Glos paceman De Lange takes 6-49 against Middlesex

Vitality County Championship Division Two, Seat Unique Stadium, Bristol (day one)

Middlesex 203: De Caires 37; De Lange 6-49

Gloucestershire 82-3: O Price 33

Gloucestershire (3 pts) trail Middlesex (1 pt) by 121 runs

Match scorecard

Gloucestershire seamer Marchant de Lange claimed his 350th first-class wicket as he took 6-49 to help bowl oute Middlesex for 203 on the opening day of the County Championship Second Division match at Bristol.

The 33-year-old South African only took six Championship wickets in the whole of last summer, his first with Gloucestershire, which saw his season end in early June by a thigh injury that required surgery.

Now fit and firing, De Lange bowled 16 rapid overs from the Ashley Down Road End and ripped through the heart of the Middlesex batting, only Josh De Caires (37) and former Gloucestershire all-rounder Ryan Higgins (30) showing much resistance.

By the time bad light ended play 6.2 overs early, the home side had replied with 82-3, Ollie Price making 33 and Miles Hammond 25 not out.

Mark Stoneman and Nathan Fernandes took advantage of unusually short boundaries at the Seat Unique Stadium to put together an opening stand of 55 in 14 overs as Middlesex made a solid start.

But three wickets in the space of 18 balls changed everything. Stoneman was bowled between bat and pad by Zaman Akhter for 29, Max Holden edged a high slip catch to Price off De Lange and Fernandes, on 24, nicked to wicketkeeper James Bracey to become De Lange’s 350th victim in his 104th first-class game.

Leus du Plooy edged Dom Goodman to Bracey and Stephen Eskinazi had made only 11 before being taken at gully driving at Goodman and Higgins edged a defensive back-off shot off De Lange to Cameron Bancroft at second slip to make it 127-6.

Bancroft held another slip chance on a cold overcast afternoon to send back Jack Davies and give De Lange his fourth wicket, but De Caires and Tom Helm then managed to arrest the slide with a stand of 58 inside 16 overs.

But De Lange bowled Helm for 22 and De Caires was caught at mid-wicket before Henry Brookes departed to Graeme van Buuren and Middlesex were bowled out inside 60 overs.

Chris Dent was bowled for three by a full delivery from Ethan Bamber as Gloucestershire made a poor start.

Bancroft dragged a wide delivery from Higgins onto his stumps and fell for 12 and with the light closing in, Price was caught behind fending at a short ball from Helm.

Report supplied by the ECB Reporters' Network.