Dom Bess and Dan Moriarty got themselves amongst the wickets and centurion Fin Bean and Joe Root amongst the runs as Yorkshire returned a near perfect day two display to press ahead against Glamorgan at Headingley.
Yorkshire’s spin twins claimed four wickets apiece to put the skids under Glamorgan’s first innings, which was wrapped up for 221 just after lunch.
Bean and Root then put their foot down in contrasting ways during the best part of the remaining two sessions, sharing an unbroken 201 for the third wicket in only 30.3 overs with Yorkshire closing on 295 for two from 49 overs – a lead of 74.
Opener Bean made a belligerent career best 140 off 145 balls and England’s Root an artistic 92 off 90.
And Yorkshire have now got a first Vitality County Championship win of the season in their sights at the fifth attempt.
Off-spinner Bess was excellent in completing figures of 4-25 from 13 overs, while fellow twirler Moriarty, the left-armer, record 4-74 from 29 overs. The pair had started day, played entirely under an overcast sky and floodlights, with one wicket apiece.
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com. Dom Bess en-route to a brilliant four-for.
Glamorgan fell from 109-4 overnight before their bowlers were put under serious pressure on a used pitch, one showing signs of increasing turn.
Unfortunately for them, their sole spinner in the side, on loan Hampshire leggie Mason Crane, was taken for 1-66 in seven overs.
Yorkshire struck twice before lunch and twice shortly afterwards as Glamorgan fell to 208-6 in the 74th over.
Before lunch, Moriarty had Chris Cooke well caught on the cut at cover by Harry Brook going to his left, ending a 65-run stand with Colin Ingram – 162-5 in the 56th over, the 15th of the morning.
Ingram was then trapped lbw by Bess with only his second ball of the day, for 48, leaving the score at 182-6. Both of Bess’s wickets to that point had come in the first over of a new spell.
After lunch, both men had batters caught at short-leg. Moriarty’s was the conventional bad-pad style dismissal at the start of the 73rd, removing James Harris.
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com. Dan Moriarty and Dom Bess leave the field this afternoon after taking four wickets apiece.
Bess then had Tom Bevan caught on the reverse sweep for 22, again by Fin Bean, as the ball looped up off glove in the following over.
And the spin twins continued to trade wickets. Bess had Jamie McIlroy caught at backward square-leg pulling before Mir Hamza top-edged a slog sweep at Moriarty and was caught by Jonny Tattersall running around in front of the stumps to wrap up the innings.
Despite losing Adam Lyth for 20 and Shan Masood for 34 before tea, Yorkshire advanced at pace with the bat.
They reached tea on 106-2 from 20 overs, with Bean leading the way. He slog swept Mason Crane’s leg-spin for six over long-on.
Earlier, Crane had Masood caught at short-leg after Lyth had been trapped lbw by Pakistani left-arm quick Hamza.
After tea, Bean and Root pressed on at some pace.
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com. Fin Bean on the cut today.
They upped Yorkshire’s run-rate beyond six-an-over and took both spin and seam to task.
Bean reached his fifty off 62 balls having been dropped on six by Harris off his own bowling. Either side of reaching that milestone, he twice slog-swept Crane over long-on for six.
Root’s innings was full of all the shots we have come to know and love. The only one he didn’t unfurl was the reverse ramp off the quicks.
He reached his fifty off 44 balls.
The milestones came thick and fast against a Glamorgan attack missing some key components through injury.
When Bean brought up his hundred, off 111 balls, Yorkshire were 232-2 in the 40th over.
Picture by Allan McKenzie/SWpix.com. Joe Root on the pull as he closes in on a second century in as many weeks.
Bad light then ended the day 12 overs early, preventing Root from surely reaching a second successive century. That can wait until tomorrow.
For now, Bean will take the batting limelight after the two twirlers starting a fabulous day.
They contributed to a notable statistic. Glamorgan’s first innings was the first occasion this century when spin bowlers have taken eight wickets in an innings at Headingley for Yorkshire in a County Championship match.
