Leicestershire

Player milestone - MAG Boyce passed his previous highest score in First-Class matches

Wayne White leg-glances Will Gidman for four and Leics have won by two wickets. White finished 14 not out, and Buck 6 not out. White receives his county cap as he walks from the field, and Leics finish seventh. Glos finish bottom of Division Two

Just five runs needed by Leics. An edged boundary by Nathan Buck, and two fine blows by Wayne White - a square cut off Fuller and a pull off Gidman - have taken Leics to 231-8

Remarkable scenes here: Claude Henderson is bowled by Will Gidman for 1 and Leics are 218-8. They only need another 18 for victory, but defeat - and the dreaded wodden spoon - now looks far more likely. They were 205-3 just now...!

And now Eckersley is out! Strangled down the legside for 63 as he flicked at a ball from Fuller, and Jon Batty - who was given a guard of honour after tea by the players after announcing he is to retire - gleefully took the catch. 217-7

Jigar Naik becomes a fourth successive lbw victim, caught on the crease by Will Gidman, as Leics slump further to 217-6. Just nineteen runs needed, but it's getting tense here! Eckersley, at least, is 63 not out

Is there a late, dramatic twist here at Grace Road? Shiv Thakor has gone for 5, lbw to Fuller playing towards mid wicket, and Leics are 216-5. Suddenly, runs have dried up and there are still 20 to get...

Cobb did not add to his 65 after tea, falling across his stumps as he tried to whip away a ball from Will Gidman and departing lbw at 205-4. Ned Eckersley, however, has completed an 81-ball fifty and is now 57 not out

Leics just 39 runs short of victory at tea. Cobb, whose fifty took just 33 balls, with 9x4 and 1x6, has motored on to 65* and, with Eckersley 49*, Leics are 197-3. There were 155 runs in 32 overs in the afternoon session

Josh Cobb is rushing Leics towards victory. He has just hit Fuller for three successive fours, soon after pullling Norwell for a massive six, and is already on 46. With Ned Eckersley on 43, Leics are 166-3 - needing another 70

Matt Boyce, on the back foot, is lbw to Jack Taylor for 9 and Leics are 106-3. The disgruntled Boyce trudged off with the air of a man who felt he had got an inside edge

Michael Thornely, having reached 36, missed an expansive drive at James Fuller and was bowled to leave Leics 81-2

Greg Smith, on 26, has chipped a ball from Liam Norwell off his pads straight to square leg, where Jack Taylor took a simple catch. A tame end for Smith and Leics are 45-1

Leics 42-0 at lunch, with Greg Smith on 25 and Michael Thornely on 15. A solid start by the Leics openers

Good start for Leics, as they chase 236. Greg Smith particularly impressive on 24 as Leics reach 36-0 with a couple of overs to go before lunch

At last - Hoggard bowls Liam Norwell for 7 after he and Jon Batty (40*) had added 42 for the final wicket. Glos, 296 all out, have thus left Leics to score 236 from a minimum of 74 overs if they want to avoid a successive wooden spoon

More than 35 minutes' play this morning, and still Leicestershire cannot take the final Gloucestershire wicket. Jon Batty, with a sweep off Claude Henderson and a reverse sweep at Jigar Naik, has collected two fours while going to 36. Glos 281-9 - lead 220

Blustery but bright at Grace Road where Gloucestershire, resuming 193 ahead at 254-9, have already added six more runs. Fascinating day in prospect, with the Championship wooden spoon lurking for the loser

Two more wickets in the penultimate over of the day - Gidman stumped as Henderson turned one through his overbalancing forward lunge, and Fuller lbw sweeping - has tilted the momentum back Leics' way. Glos 254-9 at stumps, a lead of 193

Jack Taylor, seemingly under instructions to throw the bat, slogged 7 before heaving once too often - against Hoggard - to sky a simple catch to point. Glos 229-7, with Will Gidman 64 not out, lead by 168

