“We threw everything at them,” said Ottis Gibson as he reflected on Yorkshire’s final day display in their Vitality County Championship draw against Gloucestershire at Bristol today.
The coach was clearly disappointed and frustrated at a 13-point return from a game which his side dominated for its majority.
But they were met with stiff Gloucestershire resistance on day four, as centuries from Ollie Price and James Bracey advanced the hosts – faced with a 498 target – from 97-4 overnight to 405-6 at close
It was Yorkshire’s second successive draw to start the new summer, and they sit joint-second in an embryonic Division Two table which has a bit of an odd luck about it given every single game so far has been drawn. There has not been one single result.
Sussex are top on 29 points, Yorkshire second on 25 alongside Leicestershire.
“You have to give them credit, they played well – their two guys who got hundreds played well,” said coach Gibson.
“We created some opportunities, but in the end it’s a bit of a stalemate.
“I’m pleased with where we are and how we played. It’s just disappointing
we couldn’t get over the line. But onwards and upwards.”
Asked whether Yorkshire could have done any more to force their first win of 2024, the Bajan said: “I don’t think so.
“We tried everything – we bowled spin, we bowled seam. The wicket got really flat, and the Kookaburra ball doesn’t help.
“Therefore, it’s a new ball game. We got wickets with the new ball in the first innings and wickets with the new ball today. But once the hardness goes out of the ball and the batsmen are intent on not getting out, it’s a very attritional situation.
“They played the way they needed to play. I don’t think they were ever going to get the runs, but they played well and kept us out.
“Yesterday, when you’re looking at a target to set them, the ground is very small. On the one side, it’s a 50-metre boundary. It’s a flat pitch with a Kookaburra ball you know is not going to give you much assistance after maybe 20 or 30 overs.
“We felt like we tried to bat as quickly as we could to give ourselves enough time. We felt that (26 overs) after tea and the whole day today would have been enough, but it proved not to be. So there’s a bit of frustration there.
“People will ask, ‘Could you have declared earlier?’ But does that not play into their hands a little bit?
“The Kookaburra ball doesn’t help when the pitch is that flat. We’re happy to see the Dukes at Lord’s, I’ve got to tell you.”
Clearly, there are plenty of encouraging signs for Yorkshire heading to Lord’s to face Middlesex on Friday.
“It’s a strength of our batting when you’ve got Brook and Root,” said Gibson. “But you look at our first-innings score of 326 and they didn’t get many between them. Shan Masood got a fantastic century.
“We’re happy with where we are with our batting.
“Our bowling, we know what we can do in conditions which suit us. When they don’t, we have to work that bit harder.”
And on team selection ahead of Lord’s, Gibson said: “The bowlers put a lot of work in there. They ran in hard and tried their best. Conditions today, it was cold and blustery. We’ll have to see how we pull up.
“We stated from the start of the season that rotation will be part of our policy going forwards.
“It’s only two games in and seems a bit early to be talking about rotation. But, today, conditions were quite brutal with the cold and how windy it was.
“I’ve got to commend my guys – they worked really hard and kept coming in.
“We’ve got to see how we pull up tomorrow.”
