Mickey Arthur on Gloucestershire draw

Mickey Arthur felt there were some positives in Derbyshire’s draw with Gloucestershire, but felt they brought pressure on themselves at key moments. 

After the entirity of Day One was washed out, Harry Came’s maiden first-class century in tricky conditions helped Derbyshire to declare on 251-9 on Day Three, before economical spells from Luis Reece and Suranga Lakmal seemed to be sending the game to a comfortable draw.

However, a 99-run partnership between Zafar Gohar and Matt Taylor for the ninth wicket gave the visitors a three-figure lead, before an early collapse saw Derbyshire 28-3 and scrambling to avoid defeat.

Captain Leus du Plooy’s unbeaten half-century on the final day guided the side to safety, and Arthur emphasised that Derbyshire need to focus on what they did well in this game, ahead of the Vitality Blast starting next week.

“I think with us losing time it always made it difficult in terms of trying to push for something.

“I think we had the worse conditions, it was a good toss to win, I think we would have bowled really well in those conditions as they did, but I felt we played some good cricket over the three days.

“They got 99 runs partnership for the ninth wicket and then we went bang-bang in the second innings which puts you under a little bit of pressure but other than that we’ve chipped away and been very good in terms of our disciplines this game and more like the disciplines I’m wanting from the team going forward and more like the brand of cricket we want to play.”

Vitality Blast 2023: Be Bold, Be Derbyshire

In 2023, every Derbyshire Falcons home T20 will be played on a Friday night, weekend or Bank Holiday, meaning it’s never been easier to follow the Falcons in the Vitality Blast.

2022 saw a Club-record number of T20 wins, coupled with the Best Domestic Spectator Experience to make the Falcons Vitality Blast campaign one of the best ever, and this year’s promises to be even bigger, with an enhanced food and drink range and added emphasis on accessibility.

Tickets are selling fast, with the clash with Yorkshire Vikings at Queen’s Park, the East Midlands Derby vs Notts Outlaws and the Monday 29 May Family Day gaining high interest from supporters, so don’t delay if you want to experience Mickey Arthur’s Falcons live this summer!