Finally, a sixth wicket for Leics as captain Matthew Hoggard brings himself on for just his fourth over of the Glos second innings and has Dan Housego caught behind, cutting, for 62. Glos now 213-6 and Will Gidman has a 49-ball half-century, with 10x4

Later in the same White over, Hamish Marshall flicks at another rising ball going down the legside and gets a nick to Eckersley. White the serial strangler? Next ball, Glos slump further to 136-5 as Ian Cockbain edges behind. Three in five balls for White

Alex Gidman out for 24, gloving a legside catch to keeper Ned Eckersley, who took a fine left-handed diving catch, off White. Glos 132-3, lead by 71

Glos 116-2 at the interval, with Housego on 40 and batting well. Gidman has enjoyed more than his fair share of luck against Henderson, but has fought hard to get to 14. Lead is 55

Henderson and Naik bowling well in tandem - Henderson has beaten Alex Gidman several times with sharp turn - but Glos have moved to 91-2 with half-an-hour to go before tea

Benny Howell is bowled behind his legs, sweeping at Claude Henderson's slow left arm, for 35 and Glos are 79-2, a lead of 18

Ed Cowan had just on drove Wayne White imperiously for four when he flashed horribly outside off stump later in the same over and edged to keeper Ned Eckersley. Cowan made 16, and Glos are 39-1

Glos 9-0 from four overs at lunch, still trailing by 52. Ed Cowan has 8 and Benny Howell 1 and both Jigar Naik and Claude Henderson had an over before the interval. The two spinners will undoubtedly get plenty more bowling after lunch

Henderson, after hitting out to reach a useful 34, including a six over long on off Norwell, mis-pulled Fuller to mid on. Leics 295 all out, a lead of 61. Fuller finished with 4-51

Nathan Buck lbw to Liam Norwell for 25 but the Leics tailender played well in company with Claude Henderson, who remains 12 not out, to build a handy first innings lead which now stands at 39 with the total 273-9

James Fuller, the Glos fast bowler, has now taken three wickets in three successive overs as he adds the scalps of Jigar Naik and Shiv Thakor to that of White. Naik (6) mis-pulled to mid on and Thakor (73) was caught behind. Leics now 248-8

Wayne White fends off a short ball from James Fuller, bowling the third full over of the day from around the wicket, to short leg and goes for 25. He and Shiv Thakor, who resumed on 68, put on 70 for the sixth wicket. Leics 225-6

Lovely morning at Grace Road, and we will be away on time following yesterday's loss of almost 60 overs. Leics are aiming to avoid a second successive wooden spoon by beating Glos

Play has been called off for the day, with no prospect of the skies clearing and light rain still falling. Leics will resume tomorrow 14 runs behind Glos on 220-5

Rain easing here at Grace Road, but the covers remain on and even it it stops soon it would be difficult to see any more play before 5pm at the earliest

The resumption did not happen at 2.35pm, light rain is still falling and the threat of more rain has prompted the umpires to take an early tea at 2.50pm. Leics 14 runs behind at 220-5

Play is due to restart here at 2.35pm, but light rain in now falling again so that could yet be reviewed

Rain stopped play at Grace Road, at 1.47pm, with Leics 220-5 in the 67th over. Thakor is on 68 and White 20, and heavy cloud is now banking up where the rain is coming from

Leics now just 22 behind at 212-5. Thakor, batting with great maturity and skill, is 67 not out and Wayne White is on 13

Leics 186-5, with Thakor on 48 not out and White on 6. The home side have scored 92 runs in 28 overs for the loss of two wickets this morning, putting them only 48 runs behind Glos and in good shape

Jack Taylor has his first wicket of the innings, removing Greg Smith for a fine 77 (142 balls, 13x4) to a bat-pad catch at short leg. Leics now 155-5, with Shiv Thakor already on 25 thanks to some superb early strokes

