three for 76) and Ryan Higgins (three for 44) on another sweltering afternoon and Wood’s unbeaten 61 proved in vain.
Gloucestershire took 23 points from their first Championship win since the opening round of fixtures, while their opponents had to be content with five after four days of tough and competitive cricket.
Durham began the day on 35 without loss and enjoyed the better of the morning session. Latham and Steel took their opening stand to 94 against some accurate Gloucestershire bowling before Latham fenced at a ball from Matt Taylor and edged through to Gareth Roderick.
Steel was unbeaten on 57 at lunch, with the total 121 for one, but he when he perished in the second over after the interval, lbw to Miles falling across his stumps, it signalled a transformation in fortunes.
Higgins removed Graham Clark (30) and Will Smith (32) during a six-over spell that brought him two for 23, Clark falling to a fine full-length diving catch by Roderick and Smith pinned lbw.
Taylor was equally impressive and claimed the key wicket of Ben Stokes, who had begun positively, but moved to only nine before being bowled on the back foot. The same fate befell Stuart Poynter, on eight, and at 201 for six, Durham still required a further 139.
They were given renewed hope by Wood and Michael Richardson, who took the score to 226 for six at tea and continued to bat solidly in the final session.
Wood was dropped on 18 by Miles Hammond at cover off Kieran Noema-Barnett and responded by hitting 4 fours in an over from Miles just before the second new ball.
Richardson had helped add 59 when falling lbw for 26 looking to work Miles through the leg-side. Soon it was 267 for eight as Matt Salisbury was bowled on the back-foot by Miles for a single.
Gloucestershire had their tails up, but while Wood was there Durham had a chance. He began to run out of partners when George Harding chipped a tame catch to mid-wicket off Taylor and departed for seven.
Wood, who was able to bowl only six overs in the match because of a sore heel, moved to a defiant fifty off 74 balls, with 9 fours. But when Chris Rushworth was caught behind to give Higgins his third wicket, Gloucestershire had won with 11 overs left in the day’s play.
Close, Day Three: Durham (275 & 35/0) trail Gloucestershire (362 & 252; Noema-Barnett 69*; Stokes 3/66) by 304 runs
Ben Stokes completed match figures of eight for 118 as Gloucestershire set Durham 340 to win the Specsavers County Championship match at Cheltenham.
The all-rounder pressed claims for an England Test place against India with another lively contribution, looking in good rhythm as he finished with three for 66 in the home side’s second innings of 252 all out.
Kieran Noema-Barnett hit an undefeated 69, while Ryan Higgins added 42 to his first innings century and Benny Howell made 43 against an attack again deprived of Mark Wood because of a sore heel.
Tom Latham had been last man out for 147 as Durham extended their first innings total from an overnight 219 for five to 275 all out, but could not prevent his team trailing by 87.
By the close the visitors had moved to 35 without loss in their second innings without undue alarm and required a further 305 for victory.
Latham began the day on 120 and again looked solid as wickets tumbled around him. Gloucestershire took the second new ball with the total 227 for five, and Stuart Poynter was soon bowled playing forward to Craig Miles for 32.
A key moment came, with Durham 252 for seven, when Wood, on 11, called Latham for a suicidal single to Matt Taylor at mid-off and was run out well short of his ground by a direct hit at the bowler’s end.
Matt Salisbury and George Harding fell to successive balls from Higgins and Latham’s vigil of six hours and 13 minutes finally came to an end in a bid to add quick runs before the final wicket went down.
Durham’s stand-in skipper had faced 281 balls, hitting 22 fours, in energy-sapping heat when he lofted a catch to deep mid-wicket.
Chris Rushworth then built on Latham’s efforts by striking two quick blows with the new ball at the start of Gloucestershire’s second innings, removing Miles Hammond and James Bracey cheaply as they reached lunch on 50 for two, leading by 137.
Howell and Chris Dent had steadied the ship and extended their stand to 70 after the interval before Howell was taken at second slip off Salisbury, having hit 7 fours.
From 85 for two, Gloucestershire slipped to 86 for five as Stokes had Gareth Roderick caught behind for a duck with an example of the extra lift he extracted from the Festival pitch and Dent, on 32, nicked Salisbury through to wicketkeeper Poynter.
Noema-Barnett walked out at number seven to face two bowlers with their tails up. But in his own unflappable style he doused the fire and found an in-form partner in Higgins as they turned the tide with a partnership of 84.
It took the introduction of Will Smith to break the stand. The off-spinner held onto a sharp return catch to send back Higgins with the score on 170 for six.
