Essex Men v Gloucestershire Men
Metro Bank One Day Cup
Ambassador Cruise Line Ground, Chelmsford
Sunday 24 August, 11am start
Essex Men continue the Metro Bank One Day Cup campaign with two fixtures in the space of three days, starting with Gloucestershire Men on Sunday followed by Derbyshire Men on Tuesday.
The group, led by Tom Huggins, have been on a serious vein of good form recently, entering a hot streak of three victories in a row – against Surrey, Leicestershire, and most recently Glamorgan – all dominant performances that secured convincing wins.
With the last two group-stage matches on the horizon, the Essex Men will be aiming to extend the streak to five in order to maximise their chances of qualifying for the knockout stages.
The penultimate fixture features table-toppers Gloucestershire at the Ambassador Cruise Line Ground on Sunday, before the group stage comes to a close at The County Ground, Derby, on Tuesday.
Sunday’s clash against Gloucestershire is a standout fixture in this year’s One Day Cup competition. As part of the Club’s ongoing partnership with Principal Partner Ambassador Cruise Line, the match will support Help for Heroes, the charity dedicated to supporting veterans and their families.
To mark the occasion, the Essex Men’s team will wear a limited-edition Help for Heroes commemorative shirt, specially designed to raise awareness and funds for the charity. Ambassador Cruise Line have kindly supported the cause by funding the shirt branding as a donation, and special thanks to Surridge Sport for donating the playing shirts for the match.
The day will also feature themed activities, fundraising opportunities, and recognition of Armed Forces personnel and veterans.
Last time out, Essex comfortably defeated Glamorgan by 190 runs in Wednesday’s day-night clash at Chelmsford, making it three straight victories and putting them in good stead before facing Gloucestershire.
Essex thrashed Glamorgan by 190 runs for their third straight Metro Bank One-Day Cup win. Captain Tom Westley (141) and youngster Charlie Allison (131) shared a record 231-run stand, both making career-best scores. Simon Harmer smashed a quick 42 before taking 5-47 to rip through Glamorgan’s reply.
Despite resistance from Kiran Carlson (64 off 36) and Asa Tribe (71), Glamorgan collapsed to 181 all out in 33 overs, remaining winless in their title defence.
The next opponents, Gloucestershire sit at the top of Group A after defeating Notts Outlaws by 52 runs on Friday. They have enjoyed a successful One Day Cup campaign so far and will be looking to finish the group-stage as dominant as possible before heading into the knockout stages.
James Bracey has been a key figure for the Gloucestershire side so far with his batting and wicket-keeping capabilities. After the first five games of the campagin, Bracey has totalled up 245 runs at an average of 49 with a high-score of 96.
Whilst the Bristol outfit’s leading bowler after their first five games is Josh Shaw – racking up 10 wickets at an average of 21.30 with best bowling figures of 3-29.
Squad
Tom Huggins has named a 14-player squad for Gloucestershire’s visit to the Ambassador Cruise Line Ground.
Curtis Campher returns to the squad for his final game in Essex colours whilst Mackenzie Jones also returns following a short-term hamstring injury.
Dean Elgar is not available to play in the One Day Cup whilst Sam Cook, Paul Walter, Michael Pepper and Jordan Cox are all participating in the Hundred.
ICYMI: Highlights v Glamorgan
Watch the highlights from Wednesday’s dominant victory against Glamorgan which featured two Essex centurions and a Simon Harmer five-wicket-haul!
Last Time We Met: Gloucestershire
Essex beat Gloucestershire by 63 runs in last year’s Metro Bank One Day Cup fixture at Bristol, led by Shane Snater’s devastating new-ball spell.
2024 Lineups
Gloucestershire: Miles Hammond, Cameron Bancroft, Ollie Price, James Bracey (WK), Ben Charlesworth, Jack Taylor (C), Graeme van Buuren, Tom Smith, Josh Shaw, Dominic Goodman, Ajeet Singh Dale.
Essex: Nick Browne, Feroze Khushi, Tom Westley (C), Robin Das, Charlie Allison, Luc Benkenstein, Noah Thain, Shane Snater, Jamal Richards, Ben Allison, Simon Fernandes (WK).
Returning to the side, Snater ripped through the hosts’ top order with three wickets in 13 balls, finishing with 3-39 as Gloucestershire collapsed to 199 all out in 36.2 overs. Jamal Richards added 2-33, while only Ajeet Singh Dale (63 off 34) and Tom Smith (29*) offered late resistance, putting on a record 85-run last-wicket stand.
Earlier, Essex posted 262-8 after recovering from 86-4, thanks to Robin Das (52) and Luc Benkenstein (career-best 67) in an 88-run stand. Dom Goodman (4-43) impressed for Gloucestershire.
Current Gloucestershire squad: Jack Taylor (C), Cameron Bancroft, Josh Shaw, Graeme Van Buuren, Zaman Akhter, Ahmed Syed, Joe Phillips, James Bracey (WK), Craig Miles, Matt Taylor, Ben Charlesworth, Ollie Price, Tommy Boorman, Daaryoush Ahmed.
Gloucestershire Preview
Captain: Jack Taylor
2024 finish: Fifth (Group B)
2024 leading run-scorer: Miles Hammond (363)
2024 leading wicket-taker: Ajeet Singh Dale (13)
Why they can win the competition: Less affected than most rivals by call-ups to The Hundred (only four), Gloucestershire proved themselves a one-day force by winning last season’s Vitality Blast. Despite making a nightmare start to that competition this summer, they reeled off four successive group wins at one stage, beating the likes of Hampshire and Essex.
Player to watch: At the age of 32, Gloucestershire’s red-ball captain Cameron Bancroft boasts more than 3,000 runs in List A cricket at an average of over 40, with five hundreds, and will provide a wealth of experience at the top of the batting order. The Australia Test player has already produced innings of 163 and 176 in the Rothesay County Championship this season.
Young gun: Seam bowler Aman Rao signed for Gloucestershire just before the start of the Vitality Blast and played in the first two group matches against Kent and Sussex. The 21-year-old Loughborough University student is sure to be given more opportunities in the Metro Bank One Day Cup and his height combined with an ability to swing the ball could see him make a significant impact.
Final thought: With head coach Mark Alleyne involved in The Hundred, bowling coach Mark Thorburn takes charge for the second successive year and will be determined to make a better start that last season when the team lost their first two group matches before winning four of the next five and just failing to reach the knock-out stage.
Group A Preview
Click here for a team-by-team preview of each of this year’s Group A contenders.
How To Watch
If you are unable to attend any of the match days, the game will be available to watch via the Essex Cricket Matchzone, through the YouTube livestream.
The match highlights will be available via the Club website and social media with updates provided through the Club’s social channels on X, Instagram and Facebook.
Tickets
Tickets are on sale at £18 for adults, with the option to upgrade to a Member Area Upgrade for a total price of £25.50.
Junior (U18s) prices are on sale at just £6, with the option to upgrade to a Junior Member Area Upgrade for a total price of £13.50.
Young Adults aged between 19-25 and Students can purchase tickets for £12, with the option to upgrade to Member Areas for a total price of £19.50.
The Ambassador Cruise Line Ground is located in Chelmsford on New Writtle Street, CM2 0PG.
To secure your seats for Sunday, visit the link below:
