Rain saves Essex after Glamorgan dominance in Cardiff draw
Rain had the final word in Cardiff as Glamorgan drew with Essex in the Rothesay County Championship Division One.
Only 21 balls were possible on the fourth day before the weather closed in. Glamorgan took 13 points from the draw and Essex took nine, leaving them sixth and eighth respectively in the Division One table BBC Sport.
The match, played from 24 to 27 September at Sophia Gardens, had started with Essex choosing to field. It looked a good call for only a short while. Glamorgan piled up 505 in their first innings, built around 184 from Tribe, 107 from Carlson and 59 from Root.
Akhter kept Essex in the fight with the ball, taking 5-107. No other Essex bowler could apply the same brake. Glamorgan batted long and left the visitors facing a huge deficit.
Essex then collapsed to 129 all out in reply. Ul Hassan took 5-14 and Toole took 3-21 to rip through the innings. At one stage Essex were 100 for 7, still 405 runs behind Glamorgan's total ESPN.
That forced the follow-on, which in cricket means a team so far behind must bat again immediately. Essex had to start their second innings still 376 runs adrift. Survival, not victory, became the target.
To their credit, they fought hard. Elgar led the resistance with 108, while Westley added 65 and Bell made 66. Essex reached 351-6 in that second innings, digging in for more than a day to wipe out most of the deficit.
The final day, 27 September, offered almost nothing. Essex resumed on 331-5 at 13:00 BST after earlier delays. They added 20 runs in 21 balls before George Bell was dismissed lbw, trapped in front, to Timm van der Gugten for 66.
That left Essex on 351-6, still 25 runs in arrears. In other words, Glamorgan still needed four more wickets and then runs to win, with no time left. Umpires Alex Wharf and Mike Burns called off play as the rain returned.
What makes this stand out is the split character of the game. Glamorgan dominated the first two innings. Essex owned the long rearguard. Neither side quite got the weather window to finish the job.