Noema-Barnett pulled Stokes for six on his way to an invaluable 96-ball half-century and useful contributions from Miles (14) and last man George Drissell (19) helped Gloucestershire set a challenging target.
Close, Day Two: Durham (219/5; Latham 120*; Miles 2/70) trail Gloucestershire (362; Higgins 105, Roderick 67; Stokes 5/52) by 143 runs
Tom Latham’s battling century frustrated Gloucestershire’s bid to take control of their Specsavers County Championship match with Durham on the second day at Cheltenham.
The visitors’ stand-in skipper hit an unbeaten 120, off 239 balls, with 19 fours, remaining rock solid as his side slipped to 105/4 in reply to the home team’s 362 all out.
Thanks largely to Latham’s first ton of the season, Durham were able to close on 219 for five, but still trailed by 143.
The day began with the hosts 315/7. Stokes claimed two of the last three wickets, but could not prevent Craig Miles (21) and David Payne (19) not out securing a fourth batting point.
Miles was dropped at gully on 13 off Stokes, who went on to uproot his off stump and then have Matt Taylor caught at point off a leading edge. Matt Salisbury had last man George Drissell caught behind off an attempted pull shot to end the innings.
By lunch Durham had replied with 39 for no wicket, Latham dominating the opening stand with Cameron Steel, who fell for 13 soon after the interval with the total on 46.
Looking to withdraw the bat from a Craig Miles delivery, Steel appeared to glove it through to wicketkeeper Gareth Roderick.
Will Smith could make only eight before departing lbw to Miles in the 24th over and Graham Clark, who had survived a tough chance to slip on nine, followed for 18, leg-before looking to clip Matt Taylor through the on-side.
Latham went to his half-century off 117 balls, but the 26-year-old New Zealander was made to fight hard by some accurate Gloucestershire bowling.
Stokes was pinned down in uncharacteristic fashion until attempting to break loose with a drive off Kieran Noema-Barnett and edging the medium pacer to Chris Dent at second slip.
At tea Durham were 115 for four, but Latham and Michael Richardson carefully went about repairing the damage, adding 66 for the fifth wicket before Richardson, on 21, carelessly pulled a Ryan Higgins long-hop straight to Benny Howell at mid-wicket.
It could have been worse for the visitors as Miles Hammond spilled a straightforward catch at mid-wicket off Drissell to give Stuart Poynter a life before he had scored.
Latham brought up a workmanlike and disciplined hundred with a fine extra-cover drive off Miles for four and Poynton settled in to be unbeaten on 21 at the close.
Close, Day One: Gloucestershire (315/7; Higgins 105, Roderick 67; Stokes 3/40, Rushworth 3/82) vs Durham
Three wickets each for Chris Rushworth & Ben Stokes made it honours even after Ryan Higgins’ maiden first-class century in the Specsavers County Championship match against Gloucestershire at Cheltenham.
Higgins was out in the last over of the day for 105 as his side ran up 315 for seven after winning the toss. Miles Hammond (51) and Gareth Roderick (67) were the other main contributors.
Stokes was the star of the early exchanges, generating pace and bounce from the Chapel End after coming on first change.
He pinned Chris Dent lbw for 19 and had Benny Howell taken at gully off a sharply lifting delivery for four after Gloucestershire had elected to bat in bright sunshine.
In between the two wickets Stokes struck James Bracey a painful blow on an elbow. After treatment the 21-year-old batsman headed off to hospital for a more extensive examination.
Hammond, already a centurion at the Festival, again looked in fine form, putting on 40 with Dent for the first wicket. The left-hander was unbeaten on 36 at lunch, which was taken with Gloucestershire 80 for two off 28 overs.
Hammond went on to a half-century off 97 balls, with 9 fours. But he fell early in the afternoon session, bowled by Rushworth, who beat his defensive shot.
Roderick survived a couple of blows to the helmet on the lively pitch to post fifty off 93 deliveries, with 8 fours, and shared a fourth-wicket stand of 107 with Higgins to put their side on top.
Tea was taken at 218 for three, with Higgins having brought up his half-century off 67 balls, hitting 6 fours. It was an untimely interval for Roderick, who in the first over after the resumption fell lbw to Salisbury on the back foot.
Higgins went past his previous best score of 63 and set his sights on three figures. The injured Bracey returned to help add 64 before departing to the second new ball, an lbw victim for Rushworth.
Kieran Noema-Barnett fell cheaply to the same bowler, but Higgins punched the air at reaching his ton off 141 balls, having increased his boundary count to 12.
He was caught at backward point off what proved the final delivery of the day to his intense frustration, Stokes claiming a third wicket. He ended the day with three for 40 from an impressive 18.4 overs, while Rushworth had three for 82 off 20.