Josh Cobb, attempting to force flat-footed, lost his middle stump to Liam Norwell to leave Leics 109-4. Greg Smith, however, who resumed on 47, has gone impressively to 62 after reaching his fifty with his eighth four, a straight drive off Will Gidman

Start delayed here by some light rain, but umpires George Sharp and Ismail Dawood will get things under way at 10.45 if there is no more precipitation - and it is dry at the moment

Leics 94-3 at stumps, with Smith 47*, trailing by 140 but in a good position after day one to top the Glos first innings score and then put their visitors under pressure again with spinners Henderson and Naik

Matt Boyce lbw to Will Gidman for 10, as the seamer is rewarded for coming around the wicket to the left-hander. Leics now 80-3, with Greg Smith 44 not out.

Leics 50-2 after Ned Eckersley, after a bright and breezy 25, is bowled driving over a full ball from Liam Norwell. Jack Taylor, the 20-year-old Glos off spinner brought on as early as the 9th over, is already prompting a few murmurs with his action

Leics' reply has got off to a poor start, with Michael Thornely lbw for 0 to Will Gidman. Greg Smith has started with a couple of sparkling boundaries, however. Leics 9-1

Two wickets in two balls for Claude Henderson, who had James Fuller caught at the wicket for 2 and then last man Liam Norwell taken at slip by Greg Smith. Glos are all out for 234, with Henderson and Naik sharing five wickets

Jon Batty lbw to the third ball after tea, pinned on the back foot in front of his stumps by Naik. Batty made 23, Glos are 228-8 and in danger of wasting their good mid-afternoon position of 167-4

No further mishaps before tea for Glos, who reach its sanctuary on 227-7. The ball is turning for both Henderson and Naik, who bowled 25 of the afternoon session's 35 overs in tandem.

After a stand of 50 in 23 overs, and a fortunate one at that against the spinning ball, Jigar Naik has pinned Will Gidman lbw for 26. Jon Batty is 22 not out and Glos are 225-7

Glos now 175-6, having been 167-4 a few minutes ago. Ian Cockbain, having hit eight fours in a bright 48, has left looking darkly at the pitch after lobbing up a simple catch to short extra cover from a ball by Claude Henderson which popped at him

Marshall and Cockbain took their fifth wicket stand to 96 in 17 overs before Marshall, driving at a widish ball from Buck, edged to keeper Eckersley on 47. Cockbain, joined by Will Gidman, remains 40 not out

An excellent morning's play has left Glos 121-4 from 29 overs, with Hamish Marshall (31*) and Ian Cockbain (17*) rattling up an unbroken 50 stand and playing some fine strokes after Leics had taken the early honours

Shiv Thakor has a second wicket, bowling Dan Housego for 22 with a fine ball that nipped back through the batsman's gate as he played defensively forward. Glos 71-4

Glos 66-3. Alex Gidman, beaten by one from medium-pacer Shiv Thakor that skidded on, is lbw for 11 to bring to an end a promising stand between the Glos captain and Dan Housego, who remains 22 not out

Two wickets for Leics, with Cowan bowled by a beauty from Buck for 19, a near-yorker swinging through the Australian left-hander's defences, and Benny Howell bowled for 7 later in a Wayne White over in which he had already been dropped at first slip. 35-2

Glos 26-0, Ed Cowan taking 2x4 off Hoggard's third over. Benny Howell should have been run out in the 2nd over when he survived an lbw shout by Nathan Buck, set off for a leg bye, was sent back and saw Wayne White miss the keeper with an underarm throw

Leics: Thornely, Smith, Eckersley (w), Cobb, Boyce, Thakor, White, Naik, Henderson, Buck, Hoggard (c)
Gloucs: Cowan, Howell, Housego, A Gidman (c), Marshall, Cockbain, W Gidman, Batty (w), Fuller, Taylor, Norwell

Alex Gidman, the Gloucestershire captain, has won the toss and elected to bat on a sunny morning at Grace Road

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